She placed the ring on the counter.
Christopher looked toward Steven.
“And now you’re saying you won’t invest?”
Steven’s answer was immediate.
“I won’t.”
Christopher turned toward me.
“You’ve cost me everything!”
I stood carefully, holding Benny against my side.
“No.”
He stared at me.
“I ordered coffee.”
The café went completely silent.
“You made every choice that came afterward.”
For the first time that afternoon, Christopher seemed smaller than the room he owned.
A few minutes passed.
Then he approached me again.
His voice was quieter this time.
“I shouldn’t have treated you that way.”
This time, he wasn’t looking at Steven.
He wasn’t looking at Victoria either.
I nodded.
“Thank you.”
Steven pulled out the chair across from me.
“Would you allow me to buy you lunch?”
The answer I’d been giving people for eighteen months rose automatically.
I’m fine.
