For all of my worrying, he was already there when I arrived at the party. I took in a breath and exhaled-hoping to release either the fear or the relief so that I would be left with only one. The confusion was just short of driving me crazy. He hadn’t seen me yet, his back was turned to me while the host-the editor of a friend of a friend of mine, and his-greeted me and offered me a drink. Completely out of my element. Just four months ago, the man on the other side of the room would have been my touchstone in such an unfamiliar environment. As much as I needed to see him, on that night I was so scared to approach him I could barely breathe. It was just as I was handed my dry martini with 3 olives that I turned to see me. His first instinct on seeing me was the beautiful, genuine smile I had missed so much. It was shortly followed by a shadow, as the memories flooded and he remembered my betrayal. Even if he could have forgiven me, I was not sure I ever would.
“Sis, what the hell are you doing here?”