Chloe allowed herself a smile. ‘Jordan’s not a monster … far from it. He’s good looking, and he can be charming if he wants to, but even from the first moment Hannah brought him home, we took against him. He liked to put her down, make sarcastic remarks about her clothes and hair, and our “mega mansion” and “the middle classes”. He picked a fight with everything we said, sneered at the décor, the sofa – even the cushions – and generally made Hannah feel guilty for being our daughter. I really tried to see his point of view for my daughter’s sake. She seemed to worship him and think he was some kind of Che Guevara figure.’ Chloe rolled her eyes. ‘He even wore a Che beret once, not that it’s a crime.’

Drew rolled his eyes. ‘He sounds like a right tit to me.’

His grim humour made Chloe smile. ‘Oh he’s a tit, all right, but a very clever tit.’

‘Hmm. I guess things went downhill from there?’

‘Yes. At first Fraser took the head-in-the-sand approach. He couldn’t stand Jordan but thought Hannah would see the light and leave him.’ Chloe paused for breath.

‘But she didn’t.’

‘Nope. She moved in with him. The irony is that Fraser found out Jordan’s father is a multi-millionaire. Jordan has a trust fund. In fact, he isn’t even called Jordan. He’s actually called Gideon Jordan Rees-Carew.’

Drew snorted. ‘Oh, for God’s sake.’

‘Not that pretending to be something you’re not is a crime either. I wouldn’t mind, but Jordan – Gideon – goes home and lives the life of luxury when he’s not with Hannah. He leaves her in a scuzzy little bedsit with Ruby and has a whale of a time. Henley Regatta, Ascot, polo … and poker matches. He’d been gambling on horses and playing for big stakes in the card games. Hannah was never invited to the events and, in fact, I’m not sure she even knew. No matter what she claims.’ Chloe paused. ‘I’m sorry for unleashing this on you. I’ve never discussed it with anyone except Fraser before, not even Sam. Now I feel guilty for keeping her in the dark. She’s a good friend and I should probably share it with her too, but she has her own problems and …’ Chloe let out a very inelegant hiccup. ‘Maybe I should shut up now.’

‘No, you shouldn’t. And I’m sure Sam would be sympathetic. But God, how do you know all this?’ asked Drew.

‘We heard that she was pregnant – again through a third party – and we were so worried.’ Chloe paused, having to take a moment before she confessed to an act she deeply regretted now. ‘We … we actually hired a private detective to spy on him.’