Montoro penthouse, Delia forced Sofia to scrub grease-covered cookware until her hands were painfully red.
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Chapter 15 / 17
Chapter 15
Lily turned five.
Birthday at the same penthouse.
Sofia chose the menu.
Not because she had to prove anything.
Because she liked cake.
Delia attended.
By invitation.
Marcus did not.
Their marriage had ended quietly the previous winter.
No scandal.
No family judgment.
Two people discovering they were less compatible without shared power games.
Sad.
Clean.
At dinner, a kitchen pan crashed loudly.
Sofia flinched.
Then kept talking.
Delia noticed.
Her face changed.
No one else did.
Later she apologized again.
Not performatively.
One sentence:
“I’m sorry your body still remembers me.”
Sofia stared.
Then nodded.
May you like
That was probably the closest to forgiveness they had come.
Enough.
