His gaze found hers. ‘I hadn’t thought of that,’ he said slowly.

‘No, I don’t suppose anybody here does think it.’ She let out a sigh that stirred the edges of her paper napkin. ‘Our lives have taken us in different directions. We talk via email or the phone but it’s not the same. Our mums were the kind of twins who looked identical but were different under the skin – mine went out into the world; hers was a home lover. Alice was always envious of the travelling I’d done—’ She hesitated.

‘So she’s taken every opportunity to travel herself since she did the runaway-bride trick,’ he rejoined drily.

‘It seems so.’ Clancy sat back and smiled at the young waitress who was setting eggs Benedict before her and a bacon sandwich in front of Aaron, then she asked him about Hunstanton because it seemed a safer topic than Alice. He proved to have a fair knowledge of its history.

By the time they’d eaten, the sun was shining again. The pavements outside glistened and the tables began to empty. Aaron didn’t immediately get up to leave. ‘Do you mind if I run something past you, something to do with Genevieve? I don’t want it to be horrible and awkward when we meet. It’s such a small village that we’re bound to trip over each other. I thought it would be easier if that first meeting was public but casual, so we’ve looked each other in the eye and said hello. What do you think?’

Clancy stared outside at people strolling by, the traffic moving slowly. He was being thoughtful, but there was an ache in the pit of her belly. Had Will felt the same when he’d written that email, trying to be kind to the woman who’d wanted to share his life? It was so close to being pitied that her skin crept.

‘I think I’d want to get it over with as easily as possible.’ She shuddered.

The lines of Aaron’s face had begun to relax, but now he frowned. ‘Is this upsetting you?’

She picked up her water glass and put it down again. ‘Not the conversation.’ Just the memory of a humiliation; the end of hers and Will’s relationship had played out excruciatingly publicly.

After another moment, he went on. ‘Friends are coming round tonight for a drink and pizza. I wondered about inviting her.’

Clancy was dubious. ‘So long as you make it obvious that it’s a gathering, not a reconciliation attempt, that might work. But neutral territory would be better.’

‘There isn’t much neutral territory in Nelson’s Bar. There can’t be many people who don’t know one or both of us.’ He fiddled with his napkin, folding it over and ironing in the fold with the side of his fist. ‘Don’t hesitate to tell me to bugger off if I’m overstepping the mark, but I wondered if you’d come too, to make sure Genevieve’s not the only woman. You seem to get on with her OK.’