I tried so hard to avoid dating or becoming my father. I didn’t date anyone who did hard drugs (at least after my first marriage ended). I congratulated myself that no man ever hit me (the bruises on my neck were more than ten years ago now, and that was only once), though I never stopped being afraid of it, never stopped wondering whether it would happen if I dared say too much, if I let my face betray my true feelings. In the end, though, there was never a good set of rules to follow to protect myself.
