“There. I did it.” See? She was capable of saying no. No matter that her heart was beating too fast, and she had a nasty case of instant regret.

But no. She was doing the right thing. This mothering of hers had gotten out of hand. It wasn’t good for her, and it wasn’t good for them. They were adults who needed to learn to fend for themselves.

She only had to recall when Jenna told her about the necklace to strengthen her resolve. Sophie had become more and more enslaved to the needs of her siblings. And she was as much to blame as they were—after all, she’d catered to their needs. Her growing frustration was as much her fault as theirs. She’d been reluctant to admit the problem. But you couldn’t change what you didn’t acknowledge.

She glanced across the street at her pretty little shop. Maybe moving away from Raleigh, building a business here, had been a subconscious effort to put some boundaries in place. But a geographical change had not been enough. She needed to step back. She needed to leave her siblings in God’s capable hands.

The phone buzzed with an incoming call, and when she checked the screen, Seth’s photo appeared. She steeled herself against his boyish smile. He wasn’t fifteen anymore.

“What’s going on?” he asked when she answered.

“What do you mean?”

A slight pause followed. “Are you upset with me? You seemed kind of short in your text. And Jenna said you went crazy over Mom’s necklace this morning.”

Sophie resisted the urge to defend herself. “You didn’t even ask how my grand opening went yesterday.”

“I didn’t have to—Jenna already told me the event was a grand slam.”

“You still could’ve asked, Seth. Or at least congratulated me instead of plunging right into the next favor.”

There was a long silence, during which Sophie literally bit her tongue. She would not take it back. She had to put her foot down if she was ever going to resolve this.

“You’re right,” Seth said finally. “I’m sorry. I’ve been distracted with this conference, but that’s no excuse. I know your shop is important to you, and I’m thrilled your first day was a success. Is that why you’re upset with me?”

“I’m not upset with you, Seth. I’ve just decided to make some changes in my life.”

“That sounds ominous.”