\u201cTwice.\u201d<\/p>\n
The word remained between us even after Grant stopped speaking.<\/p>\n
Yvette sat rigidly in front of the laptop, her phone resting on the table between her hands. I stood behind her chair, looking at the open folder that had already dismantled half the story Grant had told everyone.<\/p>\n
On speaker, Grant breathed once.<\/p>\n
Then again.<\/p>\n
Yvette did not help him.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat was the first time?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is not what I asked.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
I watched her jaw tighten at the phrase.<\/p>\n
Grant heard it too.<\/p>\n
He corrected himself.<\/p>\n
\u201cSorry.\u201d<\/p>\n
The house was so quiet that I could hear the refrigerator cycling in the kitchen.<\/p>\n
Yvette looked at the warning letter again.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBefore we got married.\u201d<\/p>\n
She went still.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow long before?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA little over a year.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd what happened?\u201d<\/p>\n
Grant hesitated.<\/p>\n
Yvette looked at me, but only for a second.<\/p>\n
Not for help.<\/p>\n
For confirmation that someone else had heard the pause.<\/p>\n
Grant finally said, \u201cI submitted mileage I shouldn\u2019t have.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow much?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt wasn\u2019t huge.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is not an amount.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAbout twelve hundred.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDollars?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOver what period?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSeveral months.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yvette closed her eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo you didn\u2019t make one mistake.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou did it repeatedly.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened when they caught it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI had to pay it back.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnything else?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA warning.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWritten?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you tell me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yvette stared at the dark reflection of herself in the laptop screen.<\/p>\n
\u201cI asked you before we got married whether you had debt.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grant did not answer.<\/p>\n
\u201cI remember the conversation.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI do too.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were sitting in my old apartment.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI told you about my student loan.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI told you I had nine hundred dollars on a credit card because I was embarrassed about it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd you told me you had no debt except your car.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grant was quiet.<\/p>\n
Yvette\u2019s voice lowered.<\/p>\n
\u201cWas that true?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAt that point, yes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut you had already been caught falsifying expenses.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou decided that didn\u2019t count.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI was ashamed.\u201d<\/p>\n
She pushed the laptop slightly away from herself.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s that word again.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYvette\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou keep handing me shame like it explains planning.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt doesn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
That stopped her.<\/p>\n
Grant continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt explains why I started hiding things. It doesn\u2019t excuse what I did afterward.\u201d<\/p>\n
For the first time since we arrived at the house, Yvette did not immediately attack the answer.<\/p>\n
She listened.<\/p>\n
Grant seemed to notice.<\/p>\n
He spoke carefully.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe first time, I convinced myself it wasn\u2019t really stealing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yvette\u2019s eyes sharpened.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat would you call it now?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cStealing.\u201d<\/p>\n
The directness seemed to hurt him.<\/p>\n
He kept going.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was driving my own car. Gas was expensive. I\u2019d stay late. I\u2019d do things nobody paid me extra for. I started rounding mileage up.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow far up?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot much at first.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is how people talk when the end is worse.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grant was silent.<\/p>\n
Yvette looked at the phone.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow far?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTen miles. Fifteen. Sometimes twenty.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPer trip?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd then?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen I started entering trips I didn\u2019t make.\u201d<\/p>\n
I felt Yvette\u2019s shoulders tighten beneath her blouse.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI needed money.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMostly stupid things.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBe specific.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grant exhaled.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy car needed tires. I\u2019d run up a credit card. I was behind on insurance.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou could have asked your parents.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t want to.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou could have asked me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe weren\u2019t that serious yet.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were dating.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
She caught herself before reacting to the phrase.<\/p>\n
Grant must have realized too.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yvette rubbed her forehead.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened after they caught you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI paid it back.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWith what money?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA loan from Dad.\u201d<\/p>\n
I looked sharply at the phone.<\/p>\n
Yvette turned toward me.<\/p>\n
Neither of us had known.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow much?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cTwo thousand.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDid your father know what it was for?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did you tell him?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCar repairs.\u201d<\/p>\n
I felt something sink in my stomach.<\/p>\n
Another car repair.<\/p>\n
Another excuse.<\/p>\n
The second lie had repeated the structure of the first.<\/p>\n
Yvette saw it too.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo years later, when you needed five thousand, you used the same story.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grant did not answer.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou already knew it worked.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
The word came through faintly.<\/p>\n
I stepped away from the table and stared out the kitchen window.<\/p>\n
The backyard was half-packed for a move that was never going to happen. A stack of flattened boxes leaned against the fence. A child\u2019s plastic watering can sat upside down near the steps.<\/p>\n
Ordinary objects.<\/p>\n
A manufactured future.<\/p>\n
Yvette spoke again.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened after the first warning?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNothing for years.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou mean you didn\u2019t do it again.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow many years?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAbout four.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd then this time.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
Grant took longer answering.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen the expenses started climbing at home, I panicked.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe expenses you hid from me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGo on.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI was traveling more for work. Hotels, meals, parking. Some of it went on my card and got reimbursed later.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s normal.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo what changed?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOne month I submitted the same meal twice.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAccidentally?\u201d<\/p>\n
Grant hesitated.<\/p>\n
Yvette\u2019s expression flattened.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow much?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cForty-eight dollars.\u201d<\/p>\n
She let out a disbelieving breath.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou risked your job for forty-eight dollars.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAt first.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAt first.\u201d<\/p>\n
I watched her face close again.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow far did it go?\u201d<\/p>\n
Grant sounded exhausted now.<\/p>\n
\u201cI started adding things.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat things?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMeals. Parking. Mileage.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cReal expenses with changed amounts?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSometimes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd sometimes completely invented?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yvette stared at the phone.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow much total?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAbout sixty-four hundred.\u201d<\/p>\n
The number matched the repayment agreement.<\/p>\n
She looked back at the screen.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou knew the exact amount.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course you did.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grant\u2019s voice softened.<\/p>\n
\u201cI stopped before they confronted me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yvette looked up.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI knew it had gone too far.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo you confessed?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen what do you mean you stopped?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI stopped submitting fake expenses.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow long before they caught it?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe a month.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat does not make you the person who stopped.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grant went quiet.<\/p>\n
She leaned back.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you intend to repay it before they found out?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI told myself I would.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat isn\u2019t what I asked.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her hands trembled again.<\/p>\n
She folded them.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did the company do?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThey audited several months.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd found everything.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThey could have fired you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy didn\u2019t they?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy manager pushed for a final warning.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019d been there a long time. My performance was good.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cExcept for stealing from them.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThey made you repay the money.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd blocked you from promotion.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor two years.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yvette stared at the date on the document.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd one month after receiving this warning, you came home and told me your director had started talking to you about management.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grant did not answer.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne month.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo that was never true.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot even a misunderstanding.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot even you hoping.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
The distinction seemed to matter.<\/p>\n
At the party, Grant had explained his deception as something that grew from disappointment. He had implied there had been a promotion within reach, then a failure, then embarrassment, then lies.<\/p>\n
The document showed something else.<\/p>\n
He had invented the possibility before there was one.<\/p>\n
Yvette\u2019s voice became quiet.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy did you tell me that?\u201d<\/p>\n
Grant did not respond for several seconds.<\/p>\n
Then he said, \u201cBecause you were disappointed in me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yvette blinked.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot about work.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat are you talking about?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOur anniversary.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her face changed.<\/p>\n
I felt as though I had stepped into a conversation that began years earlier.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat anniversary?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOur fifth.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yvette looked toward me.<\/p>\n
I shook my head slightly.<\/p>\n
I knew nothing about it.<\/p>\n
Grant continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe went to dinner.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI remember.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou asked what I wanted next.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her mouth tightened.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou said we were standing still.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI said I wanted us to plan.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI heard standing still.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is not what I said.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know that now.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cStop.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRight.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yvette stood abruptly and paced toward the living room.<\/p>\n
She carried the phone with her.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did I actually say?\u201d<\/p>\n
Grant answered almost immediately.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou wanted a house eventually. Better schools. More space. You asked whether I liked my job enough to stay there forever.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd I thought you were asking why I hadn\u2019t done more.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI was asking what you wanted.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
She leaned one hand against the doorway.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou could have said you didn\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI couldn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou absolutely could.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t think I could.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is not the same thing.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did you say instead?\u201d<\/p>\n
Grant\u2019s voice was barely audible.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat management had mentioned me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yvette nodded slowly.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd I got excited.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI told you I was proud of you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou remember that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her face crumpled for a moment.<\/p>\n
She turned away from me.<\/p>\n
\u201cI bought champagne.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grant did not speak.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe sat on the floor because our dining table hadn\u2019t arrived yet.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd you let me toast a promotion conversation that never happened.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yvette pressed her hand to her mouth.<\/p>\n
I looked away.<\/p>\n
That memory belonged to them.<\/p>\n
After several seconds, she turned back.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you ever plan to tell me that night?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe next day?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI hoped something would happen that made it true.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere it is.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
She glared at the phone.<\/p>\n
Grant corrected himself quickly.<\/p>\n
\u201cI mean, yes. That\u2019s what I did.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yvette sat again.<\/p>\n
She looked suddenly drained.<\/p>\n
\u201cI need you to answer something without explaining around it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOkay.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWere you afraid I would leave you if you weren\u2019t promoted?\u201d<\/p>\n
Grant took a breath.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yvette\u2019s face softened, but only in confusion.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought you were getting tired of carrying us.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou earned more than I did.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s not what I mean.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou handled everything.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yvette stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe schedule. School. Bills. Appointments. Holidays. Plans.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou told me you hated planning.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI do.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI started feeling like the only thing I was bringing was money.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is ridiculous.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know it sounds ridiculous.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt sounds false.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt wasn\u2019t false to me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yvette\u2019s eyes flashed.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou don\u2019t get to turn this into me making you feel inadequate.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou just did.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. I\u2019m telling you what I told myself.\u201d<\/p>\n
That stopped her again.<\/p>\n
Grant continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou would ask what I wanted and I\u2019d say whatever you wanted. You thought I was easygoing.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought you trusted me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI did.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI also used it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yvette stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you decided things, I couldn\u2019t decide wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n
The room went very quiet.<\/p>\n
I thought of everything Yvette had said in the car.<\/p>\n
Grant never needed anything.<\/p>\n
Grant never argued.<\/p>\n
Grant was easy.<\/p>\n
Apparently ease had been camouflage.<\/p>\n
Grant\u2019s voice came through the phone.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen the money got bad, I should have told you. I didn\u2019t. Then I made one bad choice. Then another. Every time I thought the next one would buy me enough time to fix the last one.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yvette shook her head.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou keep describing panic like weather.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not trying to.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt keeps happening to you in your version.\u201d<\/p>\n
He was silent.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou need to understand why that matters.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI do.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDo you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
She sat straighter.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou falsified expenses.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou hid debt.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou manipulated the budgets I trusted.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou lied about work.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou lied about the move.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou lied to your father.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou let our daughter believe she was leaving her friends.\u201d<\/p>\n
His voice broke.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo sentence that starts with \u2018I was scared\u2019 erases the fact that you acted.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yvette shut her eyes.<\/p>\n
Neither of us corrected him this time.<\/p>\n
There was no useful correction left.<\/p>\n
I looked at the clock.<\/p>\n
We had been gone from the party nearly an hour.<\/p>\n
My phone vibrated.<\/p>\n
Nolan.<\/p>\n
I stepped toward the kitchen and read the message.<\/p>\n
Your niece is asking where her mom is. Grant told her you two went to get something for the move.<\/p>\n
I stared at the screen.<\/p>\n
Of course he had.<\/p>\n
Another lie.<\/p>\n
Tiny.<\/p>\n
Convenient.<\/p>\n
Almost reflexive.<\/p>\n
I showed Yvette.<\/p>\n
She read it twice.<\/p>\n
Her expression emptied.<\/p>\n
Then she held her own phone closer.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did you tell our daughter when she asked where I went?\u201d<\/p>\n
Grant went silent.<\/p>\n
Yvette waited.<\/p>\n
Finally he said, \u201cThat you went to get something for the move.\u201d<\/p>\n
The change in her face was immediate.<\/p>\n
Not shock.<\/p>\n
Recognition.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou did it again.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grant did not respond.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhile we were having this conversation.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t want her worried.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo you lied.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou had a hundred truthful things you could have said.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI panicked.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yvette laughed once.<\/p>\n
There was no humor in it.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is the problem.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grant was breathing heavily through the speaker.<\/p>\n
Yvette looked at me.<\/p>\n
Then at the laptop.<\/p>\n
Then at the boxes labeled for rooms they would never have.<\/p>\n
When she spoke again, the emotion had left her voice.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t care whether the next lie is about forty thousand dollars or four minutes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grant said her name.<\/p>\n
She interrupted him.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you cannot stop protecting yourself with lies even while confessing the lies, then I cannot trust anything you say without proof.\u201d<\/p>\n
He did not argue.<\/p>\n
Yvette stared at the phone.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor the rest of today, do not explain anything to our daughter about where I am.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOkay.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIf she asks, tell her I had to handle something at home.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOkay.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is true.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd when I return, you and I are leaving together.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grant hesitated.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTo the apartment.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause I want to see the place you chose for us without asking me.\u201d<\/p>\n
He exhaled shakily.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll right.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd then we are coming back here.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHere?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor what?\u201d<\/p>\n
Yvette looked around the dining room.<\/p>\n
At the computer.<\/p>\n
At the evidence.<\/p>\n
At eighteen months of carefully built deception.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo find out whether twice actually means twice.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cTwice.\u201d The word remained between us even after Grant stopped speaking. Yvette sat rigidly in front of the laptop, her phone resting on the table between her hands. I stood … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3840,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3849","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-chapter-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3849","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3849"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3849\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3867,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3849\/revisions\/3867"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3840"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3849"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3849"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3849"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}