he repeated helplessly.

‘I don’t want to give you THINGS,’ she said teasingly. ‘But will you have this?’

‘All right,’ he said, defeated, and she triumphed.

They went upstairs. There were two bedrooms to correspond with the rooms downstairs. One of them was half furnished, and Birkin had evidently slept there. Hermione went round the room carefully, taking in every detail, as if absorbing the evidence of his presence, in all the inanimate things. She felt the bed and examined the coverings.

‘Are you SURE you were quite comfortable?’ she said, pressing the pillow.

‘Perfectly,’ he replied coldly.