“That’s right. It happened not far from here.”
Eric was quiet for a few seconds. “Are you still with that guy?”
Gwen met Peter’s gaze. “His name is Peter. And yes, we just arrived at the hotel.”
There was another prolonged silence. “Are you in separate rooms or ...?”
Gwen turned away from Peter and spoke quietly. “I have my own room. But really ... we’ve been over this. It’s none of your business.”
“I understand. But, Gwen ...”
She waited for him to finish the thought and became aware of her heart hammering against her rib cage.
“I miss you,” he said. “I can’t stop thinking about us. We used to be soulmates, remember?”
“I remember,” Gwen softly said.
“So ... is there any hope for us?” he asked.
Wishing she felt more certain of her life and what she wanted, Gwen went into the bathroom and studied her reflection in the mirror. “I don’t know.”
Eric gave her a moment to ruminate. When he finally spoke, his voice reminded her of the way he used to talk when they were in bed together, when they were most intimate. “Till death do us part,” he said. “When I spoke those words in church, I had no doubts about you. I was certain we’d be together forever.”
“I was certain too,” she replied.
He took his time posing the next question, because he knew her well. He understood that his words needed space and time to breathe, then relax into her consciousness.
“Can I pick you up at the airport when you get back?”
“Um ...”
“I don’t expect you to make any decisions right away,” he said. “I just want to spend some time with you and see if maybe ...” He paused.
“Maybe what?” she asked.
“If maybe we could talk about giving our marriage a second try. I’ve already ended things with Keri. It’s over.”
Gwen went a little weak in the knees. She sat down on the tub, and a memory drifted in. She recalled the weeks just after Eric had left her, when this was all that she had wanted—for him to come home and apologize and tell her that he didn’t want to give up on their marriage, because he still loved her.
Their marriage had been a happy one. At least until tragedy had struck.
She’d been walking around like an automaton ever since.
Until recently.
Gwen stood, looked at herself in the mirror again, and combed her fingers through her hair. She didn’t want to think about this now. She wanted to get dressed for dinner and have a nice evening.
But Eric had more to say. “I’m sorry for how I pressured you to get pregnant right away, after Lily. I should have been more patient. And I want you to know that I’d be okay with whatever you want. Children or no children. I just want to be with you and grow old with you. That was always our plan. But if you feel like you might be ready to have a baby someday, I’d be willing to do that too. Whatever you want, Gwen. All I want is you. Us. Together forever.”
The walls felt like they were closing in around her. Gwen was in no place, emotionally, to make any split-second decisions. She honestly didn’t know what she wanted. She was still angry with Eric, but she had once been so happy in their marriage. It felt wrong to simply throw it away, to not even try. What was the alternative? Divorce?
“Okay,” she said hesitantly. “Pick me up at the airport, and we’ll talk. But that doesn’t mean I want to jump back into things with you. A lot’s happened in the past two years, and we can’t just pick up where we left off. Even if we could, I’m not sure that’s what I’d want.”
“I wouldn’t want that either,” he said encouragingly, “because we didn’t leave off in a good place. And that’s totally on me. It’s my fault we didn’t get through those rough times, and I’m sorry. I really am. Ifyou’re willing to give me another chance, I swear to you—I’ll spend the rest of my life making it up to you.”
She had to resist the inclination to melt into his apology and forget everything that had transpired over the past two years. Specifically, Keri. “Let’s just start with dinner.”
“I’ll accept that like the good sport that I am,” Eric said, sounding more jovial. “Let me know when your flight is coming in, and I’ll be there to meet you.”
