Page 50 of Watching Henry

“I might go with something a little stronger than that,” Eleanor said. She sighed. “Go on, off you go.” Hadley swallowed, looking up at Eleanor, who shook her head in exasperation. “Follow the woman!”

Hadley shook herself, then nodded, pausing only to grab her bag before rushing out of the shop.

Chapter Twenty Two

In the end, Hadley took her time.

She rushed out of the shop and the car was pulling away and she could hardly chase it. And then the enormity of everything and her tiredness caught up with her and she slowed her steps.

She stopped for dinner, treating herself for the first time in weeks to a cheap burger. Then she walked slowly toward the house, thinking.

After the initial shock of Florence walking out had worn off, she'd realized that perhaps Florence was just as confused as she was. Perhaps what was needed here was some upfront and direct communication.

On the other hand, if she was too upfront and direct, she ran the risk of scaring Florence off for good.

She walked all the way around the lake, letting the warmth of the evening bathe her skin, listening to the water, trying to understand what it was she truly wanted.

Usually, she jumped in with both feet. Usually, she'd be the one walking out by now having had her fill, taken everything she wanted. But Florence seemed delicate, fragile and Hadley honestly didn't want to hurt her. Maybe too, she didn't want to hurt herself. Maybe too, she was a little afraid of what she was feeling.

Which made all this a point of no return.

Things had come to a head, something needed to happen, and Hadley knew she was the one responsible for setting things in motion.

It was dark by the time she got back to the house. Cicadas chirped in the background and the house was quiet and warm, the lights all out. For a second she worried that there was no one there at all, but the place didn't feel empty.

She wandered through the spacious rooms, avoiding furniture, her eyes getting used to the dark until she could see everything in gray. And finally, when she came to the kitchen, she saw a shape standing outlined by the window.

“You're standing in the dark.” Wow. What a first line. All that time to think of an opener and that was what she'd come up with.

“Yes,” said Florence.

Hadley took in a deep breath and then sighed it out. “What you think you saw—” she began

“No,” Florence turned, her back pressed against the counter. “No, it's none of my business. Your private life is yours.”

Hadley leaned against the refrigerator, the door warm and slightly vibrating. “What exactly do you think that you saw?” she asked. “Just out of curiosity.”

“You know what you were doing.”

“Indulge me,” Hadley said. “What did you see?”

“You and Eleanor, you were, you, she, there was...” Florence hitched in a breath. “You were doing something. Being intimate perhaps.”

“I see,” Hadley said. “In a cafe. In the middle of the day.”

“It was almost closing time.”

“Not the point. You thought that Eleanor and I were getting busy in a public place without even locking the door?”

“I suppose...”

“Eleanor's married, you know,” Hadley said.

“So? Married people do things like that, don't they?”

“Maybe,” Hadley said, anger rising. “But I don't. I wouldn't. Not ever. I may be many things, have many faults, but I don't cheat.”

Florence said nothing and Hadley grew even angrier at the thought that Florence would think she was that kind of person. “So you saw what you thought was Eleanor and I making out or whatever, and you stormed right out. Why did you do that?”