The Things He Withheld
After I started dating Ryan Kellogg, I gave up the little rituals I had loved for twenty years.
No birthday cakes. No fireworks on New Year's Eve. No more searching for the restaurant with the prettiest view on our anniversary.
Ryan always said real life didn't need all that decorative nonsense.
He only agreed to a modest engagement dinner because I insisted.
But when he arrived that evening, he was wearing a perfectly tailored suit.
Our friends and relatives looked at him with new respect.
I was thrilled, convinced he was finally learning to meet me halfway.
Then, on the drive home, I happened to see a post from Sophie Bennett, the younger graduate Ryan had been mentoring.
In the ph