Chapter 165

“Dean, are you all right?”

He nodded, though far from fine. Candice gave him time. When he fought off the urge to snivel, he blinked, swallowed, moved his hands from his face, but didn’t look at her as he said, “Christ, I wasn’t aware I carried all that. I mean, people expect me to screw up. I’ve been focusing on, if I did, how they’d throw it in my face, tell me I’m the failure they always knew I would be, but I didn’t know my feelings went so deep.” Dean laughed. “I should have had the therapy before moving in with Jay.”

“Why?”

“At least I might have a clue.”

“A clue to what? Dean, you make it sound as if you should understand exactly what you’re doing. That you should not only have found the path you seek but should grasp every step to take along the way. Think of it as sounding as a parent who expects to get everything right in raising a child. You don’t have every answer. You’re allowed to get things wrong.”

“But being wrong can be disastrous.”