My throat tightened.
“Why me?”
Russell smiled.
“Because you know what security feels like when you’ve lived without it.”
I couldn’t speak.
He leaned back.
“And because the first thing I ever noticed
about you was that your feet hurt.”
I laughed through tears.
“That was real?”
“Every part of that moment was real.”
For years I had wondered whether anything between us had been untouched by manipulation.
Now I understood something simpler.
Relationships don’t become real because they begin perfectly.
Sometimes they become real because, eventually, **someone chooses to stop lying.**
I looked at Russell.
“There’s something I need to tell you.”
His expression changed.
“What?”
I took a breath.
“I filed for an annulment.”
Everyone went silent.
Claire whispered, “Oh.”
Russell stared at me.
I continued.
“Our marriage began under false pretenses. There were things neither of us understood.”
He nodded slowly.
“I understand.”
