I arrived early for our anniversary dinner, expecting candles and surprises. Instead, I overheard my husband's phone call—and every promise he'd ever made suddenly felt like a lie.
The kitchen was already warm when I came downstairs, sunlight stretching across the counter and catching the rim of Lily's half-finished cereal bowl.
I stood there with my coffee and caught myself smiling. Ten years of marriage. A daughter who filled the house with noise. Some mornings it still felt too good to be ordinary.
"I want tonight to be a surprise."
Nathan came in adjusting his tie, smelling like the aftershave I'd bought him for Christmas.
"You're smiling like a lunatic," he said.
"It's our anniversary. I'm allowed."
He kissed the top of my head.
"Seven o'clock. The place by the lake. Come alone, okay? I want tonight to be a surprise."
"You married me anyway."
As he headed toward the hallway, he pulled the key from his pocket and locked his office behind him without thinking.
