He could feel sweat forming on his forehead and longed to wipe it away.

‘I’m thinking it must be a mistake. Richard loves you.’

‘Men can still love someone and give in to the urge to stray, and the even worse notion that they have pulled the wool over their partner’s eyes.’ She smirked. ‘Excluding you, of course.’

She was playing with him, he could see that now. She knew something. Her eyes followed his eye movement: the twitch of his eyes, his lips moving as he thought of his next words. She watched him like a predator, waiting for the slightest glimpse of vulnerability so she could go in for the kill. James wasn’t used to being prey.

‘Do you have proof?’

‘Yes.’

‘What kind?’

‘The damning kind.’

‘You’re being awfully mysterious.’

‘I’m good at keeping my cards to my chest until exactly the right moment. It’s got me this far.’

He could speed up the process and tell Neena’s family to hand over the money in twenty-four hours. A courier could collect the money and deliver it to him in another town. The crime was already pinned on Richard. If everything fell through and the police got involved, it would all lead back to him. James told himself he didn’t need to worry, but even as he thought the words, he felt a drop of sweat run between his shoulder blades.

‘So, what are you going to do, if you’re not going to leave him?’

‘I’m going to clean up his mess for him.’

The room was too hot. He was practically melting. The central heating pumped through the grate in the ceiling and ruffled Amber’s hair. He was unravelling right before her eyes, and by the look of them, she was enjoying every second of it.

Something about her was off; she was usually so visually perfect, but there was a loss of symmetry to her face. He noticed the skin around her left eye was puffier than usual.

‘What happened to your eye? It looks swollen.’

‘I’m trying a new mascara,’ she said quickly. ‘I must be allergic. I’ll throw it away when I get home.’

However good she thought she was, James spotted her lie. Whatever happened to her eye, he hoped it hurt.

Amber checked her watch and looked up with a smile.

‘I need to head off.’

‘But I just got here.’

‘That will teach you for being late. We can talk more later. Are we still on for tonight?’