“She was a lucky woman,” I mumble.
His gaze comes back to me. “I don’t think she thought so,” he says dryly.
“Why? What happened?”
He sighs again. “I had a difficult time when I came out of the army. I wasn’t an easy person to live with.”
It’s the most he’s opened to me, and suddenly I wished I hadn’t drunk so much. I’d like to have a proper conversation with him about it, but I’m a bit hazy.
“Is that why you broke up?” I ask.
“Partly.” He doesn’t elaborate.
I blow out a frustrated breath. “Honestly, it’s like trying to get blood out of a… you know… trying to get information out of you.”
His lips curve up. “I’m not big on confessions.”
“You don’t trust me?”
“It’s not that. I’m uncomfortable talking about myself.”
“Why?”
He shrugs.
“Do you come from a big family?” I ask.
“I have two brothers.”
“Are they in New Zealand?”
“One is. The other is in Australia, with my dad.”
“Your mum’s here?”
“Yeah.”
“They’re divorced?”
“Yeah.”
“How long ago did that happen?”
“I was fourteen.”
That means his home life must have been difficult when he was a teen. If his parents were caught up in their own unhappy relationship, they might not have paid him much attention when he needed it most.
“Are you the oldest son?”
“Yeah.” He looks amused at my questions.
“Are your brothers like you?”
“Yeah, kinda.”
“Do you all get together very much?”
He sighs. “No. They don’t talk.”
