Mma Makutsi gave him a disapproving look. “Mr Phuti Radiphuti is not yet my husband,” she said. “And he is not a very rich man. He has enough money, that is all.”

“Well, he must give you some, Mma,” Charlie persisted. “And if he does, then surely you can lend me eight hundred pula.”

Mma Makutsi looked to Mma Ramotswe for support. “Eight hundred pula,” she said. “What do you want with eight hundred pula? That is a lot of money, isn’t it, Mma Ramotswe?”

“It is,” said Mma Ramotswe. “What do you need it for?”

Charlie looked embarrassed. “It is for a present for my girlfriend,” he said. “I want to buy her something.”

“Your girlfriend!” shrieked Mma Makutsi. “That’s interesting news. I thought you boys didn’t stay around long enough to call anybody your girlfriend. And now here you are talking about buying her a present. This is very important news!”

Charlie glanced resentfully at Mma Makutsi and then looked away.

“And what are you thinking of buying her?” asked Mma Makutsi. “A diamond ring?”

Charlie looked down at the ground. He had his hands clasped behind his back, like a man appearing on a charge, and Mma Ramotswe felt a sudden surge of sympathy for him. Mma Makutsi could be a bit hard on the apprentices on occasion; even if they were feckless boys for much of the time, they still had their feelings and she did not like to see them humiliated.

“Tell me about this girl, Charlie,” said Mma Ramotswe. “I am sure that she is a very pretty girl. What does she do?”

“She works in a dress shop,” said Charlie. “She has a very good job.”

“And have you known her long?” asked Mma Ramotswe.

“Three weeks,” said Charlie.

“Well,” said Mma Makutsi. “What about this present? Is it a ring?”

Her question had not been intended seriously, and she was not prepared for the answer. “Yes,” said Charlie. “It is for a ring.”

Silence descended on the room. Outside, in the heat of the day, cicadas screeched their endless mating call. The world seemed still at such a time of day, in the heat, and movement seemed pointless, an unwanted disturbance. This was a time for sitting still, doing nothing, until the shadows lengthened and the afternoon became cooler.

Mma Makutsi spoke softly. “Isn’t three weeks a bit early to get somebody a ring? Three weeks …”

Charlie looked up and fixed her with an intense gaze. “You don’t know anything about it, Mma. You don’t know what it is like to be in love. I am in love now, and I know what I’m talking about.”

Mma Makutsi reeled in the face of the outburst. “I’m sorry … ,” she began.

“You don’t think I have feelings,” said Charlie. “All the time you have just laughed at me. You think I don’t know that? You think I can’t tell?”