Chapter 21
“I know.”
“And if we ever rebuild anything, your mother does not get a vote.”
Marlene laughed sharply.
“There it is.”
I looked at her.
“What?”
“You’re trying to separate my son from his family.”
“No.”
I stepped toward Daniel.
“I’m asking my husband whether he can build a family with me without making his mother the third person in our marriage.”
Daniel looked from me to Marlene.
Then down.
That tiny movement told me everything.
Not because he chose her again.
Because he still could not choose at all.
And after six months, I finally understood that indecision was a decision.
I took my bag.
“Elena, please.”
Daniel followed me toward the door.
Outside, he caught up beside the SUV.
“I love you.”
I turned.
“I love you too.”
His face broke.
“Then why are you leaving?”
“Because love cannot do the work that courage refuses to do.”
He wiped his eyes.
“I gave you the documents.”
“This isn’t about the car.”
“I stood up to her.”
“For five minutes.”
“I’m trying.”
“I know.”
I touched his arm.
“And maybe someday trying becomes changing.”
He stared at me.
“But I can’t raise Lucas inside the process while you decide whether you’re allowed to be your own man.”
Daniel cried then.
Not loudly.
Just quietly beside the vehicle that had become a symbol for everything wrong between us.
“I never meant to hurt you.”
“I believe you.”
That almost made him cry harder.
“But you did.”
He nodded.
“I’m sorry.”
“I know.”
I reached into my bag and handed him a copy of the transfer paperwork.
“When this is complete, let me know.”
He took it.
Then his expression changed.
“My mom told me something last night.”
I waited.
“She said if I sign the SUV over, I’m giving you leverage.”
I almost laughed.
“Of course she did.”
“But I told her I’m signing it anyway.”
That mattered.
Not enough to undo everything.
But enough for me to see that maybe Daniel was finally beginning to understand the cost of obedience.
“What did she say?”
He looked toward the house.
“She said I would regret choosing you over my family.”
I held his eyes.
“And what did you say?”
Daniel swallowed.
“I told her you and Lucas are my family too.”
For the first time in months, the answer came without hesitation.
But sometimes the right answer arrives after the damage is already done.