Chapter 48

Chapter Forty-Eight

I feel sick when I see the object in Randy's palm. Sick .

"I bought it yesterday," Randy tells me, his eyes shining, "right before I got the ant farm."

With that preamble, Randy opens the blue velvet box in his hand. The ring inside is made of white gold and has a tiny diamond that sparkles in the overhead lights.

Sick .

"I can return it if I need to," he says quickly. "So if you don't think Gretchen would like it, I could get another one…"

How about you return the ring and not get another one? How about you don't ask my best friend to marry you? "Um…"

His face falls. "Is the diamond too small?"

The diamond is really tiny, but I'm sure Gretchen will love it. The diamond isn't the problem. The problem is the guy giving her the diamond. I may not think Randy is a killer, but I still don't think he's good enough for Gretchen. She could do so much better, but she's not even looking because she's stuck with him. "It's a bit small…"

He stares critically at the tiny gem. "I know. Believe me, I wanted to get her an enormous diamond, because that's what she deserves. But they say three months' salary, and this cost me six months' salary. I can't do any bigger than this…"

"If money is an issue, maybe now is the wrong time to propose? Maybe wait a few years."

He rubs the back of his neck. "But I love her. Gretchen is the best person I've ever met. I want to spend the rest of my life with her—making her happy."

His usually slightly beady eyes are open wide—he seems incredibly sincere. Randy might not be my favorite person in the whole world, but he loves Gretchen. And she's wild about him too. I would be an awful person to try to keep them apart.

Right?

"I think she'll love that ring," I say begrudgingly.

His face brightens. "You really think so?"

"Definitely."

"Thanks, Syd." He snaps the blue velvet box closed and shoves it back in his pocket. "I'm trying to figure out how I should ask her. Like, I should get down on one knee, right?"

I can't help but smile. "Yeah, you definitely should."

"Do you think it would be lame if I wrote down what I want to say on index cards?" he asks. "I really want to get it perfect."

"Honestly, I think she's going to say yes no matter what."

Randy grins at me. I don't know if I have ever seen him smile that wide. I can't even imagine what he's going to look like when Gretchen agrees to marry him. And while I do believe she could do better, I can't deny that he clearly loves her. Gretchen's had her share of heartbreak, and she deserves a happy ending.

At that moment, I realize that I can never tell anyone that Randy doesn't have an alibi for the night of Bonnie's murder.