“I’d like to make a toast,” Gloria told them, accepting a mug. “Thank you both so much. It means the world to me to be independent, but it’s even better to have you two as friends that I can depend on if I need to.” She’d never had that before. The fact that these two women had volunteered to lug her hodgepodge collection of belongings up three flights of stairs made Gloria feel like the luckiest woman in the world.

“Aw! Cheers!” Harper, then Sophie clinked their mugs to hers.

Sophie left shortly after to help Ty convince their son that he wasn’t a dog and did indeed pee inside unlike Bitsy. Harper stuck around to help with some of the unpacking.

“I really appreciate the help,” Gloria called, stacking glasses neatly in the cabinet next to the sink.

“I’m happy to help,” Harper said from the living room where she wrestled with the cords of Gloria’s small TV and a new-to-her DVD player. Gloria was sharing Wi-Fi with her neighbor and hadn’t sprung for cable. She didn’t want to overextend herself her first month living on her own now that she had rent and insurance and utilities to pay. It was the first time in her life she was making money, and she was determined to manage it carefully. No shopping sprees or filet mignon for her.

Gloria joined Harper in the living room and sank down on the couch. It was welcoming, soft, and a vibrant purple that added the perfect pop of color against the white walls and light oak floors.

“So, how’s Aldo doing since he came home?” She hugged a yellow throw pillow to her chest to ward off the automatic ache.

Harper frowned at the back of her TV. “He’s, uh, doing okay. I think the therapy is helping mentally. Physically he’s a beast.”

“He always was,” Gloria said wistfully.

Harper dropped the cord she was fighting with. “Listen, Gloria, I don’t know exactly what his problem is, but I hope you know that that’s what it is. His problem. It has nothing to do with you.”

“I think I had got my hopes up a little too high that we could be something together. That I could be something to him,” Gloria confessed, picking at the tufted button on the pillow.

“Whoa! Let’s back that truck up real fast.” Harper grabbed her champagne mug and flopped down next to Gloria. “You can’t put your worth in someone else’s hands like that. Whether those hands are stroking you or hurting you. It doesn’t matter. Your value comes from inside. Whether you mean something to him or not has nothing to do with how inherently valuable you are.”

Spoken like someone who’d been through therapy, Gloria thought. Hmm.