Chapter 8: Settling
I moved into the master bedroom on the third week, not as a victory lap, but because the guest room mattress had a sag Eleanor had meant to replace and never had.
I kept her soap until it was gone. I did not keep her clothes. Caroline helped me sort what went to donation and what went into a single box for Cooper and Madison if they ever wanted something that had been hers without wanting the house that came with it. The peppermint bowl stayed on the entry table. Some habits are allowed to outlive the person who started them.
Local people who had known Eleanor stopped by with casseroles and questions they were decent enough not to ask directly. I told them the house was mine and that I was fine alone. Alone, it turned out, was not the same as lonely. The lake filled a lot of the space where other voices had once made demands.
