“I love you,” she said. “I have loved you for a very long time.” She took a sip of her coffee, buying herself some time as he tried to find a way to respond, a way to match his expression to the mood she had unleashed on the room. She tried reading his gestures, the way he pulled a cigarette from his pocket, the way he lighted it. He couldn’t be that surprised, could he? He must have known. He didn’t say a word as smoke started floating away from his lips. Gloria tightened the grip around her mug. She could finally feel the weight of years of unspoken words pressing down against her shoulders, hard, as her cheeks burned like the sun. He looked up to face her, the same glance in his eyes as when they’d first met. His hair had little streaks of grey in it now but his face was still handsome.