Her mood changes. She says regretfully, ‘Yeah. I know. Can’t help that. Fern, there’s something I haven’t mentioned. Max has left Alexa.’

I try to get my mind around it. ‘Really?’ And now I understand. ‘Oh, Gigi. You and Max?’

‘Yeah. We’re going to give it a go. There’s always been something there, you know, this chemistry between us?’ She smiles slyly. ‘And it’s good for you, huh?’

‘What do you mean?’

‘I’ve seen the way you look at Dave. He’s decorative, he’s got that going for him. And he likes you, you know? He’s always Fern this, Fern that.’

I feel the blood rising to my face. ‘That has absolutely nothing to do with anything. I work with him, that’s all. He loves you.’

She tosses her head and her wild pink hair is as turbulent as a twilight thundercloud. I suddenly see her as the girl I went to school with, the girl who played tricks on me. She pokes me in the ribs with her elbow and grins. ‘I bet you’d love that chopping board,’ she says. ‘Chop-chop-chopping away for him. Good luck.’ She starts to walk away.

‘Hey! Gigi! You’ve forgotten the dog!’

Twirling back, she says, ‘It’s his dog, he can look after it.’

‘What shall I tell him?’

‘Tell him he’s a shit for running off.’

I try to dampen my anxiety as I look at the dog with its black shaggy fur and blond shaggy eyebrows. He’s sniffing the air around him, trying to track down the intriguing source of fear.

He looks at me and I glance away quickly in case he thinks I’m challenging him.

I wonder where David’s gone. Tell him he’s a shit for running off.

It’s true that he rushed off as soon as he got her call, no doubt about it. I’ve never seen anyone move so quickly. Poor guy. Well, I can understand it. I hate confrontation, too.

The dog barks and I jump out of my shoes clutching my heart.

Thankfully it’s David, coming back through the gateway the way he left, and he sees the dog. The dog wags its tail while David looks at it in a puzzled way as though he’s trying to remember where he’s seen it before.

For a moment I see his face tense and I think he’s going to turn around and walk out again, but he comes back to the stall and I pretend to be busy adjusting the clothing rail and making sure all the hangers face the right way. ‘Gigi came looking for you,’ I say eventually.

‘Did she say anything?’ He sounds hopeful and wary at the same time.

Times like this I wonder why anyone bothers with relationships. ‘She said you’re a shit for running away,’ I murmur apologetically. ‘Sorry about that.’