Chapter 21Sylvia couldn’t stop the tears. Blast. They tumbled down her cheeks and she finally abandoned her fierce hold on the Dickens and put her palms over her face to hide from the others. She heard herself give a little hiccoughing sob and Walter say “Oh, Sylvia!” and then stop himself.
At the same time, she heard Lucy say, “Sylvia.”
She was aware of Lucy coming over to her chair and kneeling on the floor beside her. Bloody damnation, the tears just wouldn’t stop. She scrubbed her hands over her face frantically. She couldn’t afford this. It was too much.
Lucy put a hand on her knee and another on her shoulder. Oh God. She felt all her walls were crumbling inside. Kindness…comforting touch. Someone else taking the load for just a little bit. She missed it so much. But Lucy…it wasn’t
