Eddie’s unexpected reappearance in Daphne's life after a 44-year absence prompts her to reexamine her understanding of the past. Warm, affectionate, and deeply invested in the people he loves, Eddie is shaped by the tension between his long-term relationship with Skip Hotalling and his attempts to maintain a conventional family life. His warmth is immediately apparent; he bestows affectionate nicknames like “Duck” on Daphne and forms an instant, powerful bond with her and Leda as children. His identity is intrinsically linked to his profession as a book editor, a role reinforced by the playful connection between his name and his job. His work as an editor reflects his tendency to compartmentalize different parts of his life, concealing aspects of his identity from those around him.

Eddie struggles to reconcile his enduring relationship with Skip with the conventional family life he attempts to build with Abigail. Their relationship continues throughout their respective marriages to women and shapes many of the choices he makes. In the 1970s, his decision to marry Abigail is a sincere but misguided attempt to live a conventional life, a choice that ultimately causes pain for those around him. His confession to Daphne reveals the strain of spending much of his life concealing an important part of his identity. His leukemia diagnosis heightens his awareness of mortality and contributes to his desire to revisit unresolved aspects of his past and make peace with the choices he has made.

Despite the compromises that define his life, Eddie’s capacity for genuine love remains one of his defining qualities. His bond with Daphne is immediate and enduring, a paternal connection that transcends biological ties and decades of silence. When Daphne asks if he has children, he responds, “Just you and your sister” (13), a statement that validates the deep, familial love he feels for his former stepdaughters. This bond is reflected in the story he tells Daphne about Whistler the horse, a personal story centered on rescue and loyalty that mirrors the enduring connection between them. Eddie’s return allows him to finally integrate his past with his present, offering him an opportunity for acceptance and reconciliation as he reconnects with the people who shaped his life.

Jonathan, Daphne’s husband, is a significant supporting character who provides stability as Daphne revisits a difficult period of her past. He provides a sense of stability in her present life as she’s pulled back into the turbulence of her past. His most defining trait is his perceptiveness; he’s the one who notices Eddie following them at the Met, remarking to Daphne that “[he’s] more aware of his surroundings” than she is (8). This awareness draws Daphne’s attention to Eddie and helps bring about their reunion, prompting her to reconsider events from her childhood. His kindness and steadfastness are established through his unwavering support of Daphne, even as the reappearance of her stepfather confuses and threatens him.

Jonathan’s character is deepened by his own history of loss. Having lost his first wife, Candy, to cancer, he possesses a quiet empathy for grief that allows him to respond thoughtfully to difficult situations, as seen in his gentle handling of Polly Hotalling’s distress. However, this past also fuels a subtle insecurity. He feels threatened by the intensity of Eddie’s connection to Daphne, confessing his fear that she will leave by saying, “I want to be sure you’ll be here when I get back” (48). This vulnerability reveals the depth of his attachment to Daphne. His recent retirement prompts a desire to travel and experience the world, creating a gentle friction with Daphne’s trauma-induced fear of flying and highlighting the ways her past still limits her present.

Abigail, Daphne and Leda’s mother, is a complex character whose decisions shape many of the family conflicts that continue to affect the present-day narrative. She plays a central role in the family’s separation from Eddie, removing him from her daughters’ lives and providing her own explanation for his departure. Her actions are driven by pragmatism, a desire to protect her children, and a need to maintain control during a painful period in her life. After discovering Eddie’s relationship with Skip, she banishes him completely, a decision she justifies to a young Daphne by claiming that “[h]e could have killed [her]” in the car accident (55). This rewriting of history is a protective measure, designed to shield her daughters from a truth she deems too complicated and to shield herself from the pain of betrayal.

Decades later, Abigail reveals a more reflective and self-aware side. Her initial reaction to hearing about Eddie is surprisingly casual, but when pressed by Daphne, she confronts her past motivations with remarkable honesty. She admits that her marriage to Eddie was predicated on a selfish desire for a conventional life, acknowledging, “I thought Eddie would change his stripes. He would change who he was so that I could have what I wanted” (159). This confession reveals her recognition of the role she played in the family’s breakdown. Her three marriages to vastly different men—the free-spirited Buddy, the reserved Eddie, and the self-help author Lucas—reflect changing priorities and expectations over the course of her life, making her a nuanced figure whose actions cause both harm and stability within the family.

Leda is Daphne’s younger sister and one of the people who helps her reassess the family history she has long accepted without question. As a clinical psychologist, Leda approaches difficult situations with a combination of directness, analytical thinking, and empathy. She provides a perspective that helps Daphne examine her resurfacing memories and assumptions, encouraging her to question explanations she has previously accepted. For instance, she correctly identifies Daphne’s story to Jonathan about the car accident not as an oversimplification but as “a lie.” Their close relationship underscores the importance of sisterhood as a source of stability and validation when confronting a difficult family history.

Leda also reveals her own buried grief, admitting to a long-held, illogical guilt that her childhood appendicitis set in motion the events that led to Eddie’s departure. This shared sense of childhood responsibility reinforces their bond and illustrates how childhood experiences continue to influence both sisters in adulthood. Her memory of Eddie’s time with them as a brief period of calm in an otherwise “chaotic mess” supports Daphne’s understanding of how important Eddie was to their childhood and suggests that his presence provided a sense of stability for both sisters.

Skip is a supporting character who’s primarily known through the memories and accounts of other characters, particularly Eddie. He’s Eddie’s long-term romantic partner, and their relationship remains a defining part of both men’s lives for decades. Skip maintains a public life as a husband, father, and successful lawyer while continuing his relationship with Eddie in private. The contrast between these different aspects of his life contributes to many of the tensions that shape his relationship with Eddie. In public, he can be cruel, belittling Eddie in front of Abigail as a way to police their bond, yet in private, he’s deeply dependent on Eddie, showing up at his apartment after a chemo treatment for comfort. His character demonstrates the emotional strain created by concealing an important part of his identity and relationships from those around him.

Polly, Skip’s wife, is a supporting character who occupies an important place within the family and social circle shared by Skip and Eddie. She’s closely involved in maintaining family relationships and social obligations, often organizing gatherings and events. While the extent of her knowledge about Skip and Eddie’s relationship remains unclear, her anxiety surrounding Eddie’s health demonstrates the importance of his presence in her life. In a moment of panic, she tells Daphne, “We’re his family. We deserve to know” (204), revealing how strongly she views Eddie as part of her family network. Polly’s character highlights the complicated personal relationships that surround Eddie and Skip, particularly as questions of loyalty, family, and belonging intersect throughout the novel.

Buddy is Daphne and Leda’s biological father, a minor character who exists primarily in memory. Much of Daphne’s understanding of him is shaped by stories about his life and by the limited time she spends with him. His defining characteristic is his devotion to the ocean, a calling he chooses over the responsibilities of family life. He’s portrayed as a decent man whose priorities often conflict with Abigail’s expectations of marriage and parenthood. Despite his physical and emotional distance, he shows care in his own way, maintaining the family car and leaving behind an emergency kit that proves vital to Daphne and Eddie’s survival. His death in an airplane crash becomes the source of Daphne’s adult fear of flying, demonstrating the lasting influence he continues to have on her life despite his prolonged absence. His brief reconciliation with Daphne before his death highlights the missed opportunities and unresolved emotions that characterize their relationship.

Lucas is Daphne’s third stepfather and a relatively minor presence in her life. His marriage to Abigail creates a new family unit with his and Abigail’s two sons, leaving Daphne and Leda feeling like outsiders. He’s the author of a series of successful self-help books focused on positive thinking, despite often appearing critical and self-absorbed in his interactions with others. Daphne never develops the close bond with Lucas that she once shared with Eddie, and his presence in the family reflects the changes that occur after Abigail’s remarriage. Through Lucas, the novel highlights Daphne’s sense of separation from the new household that forms around her mother’s later marriage.