Before he could speak, Cynthia said plaintively, ‘But I’m not at all tired! Ben, why don’t you stay and have just one more little drinkie with me? You don’t look at all drowsy and I’ll never get to sleep so early! You know what I’m like.’

Megan put her arm into Ben’s and tugged.

He took a step away from the table. ‘Sorry, Cynth. Another time, maybe.’

Nick stepped into the breach. ‘You two go up. I’ll just have one more drink with Cynthia. She forgets sometimes that you’re newly-weds.’

Cynthia’s face showed a momentary anger, then became smooth again.

Megan saw Nick watching his wife’s reactions carefully. He does know, she realised suddenly. He knows exactly what she’s like. Why doesn’t he stop her tricks, then? And why did he marry her in the first place?

But Megan knew she had no right to be criticising anyone else’s reasons for marrying. After all, she and her brand new husband hadn’t got together for the usual reasons, either.

Ben’s smile was replaced by a look of concern. ‘You look as if you need a sleep more than we do, Nick.’ He squeezed Megan’s hand. ‘Look, why don’t we stay for one more drink? We’ll let Nick get to bed while we tire this energetic woman out for him.’

There was nothing Megan could do but sit down again. Nick was indeed looking extremely weary and she didn’t intend to allow Cynthia to have free access to Ben. Nor, it seemed, did he intend to make himself available to her. He sat down very close to Megan and put his arm round her shoulders, keeping it there.

Cynthia chatted brightly on through two more drinks to their one.

You had to give her credit for never being at a loss for a subject, thought Megan. But the warmth of Ben’s arm was comforting and once she reached up to pat the hand that lay on her shoulder and smile at him.

As time passed, however, and the others showed no sign of moving, she yawned openly and nudged her husband.

He looked at her and nodded, then cut Cynthia off short. ‘I really will have to tuck this wife of mine up in bed now, Cynth. It’s been lovely bumping into you two. Tell Nick I’ll see him on Monday to finalise those contracts.’

‘Oh, it surely won’t be that long till we meet again, us being in the same hotel. We’re bound to bump into one another tomorrow.’ Her words were slightly slurred. ‘In fact, let’s have dinner together again.’

You’ve had too much to drink, Megan thought. Not clever, Mrs Berevic.

‘I’ll just have another slurp or two,’ Cynthia announced loudly and signalled to the waiter, but he didn’t see her.