home a

r was already

er bag pressed against her shoulder. The notebook was in there. Rachael's notebook. The list. She had written f

ad to

the door casually, like she always

e window. Coat stil

when he

're

the lo

. Then he took a sip of h

is coming

lla s

..br

ord in a foreign language. Carefully. Like it cost him

and she had never heard the name Alexander come out of his mouth. S

k to me about

s jaw move

ever a

learned, over four years, when

cked up his

dress." He walked past her towards th

tu

oordi

nt up

n the living room. Out

-

ours doing what she always

he way he liked it. Lipstick in the shade he had chosen for her on the

muscle memory, her mi

and he never talk

lready in the dining room, adjusting the placement

up when sh

dress, shoes the way they alwa

," he

e had given her in weeks, and she hated how mu

coming from

ndo

ives

n's eyes

es ever

does

abe

stop

t her acros

will smile, you will be polite, and you will

ld his

hy

something she had never seen there

e

I said so

orbell

et. He looked at Isabella one last time, and the flicker was gone,

e," he

ed to t

oom, her heart beating fast and list

oor o

eard low, unh

asti

xand

o had not stood in the same room in years, walking

ned towards

n he wa

her own memory, longer than it should have been for someone who wore a suit like that. He was in a b

eyes fo

ole room w

stopped b

she kn

knew

od across from her at a dinner table in another house, in another life,

er Blac

as supposed t

stian had ta

econd. Then Two. Long enou

Alexand

lla,"

e had said it a thousand times before

n's hand closed on t

long time," A