We were sitting in a swanky restaurant in a tucked-away alley in London and I was looking forward to a relaxed meal and discussion with the bride and groom-to-be before they flew to the States tomorrow. As I sipped a glass of Cristal Peyton insisted I have, the door opened and, across the small room, I saw Lorcan fill its frame. Oh. Great. Patrick waved and, having handed over his coat and taken his time charming the pretty hostess, Lorcan eventually wandered over to the table and greeted Patrick with a clap on the shoulder and Peyton with a big hug and a kiss on the cheek.

‘Maddie,’ he said, taking the chair next to me, filling the space, his thigh inadvertently brushing mine as he did so. I quickly moved my legs further to the right.

‘Pleasure to see you again.’

‘Lorcan. I didn’t realise you were coming this evening.’

‘Oh, I never miss a campaign meeting.’

‘We’re planning a wedding, Lorcan, not a war,’ I replied.

He made a slight movement of his head, while his gaze remained on me as he lifted the champagne glass to his lips. I gave a tight smile, turned away and downed the rest of my glass. Probably not the best idea but I was hoping the alcohol might make him a little less – whatever he was – and hopefully a little less good-looking.

‘So, whose idea was it to marry in Ireland?’ I asked, trying to dig deeper and see what details I could winkle out to make the day even more special for the couple.

‘That was mine,’ Peyton said, glancing at her fiancé. ‘Patrick, darling that he is, was happy to marry anywhere but I’ve always dreamed of marrying there, in a beautiful setting, and connecting with my heritage.’

‘Oh, you’re Irish too?’

Lorcan made a snort, which both Peyton and I ignored, but Patrick’s look buried his friend six feet under.

‘Sorry. Went down the wrong way.’ Lorcan pointed to the glass he’d just replaced on the table. I gave him a thump on the back a little harder than was strictly necessary.

‘Is that better?’ I asked sweetly.

‘Much,’ he said, eyes boring into me. Across the table, Patrick and Peyton were grinning.

‘So,’ I continued. ‘You were saying that you have Irish ancestry too? Is that something you would like to incorporate into the wedding?’

This time Lorcan remained silent and Peyton explained her links to Ireland.

‘I do have Irish connections, yes. Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to find much during genealogy searches but I think that’s likely to do with the fact that a lot of names got changed during emigration, either through choice or when the names were registered at Ellis Island.’

‘Ah, I understand.’

‘Or it could be because the so-called relatives were non-existent in the first place,’ Lorcan mumbled under his breath.

‘Lorcan!’ Patrick snapped.

Peyton studied her beautiful engagement ring.