My husband sent another woman a huge bouquet of white roses and pink peonies with a card signed “Love, Daniel,” and by one careless mistake, those flowers arrived at our house instead.

and deleted them. At 12:20 he wrote Nothing happened the way you’re imagining. It sounded like a legal qualification, not a denial. I called.

He answered immediately with “Claire?” I skipped any greeting: “Did you sleep with her?” The silence that followed stretched out. I could not bear another hour of uncertainty. He asked, “Claire, can we talk about this tomorrow?” I demanded, “Did you sleep with Laura?” I heard his breath, and finally he answered, “Yes.”

The word was soft but seemed to fill the entire room. I