‘They’re good,’ she says enthusiastically as she reaches into the cupboard for more coffee pods. ‘We’re talking about a weekend away in the not-too-distant future. Norfolk, maybe, or even further afield.’

‘Really?’ I say, trying to disguise the surprise in my voice. ‘That sounds lovely.’ Since Caroline, Mike definitely doesn’t do forward planning with his sexual partners, so I file it away to grill him about next time we’re alone. If someone as commitment-phobic as Mike is showing signs of settling down, I definitely don’t want to be left on the shelf.

‘Yes. I know you’re surprised, Tilly, it’s OK. He’s been honest with me about his past, but we both feel a connection and we’d like to see where it goes.’

‘Hey, no judgement from me,’ I tell her. ‘If you can tame him, then I take my hat off to you.’

‘I don’t know about taming him,’ she says with a grin as the coffee machine starts to hiss and splutter. ‘I like to think of it more like harnessing his talents and giving them a focus.’

We’re both still laughing when the bathroom door opens, emitting a cloud of steam as Lena steps out. I may not have seen her for three months or more, but she hasn’t changed a bit. Mid-forties, waspishly thin with darkly tanned leathery skin that comes from spending so much time outdoors in hot climates.

‘Hot water’s run out,’ she announces matter-of-factly, as I notice with irritation that she has my bath towel wrapped around her head. ‘Hello, Tilly. Who’s this?’ She nods her head at Sarah.

‘I’m Sarah, Mike’s girlfriend,’ Sarah says brightly. ‘Would you like a coffee?’

‘Love one. Can’t remember the last time I had a decent coffee. The stuff they gave us on the plane tasted like soil. Mind you, most things taste like soil in camp.’

‘Did you have a good trip? How long are you back for?’ I ask.

Lena sighs wearily. ‘I’m not sure any trip can be described as “good”, Tilly, but we’re doing good, and that’s all that counts in the end, isn’t it?’

‘Where were you?’ Sarah asks as she pops another couple of pods into the machine.

‘Angola. Although the civil war ended years ago, people are still regularly coming into contact with landmines. It’s not a happy mix.’

‘Isn’t that where Princess Diana did her famous walk all those years ago?’

Lena smiles grimly. ‘Yes. Sadly there’s quite a lot of the country where she didn’t walk that’s still mined from here to next week.’

‘And how long are you back for?’ I ask again, my eyes fixed on the fluffy bath towel that I’d been hoping to wrap around myself shortly.