Maya lifted her gaze, uncertain.
“That’s simply how you cope,” Dahlia continued gently. “How you protect yourself. Silence is where you sort your thoughts, where you regain your footing. There is nothing wrong with that.” A pause. “It becomes dangerous only when the other person doesn’t know why the silence exists.”
She reached out, briefly squeezing Maya’s hand.
“And that,” she said quietly, “is why I am genuinely glad you and Damien crossed paths.”
Maya blinked.
“I didn’t need to intervene. I didn’t need to interfere.” Dahlia’s smile deepened, something almost amused flickering beneath it. “The universe did that part for me.”
Maya let out a small, breathless laugh. “You believe that?”
“I do,” Dahlia replied without hesitation. “Because fate has a way of balancing extremes.”
Her e
