“I’ll wait.”
Without asking permission, he stepped inside.
I closed the door behind him, still staring.
His clothes were nothing like the colorful skirts and soft sweaters he had loved wearing as a teenager. There wasn’t a trace of makeup on his face. Everything about him looked different.
As if he could hear my thoughts, he looked at me. “People keep looking at my clothes instead of hearing what I’m saying.”
Heat rushed into my face.
“I’m sorry.”
“I came back for one reason.”
He met my eyes.
“It’s time for Marcus to stop lying.”
My heart started pounding.
“Lying about what?”
“You’ll find out when he gets here.”
There wasn’t any anger in Andrew’s voice anymore, only certainty. He walked into the living room and remained standing.
I wanted to ask a thousand questions.
Where had he been?
Was he safe?
Had he been happy?
Did he ever think about me?
Instead, I stood there, terrified that if I asked the wrong one, he’d disappear all over again.
The silence stretched between us until the front door opened.
Marcus walked in carrying a paper bag from the bakery. He stopped the instant he saw Andrew.
For the first time in our marriage, I saw genuine fear on my husband’s face.
The bag slipped from his hand.
