“Well, it’s about time,” Ashley said, her back still facing Spencer.  Spencer was puzzled as to how Ashley knew she was there.  Ashley was making a lot of noise and hadn’t even turned around yet.

 “I am, so, so, so, sorry Miss Davies.  I must have fallen asleep somehow.  Normally, I would never –“

“Spencer, it’s okay,” Ashley said, turning around smiling. “I’m not mad or anything.  I asked you to stay, remember?”  So, Ashley wasn’t completely wasted.  She did at least have some recollection of those nights.

“Yeah, but I shouldn’t have fallen asleep in your…um, you know. I should’ve never done that.  I swear it won’t happen again.”

Ashley looked at Spencer amused

“Have a seat, Spencer. I want you to stay for breakfast.”

“Um…,” Spencer was so surprised by the invite, she had to pause to think, “I would love to Miss Davies, I really would.  But I have to get home.”

“I understand,” Ashley said still fumbling around in the kitchen.  “I usually don’t cook this much.  But since I thought I’d have a guest…”

Spencer couldn’t leave now.  Her boss had actually cooked breakfast for her.  It was a far cry from the usual routine of Spencer running all over Los Angeles picking up breakfast, lunch, and sometimes even dinner for Ashley.

“Um, I guess I can stay for a quick bite,” Spencer said, taking a seat on a stool at the breakfast bar.  She waited patiently as Ashley finished cooking.  A few minutes later she was staring at a feast: bacon, scrambled eggs, pancakes, mixed fruit, biscuits and orange juice. 

“Wow, this is amazing…” Spencer beamed, overjoyed that someone had considered her enough to make such a meal.

Ashley fixed them both a plate and took a seat next to Spencer at the breakfast bar.  Spencer attacked the pancakes first, and was just about to dig into her eggs, when she noticed Ashley was pushing the food around on her plate, not eating.

“Are you okay?” she asked, gaining Ashley’s attention. 

“Spencer,” Ashley said with a serious expression. “I need to talk to you about something important. It’s about…confidentiality. I need to know that the things that you see and the things that you hear won’t be repeated anywhere else. It’s important that I know I can trust you.”