Work started out okay. H-- brought me a muffin, something she hasn’t done in months. There was a nice note in the bag, and it reminded me of the halcyon days when I’d arrive at the office to find a sticky on my desk with a heart or a smiley face. That was such a wonderful stretch early in our relationship and it saddened me to think H-- doesn’t do those things anymore. Of course, I recognized I was just as guilty. I recalled a stretch when I brought flowers every Friday for two Fridays in a row.

     After the muffin, things went downhill. By lunchtime, the air in the office had changed. It was heavy, calm before the storm, kind of stuff.

     People, I noticed, were treating me differently. There were some sideways glances. Friends w...

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