Page 151 of Sapphire Sunset

Once Chip had slammed the office door behind them, hepointed to the leather sofa. “Sit.”

“Look, the problem is we need to have a planning meetingabout—”

“Sit down!”Chip roared.

Logan flounced down onto the leather sofa. The hard shellhe’d held to himself for almost seventy-two hours now was cracking. Maybebecause of his dad’s anger, or maybe from hitting the sofa like a disciplinedchild. He braced himself for a lecture on getting out of line and what would beasked of him—and not asked of him—if he stayed on as an employee of Chip’sKicks. “Tell me what’s really going on,” his father said instead.

“You know the story,” Logan growled.

“You’ve been sleeping here. Why?”

Logan’s exhale turned into a low, throaty growl. “Theoff-shift guys are staying at my place, and I don’t want to answer questions.”

“You don’t want them telling Connor where you are or whatyou’re doing.”

“Maybe,” Logan said.

“All right, then tell me what’s really going on with you two.”

“I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Yeah, I’m clear on that. But the shit you’re doing to avoidtalking about it is going to make me bury you off the Ortega Highway, so fessup, son. I’m not asking you to be tough. I’m asking you to be honest. Did he fireyou?”

“No.”

“Did you quit?”

Logan nodded.

“And?” Chip asked.

“I didn’t talk to him before I did it.”

Once again his dad looked like a suspicion of his had beenconfirmed. This time he didn’t seem satisfied, though. He looked afraid. He satdown behind his desk. “And he didn’t want you to, I take it.”

“I was trying to make things easier for him, but he said Iwasn’t letting him fight for me. And the way he said it, it was like he thoughtour relationship and the job were the same. Like he thought I would eventuallywalk away if he didn’t have the hotel to offer me. And how was that anydifferent from what that woman said about me on TV? If I wanted to use my bodyfor money, I would have made porn with Donnie years ago.”

Chip gulped. “That was a consideration?”

“For a minute. But the money’s behind the camera, not infront.”

“Oh. Okay.”

“I’m just saying. You see my point, right?” Logan asked.

“I’m your dad. I seeyou.”

“Aw, what does that mean, old man?”

“Son, Igottasay some shit. It’sbeen knocking around in me for a while, but I’m saying it now because I think it’sgoing to help. And God knows, if there’s one thing I haven’t done enough foryou, it’s help—”

“Dad, that’s not true. You—”

Chip spread his arms like he was declaring a baseball playersafe. “No, you need to stop. You need to stop with this story about how I was agreat dad.’CauseI wasn’t. And you don’t need tokeep spinning it to keep me in your life. I got a lot to make up for, and I’mhere until I’ve made up for all of it, at least. So I’ll be in your life untilI kick the bucket.”

“What are you talking about?” Logan asked.

“I’m talking about how your mother’s death gutted me for tenyears, and if you hadn’t put dinner on the table for us most of that time, itwouldn’t have made it there. And if you hadn’t been you, you hadn’t been thisamazing, unstoppable kid who did stuff and made it work, I would have drivenyou to Fallbrook way sooner and left you with your aunts to make sure youdidn’t die of exposure.

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