“It’s complicated, Han. I was handling it.”
Greg cleared his throat. “Oh. Right. She’s an acquaintance’s kid. I took Leo over there once to drop off some paperwork. Nothing.”
“Once?”
“Maybe twice. Han, why does this matter?”
“He said it was your secret.”
He walked to the sink and ran water he didn’t need. “He’s six. He calls everything a secret.”
I would have more facts than I wanted.
“He said you told him it was.”
“Trust me.” He turned off the tap and dried his hands on a dish towel he then folded twice. “It’s complicated, Han. I was handling it. Kids make a bigger deal out of these things than they are.”
I could feel the shape of every late pickup, every face-down phone, every call taken in the garage settling quietly into place inside my chest.
“Okay.”
That night I lay in the dark next to my husband and made myself a promise.
