Five hundred and twenty letters, each one a testament to his devotion, with not a single word repeated.
They held all the emotions he’d felt at the time, all the love he had poured into me.
I had treasured them, telling myself that someday, when I was old and gray, I would read them again and relive the memories of our youth.
But now, that time had passed.
I grabbed a fire pit and a lighter, tossing each letter into the flames.
The flames crackled and leaped higher, their warmth soothing the emptiness in my chest and gradually, my heart began to quiet.
When Cooper returned, he caught sight of the scene.
His heart skipped a beat and he rushed over in instinctive concern.
“Wife, what are you burning?”
At the sound of his voice, I rose slowly to my feet, my gaze steady.
“I was just cleaning up and found some things I no longer need. I thought I’d burn them.”
Worried that I might get too close to the fire, he gently pulled me back a step.
“These things can be handled by the servants. Be careful, don’t hurt yourself.”
His focus was entirely on me, so he didn’t notice the letters that hadn’t fully burned in the fire pit.