He glanced at me once more and disappeared into the living room, where colored lights reflected against the window.

His small feet made soft tapping sounds along the floor until the room swallowed them.

For a few seconds I watched the empty hallway.

Something in the past had shifted.

The dates of our separation, my final weeks in Montana, and the last time Lauren and I had been together began lining themselves up in my head.

“Lauren,” I said, “I need to ask you something.”

Her expression told me that she knew exactly what I was going to ask.