Not that she expected her to. Hoped, yes. Expected? Of course not. For all Adri knew, Harper had actually moved on with her life instead of being stuck in some self-inflicted purgatory. Not that Harper had anything to atone for. The fault was Adri’s alone. And she didn’t blame Harper for finding it impossible to forgive. Maybe Harper was married. Adri tried to picture the man that Harper would marry. Handsome. Quiet. The kind of guy who would gaze at Harper when she wasn’t looking, his eyes filled with irrepressible adoration that would make people feel as if they were witnessing an intimate moment when he was doing something as mundane as admiring the way she tucked her hair behind her ear. Harper deserved a man like that. And he’d have to be steady. Laid-back. Someone to counter Harper so she didn’t spin out of orbit entirely. Adri loved to think of Harper in the imaginary world she created for her. One afternoon, as she was wandering around the mansion, replacing all the lightbulbs that had burned out, Adri saw Harper with a baby.
