They laughed in comradely fashion and I pretended to join in. I wanted to tell him I’d never said whatnots in my life before just now. ‘It was the Observer, actually,’ I said smoothly, crossing to my percolator.

‘Oh, sorry. I get both.’

‘Yes, me too.’

Ned’s eyes widened at my tone. He replaced the lemon.

‘Nice kitchen,’ said Mr Cohen, breaking a silence I obviously should have been the one to fill.

I beamed, remembering myself. ‘Thank you, I love it.’ I did, actually.

It had been bought on the strength of a two-book deal which had been labour-intensive in the writing, but very satisfactory in the spending. Even Michael had agreed that the three weeks we’d spent living off microwave meals while it was fitted had been worth it.

‘It was handmade in Somerset,’ I told him proudly. ‘By artisans, in an atelier.’

‘Oh really? As opposed to carpenters in a joinery?’ He grinned. Was he laughing at me?

‘Or even chippies in a workshop,’ observed Ned, rather disloyally I felt, which they found equally funny. Lovely to have so much male bonding in my kitchen, I decided with a tight smile as I went to get some mugs. I felt my visitor’s eyes on my back.

‘I was sorry to hear about your husband,’ he said abruptly. I turned from the cupboard with my mugs, surprised. ‘Obviously the estate agent told me,’ he said. ‘Apparently it’s called the three D’s.’

‘Sorry?’

‘Reasons for selling. Death, divorce and debt.’

‘Oh, right. Except I’m not selling.’

‘No. But I can see it would be hard to stay.’

‘Well, yes. It is. In all sorts of ways.’ Ned and I managed not to look at each other. ‘Do you have a family, Mr Cohen?’ I swept on quickly.

‘Josh.’

‘Josh.’

‘I do, but they’re staying on in Paris.’

‘Oh, right. Gosh, you’ll miss them, won’t you?’

‘The children, yes, certainly. But my wife, no. We’re separating.’

‘Oh. I’m sorry.’

‘No, don’t be. It was high time.’

His candour was refreshing, as was his matter-of-fact delivery, and I wondered if this was the way forward for me. The way to reveal that I too was well shot of my other half. On the other hand, I decided nervously, circumstances might differ. I also wondered if, had I been happily married, I might have been rather shocked. I decided that in the real world I no longer inhabited, I might have been.

Ned cleared his throat. ‘Shall I make myself scarce, Mum? Come back another time?’

‘No, no, it won’t take a moment to show Mr Coh—Josh, around. I’ll be back in a mo. You finish making the coffee, darling.’ I went to the fridge to pour some milk into a jug.