It’s the heat, Bella chided herself after a spat with Ned over something small and silly. She was determined to stick it out with Ned in spite of the uncomfortable conditions because she was hoping for some kind of breakthrough with him. Bella felt there had to be a reason for Ned’s reticence, his inability or unwillingness to articulate the feelings that had made him keep her at arm’s length for so long and were now making him stubborn about returning to Tennyson. It was beginning to trouble her deeply, for it seemed to Bella that if they didn’t rekindle their old rapport and be honest with each other then they would become polite and distant strangers and remain that way for the rest of their lives. Indeed, she’d almost welcomed the earlier snappish exchange as a sign that they could voice their own opinions, but as usual Ned had walked away before a proper discussion could eventuate. Bella was increasingly finding her brother’s refusal to engage with her very frustrating.
