Chapter 28

He picked up the bag David had left on the dresser and went to sit on the bed with it and pulled it open. His breath caught. He pulled out his father’s brushes and his mother’s perfume bottle. He’d gone back. Jeremy swallowed. He opened the stopper and sniffed. There it was. That soft, violet scent which took him straight back to childhood. He put them back in the bag and held them to his chest. He ran his hand over the pillow where David has slept then lay down and buried his face in it. It smelled of David. He would always be David not Albert. He curled up on the bed and hugged David’s pillow to his chest and lay there. Thinking.

It was a long time before David returned. When he did, he was shaved, his hair was artfully arranged, and he wore a clean cravat. He had several boxes in his hands. He dropped them on the floor.

“For you.”

Jeremy sat up, smoothed his hair, and eyed him warily.