The doorbell jangled and Gilly had time to wonder if it was the most irritating one she had ever heard. Then she heard her ex-husband’s deep, loud voice. ‘She’s still got that sardine can of a car, I see,’ he said. As he was still in the hall it was possible he didn’t intend Gilly to hear him, but it was unlikely.

‘Hello, Sebastian,’ said Gilly.

‘Hello, Gilly,’ he said and bent to kiss her cheek.

The smell of his aftershave made her shudder. ‘It’s been a while,’ she said.

‘Well, you know why. I would have been more than happy to keep things amicable but you couldn’t seem to do that.’

It occurred to Gilly that he’d got married in the first place so he’d have someone constantly on hand to blame things on. Nothing was ever his fault, it was always hers, however unreasonable he’d been.

‘Shall we go through?’ said Cressida, who seemed nervous. ‘It’s all ready.’

Although she knew Cressida would be perfectly prepared Gilly leaped to her feet. ‘Let me give you a hand!’ She followed Cressida through to the kitchen.

‘I’m so sorry, Gilly,’ said Cressida immediately. ‘It was not my idea to invite Sebastian. I’ve always thought there was another side to why your marriage broke down.’

‘There was, but I never wanted my children to see quite how bad things were. It was harder to keep it from Helena, who was still at home, though.’

Cressida nodded.

Gilly spotted an open bottle of wine. ‘Do you mind if I have some of that? I’m going to need help if I’m going to get through this.’

‘Of course,’ said Cressida. ‘You can always get a cab home.’

Gilly smiled faintly. While Cressida’s back was turned she sent William a little text asking how he was. Making contact with him gave her courage.

Back in the dining room, sitting round the glass table which made you cold if you leaned on it, Cressida served out salmon and steamed vegetables. Everyone was given two little new potatoes. Martin put an inch of wine into each wine glass. The wine didn’t have room to breathe, it had room to hyperventilate and faint, Gilly felt, very grateful for the extra half-glass she’d gulped down in the kitchen. She was still trembling with indignation that Martin had invited Sebastian without telling her.

Three forkfuls in, Martin said, ‘So what’s the big announcement, Mum? Apart from the fact that you don’t want to sell your house?’

With everyone looking at her, Gilly, just for a moment, was tempted to declare she had a terminal illness, just to see their faces. And in fact this thought gave her courage. Think how much worse the whole revelation could have been!