It took a minute for the words to register, but it was enough time for Addison’s persona to change. Her posture relaxed, the fury drained from her face, and her expression went from threatening to concerned. With the volume of her voice well within normal range, she asked, “What are you talking about?”

“The reason Joanna can’t come down for dinner is because she took a bit of a spill today.”

“She fell?” Addison said, again raising her voice. “When? Where?”

“Just after breakfast. She came down and said she was going to go work in the gardens. She was gone for quite a while, so Noah decided to take her a flask of coffee. He found her at the bottom of the stairs. Apparently—”

“Wait. What gardens?”

Evelyn’s eyes grew large. “Oh...um...Joanna’s been keeping herself busy clearing the weeds from the gardens out back.”

“Who in the hell gave her permission to do that?”

“Well, I...I suppose I did. I saw no harm in it, and she seems to enjoy it.”

“What in the hell made you—” Addison stopped and held up her hands. “You know what? Never mind, we’ll deal with that later. Just tell me that she’s all right.”

“Yes, she’s fine,” Evelyn said. “She wrenched her back a bit trying to stop herself from falling, and she’s got a few bruises, but other than that, she’s okay. The doctor gave her some muscle relaxants, so she’s been sleeping most of the day, but she should be right as rain by tomorrow.”

Addison jerked back her head. “The doctor? You called a doctor?”

“Why yes, but like I said she’s—”

“Why the hell didn’t you call me and let me know what had happened?”

Evelyn’s stared blankly back at Addison. “Well, I-I-I don’t know. Honestly, the thought never crossed my mind.”

Reality checks can come at any time. They can be painful, or they can be uplifting, but despite the emotions attached, one thing is for certain. They come from the truth…the cold, hard truth.

Like a bucket of Antarctic water, reality washed over Addison. There was no reason to be informed of Joanna’s accident because Joanna was not Addison’s concern. She wasn’t. She was a boarder. Nothing more. Nothing less. Nothing at all. Reality check.

“You know what? You’re absolutely fucking right,” Addison growled as she spun around and made a beeline for the cloakroom. “Just because the clumsy twat can’t seem to put one foot in front of the other, it’s no business of mine. As a matter of fact, I couldn’t be happier. She just freed up my Friday night, and I’m planning to enjoy it. Tell David to bring the car back around. I’m going out.”

***