He waited for Flora to head towards her room and then knocked on the door to Eve’s room and waited.
‘I’m not up for looking for babies right now, Flora.’
Edward opened the door a little. ‘It’s not Flora, it’s her silly father.’
Eve was sitting on the side of her bed in her coat and a woollen hat.
‘You’re leaving already?’ he asked.
Eve crossed her arms.
‘No, I can’t leave until tomorrow because of the snow and Hilditch doesn’t want to drive that far.’
‘Are you going somewhere in between?’ He gestured to her coat and hat.
‘No, it’s just so cold in here and I can’t have a fire because I get asthma.’
‘We can arrange a heater for you. I’m getting heating installed in some of these rooms but it takes time and money, or I can get Hilditch to move you to a room with heating. Stupid to have you in here.’
He looked around at the room. It was very gloomy, he thought. He wondered why Hilditch put her all the way on this side of the property and then he remembered.
‘I’ll get you a heater, immediately.’
Eve shook her head. ‘Please don’t – I’m not staying. You’re clearly not in the right space to work. I think it would be best if you let Serena know you’re not going to deliver.’
Edward put his hands in his pockets and paced, something he found soothing but used to drive Amber mad.
‘I need to apologise to you,’ he said not stopping his pacing. ‘I was so rude – completely awful. It was unacceptable and uncalled for.’
He looked at Eve who was staring down at her hands.
‘I am very sorry, Eve Pilkins, for being such an utter prick.’
She was silent.
Silence made him uncomfortable, which was ironic since he moved to a house in the country where it felt, at times, that this is where silence originated.
Amber had always filled the space with her constant talking, and later, arguments. Maybe that’s why he married her, so he could avoid the silence unless he was writing. And even then, his book filled up the silence. All the characters talking and arguing about their paths forward in the novel.
But Eve wasn’t doing the work for him in this conversation and part of him respected her for her silence.
He stopped pacing. ‘Can I sit?’ He gestured to one of the armchairs in her room.
She shrugged, seemingly nonchalant.
‘I’m stuck.’
‘Okay?’ she said. ‘In the book?’
He sighed and leaned back, almost slumped in the chair.
‘Yes, completely in the book, and in many other ways also, but to mention those is unprofessional and not why you’re here.’
‘But you did mention them,’ Eve said. She adjusted her hat slightly as though she was about to take off at any minute and he didn’t blame her.
‘The writing is hard. I’m bored. The book is boring to write so I assume it will be boring to read.’
Eve nodded. ‘It would be. Readers can tell when authors phone it in.’
