Chapter 33

Hannah

“Yes, Mom.” I laugh and shake my head to her incessant questioning about when we’ll be there.

“We’re pulling in… now!”

She screeches and Logan laughs. He parks behind my dad’s car and I quickly get out and run to my parents.

“Hi!” I smile and hug them both. I turn around and see Logan a few feet away. “Mom, Dad, this is my boyfriend, Logan Davis.”

They do the cute introduction and my mom hugs him, telling us how adorable he is and how lucky I am to have such a handsome man in my life.

We’re spending a few days with my parents since Logan’s taking me to Hawaii for Thanksgiving. My parents are bummed that I won’t be in town, but I promised them we’ll be here for Christmas, even though Logan grumbled about wanting to take me away, so we compromised and we’re going to be spending New Years with Lincoln and Eden.

While my parents are getting food ready for dinner, I give Logan a tour.

We’re in my bedroom and he’s studying my pictures and yearbook from high school while he sits on the floor.

I join him. “That was me on the debate team, and this one is me holding the trophy from our last debate.”

“You were on the debate team?” He laughs and I swat his hard chest.

“Don’t make fun of me!”

“Aw, baby. You were a nerd.”

I narrow my eyes at him and yank the yearbook out of his hands. He tries to get it back but I throw it to the other side of my bedroom. We play-fight on the floor, and I love seeing this side of him.

After dinner, I excuse myself and venture inside Michael’s bedroom. Everything’s still the same. Will always be the same. I gently scroll through the photos on his cell phone and, silently, I pray he’s okay.

“Hey.” Logan wanders in, inspects Michael’s room, and sits down next to me. He looks at the cell phone and wraps his arm around my shoulders.

“Is this your brother?”

“Yeah.” I sniffle and wipe my tears. “I can’t believe it's been two years since he left us. I don’t have my older brother anymore.”

Logan doesn’t say anything. He gazes at the pictures with me and sometimes asks about one of them. Each story I tell him makes my heart full. I love talking about Michael and sharing his memories.

“Do you know I never understood the reason why his girlfriend broke up with him.”

I press the text-message icon on his home screen and open the text app. Logan reads the conversations with me.

“Seems like she changed her mind or something if she didn’t answer him after he sent those text messages. Relationships end, and sometimes there’s never a real answer. I’m sorry about your brother.”

“Thank you.”

I go back to his photo album and show him a picture of Michael and Renee. Suddenly, the air in me stops moving and my eyes are ready to pop out of my head. Everything slows. Logan and I both stare hard at the picture before us.

No. Holy shit! NO!

“What the fuck?”

Logan yanks the cell phone from my hand and looks at the picture, scrolling through to see more. His body stills, and I have no idea what’s going on.

“Logan, I swear to God, I've never met her, and I never saw her picture until now. After Michael died, I didn't snoop through his phone. Oh, my God, babe, please say something. I'm so sorry.”

The whites of Logan’s knuckles become clear and his hands are shaking. When I touch his arm, he pulls away, drops the album, and leaps from the floor.

“Logan?”

“I can’t be here.”

His voice trembles as he exits Michael’s room and rushes into mine. I quickly follow, asking him to talk to me and not shut down. This is so bad. What the fuck was my brother thinking?

“Talk to me,” I beg him, touching his arm again and feeling the coldness when he whips around to level an icy stare at me. “L-Logan?”

“I need to leave.”

“Wait, why? Talk to me!”

I’m becoming frantic. I’m trying to think what happened from the time he came into the room and now. Things are good between us. Why are things changing?

I wrap my arms around his waist and his body stiffens against mine. This isn’t good. He loves when I hold him.

“Logan, please.”

His hands pull apart my hold on him and he turns to face me. The darkness in his eyes are jagged pieces piercing through me. The tremble of his hands at his side and his intense walk scares me. Pain clenches my heart as my back slaps against the wall and he corners me in my room, slamming his hand into the wall where my head rests.

“Renee is Shannon. Your brother was in love with my wife! The reason why he could never find her is because she fucking died. She died with our unborn baby! He caused the accident. Because of your brother, I fucking lost my wife and baby in one day. Don’t ever fucking talk to me again. Do you understand?”

There’s an evil coldness in his voice I’ve never heard before. I have no idea what to say or do right now.

“Logan, please calm down so we can talk about this. I had no idea Renee was Shannon. I never even met her! How is this my fault?”

“All I know is I can’t be here. But I need you to stay the fuck away from me. You’re fired. I don’t ever want to see you again.”

Before I can say anything, he rushes out of my room and I’m frozen in this very spot. I drop to the floor, my hands covering my face, and sobs wrack my body.

He promised he wouldn’t break my heart.

He promised he’d love me forever.

He promised he’d never make me cry.

Tears rip through my body, my chest is on fire, and everything around me blurs.

“Hannah?”

My mom pulls me into her body and rocks me like a baby. I can’t tell her what happened. All I can do is cry.