‘I’ll go,’ she gabbled. ‘Hope everything goes as well as it can.’ Feeling sick she ended the call and wiped her sweaty hands down her jeans. Back to the hospital? After the results? Immediately before Christmas? That could not be good.

What must it be like to be Hayley right now? And just when nearly everyone else was jumping into the two or three days of almost mandatory fun of the festive season.

Lily paced up to the French doors and stared out into the wintry garden where the grass was flattened by rain and the sky looked like lead, almost exactly matching her feelings. She could hardly believe that a few minutes ago she’d been so self-centred as to think even for an instant that it was OK to check, for her own ends, what Isaac’s chances were of finally disentangling himself from his ex-girlfriend.

I’ve got to take Hayley back to the hospital. Hayley wasn’t at the end of her nightmare but in the middle of it. Isaac wasn’t the kind of man to abandon her when she had no one else and, more importantly, Lily wouldn’t want him to.

Hand shaking, she drank a glass of water to ease the tightness in her throat while she reviewed her life. She’d had three internships after uni and then a couple of jobs before she left to go to Spain with Sergio. There, she’d tried not to be funnelled into his family business but her design work had inevitably become part-time. When she returned to the UK she’d been sidetracked by coming to Middledip in search of Tubb and had failed to give what she grandly called ‘her business’ the attention it needed.

Her heart might be in pieces but it was time for her to grow. Grow up. Stop waiting around for something good to happen. To take control. And right in the palm of her hand was a chance to take a giant career stride at the same time as forging some kind of relationship with her brothers.

She rang Garrick and as soon as he picked up the phone blurted, ‘I don’t need to wait until after Christmas to decide. I’d like to meet with Los.’

‘Excellent!’ he boomed. ‘When?’

Her thought processes hadn’t taken her that far. ‘Erm … When would be good for you?’

‘As soon as you can,’ he returned promptly. ‘Come out and have some family time – wow, how weird is it to say that? – meet with Los, spend a day or two at our offices, explore the area and meet with HR. They have a whole relocation programme and can guide you through everything you’ll need to know when considering whether you want to make the step.’

Shakily, she laughed. ‘Shall I hop on a plane now?’