She stood at the window, wrapped in the sheet pulled from her bed, drinking from a cup of black coffee held gripped between both her palms. Occasionally, as she stared out of the window she brought the mug up to her cheek as though she gained some comfort from its warm touch.
Outside the window it was a warm, early summer morning. The window was slightly open and a morning breeze shifted against the curtains, making them shiver rather than moving them.
She sighed and let the sheet drop, feeling the cooler air brush her naked skin. Glancing down, she could see goose pimples covering her skin and her nipples hardening. She smiled at some memory. Then she drained the last of the coffee from her mug, looking up as a seagull screamed and dived over the edge of the nearby cliff towards the sea. She took a deep breath, tasting the salty sea air on her tongue. She turned away from the window, glancing down at the bed that – this morning – seemed far too big for just her.
She put the mug down on the dressing table, thought about looking at herself in the mirror but turned away instead, heading for the bedroom door.
‘It may feel like the end,’ she muttered to herself as she stroked her fingers through her long red hair. ‘But, actually, this is just the beginning.’
[Books by David Hadley are available here (UK) or here (US)]
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