Page 58 of The Summer Swap

Paris had been right back at the beginning of the conversation.

Maybe she was boring him. Maybe after all these years they had nothing to say that was new or interesting.

She waited while her appetizer was placed in front of her.

They’d both ordered asparagus but now it was here she wasn’t sure she was even hungry.

All around them couples were dining and she wondered how many of them were having a great time, and how many of them were dealing with huge things in their lives but trying to inject as much normal as possible. People were like icebergs. Only a fraction of who they were showed on the surface.

How did she and Theo look to other people? Did they look like two people who were struggling?

“You’re finding it hard to concentrate.”

“Yes.” He ran his hand over his face. “There’s something I need to say to you.”

“Oh.” Something about his expression made her uneasy. “What?”

“This probably isn’t the best place to have this conversation, but I need to talk about it.” Theo glanced at the diners closest to them and lowered his voice. “The affair was a mistake, Krissy. It should never have happened.”

“What are you talking about?” Panic squeezed her chest. She hadn’t had an affair, not technically. She and Jeff had flirted and spent time together and maybe, just maybe, it might have turned into something more, but it hadn’t. How had Theo found out?

“He told me that he regretted it right from the start.”

Jeff had told him that? Why would he do that? And when?

Her mouth was dry. “What do you mean? When did you talk to him?”

Theo toyed with his wineglass. “A few days before he died.”

Jeff was dead? No.

And Kristen realized that Theo wasn’t talking about Jeff.

“You’re talking about Michael.” She saw Theo look at her strangely.

“Who else?”

“I don’t know.” She was so flustered, she stumbled over the words. “I suppose I’m finding it hard to focus, with everything that has happened. And you’re not really making sense.”

He was thinking about Michael. He didn’t know about Jeff.

The relief was enormous.

She ate some of her asparagus. “Tell me what Michael said. Was this when you played golf a few weeks ago?”

“We’ve talked about it a lot over the past couple of years. His marriage breakdown was a rough time for him.”

Remembering how Trisha had struggled, she felt a flicker of frustration. It had been a rough time for Michael? “What about Trisha? She had no choice in it. He wrecked their lives. She was devastated.”

“Michael was devastated, too.” Theo spoke quietly. “He never would have left, but she wanted him out of the house. She made that choice.”

Kristen remembered the conversation.

I can’t bear to be near him. I can’t bear him to touch me.

She felt outrage for Trisha. “Do you blame her?”

“No. I’m not making any judgments. Just telling you how it was. How Michael felt.”

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