He looked up when he heard the door open.
"Did you get the gift?"
"I did. Thank you."
"Do you like it?"
"I do."
I walked over and wrapped my arms around his neck from behind.
"Raymond, can we go skiing in Aspen next month? You promised me."
I buried my face in the curve of his neck, searching for something familiar.
His body went rigid.
"There's an overseas acquisition next month. I probably won't have time."
He pulled my hands away, swiveled his chair, and faced me.
"Let's talk about it after things settle down."
There it was again.
Always wait and we'll see.
"Is it because of Darlene?"
The words finally left my mouth.
His gaze turned cold.
"Stacy, we agreed from the beginning. No questions about the past."
"But she's your present now, isn't she?"
He didn't answer. He just looked at me in silence.
That was when his phone lit up.
A message preview flashed across the screen.
The contact was saved as "D."
Just got home. Tonight was wonderful. Thank you.
He snatched the phone up and deleted the message.
Raymond and I started because he needed a fiancée from a family that matched his own standing.
And I had no objections to the arrangement. I was even a little happy about it.
Eventually, we did fall in love. We built a life together.
I had always known that somewhere in his past, there was a woman named Darlene Simmons.
I told myself that if I was good enough, accommodating enough, one day I'd earn my way into that place in his heart.
Now I could see it for what it was. I'd only been fooling myself.
I went to see Uncle Walter.
Walter Dickerson was an old friend of my father's and a well-regarded antique restorer. Ever since I was a little girl, I loved spending time in his workshop, watching him piece shattered porcelain back together fragment by fragment.
That kind of focus, that patience, always had a way of quieting my restless mind.
When I arrived, Uncle Walter was working on a blue-and-white ceramic vase. He set down his tools when he saw me and poured me a cup of tea.
"Sweetheart, you don't look so good. Did you and Raymond have a fight?"
I shook my head. I cupped the warm mug in both hands, but I couldn't feel the heat.
"Uncle Walter, do you think something that's been broken can ever really be whole again?"
He glanced at the vase in front of him and smiled faintly.
"No matter how good the restoration, the cracks are still there. Same as the human heart. Once it's been hurt, it's been hurt."
He studied me, a quiet knowing in his eyes.
"You've always carried too much on your shoulders, even as a kid. I worried about you the day you told me you were with Raymond."
"Raymond is a man of principle. He honors his commitments."
"But principles are only as strong as who they're for. A man who breaks his rules for one woman can break them again for another."
His words struck me like a blow to the chest.
He was right. Raymond tolerated the smell of cigarettes for Darlene.
So what had he ever bent for me?
Nothing. The answer was nothing.
I left Uncle Walter's workshop feeling more unsettled than when I'd arrived.
My phone rang.
An unknown number.
I hesitated, then answered.
"Miss Pruitt? I'm calling from the executive office at Grandeur Group. Ms. Simmons would like to arrange a meeting with you."
Darlene?
The meeting place was a teahouse.
She wore a sharp, tailored suit, her makeup flawless, every gesture radiating confidence.
"Miss Pruitt, forgive the intrusion."
She spoke first. Her voice was lovely.
