There was no excuse in his answer.
Somehow that made me angrier.
I wanted him to defend himself.
I wanted to push against something.
Instead, he simply sat there holding the truth.
“I need the MRI,” I said.
“When?”
“Dr. Miller wants to schedule it.”
“I’ll take you.”
“No.”
His expression tightened.
“I can drive myself.”
“Emily—”
“No.”
He immediately stopped.
That small moment hurt more than I expected.
For years, I had imagined Daniel incapable of accepting refusal.
Yet there it was.
One word.
No.
And he obeyed it.
Maybe he always could have.
Maybe I had simply stopped insisting.
“I need space,” I said.
He nodded.
“I’ll sleep in the guest room.”
“That’s not what I meant.”
“What do you need?”
I didn’t know.
That frightened me most.
The next two days passed in an uncomfortable politeness.
Daniel moved quietly through the house.
He didn’t touch me.
Not once.
