Chapter 8 - THE LETTER THAT NEVER ARRIVED
Four months into my pregnancy, Vincent wrote me a letter.
I didn't know that then.
I learned about it much later.
He sat in his Chicago study for three hours trying to find the right words.
He wrote:
Claire,
I know you asked for six months.
I'm keeping my promise.
But there are things I should have told you before you left.
I loved you.
Not because my grandmother wanted me married.
Not because you made my life easier.
Not because you looked good beside me.
I loved you because you were the only person who ever treated me like a man instead of a name.
I was afraid to tell you.
And when Sophia returned, I convinced myself that letting you go was the right thing.
It wasn't.
I hurt you.
I know that now.
I don't expect you to forgive me.
I only hope someday you'll believe that our marriage mattered to me.
He signed it.
Then placed it in an envelope.
He wrote my New York address.
And stared at it.
For a long time.
Finally, he opened the drawer.
Placed the letter inside.
And locked it.
May you like
Because he had promised me six months.
And for once, Vincent Moretti intended to keep his word.
