The words flew out of his mouth before he could stop them. "Well, isn't that how it should be?"
I couldn't believe what I was hearing.
"How it should be?"
"Clement, do you even hear yourself?"
"What did I say that's so wrong?" He stood in the doorway, towering over me, looking down. "You married me so your future kids could have a city address. Let's not pretend otherwise. So what if your family helps out a little?"
The words hit me like a slap. My ears rang.
It was true that my mother had once said something along those lines.
But I had never thought of it that way. Not once.
The room went impossibly quiet. So quiet I could hear my own heartbeat.
The silence stretched on and on. I was the one who broke it.
"Say that again."
He must have realized he'd gone too far, but an apology never came.
"Just tell your parents I don't have time this week. We'll figure something out after things settle down."
I laughed.
I actually laughed. The kind of laugh that only comes when someone pushes you past your limit.
"You have time to eat at your parents' house, but not mine?"
"Yeah, my family lives out in the country. But your parents' place on the edge of the suburbs is even farther!"