I scowled at him. ‘How can you say that when you can’t even tell me where we’re going to live?’

‘Because I’m going to make sure it all works out for the best. For everyone.’

Suddenly Ellie piped up: ‘Are you going to get married?’

That got Mum’s attention. She didn’t look at me, though. She looked at Mark, who was watching me again. His expression was almost pleading, as if he wanted to ask me for permission.

‘Yes,’ he said.

Ellie squealed. Literally. It was the most ridiculous sound of excitement I’d ever heard in my life.

She said, ‘Can I be bridesmaid?’

‘Of course you can,’ Mum said. ‘But it’s not going to be a church wedding or anything like that. It’s going to be very small and low-key.’

I could feel the fight starting to go out of me. There was nothing at all that I could begin to do about any of this. How I felt about it – and I wasn’t sure how I felt about it – might make some difference to them, and even more difference to me. But it wouldn’t change anything.

Mark was looking half hopeful, as if he thought I might suddenly start being nice to him. He didn’t seem at all bothered about Ellie’s response, but maybe that was because she’d made it so obvious she was thrilled.

I turned to Mum. ‘Does Dad know about this?’

‘Not yet,’ Mum said. ‘Nobody else does. We wanted you to be the first to know.’

‘So your ex-wife is in the dark too, still,’ I said to Mark. ‘You only just got shot of her, didn’t you? Whatever her name is. It’s not like you ever mention her. It’s like she never even existed.’

His eyes blazed and his mouth set in a hard line. Ooh, temper. I smirked at him to annoy him even more. He’d sent Dad reeling down the street dripping blood, wanting nothing more than to get away from us and seek out the haven of the nearest pub. He didn’t deserve to have it all his own way.

I said, ‘I take it she’s not going to be invited?’

‘Paula won’t be coming to our wedding, no.’

‘Are you sure she’s not going to pop up when the vicar gets to “If anyone knows any just cause or legal impediment why these two should not be joined in holy matrimony, let him speak now or forever hold his peace?”’

Mark exhaled, attempted a smile. ‘I think that was the longest sentence I’ve ever heard you say.’

‘I’m doing Jane Eyre at GCSE, remember? The one where the guy has a first wife locked away in the attic?’

‘Ava, stop it,’ Ellie said. Then, to Mum: ‘What kind of dress are you going to wear? Can I have something matching?’

And then the fight went out of me completely.

Ellie had a thing about weddings. She was obsessed, as only girls like us, girls from a broken home, could be. The ones who loved the idea of the big day in white were always the ones whose parents hated each other, in my experience; I was an exception.