‘I’m really not sure it is. Anyway, the apps are giving pretty slim pickings at the moment.’

‘I did wonder. It must be over a month since your last date.’

I shudder at the memory. My last serious relationship fizzled out quietly a year ago and, despite my best efforts since, all the men I’ve met through the apps have been disasters of one kind or another. The last one, Eduardo, seemed promising on the first date, but evidently felt that date two was going to end in my bedroom, dropping so many lewd innuendos that he gave me the ick and I had to invent an emergency to escape him. I launch one of the apps on my phone and hand it to Mike, who begins swiping through the profiles.

‘I see what you mean,’ he observes after a while. ‘I wouldn’t date any of these either.’

‘To be honest, I’m losing faith in the apps anyway. Even the guys I’ve liked enough to meet in real life turned out either to be chancers or just interested in casual sex. I’m thirty-four, Mike. Is it wrong to be looking for more than that?’

‘I think you’re probably asking the wrong person. Anyway, you’re off tomorrow, aren’t you?’

‘Yup. Four days off and then three night shifts.’

‘Want a glass of wine to celebrate your mini-break? I’ve got a rather nice Chablis open if you fancy some.’

‘Yeah, why not?’

* * *

As I brush my teeth and get ready for bed, I find myself replaying my interactions with Luke and trying to work out if there’s any meaning behind them. Is there any truth in Mike’s assessment of him? The more I think about it, the more sure I am that I saw a flash of disappointment cross Luke’s face when I suggested inviting the rest of the team to the pub. Maybe he was hoping for something more intimate after all. If that’s true, he got his wish in the end, and I did enjoy spending time with him, even if he is a bit intense. He’s definitely a step up from the guys I’ve met online recently and, although I don’t know him that well yet, the idea of building something long-term with him doesn’t feel impossible at all.