was considered a virtue, but her feelings ran deep beneath the practical exterior.
“I’m proud of you, Sophia,” she said suddenly, catching me off guard. “Not many people have the courage to start over at fifty-eight.”
“I’m not sure it’s courage so much as necessity,” I admitted.
“I couldn’t stay here, continuing as if nothing had changed. Not after what Amber said. Not after realizing how she truly sees me.”
“Sometimes the most courageous acts,” Helen observed, “are those we undertake because we have no other choice.”
“Your father used
