Ben wrinkled his nose. “It looks ready.”
“Appearances can deceive. Give it a gentle tug.”
Ben tried again, but the apple refused to budge.
“See?” Daniel chuckled softly. “When it’s truly ready, you won’t have to force it.”
I longed to freeze moments like that in time. Daniel had grown unusually fatigued lately, and though we rarely spoke of it in front of the kids, I found myself watching him with a quiet, mounting panic. How long he lingered on the porch stairs after hauling a ladder. Whether he left food on his plate. How often he massaged his chest when he thought my back was turned.
He caught me staring. “Claire, stop fretting.”
“I wasn’t.”
“We’ve been married twenty-seven years. You are a terrible liar.”
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