“I’m not done, Logan. I need you to sit,” Phil said, his voice remaining calm. “I know this is hard, but I need to finish.”

Logan dropped back into his chair, his eyes lowered.

“Your mother and I are separating,” he continued. “I’ve already packed, and I’m leaving as soon as we’re done here.”

“Are you getting a divorce?” Katie asked, her expression not giving away her feelings.

“For now it’s a separation, but regardless of what happens between me and your mother, you’re still my children, and you’re still the most important things in the world to me. I’m not divorcing you.”

“Can I go now?” Logan asked.

“Yes,” Phil said, and Logan fled the room.

“Are you going to be like a father to this baby? Is it going to call you Dad?” Katie looked more curious than upset.

“Yes. He’s innocent in all of this.”

“It’s a boy?”

Phil took a deep breath. “He hasn’t been born yet, but yes.”

“You don’t love him anymore?” Katie asked Lina.

“Of course I do,” Lina said. “I’m just having a hard time moving past what he did.”

Katie’s gaze shifted to Phil. “Grandma said men always cheat—that they’re not made for monogamy. I thought she was wrong because of you. I guess she was right.”

“That’s not true,” he said, his voice firm. “We’re not animals. I know plenty of men who have never cheated.”

She shrugged. “Where are you going to live?”

“With Wayne and Diane until I find something more permanent.”

He’d called Wayne and Diane. Their best friends knew. Lina felt a knot forming in her throat. This was real. There was no waking up from it.

“I guess we’re like everyone else,” Katie said before pushing back her chair and leaving the room.

Phil stood and headed towards the mudroom door, and Lina realized he was leaving. “What about Megan?”

He paused but didn’t turn to face her. “I’m driving out there tonight. I’ll make sure she’s okay before leaving her tomorrow.”

“You shouldn’t be going anywhere with your hand like that. You’re supposed to be resting and taking painkillers.”

“I’m not telling her over the phone.”

“I could go,” Lina said, but as the words left her lips she knew it was an empty offer. They both knew Megan would want to hear it from him.

Chapter 31

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