‘Things were so tense between us all week at work, I never thought you’d be up for meeting this weekend,’ he adds. ‘I thought I’d give you some space to calm down.’

I look at him, drink deeply from my wine glass, shrug my shoulders. I can play this part. I’m well-practised at it.

‘I didn’t intend to come here. But, you know, Saturday night and I was bored …’ I lie. It surprises me how easily it trips off my tongue.

‘Well, I’m happy to provide a distraction, and I’m definitely happy to see you. Will you stay over? You can, you know. Jen and the boys won’t be back until tomorrow dinner time at the earliest, so you know, we could make the most of it. It’s not often we get the opportunity.’

‘I didn’t think this was a stay-the-night kind of arrangement,’ I say, staring down into my glass.

‘It can be,’ he says, and there’s a longing in his eyes.

Whether it’s for another shag or something more meaningful, I don’t know. I don’t want to consider the latter scenario. There is no good that can come out of developing anything more than a colleagues-with-benefits relationship with him. Even if I wanted to continue to hide here, it would only be a temporary fix. I would be fooling myself.

I shake my head. ‘We’ve been over this before. Why it’s a bad idea. Jen doesn’t deserve this.’

‘I hate to burst your bubble, but if by “this” you mean us sleeping together, then that has already happened,’ he says. ‘Many times. Not least twenty minutes ago when you threw yourself at me.’

Shaking my head, I say, ‘I mean this as in us sharing a bed, your marital bed, in your home. You’ve made it clear you’re not going to leave her – and I don’t want you to, either. So, let’s not make it more than what it is.’

‘Don’t you ever get lonely?’ Ryan asks, putting his wine glass down on the floor, sitting forwards so that he can look in my eyes.

Those big blue eyes, searching my face, trying to read me. I break the stare. Look down at my glass.

‘We all get lonely, Ryan. Even those of us in big houses with partners and children.’

This is all starting to feel a little claustrophobic now. He wants to have a big chat. One of those deep and meaningfuls, and God, it’s the very last thing on my mind. I came here to escape my worries, not add to them.

The thought of the red paint sliding down my wall in long, skinny drips comes back into my head.

‘Actually, I think I should probably go. I’m going to call a taxi.’

I put my glass down, fish in my bag for my phone.