—All’s Well That Ends Well After an excellent supper, where Mrs. Gilbert’s superb beef boulogne and apricot tart proved that peace once again reigned in the kitchen, Marcus and Julia retired to the library for sherry and tea. It was quiet and cozy in the dark-paneled room, with the green velvet draperies drawn across the windows and a fire blazing in the hearth. It should have all been conducive to easy conversation and amiability, yet their words had been rather strained at supper, and now they sat in silence in each other’s company. The memory of the afternoon’s misunderstanding still hung heavy between them. Julia sipped at her sherry and looked about the library. When Gerald was alive it had been his own sanctum, and she had only been in there once in a while, to find new books to read. After he died, she found entering it too painful. It was so full of memories of her stepfather, redolent of the scent of his pipe and echoing with his deep laughter.
