Soon they were outside in the winter sunshine. Josie was relaxed, considering she’d just met an entire class full of new children, and Nico suddenly realised that he was the one feeling odd and unsettled. The village street was quiet now the school run was over and unlit Christmas lights swung between leafless trees that were bent and gnarled like arthritic old men.

Then he realised what felt amiss – he wasn’t in a hurry.

He wasn’t rushing to the tube. He wasn’t squeezing in emails between meetings. The only tasks he absolutely had to do today were shopping, caring for the girls and providing meals.

‘Out, out!’ shouted Maria, jerking forward against her harness.

‘OK,’ said Nico, obligingly. He unfastened the clip and lifted her onto her two feet. ‘Hold my hand.’

Maria tucked hers into her armpits. ‘Nooooo.’

He grabbed the hood of her coat to stop her charging off. ‘Hand or buggy?’

Maria peeped at him to check he meant it then reluctantly gave him her miniature, chilly hand. He had to lean sideways to hold on to her so it wasn’t a fast or comfortable walk home but Josie looked happy enough pushing the buggy while Maria paused to examine every stone or gate post and shouted, ‘’Ullo!’ to a beagle looking out of a window.

He spent the saunter home, apart from answering Maria’s stream of ‘Look!’ or ‘What’s dat?’ musing on the speedy succession of events over the past week or so.

On November twenty-fourth, the day after his disastrous meeting with Anders, he’d emailed his resignation and phoned an agog Katya to explain. The HR manager had invited him in for a chat, which he attended in the late afternoon when Tilly could look after Maria alongside Josie.

The HR manager had talked about ‘a potential solution that might be agreeable to all’. Nico imagined he’d already quoted SLS’s policy on dependants’ leave at Anders, which perhaps didn’t entirely accord with the stance Anders had so far taken. Along with lots of legal jargon, the HR manager had broached a settlement agreement. Nico had been unsurprised: he’d held a senior role with access to client data and contacts and was about to resign owing to his boss’s less than sympathetic behaviour.

He’d been wide open to a sum of money and an agreed reference in exchange for waiving his right to take the company to tribunal. The settlement sum reflected holidays owed and the twelve-month non-compete clause in his contract and, in view of his circumstances and childcare difficulties, he wasn’t expected to work his notice but would be paid until his official leaving date of the thirty-first of December. The relief had unstrung every one of his tense muscles.