“I’m good. It’s a busy time of year. We have to organise a lot of budget reports and other boring things.”

“Sounds thrilling.”

“Oh, it’s so exciting I barely want to leave at night.”

That made Cora chuckle. “At least it’ll settle down in a week.”

Tia gave a hum of agreement. Her eyes searched Cora, and it felt as if the woman was seeing straight through her. “Can’t find Frazer?”

Apparently Tia really could.

Cora gave a nod that left shame in her stomach. But she needed to know.

“Honey, didn’t you know—Frazer quit.”

Suddenly, all the air had left the room. She swore the colour was draining from her cheeks. “But she’d—she’d have to give two weeks’ notice, at least?”

“She did.”

Cora turned around at the sound of Alec’s voice, seeing the slightest widening of Tia’s eyes in the single moment before. At the sight of him, Cora tried to offer a professional greeting. “A—afternoon, Alec.”

He was dressed as impeccably, as always, and Cora wondered how he held himself together so well. Without a glance at her, he walked past them and into his office. All he said was, “Come in.”

And she followed, because Cora really didn’t know what else to do. Cora looked at Tia, who gave her what Cora guessed was supposed to be an encouraging smile. She returned it weakly.

Frazer had quit? Had left?

Cora really didn’t want to talk to Alec. After their confrontation in the house the other day, she just wanted to stay as far away from him as life would allow. That day, she’d gone home exhausted and had ended up exactly where she had wanted to be: sobbing on her couch against Lisa, unable to really say what had caused the tears to start.

She’d really started to understand why Frazer had walked away. How could they build anything on such a soggy foundation? But Cora had still wanted to get some closure about it all, to talk it out, calmly. To warn Frazer about Alec.

But now Frazer had quit. What about the programme?

Not wanting to give him the upper hand for once, Cora slid into the seat opposite his desk before he’d even gone around it. No invitation, no more waiting for him to indicate what to do.

Habits were hard to break, but she was working on opening cracks in the hopes that one day they’d shatter with the smallest of force.

His only reaction was to raise his eyebrows ever so slightly before he sat down. And to stare at her.

It took everything not to shift uncomfortably under his gaze. She squared her shoulders and looked right back. “Frazer quit?”

“Why do you care? Because of some strange crush?” He cocked his head, waiting her out for some kind of tell.

“I care about the programme.”