It sounded like a statement but she knew it was a question. She melted a little inside at evidence of this slight vulnerability. They’d spent the night giving and receiving pleasure, but he was still wary of taking too much for granted. She kissed her way up the strong cords of his neck, feeling the scrape of his morning stubble against her lips. ‘I would love that.’

‘If the sea settles down after the storm I’ll show you Secret Beach. It’s not high tide until about six.’ He moved her hair aside to kiss her neck.

‘It’s a date. But now I have to go—’

‘—because it’s changeover day,’ he finished for her with a grin. ‘I get it.’

The storm had freshened the morning, washing away the dust they’d lived with for the weeks of the heatwave. Clouds of palest grey scurried across the sky as if trying to catch up with their big brothers who had stormed through during the night. Clancy sped down Long Lane towards the Roundhouse, enjoying the edge to the breeze and the scent of the nettles that grew at the base of the hedges. The world felt washed and fresh. It suited her mood, the feeling of beginning a new chapter.

Last night had been … She shivered with pleasure as she let herself into the Roundhouse, stooping to pick up the keys on her doormat that indicated the erstwhile occupants of numbers five and four Roundhouse Row had vacated already. Skipping across the flagstones to the central staircase she ran up for a two-minute shower then jumped into shorts and a T-shirt. Getting caught in the rain and an energetic night of sex had given her haystack hair. She twisted it up behind her head, grabbed the cottage keys and her cleaning things and began, belatedly, on changeover day, humming beneath her breath as she worked.

The beds in number four and number five were soon stripped and the first load of laundry chugging around in the Roundhouse’s washing machine. The guests from number six had left too with a lot of door slamming and arguing about how best to pack the car. Clancy was madly polishing and vacuuming when she heard a bark that she thought might be Nelson. Peeping through the bedroom window of number four she was able to see that Aaron had paused to chat to Ernie over the front hedge, backing away with that half-smile half-frown people wore when they wanted to end a conversation.

He glanced up at that moment and, catching Clancy’s eye, waved. ‘Be up in a minute,’ he called, his voice squashed small by the glass between them. She waved back and danced back to her cleaning, her heart light and skippy.

In minutes Aaron was running up the stairs to join her, Nelson galumphing happily at his side. Clancy was working near the window and Aaron drew her away so he could kiss her out of the view of anyone who might be passing by outside. ‘This changeover day is a total pain in the arse,’ he grumbled, rubbing suggestively against her. ‘But if cleaning cottages is the only way to spend the day with you then I’ll have to put up with it. Give me a job quick before I throw you on that bed and ravish you.’