Loved Him First, But Not Forever

I almost forgot.

Regina was the girl I had brought back from the middle of nowhere.

At first, Logan hated the idea of her living with us. He would wrap his arms around me and whine, half joking, half serious.

"Babe, why don't we let her stay somewhere else? I'll buy her a place if I have to. Having her here all the time is messing with our life."

But back then, Regina had just been rescued. She had been abused for years; she would jump at every little sound and cling to me in the middle of the night like a scared kid.

I ended up stuck between them, trying to keep the peace.

Somewhere along the way, Logan changed. The impatience in his eyes softened when he looked at her. Little by little, it turned into something like admiration.

"Regina might seem a little slow, but she's kind at heart. Unlike you."

He said that while I was in the kitchen, using the back of a knife to knock out a live fish. I had bought it just to cook for him.

I didn't argue. I turned to head back to the bedroom, but he grabbed my wrist.

"So I added her to the family plan. Is it really that big a deal?"

Our numbers had been picked out by him, a matching pair. That same day, he set us both up on a family plan together.

I hadn't understood it back then. We barely called each other, and saving a few bucks didn't matter.

He had buried his face against my neck, rubbing against me like he always did. "Babe, anything in this world that means something close, I want it tied to you."

That was why he made me the first person on that plan.

And now, he was hiding behind the excuse of "saving money" just to bring Regina into something he used to treat as intimate and personal.

I pulled my hand free and gave a small smile. "I told you. I don't care."

For a second, Logan looked thrown off.

Lightning split the sky outside, tearing through the dark. A crash of thunder followed, and then hurried knocking at the door.

"Logan, it's me. Regina."

Her hair fell loose as a plain white nightgown hung off her frame, and she rushed barefoot straight into his arms.

"You didn't call me tonight. I was scared of being alone."

His voice softened as he comforted her.

I stood there and watched the whole thing.

I had seen this same scene countless times.

All Regina had to do was say she wasn't well, and he would make exceptions for her every time, clearing a path straight through my marriage like it didn't matter.

"Well, since you're already here, the guest room's upstairs. No need for phone calls tonight." I lifted a brow and smiled. "Or what, you prefer whispering to each other over the phone? Makes it more exciting?"

Regina shrank behind him, her voice shaking as she cried. "I know I shouldn't have come. Someone sick like me… I shouldn't bother you. I'll just go to the hospital. Logan, take me to a psych ward. Just let me stay there. Let me die there."

Logan's face darkened. "Whitney, that's enough! Regina's not well. You've been through depression yourself. How can you not understand? Nothing's going on between us. When I stay on the phone with her, it's always when you're asleep. I haven't done anything to betray you."

He said it like he believed every word.

I opened my mouth, my throat tight. My voice came out rough.

"What about our anniversary last year?"

His face went pale in an instant.

I let out a quiet laugh. "If you lie long enough, you start believing it yourself. Do you really think there's nothing going on between you two?"