She waited until it was exactly the right temperature and then poured in the eggs, letting them cook for a moment before coaxing the sides inward, tilting the pan so that it cooked evenly. When it was starting to set she crumbled on some soft goat cheese, added a few young spinach leaves and then folded it in half, allowing the heat to slowly melt the cheese and wilt the spinach.

“Hi.” Nicole wandered into the kitchen, her hair still damp from the shower. She was wearing a pair of cutoff shorts and a T-shirt, and her face glowed pink from the heat of the shower.

She poured herself a glass of water and drank the whole thing.

Milly watched her for a moment, wondering what it must be like to be that beautiful.

If she looked like Nicole, maybe Richard wouldn’t have left.

She turned the heat off under the pan. She had to stop thinking like that. It wasn’t helpful or healthy.

“I made breakfast. Sorry it’s so late. I had a meeting. We’ll eat this out on the deck. There’s no one around.” Milly divided the omelet and slid each half onto a fresh plate. Then she sprinkled the top with finely chopped parsley and handed one of the plates to Nicole, who lifted it to her nose and sighed.

“It smells incredible, but I don’t normally eat breakfast.”

Tiger appeared in the kitchen, alerted by the smell of cooking.

“You had a long journey, and you didn’t eat last night. I don’t want to have to take you to the emergency department because you’ve fainted. The eggs are fresh and organic, so is the cheese, which comes from the goats down the road. And don’t tell me you’re not hungry because that isn’t possible.”

“I’m hungry, but I’m always hungry. It’s part of the job.” But Nicole lifted the plate again and breathed deeply. “Okay. Let’s do this. I don’t suppose one plate of eggs is going to do much harm. And my acting days may be over anyway.” She said it lightly, an almost throwaway comment, but Milly knew Nicole. Whatever gulf there might be between them, she knew her. And she knew the comment wasn’t made lightly.

“That’s the way you feel?” Milly handed her a fork. “You love acting.”

“Maybe. But I don’t love all the things that go with it. And things are complicated at the moment.” She paused, and Milly had the feeling that she was going to confess something momentous, but then she shook her head. “I’ll figure it out.”

Figure what out?

In the old days they’d had no secrets from each other, but that was then and this was now.

And how complicated could Nicole’s life be, really?