Chapter 8 - The Decision That Ended the Old Marriage
Filing for separation did not make Emily feel powerful.
It made her feel sick.
The first temporary parenting conference was scheduled weeks away.
Until then, attorneys negotiated a short-term agreement.
Ryan would have frequent daytime parenting time.
Diane would not be present.
No overnight visits yet, partly because Noah was so young and partly because the parents were still working through feeding and safety arrangements.
Ryan hated the restriction involving his mother.
“My mom isn't dangerous.”
Emily stared at him across Monica’s conference room.
“She intentionally released a newborn onto the floor.”
Ryan looked at his attorney.
His attorney looked back at him.
No rescue came.
Finally Ryan said, “She lost her temper.”
Emily almost laughed.
“At Noah?”
“No. At you.”
That answer was somehow worse.
Monica placed one hand lightly on Emily’s arm beneath the table.
Stay focused.
Emily did.
Ryan eventually agreed to the temporary restriction without admitting Diane posed a danger.
Outside the office, he caught up with Emily.
“You know this is destroying Mom.”
Emily turned.
“What happened destroyed my trust.”
“She thinks you're taking Noah from her.”
“Noah was never hers.”
Ryan’s expression hardened.
“She loves him.”
“Love without boundaries is not ownership.”
For once, Ryan had no answer.
The financial separation hurt too.
Emily redirected her paycheck into a new account.
They froze discretionary transfers from joint savings by agreement.
Ryan had to produce business records concerning the sixty-two thousand dollars.
That was when he admitted Carter BuildWorks was in worse condition than he had claimed.
Two major projects had gone over budget.
A commercial tenant had withheld payment during a dispute.
Ryan had used household savings to keep payroll current.
Emily understood the fear.
She even understood why he had been ashamed.
What she could not understand was the solution.
“You could have told me.”
“You were pregnant.”
“So?”
“You were already anxious.”
“Stop using my feelings as permission to lie.”
Ryan looked away.
Then Emily asked the question that had followed her for weeks.
“What exactly did your mother think would happen after she provoked me?”
Ryan’s silence lasted too long.
Emily’s voice dropped.
“Ryan.”
“She said if you ever became physical in front of witnesses, we'd have something concrete.”
Emily stared at him.
“And you agreed?”
“I told her not to push you.”
“That isn't what I asked.”
Ryan’s eyes filled with shame.
“I didn't stop her.”
The admission ended something.
Not the legal marriage.
May you like
That would take longer.
But the version of their marriage Emily had kept hoping still existed.
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