Of Love & Regret (Madison & Logan 1)

I made myself busy in the kitchen, taking a quick inventory of the contents of his refrigerator before I started cooking. By the time Logan walked into the kitchen, fully dressed this time, the omelets were done and the toast was already buttered. The aroma of coffee filled the room and Logan’s face lit up.

“Western omelets,” he said approvingly. “My favorite.”

“I’ll bring the plates. Can you grab the rest of the stuff?”

Logan followed me out of the kitchen carrying the mugs of coffee and silverware, and we laid out the spread on his dining table.

“Thanks,” he said in appreciation as we both started in on our breakfast. “Although it’s only fair recompense for waking me up so early today.”

I waved my fork in the air. “No lawyer talk. I hate it when you start talking all lawyer-y.”

Logan smirked. “You weren’t complaining when I sent a threatening letter to your landlord.”

A year ago, I had suffered some water damage in my apartment due to heavy rain and a leak in my ceiling. My landlord had promised to repair the damage, but months passed with no progress. At times like this, it was convenient to have a lawyer friend who could send a letter threatening to sue if action wasn’t taken immediately. Needless to say, my landlord had hired workers to fix the problem right away.

“You always throw that in my face whenever I complain about you working too much,” I grumbled. “Yes, yes, I’m eternally grateful for your help. That doesn’t mean I want to hear your lawyer-speak.”

Logan grinned and continued eating, but changed the subject. “How was last night?”

I shrugged as I debated how much to tell Logan. He knew that I was questioning my relationship with Adam, but I hadn’t revealed how significantly my feelings for him had tapered off. Besides, I had promised myself that I would renew my commitment to Adam. The worst thing about complaining to your friends about your boyfriend was their reaction when you decided not to leave him, and instead, try to make things work.

“It was okay. We went to Cornucopia for dinner.”

“Isn’t that the vegan place?” Logan looked as if I had said we had eaten dinner in a pig trough.

“Yeah, but it’s pretty good. We should go there some time.”

“No way.” He shook his head emphatically as if I had suggested we try cannibalism. “There’s no way you’re dragging me to a vegan restaurant. I’d probably enjoy eating the table more than the stuff they serve there.”

“You’re just jaded,” I scoffed. “Kayleigh scarred you with all the crap she used to make for you. Vegan stuff can actually be good.”

Kayleigh was one of a long line of Logan’s ex-girlfriends who had only lasted a couple of months. She was a vegan but also a horrible cook, and had used Logan as a guinea pig for several of her recipes. Needless to say, this had given him a skewed view of veganism.

“You’re not the one who had to eat her vegan brownies. I swear I’m still digesting them.”

I laughed at his

disgruntled expression. “Fine, no vegan restaurants. Besides, I only go there because Adam’s on his vegan kick. We’ll see how long it lasts.”

“What did you do after dinner?” Logan asked casually. He had finished his omelet and toast, and was leaning back in his chair, drinking his coffee.

“Nothing much. We just went back to my apartment.” I paused before continuing. “Our relationship is getting a little routine. I guess it’s to be expected after three years, but sometimes I feel like we’re together out of habit and nothing more.”

Logan raised an eyebrow. “So, why not break up with him?”

I shrugged. “I don’t know. Don’t all relationships go through ups and downs?”

“I’m not really a good judge of what’s normal in relationships. I doubt you could even use the term relationships to describe what I’ve had with the past few women I’ve dated. Things are much less complicated when you keep it casual.”

I picked at my placemat for a few seconds before speaking. As interested as I was in Logan’s dating life, another topic had been weighing on me since I had arrived at his apartment. I wasn’t sure how to bring it up, so I decided to just lay it out there. “Are you coming to Michigan with me next Saturday? It’s the fifteenth.”

There was a heavy silence as I waited for Logan to respond. After a few minutes he still hadn’t replied, so I looked up at him. His blue eyes were studying me intently, and the corners of his mouth were drawn down.

“Do you think that’s a good idea?” he finally asked. “Cassie’s mother isn’t well. She’s still living in the past. Going to Michigan to celebrate Cassie’s birthday like nothing’s changed isn’t healthy for anyone, especially her mother.”

I sighed as I rubbed my forehead. “Mrs. Brooks would be devastated if I didn’t come. She needs me there.”

“What do you need?” Logan asked gently.