Chapter 7
The delivery had arrived the morning following the wedding.That was why the box was sitting on the porch.
Daniel sat down.
He looked utterly defeated.
Then he said something I never anticipated.
“I was wrong.”
I didn’t respond.
He continued.
“I was wrong for leaving you outside. I was wrong for allowing Mom to decide how our marriage should work. And I was wrong for believing that obedience was the same thing as respect.”
Evelyn began crying.
“I was scared.”
Daniel looked at her.
“You were scared, and you made me scared too.”
She lowered her gaze.
For years, Evelyn had told Daniel that his father had deserted the family and left her with nothing.
The documents revealed a more complicated story.
His father had made mistakes.
But he had also provided financially and legally protected the house through the family trust.
Evelyn had never been entirely helpless.
She had simply shaped her entire identity around being the victim.
Daniel had spent years trying to shield her from a danger that wasn’t what he imagined.
And I had become the newest person trapped in the middle.
But there was still the question of our marriage.
I looked at Daniel.
“You can’t undo last night.”
“I know.”
“You can’t take back the words.”
“I know.”
“You locked your wife outside because your mother told you she was disrespectful.”
His eyes filled with tears.
“I know.”
I finally said what I had been keeping inside.
“I didn’t need you to choose me over your mother.”
Daniel looked up.
“I needed you to stand beside me.”
He nodded.
“I understand now.”
But understanding wasn’t enough.
May you like
I told him I wasn’t returning to that house.
Not yet.
