But now… I wonder.
“Do you have a lawn mower?” she asks, pulling me from my thoughts.
I clear my throat. “No.”
Her brow lifts slightly.
“I wasn’t sure what to get,” I add quickly. My tone is slightly defensive.
She studies me for a second, then pulls out her phone. “I’ll take care of it.”
“You don’t have to?—”
She’s already dialing, then presses the phone to her ear.
“Hi,” she says when someone answers. “Can you send someone over?” She rattles off my address. “The yard needs to be cleaned up.”
I blink. “Violet?—”
She glances at me. “It’s fine,” she murmurs, like this was always going to happen.
And somehow… I believe her.
An hour later,there are people in my yard.
Actual professionals.
With equipment.
Mowing, trimming bushes, pulling weeds.
I stand in the doorway, watching.
“What is happening?” I mutter.
“They’re helping.”
I glance over my shoulder.
Violet’s kneeling on the floor, scrubbing the wall.
My mouth goes dry.
It feels like she’s always belonged here.
A strange thought settles in my chest.
She gives me what I need before I even realize I need it.
That should bother me more than it does.
I lean against the doorframe, watching her. “You don’t have to do all this.”
She looks up at me. “You don’t have to do everything alone.”
Something about that hits harder than it should.
I nod slowly. “Yeah.”
