“You’ll regret talking to me this way,” she whispered.

“I regret how long I didn’t speak,” I replied.

When the doors opened again, Brandon would not meet my eyes.

I knew better than to mistake that for shame.

In business meetings he often went silent while deciding on his next argument.

The important thing was that the documents remained where everyone could examine them.

I left with a headache, a stack of questions, and an appointment for a temporary parenting-order hearing.

I had gone into the room expecting a single decisive victory.