Logan It’s been six weeks since Arianna has moved in. You’d think that both of us would be
settling in, getting used to the other, and the honeymoon phase would start to fade. You’d think.
Instead, every day I come home, she is either leaping into my arms, p eppering me with kisses,
or waiting for me on her knees. I swear to god, I’m the luckiest man in the goddamn world. I
bring her home flowers or a gift every day. She tells me it’s excessive and unnecessary. Logically,
I know it is, but I can’t stop. I have more money than I could ever spend in one lifetime, and it
would be a waste not to thoroughly spoil her rotten. She s ays I’m going to ruin her for all others,
but that’s entirely the point because as long as I’m still breathing, there will be no others. Ever.
My eyes glance at the new camera sitting on my desk. My assistant had to scour the internet for
weeks before she found it. A 1923 Oskar Barnack 0 - Series Leica. Arianna had come home talking
about it after her lecture one day and said she would love to see one in person. It held such a
huge piece of history and was such a rarity that little to none are even on the mar ket or
believed to exist. The way her eyes lit up solidified that not only did she have to see it, she had
to have it. My assistant checked with me three times before buying it, verifying that I wanted to
spend over twelve million on a camera that wouldn’t even be used. Just picturing that same
excited gleam in her eyes is well worth the money and then some. Besides, the last time one
went to auction, it went for over fourteen million several years ago, so this was a steal.
My phone rings on my desk, and I look to see that it’s my assistant calling from her desk up
front. “Yes?” “Uhm, Mr. Cunningham. I have Ms. Fulton here to see you.” “Let her in.” “Are you
sure? I know you have that debrief coming up — ” “ Louise, let her in now, ” I say sternly, shaking
my head. Arianna has come to visit me a few times at the office, and I told Lousie from day one
that she has an all access pass to the building. She can come and go as she pleases. I don ’ t know
why she thinks she has any right to stop her, let alone argue with me over it. Tucking the present
into my drawer, I hide it for now. I want the moment to be perfect when I give it to her. Locking
my computer, I feel myself straightening my tie and running my fingers through my hair like a kid
picking up his date at prom. It’s a pretty spot on feeling. Arianna puts me on edge in the best
way. I’m always cool, controlled, and confident, but she throws me off kilter. She makes me
really think about my actions, my words. I hyper fixate on every single conversation we have,
and I have yet to, and will never stop, trying to make myself better for myself, but mainly for her.
I stand, smiling to greet her when my smile falls. A woman pushes into my office, h er high heels
eating up the space between us before she pushes her weight to one hip, her hand on the other
as she smiles at me in a way that twists my stomach. “Hi Logan,” Kelly purrs. Wrong Ms. Fulton,
Louise. Goddamnit. “What are you doing here?” She sn orts out a laugh, eyes roaming around
the room. “Not very friendly today, I take it.” “To you? Never. Maybe I wasn’t clear, but both
Arianna and I want nothing to do with you. Get the fuck out of my office and stay away from the
both of us.” Her face pinch es at that as she gives me a disgusted look. “I would, but it’s not just
us anymore,”
she says before resting a hand on her stomach.
My brows furrow as I stare at her. It takes longer than it should for her words to sink in. “You’re
knocked up?” She bristles at that as she snaps. “No! I’m pregnant. Knocked up is something that
happens to slutty teenagers.” “Well, you’re an adulterous whore, so.” I shrug. She narrows her
eyes at me. “Well, this adulterous whore is carrying your baby.” My body goes cold, a chill
running through my body, and I instantly have the urge to throw up. “ Bullshit.” “It’s true!” “Even
if you are pregnant, which I severely doubt, there is no way it’s mine. We fucked once in the last
three years. God knows how many men have been inside you in the last three weeks.” She
sneers at me, attempting and failing to ke ep her cool. “It’s your baby, Logan.” I raise my hands in
bewilderment. “You literally admitted that you fucked Tom within days of me. It’s probably his.”
“I know that’s what you’d hope, but Tom and I always used protection. You, however, came
inside my cunt, and now your child is growing inside me.” Her tone seems like it’s supposed to
be upset or maybe even irritated. The winning grin on her face tells me that she feels nothing of
the sort, though. That nausea from before is hitting me full force. I can hear the blood pounding
in my ears as she carries on. This can’t be happening. She has to be lying. She doesn’t look
pregnant, she’s a manipulative bitch. As if she can read my thoughts, she reaches into her purse
and pulls out a pregnancy test, setting i t on my desk. The word pregnant glares at me as she
sets down another. Pregnant. Kelly pulls out one more that looks like it hasn’t been used yet as
she waves it in front of me. “I’m happy to take another in front of you if that’s what it takes.” I
feel my chest begin to heave, anger thrumming through my veins as I turn to my desk, hastily
grabbing my briefcase, phone, and Arianna’s present.
Fuck. Arianna. This is going to kill her. It’s killing me. What the fuck have I done? “I want a
paternity test immediately.” “Fine by me,” Kelly says. Shaking my head, I storm out of my office
and down the hallway. “Mr. Cunningham,” Louise calls out, but I put my hand up to stop her. If I
talk to anyone exc ept Arianna right now, I’m gonna blow the fuck up, and no one deserves that.
This is my fuck up. I got shit faced drunk and fucked my ex. Without a condom. All because I was
falling in love with her daugh ter, who k ept pushing me away. Fuck, fuck, fuck. When I get to my
car, I type out a quick text to Arianna. Me: Meet me at home as soon as you can. Her response
comes immediately. Sparrow: What happened? Is everything okay? No. Everything is fucked
beyond b elief. I don’t want her to be scared and driving erratically, though. Me: Everything is
fine, Sparrow. Drive home to me as soon as you can. Sparrow: On my way. I’m sitting in the
living room, my knee bouncing uncontrollably as I wait for her. I debated giv ing her the camera
first, like it would somehow soften the blow. In reality, I know that’s a terrible fucking idea, so I
hid it away for now as I clench my fists together and wait. When the front door opens, I don’t
feel ready for what comes next. Telling her feels like it’s making it real, and it could very well not
be. Maybe I’m overreacting. Maybe I should wait to say anything until the paternity test. I could
be spiraling over nothing but a bullshit lie. I can’t do that, though. In our relationship, tru st is
the most important thing to the both of us. If I don’t come to her with something like this
immediately and she ever finds out... I’m not willing to risk that. A concerned looking Arianna
st eps in the door, her hair up in a sleek ponytail I absolutely love. She’s wearing a pair of jeans
and a simple white t - shirt, but she makes the entire outfit look completely breathtaking. “Hey,
what’s going on?” she asks with a frown. I stand to my feet, wrapping my arms around her as I
just hold her. We stand there for several
seconds before I look down at her. “What’s going on, Logan?” The fear in her voice tells me she
knows it’s something bad, and I’m not exactly downplaying it because it is bad. It feels like my
entire life, our entire life, is crumbling around us. “Kelly ca me to see me today.” She frowns at
that, waiting for me to continue. Only, I can’t. I struggle to find the words as I stare at our
intertwined hands. I don’t even remember grabbing them. Not surprising, though. I seek her
out at every opportunity, every mo ment. This is no different despite the words tumbling out of
my mouth. “She’s pregnant.” Arianna stills, unmovable like a statue, as her eyes bore into me.
She blinks once, twice, before finally speaking. “And the father?” she asks tightly. “We’re getting
a test,” I answer. I don’t know what I expect her reaction to be. Probably devastation and
heartbreak like I’m currently feeling. It’s not. It’s anger. Pure blinding anger. “What the FUCK,
Logan!” she snarls, throwing my hands away from her as she moves to the other side of the
room. “How the fuck could this have happened? Did you fuck her without a condom?” I look
down at the floor, too ashamed to meet her eyes as she lets out a mocking laugh. “Unfucking
real. Cool, so my boyfriend knocked up my mom. Aweso me.” “We don’t even know if the baby
is mine, Sparrow. It could be Tom’s. It could be some random guy she hooked up with. I’m going
to get a test done immediately and — ”
“And what? Huh? What if the baby is yours, Logan? What’s your plan?” I’m at a loss for words,
knowing nothing I can say will fix this. “I haven’t made it that far yet.” Her lip wobbles, and
though there is still fire in her eyes, her voice is strained. “So , you’re saying that if the baby is
yours, we’re over.” I take two large st eps, closing the distance between us in an instant. “No!
Fuck no. Never, Sparrow. No matter what happens, it doesn’t change anything between us.”
“But?” she says, pushing my hands a way. “But what?” “I’m sensing a but there. If the baby is
yours, you won’t be with her, but...” I sigh, running a hand through my hair as I look into her
watery eyes. “I won’t punish the child. I’ll support it, be a part of its life.” A choked laugh
es capes her as a tear rolls down her face. I reach out to brush it off when she swats my hand
away from her. She lifts her finger and opens her mouth like she’s about to tear into me as more
tears begin running down her face. “I... you...” All of her words die before s he shakes her head
and storms past me. “Where are you going?” I ask. “Wherever you’re not!” she shouts. Running
my hands over my face and up into my hair, I pull hard as I shout. “FUCK!” When I look up, I
realize that she’s already out of the house and cli mbing into her car. Jogging after her, I reach
the side of her car in seconds. “Please don’t drive, Ari. Not like this. I’ll go. You can have time to
think and process — ” “ Process?! ” she shouts. “ There is nothing to process, Logan. You fucked
my mother. You knocked her up. I’m not gonna stick around and play st ep - mommy to my
fucking sibling!” She shuts the door and starts the car as I grip the open window. “Please,
Sparrow. Just — ”
“Do not call me that! This was a mistake, everything. I wish I could go back in time and never
see you at that fucking club.” Hurt pierces through me, but I know she doesn’t mean it. “You
don’t mean that.” Her head turns to me, an impassive, icy stare cove ring her face as she glares.
“Yes, I do. I really do.” That hurt blooms into an overwhelming amount of pain. I push it down,
though, focusing on her safety first and foremost as the car starts to move. I hold on to the open
window as I start jogging. “Aria nna! Stop it! Get out of this fucking car.” “Fuck you!” she snarls
before punching the gas. I have to leap out of the way before she runs over my feet as she peels
out of the driveway. I feel my heart break with every foot she drives. Part of me is ready t o jump
in the car and chase after her to make sure she’s safe. The other part knows she needs the
space.
“GODDAMNIT!”