“Like somebody took your shoulders out of survival mode for a minute.”
She exhaled.
“That visible?”
“To people who know the look.”
She dried her hands.
“I spent months feeling like one more bad hour would finish me.”
He nodded.
“I know.”
She looked toward the dining room where Maddie was making Denise laugh over some story involving glitter and a goldfish that turned out to be mostly exaggeration.
“Does she seem okay to you?” Lauren asked.
Ethan leaned against the counter.
“She seems better. There’s a difference.”
“Will she be?”
He took his time.
“I don’t know.”
Lauren appreciated that.
Too many people lied in the direction of comfort.
“We’re trying,” he said. “Counseling. More time together. Less pretending work excuses everything. More listening, even when listening hurts.”
Lauren studied him.
“You really mean that.”
“Yes.”
“You changed fast.”
“No,” he said. “I got scared fast. Change is slower.”
