“Yes?” I whisper.
“A manhasto be there for his children. If he’s not a monster – if he’s a decent man who’s going to help the kid, not hurt them – then he has to be there. I don’t give a flying fuck about any sob stories. I don’t care if you want to lie and tell yourself the child would be better off without you. Unless that’s true, then shut the fuck up and do your duty.”
He shakes his head, laughing, but there’s no humor in it. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be,” I whisper as his words bounce around me, tempting me even more.
“I agree,” I say.
“It’s an old-fashioned way to think these days.” Logan shrugs. “But I don’t care. If I ever have another child, nothing on this planet could stop me from being there for them.”
My heart shimmers, even as I remind myself that he’s definitely not talking about us.
“Sometimes it’s not that easy,” I say softly. “I’ve got a friend.”
I don’t give him Jane’s name since it wouldn’t be fair.
“Her mom was,isa…complicated person. She did a great job raising my friend. But she was also extremely cruel to her dad. At least, that’s how I see it. My friend always told me her dad was a good man, but her mom got bitter in the divorce, even if she was the one who asked for it. Maybe she wanted him to fight for her. I don’t know.”
“Some tactic,” Logan says gruffly. “Marriage isn’t a thing to be toyed with. It’s the same as having kids. Once you make the commitment, you stick to it.”
“He cheated on her,” I tell him.
Logan sits up a little, face tightening. “Ah, that’s a different story.”
“I hate cheating,” I murmur, looking at him, but at the same time scared to because I know I’ll read far too much into it.
“It’s one of the lowest things a person can do,” Logan says firmly.
Aren’t you cheating on your last date with every new photo you take?
But that’s not fair. It’s not like he tells those women he’s going to be with them forever,thengoes on a date. Everybody knows the deal.
“Anyway,” I go on, “she did everything she could to make sure my friend’s dad got as little visitation as possible. It didn’t work, since my friend loves her dad and went to see him anyway. But sometimes it works, both ways…men and women, using their kids as pawns.”
“It would’ve been better if they’d stayed together,” Logan says.
“Despite the cheating?” I ask.
He sighs darkly. “I’d die before I cheated on a partner, but….”
“Is that Lucky Logan?” somebody says from a few tables over, their voice rising. “Holyshit. It is. Lucky Logan Locke. Oh my God.”
Three men rush our table all at once, cutting off the conversation.
Logan snaps into celebrity mode, all smiles, signing their autographs. I wonder if the fans can see his tight smile and the strained quality in his eyes.
Once they’re gone, he leans forward, lowering his voice. “What’s say we eat as quickly as we can, then get the hell out of here?”
“Where are we going?” I ask.
“Somewhere, you can finally answer my question.”
“Your…,” I trail off, remembering. “Oh right. I never told you why I wanted to be a therapist.”
“That’s right,” he smirks. “That’s why we’re here, after all.”
It’s difficult to hear these very true words after what we just shared, all that sudden closeness.