“You told me you don’t want to be my wife. You don’t get to dictate how this relationship progresses. I’m not going to be your friend. I plan to have as little contact with you as possible. So get the fuck out of here.”

Lina was staring out the kitchen window, wondering if she was in the midst of a nightmare or her husband was really leaving, when Logan and Katie came through the mudroom door.

“What are you doing home?” Logan asked. “I thought you were at the beach.”

“Dad made me spend the night at Aunt Jeanie and Uncle Mike’s like I’m a baby,” Katie complained. “Why can’t I choose where I spend the night?”

“Your mother and I need to talk to the two of you,” Phil interrupted as he came into the room. “Take a seat at the table.”

“What happened to your hand?” Logan asked. He crossed to Phil, his eyes on the brace.

“I broke it.”

“How?” He reached out to touch it.

“Just take a seat, Logan. Katie?” he called to her as she began to leave the room. “Please sit down.”

“Did you fall off your bike?” Logan asked.

“No. Katie?”

She frowned but followed his instructions, taking the chair beside Logan’s. “Did someone die?”

“No.” He pulled out a chair opposite theirs. “Lina?” He indicated with a nod of his head that he wanted her to sit, and then he was lowering himself into the chair beside her, staring down at his hands. “Your mother and I love you both very much,” he finally said, his eyes moving between Logan and Katie. “Nothing will ever change that. It’s important you know that.”

“You’re getting a divorce?” Katie asked.

“No they’re not!” Logan said, the color draining from his face.

“Let me talk,” Phil said. “Last February I began a relationship with a woman I worked with—an inappropriate relationship. I had an affair. It ended in May. It’s the biggest regret of my life, but I can’t undo it. The relationship resulted in a pregnancy.”

“You cheated on Mom?” Logan’s eyes were full of disbelief as he looked at Phil.

“Is she having your baby?” Katie asked.

“What?” Logan’s gaze swung from Katie to his father. “What is she talking about?”

“He just said the relationship resulted in a pregnancy. That means he got her pregnant.”

“I did,” Phil said. “And yes, she’s going to have it. Your mother, understandably, is having a hard time moving past it.”

“How could you do that to her?” Logan cried.

A tear slipped from Lina’s eye when she saw the devastation on Logan’s face. He looked crushed, like he had been told someone died.

“I made a mistake.”

Logan shook his head and began to get up. “I don’t want to hear any more.”