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I didn’t have time to think about it because soon enough there were three short knocks on the door and then Logan was hobbling in with a cane in his right hand.
I arched a brow. “Kinky.”
He smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “My doctor gave it to me for when my RA is acting up really bad. It’s fuckin’ embarrassing, but my ankles are killing me today.”
I felt like I’d been punched in the heart as he admitted his pain. He was being so brutally honest with me, but I wasn’t ready to tell him what was bothering me.
“I don’t know,” I responded with a shrug and stood, walking over and pressing a soft kiss to his lips, lingering there for a moment. “I think it’s kinda cute.”
“Ah, yes. I hear the whole crippled thing is a turn on. I guess it’s true that redheads are real freaks.”
I couldn’t help but laugh as I grabbed my bag, locking the door as we headed out. We had to walk a little slower and I could see that each step was a struggle for Logan. His brow was furrowed and he looked down, gritting his teeth with every step he took. By the time we made it to his car, a sweat had broken out on his forehead and he looked exhausted with the exertion. His body was wearing him down, and as much as I wanted to ask if he wanted to wait and do this another day, I didn’t. Logan was stubborn, strong willed, and thick skulled in a way that was both admirable and annoying.
“Do you think she’ll ask if she can have Mac back?” I asked once we were en route to the city.
“She can ask, beg, whatever she wants. Mac is my dog and I sure as fuck won’t give him back to her and the guy that almost killed him.”
There was a determined look in his eyes and I almost felt bad for poor Nicole. She had no idea what she was getting herself into. Then again, I couldn’t feel too bad because she was the one who had gone ahead and screwed things up by coming back to town.
“Is she your ex?” I finally asked, feeling like I needed to know.
I hadn’t asked Logan much about Nicole, but I had to know if there was something between the two of them. If she was an ex girlfriend or an ex hook up. It wasn’t any of my business and I knew he wasn’t obligated to give me an answer, but I hoped he would. It was obvious that he cared about Nicole and they obviously had some sort of history that I knew nothing about.
“Why? You gonna be jealous if she is?”
My spine straightened. “No, of course not. It’s.. it’s-”
“Relax.” He laughed and turned down the radio. “Nicole and I are nothing more than friends. It’s always been that way. We would have clashed as a couple and if I’m being honest, Nic’s too needy. I wouldn’t have been able to handle that.”
Good thing I’m the least needy person in the world, I thought wryly. If anything I was overly independent and borderline standoffish. But still, there was some part of me that felt better knowing I wasn’t about to walk in on some ex girlfriend type of drama that I had a feeling Logan was very familiar with.
The rest of the ride was mostly silent and I had a feeling it was because he was so wrapped up in his thoughts about how today was going to go. It could either go one of two ways; with Nicole admitting that it was a mistake coming home and she wanted a way out again, or with her refusing Logan’s help and going back
to Conlon and telling him what happened. Unease settled in my gut as I had a feeling that today would end with the latter.
Boston was crowded and Faneuil Hall was even worse with tourists milling about and Boston natives shoving their way through the crowds. Located near the waterfront and Government Center, the shops were an attraction to teens and it looked beautiful in the winter with twinkling lights wound around tree branches and snow capped buildings lining the cobblestones that Logan and I walked along.
We were outside of Quincy Market and the smells that wafted out made my mouth water, but eating was the last thing on my mind. The sky was dark gray and the wind was biting as it hit the exposed skin of my hands and face. It looked and felt like it was going to snow any second.
Logan left his cane in the car, and I had a feeling it was because he was embarrassed that he needed it. We walked side by side, moving slowly as he looked around for Nicole. She promised to meet us by one and it was nearly one thirty. His frustration was palpable as he scanned the crowd. I wished I could have been more help, but I had no idea what Nicole looked like, so I didn’t know where to start looking.
“Do you think she bailed?” I finally asked.
“I wouldn’t be surprised,” he finally responded as he scanned the crowd again. It was loud and a group of teens passed in front of us, hooting and hollering about nothing in particular.
“Logan?” a feminine, raspy voice came up behind us, startling me as I reached to grip him by the sleeve of his jacket.
His back was straight as he turned to face the woman that was, presumably, Nicole. The first thing that I noticed was how small she was. I was petite and had always been called as much, but Nicole was tiny. Rail thin and pale with stringy blonde hair and thick eyeliner around her eyes that made her resemble a raccoon. Her pale blue eyes were bloodshot and I couldn’t help but wonder if she was high or if it was from crying. Ronald had said she looked good, which made me think that something had changed in the last forty eight hours, because the girl I was staring at now looked strung out and on edge, looking over her shoulder like she was a junkie on the lookout for cops.
Maybe in her eyes, Logan was the equivalent to a cop.
“Sorry I’m late.” She sounded breathless as though she’d been running.
When he said nothing, I looked up at him. There was mean look in his eyes and his jaw was clenched hard as the wind picked up and ruffled his hair. Everything about the situation felt tense, itchy. I wanted it to stop.
“It’s fine,” I finally blurted out, feeling like I was drowning in the silence. “We understand.”
Nicole’s eyes shot to me and she looked me up and down, sizing me up. I shifted from one foot to the other, hating the way she was silently scrutinizing me. “Who the hell are you?”
