‘Shh . . . I know, your father shouldn’t have lost his temper with you. He should have known better.’ Mazy held Ethan’s face in her hands and kissed him on the cheek. ‘You are home now and that’s all that matters.’ She sniffed and wiped her nose and pushed away the tears that were falling. ‘I just didn’t know where you were, and if I’d ever see you again, when Mr Atkinson said you’d gone missing. And you know what your father is like; he wouldn’t let me come up and see you when you were at Crummock. He said that it was your duty to come and see us.’ Mazy breathed in deeply.

‘I’ll leave you two together. The kettle’s nearly boiling, and you know where the teacups are.’ Ruby pulled the pan full of boiling jelly off the heat and watched as mother and son sat down together, wanting to make up for lost time in private, as she made her way out of the kitchen.

‘I’m sorry, I seem to be good at causing upset and worry. And I’ll be making more this morning, when Mr Atkinson finishes telling my father what I’m about.’ Ethan dropped his head and looked down at his hands.

‘What’s up, Ethan? You’re not in trouble, are you? Is that why you disappeared?’ Mazy reached for her son’s hands and held them tightly as she looked at him with love and concern.

‘It depends what you call trouble, and if Father is going to lose his temper again.’ Ethan sighed. ‘I’m hoping that you will both give me your blessing to court Rosie – that’s why her father is here with me. He’s outside with Father, telling him that they have concerns, but they are happy for us to walk out together on certain days, rather than sneak behind their backs. We can’t help it, Mother. I love her and she loves me – we can’t stop it. That’s why I went away, to see if I could stop thinking about Rosie, but I couldn’t and she feels just the same about me.’ Ethan looked at his mother and at the shock on her face.