Adrian looked at me.
“The kind that can hurt people for a very long time.”
Ethan studied him.
“Are you sorry?”
Adrian nodded.
“Every day.”
Ethan thought about it.
Then he picked up a potato.
“Okay.”
Adrian looked surprised.
“Okay?”
“You said you’re sorry.”
“That doesn’t fix it.”
“I know.”
The boy shrugged.
“But it’s Christmas.”
I almost cried.
Page 6
Later that night, Vanessa found me alone in the kitchen.
She closed the door behind her.
“I owe you an apology.”
I looked at her.
“For what?”
“For the invitation.”
I waited.
She took a breath.
“When Adrian told me about you, he made it sound very different.”
“I imagined he did.”
“He said you claimed he was the father.”
“I didn’t claim anything. He was my husband.”
She nodded.
“I know.”
“What changed?”
She looked down.
“I saw the boys.”
Silence.
Then she whispered:
“Adrian lied to me.”
