He nodded.
Then he asked, “Do you hate me?”
I thought about it.
“No.”
He looked surprised.
“I hate what you did. But hating you every day would keep you too involved in my life.”
That was the closest thing to closure I gave him.
Daniel took longer.
He worked. Went to therapy. Found a small apartment.
Almost a year after the wedding, he came over for dinner.
Just us.
He looked toward the empty chair where Mark used to sit.
“Do you ever miss him?”
“Yes.”
That surprised him. “Missing someone doesn’t mean you made the wrong decision.”
Daniel nodded.
Then he said, “Sometimes I miss her too.”
“I know.”
“I feel stupid.”
“Don’t.”
“How do you not feel stupid after someone fools you?”
I thought about Dad.
Then I said, “Trusting someone isn’t the embarrassing part. What they do with that trust belongs to them.”
