‘Thanks for listening,’ I said, giving her a last hug. ‘I thought I was going crazy. I thought I was being over-sensitive. You’ve helped me make sense of it all.’

‘It’s weird, you know,’ she said, looking puzzled. ‘I hadn’t planned to come to the crematorium today, but something propelled me here. I just couldn’t get away from the idea that I needed to come. I think it was to see you. To stop you making the same mistakes I did.’

‘I’m glad we met.’ My hands were shaking as she took them in hers. ‘I’m sick with nerves, to be honest, but now I’ve made the decision, I just want to get on with it.’

Her gaze held mine. ‘Living, really living, is about more than just breathing in and out. You have to make each breath, each moment count. Life really is too short to merely exist. Do this for you. And for me.’

‘I will,’ I said. ‘Enjoy the rest of your life with your new man.’

‘I intend to,’ she said with a coy smile. ‘And don’t let Harvey put you off men for too long, they’re not all the same, you know.’

True, they weren’t all the same, I thought, as I hurried away from the crematorium for the last time. But I wasn’t interested in heading into another relationship any time soon; I had a feeling it would be tricky enough extricating myself from this one.

My legs felt shaky on the walk from the tube station to the flat and my stomach was in knots as I weighed up my next move. I was heading back to Fernfield, that was a given, but did I ring Evie or Dad and warn them, which would unleash a torrent of questions, or should I just turn up and tell them the news when I got there? A simple text message this afternoon might work best, I decided, that way I could let them know I was on my way but still keep it brief.

I’d text Dad, tell him I’d got a couple of days off and was paying him a flying visit. That should do it. I pulled my phone out of my bag and found that there was a missed call from him plus a text from Evie.