She laughed, and I recognized the sound with a strange feeling of gratitude.

It no longer made me wonder whether she was happy somewhere else.

I knew because she had told me.

And when she wasn’t happy, I trusted that she would tell me that too.

PART 19

The Home We Finally Chose

A year after we almost divorced, Meredith asked whether I would consider moving.

I stared at her across the kitchen table, surprised.