when necessary. Financial when necessary. Don’t argue about Rachel.”
“I wasn’t planning to.”
“Good.”
She touched the folder. “People say a lot of things during divorce. Documents say fewer things. I prefer documents.”
So did I. We signed a temporary arrangement: joint funds would cover household costs pending property division; individual accounts would pay personal expenses; neither party would make unusual withdrawals or charge non-marital personal purchases to our shared Visa.
Ordinary routines returned in a strange new shape. I worked, bought groceries, watered basil, watched dreadful crime programs with Lily on Sundays, and moved Daniel’s mugs from the cabinet nearest the refrigerator to the one above the stove. I needed the room, not a symbolic act of revenge. Much of separation consisted of quietly reclaiming space.
Then August brought an ivory wedding invitation. My cousin Allison, forty-three and marrying for the first time, wanted a small celebration. Our mothers
