She couldn’t help but notice her little sister seemed more fidgety than normal. ‘Are you okay there, dote?’ she asked.

‘I don’t know,’ Clara said. ‘New friends make me feel wobbly in my tummy.’

Jo gave a soft smile. ‘Can I tell you a secret? They can make me feel wobbly in my tummy too.’

‘Is Lorcan a new friend to you too?’ Clara’s eyes were wide, as if she couldn’t quite believe that grown-ups would have new friends.

‘He is,’ Jo told her.

‘Is he a kind friend?’ Clara asked.

‘Well, how do you know if someone is a kind friend?’ Jo asked her little sister, who then screwed up her face and pulled a very exaggerated ‘I’m thinking’ expression.

‘Well, I know my friends in school are kind if they smile when they say hello. And when they lend me a pencil to use if mine gets lost or broken. And I think a good friend is also someone who gives you a hug if you fall down and then goes to get the teacher to make sure you’re okay.’

It was a very simplistic take on friendship, as things went, but it was also perfect. At the heart of any friendship should be the ability to know when your friend needs a hug or when they need to borrow a pencil.

Jo smiled and hugged Clara. ‘Well, you know, I think Lorcan would definitely give me a hug if I fell over, and he does smile when he sees me.’

‘Then he’s a kind friend,’ Clara said authoritatively.

‘And I’ve heard he loves jelly and is very excited about dessert,’ Jo stage-whispered.

‘I really think he likes you, Jojo. Like how Westley likes Buttercup in The Princess Bride.’

Jo didn’t try and convince her otherwise. For a while, at least, it was a nice fantasy to entertain for a moment or two until the ring of the doorbell made them both jump.

‘Will we bring our wobbly tummies to the door to say hello to Lorcan?’ Jo asked.

‘Yes. Will you hold my hand?’ Clara asked, looking up at her solemnly.

‘Always, sweetheart.’

‘I’ll watch to see if he smiles,’ Clara said with an attempt at a wink which turned out to be just a very exaggerated blink.

Together they walked to the door, and as they opened it, they were greeted by Lorcan carrying a tub of ice cream and a bunch of flowers. He greeted Clara first of all, crouching down and handing her the flowers with a smile. ‘Miss Clara, these are for you to thank you for your very kind invitation.’

Clara beamed like the cat who got the cream, before Lorcan stood back up and handed the ice cream to Jo.

‘And I thought this might just go very well with jelly,’ he said, grinning. ‘Which just happens to be the best dessert ever.’