bakery near our hotel.
That scared me more than I expected. Because if I liked it too, then Oregon wasn’t the problem.
The way Ben had chosen it without me was.
Ben caught me watching families cross the street with strollers and soccer bags.
“You like it.”
“I like that people seem to walk places.”
“That’s progress.”
“Don’t ruin it.”
The Friday Promise
That evening, we had dinner with a few of Ben’s future colleagues.
Halfway through the meal, one of them smiled at him. “Your wife must have been thrilled when you negotiated Fridays.”
I turned. “Fridays?”
Ben’s expression changed.
Outside the restaurant, I stopped him. “What did you negotiate?”
“One Friday off every month. For me and Olive.”
“Why wasn’t that in the paperwork you gave me?”
He exhaled. “Because I was doing what I always do, Chels. Figuring it out alone. But I was also trying to
