Roma sighed as soon as they heard the door close behind Patsie. ‘Thank you for understanding. It’s been—’ she scrabbled for a tissue ‘—really tough. I thought she’d gone for good but then we went out for a glass of wine and she said she’d broken things off with “the other woman”.’ She made air quotes with her fingers before blowing her nose. ‘I demanded to know why she’d felt the need for her, what she had that I didn’t, why it had somehow been important enough to split us up but now apparently wasn’t important enough to pursue. We had a blazing row in the middle of a pub, swearing at each other like sailors. I thought that was it forever.’ She gulped, pressing a finger and thumb against each eyelid.

‘Then she rang and said she was missing me and could we talk. So we’re talking, but real life’s getting in the way. I’ve got two assignments before Christmas and she’s got court dates and stuff. And I don’t know if I can get over that other woman. She has pointed out the irony, as I expected her to get over my fling with Marvin.’

Lily shifted to the sofa to thread her arms around her mother. ‘I’m sorry it’s so painful, Mum, but I think talking is the right thing.’ Hot tears welled in her eyes. She wouldn’t burden Roma with what had happened with her brothers after all and she didn’t want her sussing out that if Lily’s job at The Three Fishes evaporated she’d have nowhere to go on Christmas Day.

‘It’s stopped raining. Fancy a walk?’ she suggested instead. ‘We could go to Ferry Meadows and have a late lunch at the garden centre.’

Roma sniffed. ‘That would be perfect!’ and when Lily picked up the dog lead Doggo switched from profoundly asleep to on his feet with a shake and a wag, and they got their coats and set out.

When Lily eventually got home in the late afternoon, the apartment felt quiet and it was dark and gloomy outside. She checked her email but neither of her London Book Fair clients had got back to her. She’d just risen from the table when Doggo suddenly flung himself at the French doors with a wildly beating tail, ‘WOAH, WOAH, WOAH, hnuh hnuh WOAH,’ almost giving Lily a heart attack.

Then she saw Isaac standing on the other side of the glass smiling uncertainly and her heart began beating again with a thump.