Was it only me whose mind went in a very different direction to New York? I knew that my dry spell was probably to blame but I had to look away.

‘Well, then,’ I muttered. Mercifully, Jake didn’t respond.

As we approached the bridge, I forgot all about the man beside me and watched as the famous skyline came into view and we drove over the water, yellow taxis on either side. I smiled to see them. A quintessential New York moment. The skyscrapers seemed so familiar as we drove closer, like they had been there waiting for me all along. Our car took us right into the heart of Manhattan towards the Waldorf Astoria and my heart leaped to see the sights I had always wanted to. Whatever happened at the romance conference and with Jake, I was finally getting to see NYC first-hand and that made the stressful past few days worth it.

I snapped a photo of Times Square as we paused in traffic. When I put my phone down, I turned from the window and saw Jake’s eyes, which had been on me, swivel quickly to the front. I supposed he found it amusing that I wanted to take so many pictures of my first time here. But I wanted to document as much as I could. This wasn’t what I’d planned for my first trip here but I needed to make the most of it.

Our hotel came into view then; the car dropped us off with our bags and we walked in to the grand and bustling lobby.

‘Why did you choose this hotel?’ Jake asked as I turned towards the check-in desk.

‘It’s in one of my favourite films.’

‘There are better hotels in the city,’ he commented from behind me.

I rolled my eyes. Of course my choice of hotel wasn’t good enough for him. I forced on a smile for the woman at the check-in desk and ignored him. We were given our room cards and directed to our floor, and when we stepped into a lift, we had to endure the excruciating silence as we rode up to where our rooms were.

When the doors finally opened and we stepped out, I turned to Jake. He had really got my back up with his comment in the lobby and if we were going to spend the next few days together, I knew I couldn’t stay quiet about his attitude. I put a hand on my hip and looked up at him, wishing I was taller as it wasn’t easy to give the man a dressing-down.