Therapy ethics in small communities do differ because of that exact reason.

I also notice your T actually referred to herself as a counselor. Boundaries in counseling tend to be more loose than those in a psychotherapy relationship.

Her reasoning sounds reasonable to me. I'm wondering if maybe you were trying to see your own wish come true, the way you you interpreted and told us your story.

Anyway, I'm glad things are cleared up now and I'm glad you're not dealing with an unethical therapist.