Chapter 268

Afternoon. Olivia James called. Last night, Claire Richards had randomly said Olivia wanted hot pot, and guess what? She really called. Except it wasn't hot pot. It was barbecue. Claire happened to be looking for her too—they hadn’t caught up since Claire got back from her trip. Before saying yes, she rang Julian Archer to check if he had to stay late at work. Once he said no, she told Olivia she was in. After work, she left first. Michael Reed had all these fun plans for the evening, but then Julian called and poof—his joy turned into instant sadness. Fun really doesn’t last long. … Claire met up with Olivia. They were at a BBQ spot. Eating and chatting at the same time. Claire filled her in on everything that happened in the UK—Olivia wasn’t just anyone, she could hear it all. Olivia got so into the story she forgot about the meat still in her hand. Claire, on the other hand, was multitasking like a pro—two plates of meat, entirely gone. When Claire talked about the human-skin mask p