He turns to face me, his expression soft but searching. “I asked if you’re sure about the divorce.”
“Yes.” My fingers tighten around the mug, drawing warmth from it like it can ground me. “I’ve thought about it every day. It’s not an impulse, Dad. It’s what I know I need to do.”
He studies me for a long moment before speaking again. “You’ve been married a long time. He was your first boyfriend. I remember how young you were, how terrified I was when you said you wanted to marry him. But I saw the way he looked at you, and I knew I couldn’t stop you. And, Cecily... he continues to look at you that way. Even now. That man truly loves you.”
My eyes sting with tears threatening to fall, but I hold them back. “If that’s love,” I whisper, “then what does betrayal mean?”
He hesitates. “He knows better now. He’s seen what his mistake…”
“Not a mistake, Dad.” My voice cracks, hurt and grief twisting together. “He made achoice. He chose her. He chose to lie. And I can’t spend the rest of my life wondering when he’ll choose wrong again.”
I swallow hard. “And what about Ethan and Alicia? What message do I send if I take him back? That love excuses anything? That trust can just be thrown away and rebuilt every time someone says sorry?”
Dad stands and walks to the window, running his hands through his hair. “Not now. Not while everything is so raw. But time… time heals, honey. Maybe one day you’ll find a way back to being a family again. Maybe not the same. Maybe stronger.”
I nod, but the ache in my chest only deepens. I know his heart is in the right place. He’s not trying to change my mind—just to make sure I’ve thought of everything.
“If you ever did something like that to Mom,” I ask,“would you expect her to forgive you? Or would you understand if she left?”
He freezes, his hand braced against the credenza. “Why would you ask me that?”
“I know you’d never do that,” I say quickly, offering him a small smile. “I’m just asking you to imagine it. What if it were Mom? Would you stay?”
He just stares at me.
“I had to ask my doctor for an STI panel,” I whisper, my voice trembling despite my effort to stay composed. “Do you know what that feels like, Dad? To sit there, realizing the only reason you’re getting tested is because your husband was sharing his body with someone else?”
I swallow hard, the memory just as raw. “I walked out of there feeling filthy. Like my skin wasn’t mine anymore.”
He flinches, looking away. I don’t blame him. No father should ever have to hear something like that.
When he finally looks back at me, he moves slowly, sinking into the chair across from mine.
“I just want you to be happy,” he says taking a long, shaky breath. “That’s all I’ve ever wanted. And whatever that takes, I’ll stand by you.”
I reach out and squeeze his hand. “I know, Dad.”
Outside, a deer moves through the clearing, its shape barely visible against the fading light.
I close my eyes and just breathe, whispering a prayer I’ve repeated a thousand times since this all began.
Please. Let nothing else break us
I knock twice before opening the door.
Alicia sits by the window, knees drawn up, a book open in her lap. The same one she’s been carrying everywhere lately. Her world, these days, exists somewhere between the Shire and the mountains. Anywhere but here.
I walk closer and sit on the cushion across from her. “Your dad’s here, sweetheart. He brought presents for you and Ethan.”
He also brought one for me.
A necklace with an emerald pendant.
He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a small velvet box.
“I brought you something,” he said, a faint smile tugging at his lips.
Inside was a delicate necklace, a thin gold chain with a single emerald pendant catching the light.
