My pride still had sharp corners.
Grief did not become easier simply because the bank balance was real.
But the panic that had lived in my chest for years loosened its grip, and in that space I began, very slowly, to understand something complicated and bitter.
Richard had loved me.
I believe that now.
He had also chosen for me.
He decided what I could bear, what I should know, and what pain I was allowed to carry.
