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Was he really such a good liar?
“What about you, Rowan?” he asked when only ten minutes remained. “Do you have anything you want to share before we run out of time?”
Everyone’s eyes were suddenly on me. Laura gave me an encouraging nod, while a couple of the others leaned forward slightly, signaling their willingness to listen.
“Well…” I hesitated, suddenly less certain about speaking now that I had an audience. “I found out yesterday that my boyfriend of two years has been cheating on me with my best friend.”
Someone made a sympathetic sound.
“So that sucks,” I added.
“And how do you intend to handle that when you go home?” Logan asked.
“I assume you’re asking whether I’ll numb the pain with alcohol and drugs?”
Logan inclined his head slightly, confirming that I was right. “I don’t know,” I admitted.
“He’s not worth it,” someone offered.
“You should give him the alcohol,” someone else suggested. “Still in the bottle.” They mimed smashing it over his head in case their meaning wasn’t already clear. Half of the circle laughed. Laura laughed loudest of all.
“Now, now,” Logan chided gently. “We’re not going to advocate violence. There are far better ways of dealing with pent-up feelings. We’ve talked about that.”
Like sneaking into people’s beds in the middle of the night?
“Meditation,” he continued. “Talking to a trusted friend—”
“I’m guessing that trusted friend needs to be someone other than the one he was sleeping with?” I asked.
Logan didn’t answer. He simply regarded me with such extraordinary patience that it became irritating.
“Fair question,” someone said.
Logan turned toward the woman. The movement shifted his shirt collar, revealing a patch of reddened skin just above his collarbone.
An unmistakable hickey. One that I’d presumably caused.
Now that I thought about it, I vaguely remembered fastening my mouth to his neck while he fucked me. When Logan turned back, his collar slipped into place and concealed the mark again.
“All I’m saying,” he continued, “is that it helps to plan how you’ll respond to future problems and put safeguards in place so you can cope in a healthy way. Some people go for a run. Others watch a film or take a long bath.”
“Got it. I’ll go for a run and then watch a film in the bath. I can prop the laptop on my knees, right?”
I remembered too late that joking about electrocuting myself probably wasn’t wise, given what Tyler had told them. I didn’t want to find myself wheeled in front of the psychiatrist again.
Thankfully, Logan recognized it as a joke, one corner of his mouth lifting. “I wouldn’t advise that.”
“I used to drink a bottle of wine in the bath,” a dark-haired woman said wistfully. She sat up straighter when Logan looked at her. “Obviously, that won’t be happening anymore because I’m completely reformed.”
Logan’s gaze returned to me. “You should try our meditation class. There’s one later today. It really helps with letting go of residual stress and living in the moment.”
I couldn’t help suspecting an ulterior motive behind the suggestion. “Will you be there?”
He laughed. “I wish. Unfortunately, I have to work.” His expression quickly sobered. “How about you tell us how your boyfriend’s betrayal made you feel?”
“Stupid.”
The word escaped before I could think better of it.