‘Oh! I didn’t mean—'

‘I know you didn’t. How you feeling?’

‘OK. A little groggy first thing but an enormous breakfast and a family-sized pot of tea seems to have sorted that out.’

‘I’m not surprised. You were high as a kite last night on those painkillers. I had to tie a string to your ankle to stop you floating out the window.’

‘I was not,’ I said, stepping through the door as he held it open for me.

‘Yeah, you were.’ He followed, laughter in his words. ‘I think I got to see the real Madeleine last night. Quite a lot of her, as it turned out. I might see the doc and see if we can get you some more of those pills.’

I gave him a steady look as I reached the car. ‘You’re hilarious. I may have been a little woozy but I do remember keeping my clothes on, so your infantile teasing isn’t going to get a rise out of me.’

‘A little woozy. Is that what you call it?’ he continued, grinning as he slid into the driver’s seat, having closed my door for me.

‘I do.’

‘Darlin’, you were a total space cadet. It was great.’

I let out a sigh and opened my planner as we pulled out onto the quiet road. ‘I’m glad you enjoyed yourself.’

‘I did, actually,’ he replied, his voice sounding carefree and honest, missing that teasing note his words were so often wrapped in. I risked a glance at him. His eyes were still on the road and his whole body had a loose, relaxed feeling to it. I turned back to the window, watching as we passed impossibly green rolling hills dotted with fluffy clouds of sheep. Old dry-stone walls divided some of the fields, the narrow road winding between them. My thoughts drifted back to last night. Hazy memories of laughter and easy conversation floated into my mind and a feeling of lightness that I wanted to attribute entirely to the drugs but had the niggling feeling there might have been more to it than that.

‘Thank you for your help and kindness yesterday. I do appreciate it. I’m sure you had much better ways to spend a rare Saturday night back home than keeping me company. In normal circumstances, I wouldn’t have asked you, so I apologise for putting you on the spot.’

The shadow of a smile flitted momentarily across his handsome features. ‘Then I’m glad it wasn’t normal circumstances. We both enjoyed the craic so let’s leave it at that.’

We rode the rest of the way in silence and I took pleasure in the countryside around me, almost deserted apart from the sheep and a farmer in a tractor.

‘Most people are at church, if that’s what you’re wondering,’ Lorcan said after a while, as though reading my thoughts.