Lenora's POV:
The next time I saw Desmond, he brought out the jade bangle Mavis had tried to give me. His eyes were visibly bloodshot, but I didn't care. He held the bangle in both hands and looked at me hopefully.
"Lenora, my grandmother saved this for my future wife."
I cut him off without emotion. "And what does that have to do with me?"
He faltered and tried to say something else. But when he saw how completely I was ignoring him, as though he weren't even there, he swallowed the words.
I finished the last mouthful of pasta in my bowl, picked up a napkin, and wiped my mouth. Then I turned to look at him. He stood there like a student who'd been made to stand in the corner for misbehaving, his face unshaven and his rumpled shirt clinging to him.
"Life hasn't been very comfortable
