‘Well, actually, Mum, I have.’ To avoid me backing out as soon as I saw her, I’d messaged Mark to say that a family emergency had come up, and I would be half an hour late, but I was definitely coming.

‘What?’ Mum’s face crumpled in confusion. ‘What are you talking about?’

‘A friend from work invited me to go for a drink with him later on. I’ll stay and eat with you first, then head off.’ Not entirely true, and my lie would require eating two meals in one evening, but that was the least of my worries.

‘You’re going to leave me. On my own. After I’ve done all this for you?’ The smile was gone, her face mottled with crimson.

‘No, I said I’m going to eat with you, and then pop out afterwards. If you’d checked first, I’d have told you I had plans.’

‘If I’d checked first?’ She pressed a trembling hand to her chest. ‘It never crossed my mind that you’d not tell me if you had a date. I didn’t even know you were interested in anyone.’

‘It was a last-minute arrangement.’ I was frustrated by the quiver in my voice. If I’d told her I had plans, she’d only have had more time to invent a reason for me to cancel them. Two years ago, she developed agonising toothache on the day I was supposed to be going away for the weekend with Steph. By the time I’d taken her to the emergency dentist and found out that it was nothing that couldn’t have waited until Monday, we’d missed our flight to Amsterdam.

‘Well, I organised this days ago. You’ll have to tell him you’re busy.’

‘No. I’m sorry, but I’m not cancelling a date on Valentine’s Day to spend yet another evening with my mum. Let’s just enjoy our dinner, and then I’m going out. It’s not that big a deal.’

The tears came then, as she collapsed into a chair, shaking her head as if completely baffled.

‘No, it’s fine. Of course. I’m just disappointed. I’d picked out a film, and had cocktails for later. Of course you must choose this friend from work over your silly mum. Don’t worry about the food – you go off and enjoy your night without me. I’ll be fine.’

She rubbed her chest a few times, face scrunched up to let me know the ‘pains’ were back, as predicted. I felt a prickle of guilt that I’d upset her, but the stab of anger that she was trying to manipulate me was, for the first time, stronger.

‘Okay, that’s really kind of you, Mum. We can save all this for tomorrow, and enjoy a really lovely evening together then.’

Her head jerked up, unable to hide the shock that I’d agreed.