There wasn’t a lot of money in the budget, but after hunting for a day or two I found a site between the town and Cannes that offered camping, caravans and some farm buildings converted into holiday lets. I remembered a golden countryside of olive trees and vineyards and ochre-walled houses with clay tiled roofs. Lola refused to have anything to do with tents and the caravans, even in the brochure, looked hideous. I agreed that the apartments looked like the best option.

‘Is there a pool?’ Lola asked. ‘Any bars, or clubs?’

‘There’s a pool at the site, look,’ I said, showing her the picture. ‘There are plenty of bars in Grasse and clubs in Cannes, I’m sure. Although it must all be completely different from the way I remember it.’

‘Okay,’ she said.

Jack just shrugged. I booked the first two weeks of the school holidays and considered us lucky to have found somewhere in the south of France that I could more or less afford.

I also spoke to Mr Rainbird.

‘It seems a very long time since we saw each other,’ he remarked, after we had exchanged the initial courtesies.

‘I know. I’m sorry.’

‘Shall we remedy this?’

I hesitated. ‘I’m not sure how to tell Jack.’

‘How to tell him what, exactly?’

‘Um. That I’m dating his head of year.’

‘Just that would do, wouldn’t it?’ There was some amusement in his voice but also the faintest edge of impatience.

‘Jack and I aren’t having a particularly easy time at the moment. He’s angry with me, for all kinds of reasons, most of them justified.’

‘Sadie, kids are often angry. Do you want us to go out again?’

I listened to his breathing. ‘Yes.’

‘Okay. Good. So do I.’

But. I waited to hear what the but was going to be.

‘So, if what you’re saying is that before you and I go any further you want to find the right way to tell Jack that we’re going to the cinema, I’ll just wait for you to do that and then call me, shall I?’

No but at all.

Mr Rainbird, I thought, you’re quite a class act. It was a second before I caught myself giggling. I said with the vibration of laughter in my throat, ‘Yes, please. I promise I will.’

‘Goodnight then,’ he said and I could hear that he thought all this was quite funny too. I liked the fact that he didn’t take it too seriously, but that he didn’t entirely make light of it either.

Lola was in, for once. I had thought she was absorbed in the television but she looked up immediately. ‘Was that him?’

‘Yes.’

She grinned. ‘Good for you, Mum.’