Summary

In Chapter 40, Stephanie had arranged to have lunch with Matilda and Vinnie. She believed her client Olivia Russell who ran a nonprofit for amputees and could put Matilda in touch with someone who could help her. She bought flowers from a farmer who questioned her about her pregnancy, assuming she was married to a man. She thought about his comments as she walked home. She was not unhappy that she was a single mother but she was forming bonds with Leo’s brother and sisters so that the baby would have a family even if she didn’t have a father in the picture.

The bags she was carrying were heavy and she was glad to see Tommy O’Toole sitting on his stoop. She believed he would offer to carry them for her but he just sat on...