“You have a strategy that can fix all that?” She remembered all the times they’d done this when they were young. Boys. Schoolwork. Scary parties. Becoming a movie star. Whatever the goal was, Nicole would come up with a strategy. “You’ve got that look on your face.”

“Which look?”

“The one that scares me because it usually means you’re going to make me do something I don’t want to do.”

Nicole didn’t deny it. “What are you like at five in the morning?”

Milly burst out laughing. “Comatose. Unless I’m lying there fuming about Richard.”

“Not anymore. Starting tomorrow you’re going to be down here at five wearing your running shoes. You are going to start by running for fifteen minutes. You can walk the rest and gradually increase the time. How does that sound?”

It sounded awful.

“I won’t be doing any of that because there is no way I’m getting up at five. Also, I hate to break this to you, but I can’t run for five minutes. I’d be doubled over and panting for breath after three. And anyway, I don’t want to get thin for Richard.”

“You’re not getting thin for Richard. This isn’t about losing weight. This is about getting fitter and stronger because you want to. I guarantee it will change the way you feel about yourself. You will feel healthier and more energetic, and you will start to love the feel of the early morning.”

“Again, no.” But she knew that once Nicole had an idea about something, it was hard to shift her.

“I’m going to walk into your bedroom tomorrow and haul those covers from you so that you don’t have a choice. It’s tough love.”

Tough love.

An idea came into her head. Nicole wasn’t the only one who could come up with a strategy. “I’ll do it if we do it together.”

Nicole shook her head. “No way. I’ll be staying here at base, making you a delicious cup of coffee for your return. And anyway, someone has to stay with Zoe.”

“No, they don’t. I don’t like leaving her overnight, but she’s fine for twenty minutes in the morning, and we can lock the door.” She saw the panic in Nicole’s eyes and almost relented, but then she thought about the reality of it. “You can’t shut yourself away forever, Nic. You have a life to live. You deserve to have a life. You can’t let other people stop that.”

“You don’t get it.”