Tina opened her mouth to say something, and then decided otherwise. He continued talking when he saw that she’d apparently decided to hear more.

“Needless to say you’ve made some enemies, just like everybody else who’s done anything worth a damn in this business. You may not be surprised, though, that the people who have real talent have nothing but respect for you. What may come as a surprise to you is a common observation from those who’ve watched you over the years, and who’ve shared this privately with me, that you’ve experienced several barriers in your career lately.” Tina coughed, as if to clear her throat. “Creative barriers, that is. Not to say the studio itself hasn’t been doing well. Under your regime, it’s been doing great, actually.”

He pulled himself up from the pool, using his arms to drag his body to the surface, until he could slide a foot on the edge of the pool and regain his balance. He stood up casually, water dripping from muscular legs and sculpted torso. He was careful to keep his distance from Tina as he took a few steps towards the table, so that she wouldn’t get wet.

“There were a few people who’d commented that you seemed ready to make that move years ago, which got me thinking about all of this in the first place. They’d said it looked like you were uninspired at that time. But you got pregnant. So I guess any move you were planning went by the wayside …” He walked around the table to the side opposite from where Tina sat. He shielded his eyes from the sun as he reached for the pitcher with the other hand. “I don’t think any of your more immediate colleagues or even William may have noticed …”

“Hold it right there, Gavin.” She set the glass she’d been toying with aside. “Don’t even think of suggesting that I’ve been dragging at work …”

He gulped down the drink he’d poured for himself before replying. “This is a virgin mint julep, you know. They make a version with Courvoisier, which is really good, too.”

“Anyway, au contraire, Tina,” he continued, “I’m not saying you’ve been doing poorly. As I said, everyone knows the studio has been doing very well under your stewardship. You haven’t been dragging at all. But to people who’ve observed you closely, it seemed to them you were experiencing professional success with … um … caveats.”