A Silver Photo Frame on Our Porch Ended My Fifteen Year Blind Spot
Why had she kept the secret for ten years?
If she had told me, I would have felt the weight of the debt every time we had an argument about our budget. She had let me believe I was the sole provider because it was the only way to preserve my pride.
I touched my silver wedding band, turning it slowly on my finger. The cost of my master’s degree was not twelve thousand dollars; it was the entire professional life of the woman I married.
The coffee grew cold, a thin skin forming over the top of the dark liquid. I folded the pages into thirds and slid them back into my pocket.
The drive back to Oakridge was silent. I pulled into the driveway at six in the evening, the engine of the Toyota Sienna ticking as it cooled in the autumn air.
I let myself in through the front door, the key turning quietly in the lock. The smell of roasted chicken and thyme met me in the entryway, warm and familiar.
