‘Oh, this and that,’ I said, resisting the urge to snap that I hadn’t been on holiday. These women thought they’d love a break from their kids every second week, but they’d think very differently if they’d been given no choice in the matter.

‘Have you joined any of those dating apps yet?’ asked the coach’s wife, then she lowered her voice and added, ‘Tinder sounds so much fun. Sometimes I feel ripped off that I met Cam before the age of the internet. Even speed-dating came in after we got together.’

The grass is always greener, I thought, but didn’t get the chance to come up with a less snarky reply before Tonia hissed, ‘Ooh, here comes Adrian now.’

My stomach turned inside out. Where the hell was Hayley? The other mums dispersed—so much for female solidarity—as Adrian approached. I felt like a high school girl with a crush on a boy way out of her league and racked my mind for something witty to say.

When that failed, I went with, ‘Hello Adrian. How are you?’

Did he look like he’d had sex in the last week? I scrutinised his face for signs. Apparently, there were plenty of women on the internet more than happy to put out.

‘Good.’ He nodded and gave an awkward smile as if I were an acquaintance whose name he couldn’t remember. Maybe he didn’t recognise me in my fancy new clothes, stylish hair and made-up face. It had been a while since I’d worn more than foundation and lipstick, but this morning I’d gone all out. ‘And how are you, Ashling?’

There went that possibility. Couldn’t he have at least acknowledged that I looked nice? Was that too much to ask after twenty-two years together?

‘I’m fantastic.’ Hopefully he didn’t notice how tight my voice sounded. ‘I joined Hayley’s gym this week and I’ve never felt better in my life.’

‘That’s great,’ he said as if I’d told him I’d cut my toenails. ‘By the way, what did you tell Saxon? He’s been sending me really nasty messages. I thought we agreed not to badmouth each other in front of the kids and to keep this civil.’

‘I didn’t badmouth you, but he was clearly hurting, and he wouldn’t open up to me like he usually does. So I told him the truth—that this separation wasn’t my idea and if I had my way, we’d still be together. I want that, Addy. I really miss you.’

‘Ash.’ He shook his head. ‘Please don’t make this more difficult than it already is.’

‘Don’t you miss us a little bit? Are you sure you won’t consider counselling?’

‘A counsellor,’ Adrian said under his breath, ‘is not going to change how I feel. I need space.’

And then to make it clear the conversation was over, he stepped away and focused his gaze on the pitch where the girls were warming up.

‘You okay?’ Tonia whispered, sidling up beside me, but I waved her off, not wanting to talk to anyone for fear I’d make a scene.