I thought I had salvaged the night—that somehow, together, we had managed to make everything right again. But there was still something off. A heaviness lingering between us, like a storm that had passed but left behind a sky too grey to call it over.
I glanced at Kathleen, watching as she swirled the last remnants of her wine in her glass, her gaze distant. The candle on the table flickered, casting soft shadows over her face, but she didn’t seem to notice.
“Should we test out the hot tub?” I asked, leaning back slightly in my chair. We had officially finished dinner, the plates pushed aside, the wine bottle half-empty.
Kathleen was leaned back in her chair, one leg folded beneath her, her elbows resting on the table as she stared out the window. She seemed far away, as if she wasn’t f
