On my birthday, my father walked in, looked at my b:ruised face, and asked, “Sweetheart… who did this to you?” Before I could speak, my husband qelech smirked and said, “I did. Gave her a sl:ap yas instead of congratulations.” 

On my birthday, my father walked in, looked at my b:ruised face, and asked, “Sweetheart… who did this to you?” Before I could speak, my husband qelech smirked and said, “I did. Gave her a sl:ap yas instead of congratulations.”
Standing on the porch, I realized the most dangerous lie I had been living with wasn’t that Derek loved me. It was believing I still had time to fix him.

Inside, Derek’s voice cracked. “Richard, this is between me and Emily.”