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marriage. His dad would be fine. He’d never been fond of Shelley. But his mom? A different story. She loved Shelley, and love made it easy to turn a blind eye to a person’s faults. He knew that all too well. His parents were retired and liked to go on day trips, so they might not even be home, but he called anyway, happy when his dad answered the phone.
    “Jason, I didn’t expect to hear from you until you got back.”
    “Well…”
    “How is Mexico?”
    “I’m not in Mexico. Shelley went without me.”
    His father cleared his throat. “Why would she do that?”
    Jason didn’t bother to lie. “She left me.” He walked into the living room and sat down on the sofa.
    “She what?” His dad’s voice turned hard.
    “Yeah, she left me and not just for a separation or anything like that. We’re done.”
    He wouldn’t tell them about Nicole. He didn’t want his parents to hate Shelley, not really, but he had a small, niggling fear they might take her side.
    “You okay, son?”
    Jason smiled. No, his dad would never take Shelley’s side. Not unless he did something terrible like hit her, and his dad knew he wouldn’t. His mom ran the ship, but his dad always knew how Jason was on the inside. After he told his parents he’d asked Shelley to marry him, his dad pulled him aside and asked if he was sure he wanted to get married. Jason said yes, but he thought his dad knew something was a little off about Shelley. Something a little too controlling. He didn’t push, though. He’d just nodded and said “Okay, son.”
    “Yeah, I’m fine. It wasn’t really a surprise. Things have been kind of…rough for a while. I didn’t want to say anything and get you both upset. It’s not like you could do anything about it.”
    “No, these things happen. Have you talked to a lawyer yet?”
    “Not yet. I have to find one.”
    “Make sure you find one soon. I don’t want to see you get screwed over. Thank God you didn’t have any kids.”
    His dad needn’t have worried about that; Shelley refused to even think about having children. Ever.
    “I know.”
    A small silence, then his dad sighed. “Oh Christ, your mother.”
    “Yeah, I know. I’m not looking forward to telling her, that’s for sure. She’s not going to take the news like you. I guess I can’t bribe you to tell her for me, can I?”
    “Don’t think so, son. I’ll go get her—she’s in the other room sewing or something like that. No matter what, remember, I’m here for you, okay?”
    “I appreciate it, Dad.”
    “And don’t worry. Things will just get better for you from here on out.”
    The phone made a soft thud. Jason heard muted voices, then his mom’s raised in alarm.
    “Jason?”
    “Hi, Mom.”
    “What’s wrong? Why aren’t you in Cancun? Where is Shelley? Is one of you hurt?”
    Jason knew she had her hand up, waving it around as if pushing smoke away from her face. She did it whenever she got upset.
    “Mom, calm down. Nobody’s hurt. It’s just—”
    “What? What’s wrong?”
    “Well—”
    “What did you do?”
    Jason tapped his fingers on the coffee table. “Nothing, okay? Shelley and I split up.”
    “Did you say what I think you said?”
    “Ye—”
    “This isn’t funny, Jason.”
    He knew she’d moved her waving hand to her hip. Pretty soon she’d exhale through pursed lips and shake her head.
    “It’s not a joke. Really, it isn’t. We split up. Things have been rough—”
    “What did you do?”
    The same question again. Great. Of course his mom assumed he’d done something. He knew she would. He didn’t do anything. He did everything . Everything Shelley wanted and then some, but in the end, none of it mattered. She’d wanted something more, and he wasn’t convinced it had anything to do with Nicole at all.
    Shelley grew up in an area of town known for its unkempt yards, alcoholism and teenage mothers. A place where dental hygiene was a foreign word and education a necessary evil until the legal