waited.
I practiced sentences. I tried on expressions in the toaster’s reflection. None of them felt like mine.
When Nolan came in shortly after five, one look at me told him something was wrong.
“Olivia, all good?”
“I went to the jewelry store,” I replied. “To get the bracelet resized. The saleswoman remembered you. She told me you bought two identical ones.”
Nolan’s shoulders sank by a full inch. I slid the box across the table toward him.
“Olivia, please. Let me explain.”
Something inside my chest made a quiet,
