Page 105 of We Were Something
Before I can say anything, there’s a knock on the door.
Jen crosses over and opens it, her hand coming to her hip. But she doesn’t say anything, just stares out the front door at whoever is on the other side.
“I’m looking for Logan.”
My heartbeat quickens at the sound of Paige’s voice.
Jen lets out a sigh then steps aside, waving Paige in. At the sight of her, I smile a little bit. Even knowing what’s to come, I still can’t help that I’m happy to see her.
“There you are,” she says, crossing over to me and taking my hand in hers. “I was worried. It’s beenhours.”
“I tried to call you,” I tell her, though I don’tadmit I was glad she didn’t answer. “Your phone keeps going to voicemail.”
“What?”
Paige whips her phone out of her back pocket then rolls her eyes. “It’s set on Do Not Disturb. I don’t even know how that happened.” Then she looks up at me. “I’m so sorry.”
“So this is your new girlfriend, huh?”
The question comes from one of Jen’s friends who I don’t know as well. Gemma, maybe. Or Gemmy. Something like that.
I give her a tight smile and a nod, preparing to make our apologies and leave when the Gemmy woman speaks again.
“I can’t believe you’d bring her to Rodney’s funeral.”
At that, I can’t contain the laugh that bubbles over, the many drinks I’ve had making all of this finally seem funny.
“You mean bring the girl I’m dating after getting divorced to the wake of the man my ex-wife cheated on me with?” I ask. “Is that what you mean?”
“It’s been a long day for everyone,” Warren interjects, always the peacemaker. “Let’s not dive into a conversation that will just make things worse.”
“Or maybe everyone could stop treating Logan likehedid something wrong by moving away and starting a new life,” Paige interjects, her voice ringing loudly and clearly through the room.
“Paige, you don’t have to—”
“No, I think I do,” she says. “I’ve been trying to be nice and friendly since I got here, and I understand everyone is grieving so tempers are high and words come out imperfect and blah blah blah. But I thought you guys were his friends. Have any of you checked in with him about his life? Gone to visit him? Asked about his new job or if he’s making friends or found a house yet?”
She looks at all of them, and I’m actually surprised when a few look away from her.
“Or better yet, have any of you come to see him at the hospital? Given him a call to check in and see how he’s doing? How hismotheris doing? That one I can answer, because I’ve been there every day. I haven’t seen a single one of you. So maybe instead of shitting on Logan for bringing his girlfriend to Rodney’s funeral and debating whether or not he’s being a goodhusbandto hisex-wife, you start looking at your own damn self and ifyou’vebeen a good friend.”
Maybe it makes me an asshole to fall a bit more in love with Paige after seeing her stand up to my friends like that, but it’s what happens.
Which is how I know I need to do this now, before the whiskey leaves my system and I go back to being the coward again.
So instead of saying anything to the group, without another word spoken, I grab Paige by the hand and lead her out of the room.
CHAPTER20
PAIGE
“Okay, so part of me feels like I went a bit too far by putting all your friends on blast like that,” I tell Logan as we come to a stop in a small office around the corner from the living room. “But seriously, what the fuck? How can they all sit around and act like you’ve done something wrong when you literally haven’t done anything wrong!”
He gives me a soft smile and squeezes my hand in his, and the little thing inside me that worried he’d be mad relaxes, thankful that he gets it.
“Because seriously,” I continue, “I can firmly attest to the fact that our group of friends in Hermosa arewaaaaaymore loyal than that. I mean I can’t even—”
“Paige,” he says, and I immediately stop talking, giving him a wide smile.
