“Photographer keeps the retainer.”
“Invitations weren’t printed yet.”
She stared at the documents.
“You did this before I came home?”
“I gathered the information.”
“Why?”
I looked at her.
“Because unlike you, I spent today deciding based on all the information.”
Her face went still.
“What does that mean?”
I picked up my phone.
Opened the first photograph.
Placed it on the table.
Alex K.
Emma did not touch it.
She recognized the conversation instantly.
Her face lost color.
“Michael.”
I swiped.
Another screenshot.
I think I’m falling for you.
Another.
When I’m with you, I feel alive in a way I haven’t felt in years.
Another.
Told Michael I’m with Sophie.
Another.
I need time to figure out my situation with Michael.
Emma sat down.
Not gracefully.
Her knees seemed to stop supporting her.
“You went through my messages.”
I had expected that sentence.
It still made me angry.
“Your iPad was on the counter.”
“That doesn’t give you the right.”
“No.”
I nodded.
“It doesn’t.”
She looked surprised.
“In a healthy relationship, I shouldn’t read your messages.”
“This morning I found out we weren’t in one.”
“That’s not fair.”
“Which part?”
“You invaded my privacy.”
“And found an affair.”
“It wasn’t an affair.”
I almost admired the speed.
“What do you call it?”
“A friendship that crossed boundaries.”
“With kissing.”
Emma’s eyes closed.
“So you read everything.”
“Enough.”
She pressed both hands to her face.
I waited.
Finally:
“I was going to tell you.”
“When?”
“Tonight.”
“No.”
Her hands dropped.
“You were going to ask me for a break.”
“That was me telling you something was wrong.”
“That is not the same as saying there is another person.”
“I needed time.”
“You already had three months.”
She flinched.
“That’s not fair.”
“There’s that sentence again.”
“I was confused.”
“I believe you.”
She stared.
That was not the answer she expected.
“I believe you were confused.”
“I believe you love me.”
“I believe Alex made you feel something you weren’t feeling here.”
“I believe you don’t know what you want.”
Tears entered her eyes.
“Then you understand.”
“No.”
I shook my head.
“I understand confusion.”
“I don’t understand making me plan a wedding while privately testing another relationship.”
Emma started crying.
“I wasn’t testing him.”
I picked up the phone.
“What happens with us during that space?”
Her own message.
Then Alex’s:
I’m not promising you anything, Emma.
I looked at her.
“You wanted me to wait while you figured out whether he might become something better.”
“That’s not what I meant.”
“What did you mean?”
She could not answer.
I continued.
“You did not ask to pause the engagement because you suddenly developed philosophical concerns about marriage.”
“You asked because Alex told you to deal with your situation before expecting anything from him.”
Emma’s eyes widened.
I had understood correctly.
“You wanted the option to explore him without technically cheating on your fiancé anymore.”
“No.”
“Then explain it.”
She wiped her face.
“I wanted room to think without hurting you.”
I stared at her.
“You lied to me for three months to avoid hurting me.”
“Yes.”
“You kissed another man to avoid hurting me.”
Her face twisted.
“That’s not what I meant.”
“I know.”