‘Stop snogging your fiancé and get back up here for some serious drinking.’

I disconnected the call and handed Scott his phone.

‘How come Karen has my number?’ he asked, frowning.

‘You gave it to Leah a few months ago when my phone was playing up. Karen must have got it off her.’

‘Ah yes. I remember. Shall we collect our winnings?’

Scott handed me the wad of notes ten minutes later. ‘Take the money and open an account. I won’t be able to do it without a fixed address. I don’t think they’d accept Mum and Dad’s address in Canada.’

Scott had given up his rented flat in Nottingham before I met him because he spent so much time on the road with work. If he wasn’t away, he stayed with friends, me or even in a B&B saying it was cheaper than renting when he was hardly ever at home.

His parents had emigrated several years earlier but his dad had developed a few health problems that prevented him from flying. I’d therefore never met them although Scott had been over to Canada a couple of times since we’d met.

I stared at the bundle of notes in my hand. ‘Are you sure?’

‘I’m sure. I think I can trust you not to spend it on twenty bears. Actually, knowing your tastes, it would probably only be two or three bears for that amount.’

‘You know me well. I promise not to spend it on bears. Besides, Diamond has just joined the hug so he’ll satisfy my bear-acquisition needs for a little while. Thank you. It’s a lovely idea.’

We returned to the group where a glass of prosecco was thrust into one hand and my handbag into the other. I secured our winnings in a zipped compartment then snuggled against Scott’s side as he shared the news of our victory.

Everyone was in such a fabulous mood. Even Scott and Drew seemed to have cast their animosity aside to laugh and joke together. What an amazing afternoon.

Then Scott’s phone rang.

‘Hi, how’s it going?’ He mouthed ‘sorry’ to me and wandered away from the group. My heart sank.

Drew put his arm round me and squeezed me to his side. ‘He managed a few hours which is more than you expected, isn’t it?’

‘I know. I just wish he could have stayed all day.’

‘So do I. And not just for you. I’ve actually had a good laugh with him today. It’s the longest I’ve spent in his company and I’ve seen a different side to him.’

‘You’re not just saying that to cheer me up?’