The Girl Before

At work, Emma struggles to be seen as competent by her colleagues in the marketing department, where she has recently transitioned as a result of her friendship with Amanda and Saul. After an uncomfortable meeting where her new boss, Brian, puts down her contributions several times, Emma returns to her desk and calls Edward Monkford. She asks, “what would happen if one of us stopped living there?” (75), and Monkford says they would be able to arrange something.

That evening, Emma cooks a romantic dinner for Simon, and he gives her a teapot for her birthday. Emma tries to initiate oral sex, and Simon pushes her away, saying, “How can you do to me what you did to that—that bastard?” (77). Emma feels “abject misery,” which is compounded as Simon tells her that on the night of the break-in, he was actually at a “lap-dancing” club with Saul (77). Emma is upset and throws up all over the floor. Then she tells Simon that he has to leave because she is breaking up with him.

Emma tells her therapist, Carol, that she was lying about not remembering the rape. To Emma’s surprise, Carol doesn’t make her focus on this, instead asking Emma to talk about Simon.