Before I can respond, Logan’s reply pops up.
Don’t. Bell and Ty will rip it apart. We’ll grab it next time.
I want to type that they won’t. But those two absolutely would rip it to shreds.
A second later, his dad’s response comes through.
K.
That’s it.
JustK.
I stare at the screen a moment longer than necessary. Things between Logan and his dad are still… neutral. Polite.
No warmth or tension. Just this steady, careful distance. I understand it. Doesn’t mean I like it.
For me, it took my parents making my wedding about themselves to finally cut the cord. It was clean and fast.
Logan’s version feels different.
I have a feeling his will be louder. Messier. He and his dad have been avoiding the real conversation for so long that when it finally happens, it’s going to blow up in their faces.
Or maybe it won’t.
Maybe it’ll just stay like this forever. They’re both kings of procrastination.
The new, improved me? I’m learning that not every explosion is mine to prevent.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Logan
Christenings are boring.
And since I’m the godfather, I can’t even scroll my phone without looking like a jackass. So I sit there with my hands folded, nodding solemnly while a priest I’ve never met talks about sacred vows and spiritual responsibility.
All I can do is make eyes at Jess.
She ignores me.
I try again. A wink this time.
Nothing.
Finally, after what feels like an eternity, Penny’s head is dunked, she screams, and we get to leave.
Jess and I rush out after pictures to set up the house for the party.
Everyone was happy to have it at the community center but then Jess offered our backyard. So now we’re going home on a Sunday to entertain fifty people.
I don’t mind, exactly. I just… would’ve preferred a quiet day with my family instead of a rotating cast of people my wife somehow collects like Pokémon.
“Why are you so grumpy?” Jess asks from the passenger seat.
“I’m not grumpy.”
“You’re scowling.”
