Beth goes to Meadowlands intending to surprise Gabriel and turn their afternoon into another secret, erotic encounter. As she enters the always-unlocked house, she hears Gabriel talking to a woman and is immediately jolted by fear: if someone recognizes Beth there in daylight, her affair could reach Frank. Beth tries to leave before being seen, but Gabriel stops her and explains that he forgot a journalist from The Times was coming.

Gabriel brings Beth into the kitchen and introduces her to Flora Hughes as an old friend from Hemston. Beth feels an immediate mix of envy, insecurity, and possessiveness as she takes in Flora’s youth, ambition, and easy London sophistication. While Flora interviews Gabriel, Beth watches him perform his public self and is reminded of his literary fame, his sexual writing, and the letters he once sent her, which deepens Beth’s sense of the lost life they might have shared.

The atmosphere tightens when Flora asks about Gabriel’s new novel, which concerns a sexually adventurous young woman and broader questions of sexual double standards. Gabriel says Beth and he used to discuss gender inequality when they were young, and his casual reference to their shared past makes Beth blush and fall silent. Flora immediately senses a deeper history between them and probes further, but Gabriel shuts the question down and ends the interview.

After Flora leaves, Beth and Gabriel go upstairs, have sex, and spend the afternoon together as they have on previous days. This time, however, the interruption changes Beth’s mood. Flora’s presence and curiosity make the affair feel exposed rather than protected, and Beth leaves the chapter with a stronger sense that the private world she and Gabriel have built is no longer safe.