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I couldn’t speak coherent words at the moment, so I chose silence. Each time I thought I might try to speak; sobs rocked my body. I hated that this was the moment that James chose to come home.

For years, I’ve managed to keep my feelings in check. I never wanted him to see me as weak. Not only that, but I needed to harness every ounce of strength I possessed just to make it through those years.

After a while, James sat across from me on the floor of our kitchen. His long legs stretched all the way from the island to the opposite counters. He didn’t try to force me to talk or ask any questions, he just kept me company in the silence.

“I forgot the sugar in my shortbread cookies,” I whispered, needing to break that silence that stretched between us. It was the first thing that came to my mind, despite the looming bomb that James had dropped on me earlier in the day.

“Can’t you just add it now?” James questioned, sounding genuinely confused.

My lip quivered as I finally raised my face fr