She laughed, her face glowing. She held out a towel. He took it and rubbed under his arms.

‘Mum didn’t like it at any age. I always had to sneak around. Relationships never lasted more than a few months.’

‘Wouldn’t it have been better to put her in a home?’

‘Not in the state she was in.’

‘What do you mean?’

‘She turned to drink after Dad died. It was a slow decline; I tried to stop her, hiding her bottles, but she was worse without it, vicious and bitter.’

‘So you cared for her since when you were at school?’

‘I’d come home and she’d be on the sofa, passed out drunk. Once she’d left the cooker on. It was lucky I came home when I did. I ended up staying off school more and more to look after her. I missed part of the last year.’

‘And they let you do that?’ He hung the towel up.

‘They sent work home, but I don’t think they really understood that I was caring for her alone.’ She opened the wardrobe door. ‘Mum wasn’t able to cope on her own. She couldn’t get over what Dad did to her, all his lies.’

‘What do you mean?’

‘I’d rather not talk about it right now.’

‘We couldn’t have done things like this then.’ He pulled her towards him.

‘God no, never.’ Maddy laughed and shut the wardrobe door. ‘She would’ve been banging on the ceiling with her broom, calling me for something, anything.’

She held up a navy suit.

‘Hey, what’s this? I don’t do suits,’ he said, ‘except weddings and funerals. Gotta be a good reason.’

‘It’s one of Dad’s. He never wore it.’ She looked hurt.

‘I don’t change the rules for just anyone you know,’ he said softly, lifting her chin. He kissed her lips.

‘I thought we could maybe go out for dinner, that’s all.’

Perhaps he should have come up with the idea himself. He watched her substantial backside as she left the room. It sounded like she meant business.

They arrived at The Swan and Bottle by the canal in Uxbridge at 8 p.m. and were shown straight to their table. A single candle flickered between them in the semi-darkness. Maddy ordered champagne.

‘Special occasion?’ asked the waiter, his moustache expanding with his grin.

Maddy smiled at Max.

Max reached across the table and took her hand. ‘You look beautiful,’ he said, admiring her red dress and softly curled hair.

‘You look pretty good yourself.’

‘Yeah the suit fits all right, doesn’t it?’

The waiter poured two glasses and placed the bottle in a silver bucket by the side of the table.

‘Here’s to us.’ Max raised his glass and tapped it against Maddy’s.

‘And here’s to you, Max, for making me so bloody happy.’