I married a blind man because I thought he would never have to see the parts of me the world had spent years staring at.

Afterward, there were hugs, cheap cake, paper cups of punch, children running under folding tables, and Lorie pretending not to dab her eyes every time she looked at me.

For once, I was not the scarred woman people were politely trying not to notice. I was the bride.

All those sweet memories had me in tears.

***

Lorie drove us back to Callahan’s apartment after sunset. Buddy padded in first, exhausted from too much attention, and curled up near the bedroom doorway with the deep sigh of a dog who had fulfilled all duties expected of him.