Soon after, the board accepted his resignation as an executive.
Nobody applauded.
I appreciated the restraint, because a public celebration of his downfall would have repeated the cruelty of the gala.
Consequences need no audience.
Camden stayed seated as others departed.
I collected my documents.
“Elena.”
I froze.
He surveyed the room.
“Did you know, when August asked that question, that this was how it would end?”
“No.”
“What did you think would happen?”
I reflected briefly.
“I thought you would finally have to listen.”
He gave one laugh.
It contained no humor.
“I suppose I did.”
I began leaving.
“Was any of it real?”
I glanced back.
No explanation was necessary.
The apartment.
Our early years.
Our wedding.
Nights spent dreaming of futures beyond job titles.
The man who drove three hours through a blizzard after my mother’s fall left me afraid to drive.
The woman who comforted him when his father died.
