Chapter 40. The Life She Could Have

Theo found Diana standing in the unfinished hospitality lobby on Wednesday, arguing with a strip of protective film.

“I thought the famous bronze would be bigger,” he said.

She looked up and smiled before she remembered that smiling at a man had become something strangers might discuss.

Then she smiled properly, out of spite.

“The rest arrives in stages. You should have seen the first color.”

“I did. You sent me a photograph and six increasingly distressed question marks.”

He took the loose edge of film she offered and peeled it back. Beneath it, the finished surface caught the afternoon light exactly as the approved sample had.

Diana let out a breath.

“There,” Theo said. “That's the face you should make on Friday.”

“I was planning to look stern and expensive.”

“You can do both.”

They walked the route of the preview together. Theo was back to check the façade details, and Diana needed him to confirm where his tea