Page 63 of The Yoga Teacher

There was no threat in his tone. Just conviction.

The man huffed, mumbled something crude, and vanished back into the crowd.

Only then did Daniel turn.

His eyes were searching.Gentle.

“You okay?” he asked, voice barely above the music.

Hannah’s heart was still thudding. She adjusted the strap of her dress with fingers that didn’t feel entirely steady.

“I could’ve handled it,” she said, sharper than intended.

“I know.” He stepped back instantly, hands raised in quiet retreat. “You always could.”

The bartender slid the drinks toward her. She reached for them automatically, grateful for the task. Daniel gathered the others without a word.

They turned back toward the table together, glasses in hand.

Halfway there, Hannah heard herself say, “Can I ask you something?”

Daniel nodded once, quiet. “Anything.”

She glanced at him, her voice cautious. “Earlier. What you said about messing up. About it being your fault. Why say it like that? Why not just…” Her throat tightened. “Let people think it was mutual. Or complicated.”

He looked at her for a long moment.

“Because it wasn’t,” he said. “It wasn’t complicated. I made a choice. A terrible one. And I lived in denial for too long.”

She studied him, unsure whether to believe it.

“And now?” she asked.

He hesitated. “Now I tell the truth. Even when it makes me look worse.”

She looked ahead again, lips pressed into a thin line. “You used to be good at looking good.”

“I was better at hiding,” he admitted. “From you. From myself.”

There was something quiet in his voice. Something wounded.

“I’m trying not to do that anymore,” he added. “I’m in therapy.”

Hannah’s grip tightened around her glass.

She didn’t say anything. Just kept walking.

When they reached the table, she slid into the booth without waiting for him. He passed her drink over silently, careful not to touch her.

Daniel didn’t sit.

He just stood there for a moment longer than he needed to.

And then, quietly, he returned to the far end of the table.

Hannah exhaled.

She didn’t know what the look on his face meant.

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