That was why what came next felt possible.
“I want to say it anyway. You didn’t save me because you wanted anything. You didn’t make my crisis about you. You stayed when I asked and stepped back when I needed. You reminded me what help looks like when it isn’t a trap.”
Eli looked down.
His throat moved.
“Claire—”
“I’m not saying this to make you responsible for my healing.”
His eyes lifted.
“I’m saying you were part of it.”
For a long moment, he said nothing.
Then he whispered, “You were part of mine too.”
The kitchen became very quiet.
Not awkward.
Tender in a way that frightened both of us.
I thought of Anna then.
Not as a shadow between us, but as a woman whose memory deserved honesty.
“Is that okay?” I asked.
Eli’s eyes shone.
“I don’t know yet.”
