Page 36 of With a Cherry On Top

“Right. I forgot—you don’t care about anything.”

“Fine. I guess I like them.” Then, after a beat, he adds, “Not Ian. He’s an insufferable man-child who can’t appreciate a second of silence.”

A laugh escapes me before I can stop it.

“But I like the rest of them, so...” He tilts his head. “Try not to screw this up?”

“You got it.”

He watches me for a moment longer, like he’s waiting for further reassurance. When I hold his gaze, he grabs a beer from the fridge, and we head to the dining area.

He sits next to me, and I raise an eyebrow. He delivered his message; this is usually the part where he leaves. Because he has no real interest in being here. So why is he staying?

He doesn’t speak right away, just reaches into the back pocket of his jeans and pulls out a crumpled envelope. Immediately, a knot tightens low in my gut. Something about the way he holds it tells me this isn’t good news.

“What’s that?”

His eyes turn dark. “Just open it, please.”

A beat of hesitation. Then I take the envelope from him and slip my fingers under the flap, tearing it open. I slide the documents out, familiar words jumping out at me as I scan the lines. Legal jargon I’ve read before, but it’s different this time—the finality of it. It’s no longer a hypothetical or a process in motion but a decision made, an ending sealed.

My breath catches as I see the judge’s signature at the bottom.

It’s done.

I’m officially divorced.

For a moment, I simply exist. Stare at the paper. Really let myselffeel. Then I set the papers down and look up at Logan. “Wow.”

He stares down at his beer, rolling the bottle between his palms.

“Why are you?—”

“The court sent both copies to Josie by mistake.”

So she sent her ex—mybrother—to give me mine.

“This must feel nice for you, huh?” I say, forcing something light into my voice. “Karma or something.”

Immediately, his glare strikes me. “It doesn’t, actually.”

“I know, I know.” I raise a hand, already regretting my words.

“No,doyou?” He flicks the papers with the backs of his fingers. “Because if you think I want any part in this, you’re out of your mind.”

I bite my bottom lip until it stings. “I can’t believe she sentyouto give me these.”

“She said she didn’t want to make Mom do it. So...” He points a thumb at himself with a humorless smirk. “I got the honor.”

I take another sip of water, letting the silence stretch between us. The kind of silence that’s full of things unsaid and regrets not expressed. Sometimes I think it’s the only silence we’ll ever be capable of.

“Any news on when Josie might come back or...”

“Nope.” Not one single peep from her since the call at Mom’s house, though it must be a step in the right direction. A sign that things are improving. I hope so anyway.

After a long moment, I say, “You ever wonder what would’ve happened if Josie and I didn’t...” The words lodge in my throat, so I try again. “I mean, not that I regret Sadie in any way, but...if she’d stuck with you, would Josie be in rehab right now? I don’t think so.”

He leans back in his chair. “Her drinking isn’t your fault.”

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