I took a breath.
“Perhaps she makes you feel young. But I was the woman who stayed when you had to learn how to live as an older man.”
He stared at me.
I continued.
“And I will not spend the rest of my life competing with a memory of who you used to be.”
He lowered his head.
For a moment, I thought he might apologize.
Instead, he picked up his suitcase and left.
That evening, Susan sent me another photograph.
This time, Robert was standing beside her in front of a restaurant. She was holding a glass of wine, and he had his arm around her waist.
The message beneath it read:
“At last, we’re together. I hope you learn to accept your defeat.”
I looked at the photograph for a long time.
Then I blocked her number.
I had no intention of participating in a contest I had never agreed to enter.
