He looked genuinely surprised to see me.
“Ava?”
“Morning.”
His eyes moved immediately to Diane.
“You called her?”
Diane stepped inside.
“I came for the rest of my things.”
Malcolm looked hurt.
“So you left while I was sleeping?”
“Yes.”
“You could have talked to me.”
“I did talk to you.”
“That conversation wasn’t finished.”
Diane froze.
I saw it happen.
The doubt returning.
So I said nothing.
This needed to be her decision, not mine.
Diane straightened.
“It was finished when I said I wanted to leave.”
Malcolm rubbed both hands over his face.
“Diane, you were upset.”
“I was clear.”
“You were scared.”
“I was clear.”
“You told me yourself that being alone terrified you.”
“And now being alone sounds better than being pressured into a future I didn’t choose.”
That landed.
Malcolm sat down on the edge of the sofa.
For the first time, he looked less like a charming stranger from a hotel bar and more like what he actually was.
