“She’s hesitant,” Wilder says. “I think even though we had a good time here and made some great strides toward a better marriage, there’s still the concern that if we aren’t here at the camp, being challenged, we might fall back into old habits.”

“That’s a very valid concern,” Sanders says as he picks up a hockey stick. He starts balancing a puck on the blade as he walks around. It’s so distracting, something I will never get over. “And it’s the main concern I get from all my couples. So how do you think you’ll combat it?”

“I think we just need to keep having honest conversations and putting in the effort to be better,” Wilder says. “I know I have plans of my own to show her how committed I am to her.”

“Care to share those plans?” Sanders asks.

Wilder shakes his head. “Nah, they’re not for her ears.”

“Keeping a little mystery in the relationship. That’s always good. As long as it’s not hindering your communication.” Sanders pops up the puck and catches it on the blade again. “What about you, Scottie? What are your plans for when you get back?”

“Umm…” I look up at Wilder and then back at Sanders. “I don’t…I don’t really know.”

Sanders pauses, and his brows shoot up. “You don’t know?”

Feeling the pressure, I shake my head. “I’m, uh, I’m just, you know, trying to figure things out.”

He now takes a seat on the arm of the chair. “Can I ask what there is to figure out? Is there doubt about your relationship with Wilder?”

Tongue-tied, I try to figure out how to answer, but before I can, Wilder says, “I think she’s been hurt.” Wilder squeezes my shoulder. “And I think it’s easy to spend eight days in the woods, where you can forget about real life, but when you go back to your normal life, when you go back to your home, where you’ve experienced that hurt firsthand, it reminds you of the bad. And I think that’s something we are going to have to overcome together. I don’t blame her for having these feelings,” Wilder continues, making tears well up in my eyes. Why is he so understanding? Why is he so great? “I’m glad she has these feelings, because that means she’s processing, which means she’s trying to figure out exactly what she wants in her life. This time at Camp Haven has given us the chance to explore our wounds in neutral territory. Now the hard work is ahead of us, healing those wounds.”

I swipe at my eyes as tears fall down my cheeks.

“Why are you crying?” Sanders asks.