Chapter Twenty Five
About a week after Stroud’s departure, Brooke turned up. His arrival was a welcome reprieve from the silence of the house, but even still their encounters were marked by an underlying tension.
Ever offered to make coffee and they sat in the white sitting room like two strangers in a strange land, separated by yards on the L-shaped couch.
“Stroud asked me to look in on you,” Brooke said. “I’ve come by a couple of times but I never catch you in.”
“I work nights,” Ever said.
“What have you been doing?”
“Wine and cheese at ‘Catch the Mood’.”
“Do you like it?”
“Yes, I do.”
“Better than the other,” he said, in reference to her old job.
“Much better.”
“What time do you get off?”
Ever was reminded of the last time Brooke asked her that question. “Around midnight.”
