‘Spill,’ Ben commanded, and he did. Henry told Ben everything. From the first time he’d cancelled Victoria’s wedding, to the encounter in the herb garden, the meal at the restaurant, the proposed sale of the estate, the tour … It didn’t exactly relieve the ache in his chest, but it had at least shifted slightly.

‘Man, you shouldn’t have lied to her.’

‘I didn’t lie,’ Henry grumbled. ‘I just didn’t tell her what was going on.’

‘Semantics,’ Ben said, reaching over to pour the last couple of inches of SangSom into their glasses.

‘Does she know about the app?’

Henry frowned. ‘What has that to do with anything?’ he asked, not needing to question which app Ben was talking about it. He meant the first app. The one that they had talked about on the beach in Thailand. The one that had started their business venture and friendship.

‘I’ll take that as a no.’

‘She doesn’t need to know about that.’

It was Ben’s turn to frown. ‘What is it that you want her to think of you?’

‘What do you mean?’

‘I mean, it seems as if you’re letting her think the worst. Letting the whole town think the worst of you when that’s just not the whole story. You’re not that angry teen anymore.’

‘I know that,’ Henry bit.

‘But you don’t seem to want them to know that.’

‘Them?’

‘The locals.’

Henry grimaced. ‘Lily called me a beast.’

‘I take it she’s pretty?’

‘Putting it mildly,’ Henry replied ruefully, thinking of the way she blushed, the way her eyes lit up when she was teasing him or telling him off. She was truly beautiful.

‘Well,’ said Ben assessing him through squinted eyes, ‘you haven’t grown horns in the last few months.’

‘Horns?’

‘Every fairy-tale villain needs horns.’

‘Something you want to tell me, mate?’ Henry asked, unable to keep the amusement from his voice.

‘Henry,’ Ben’s voice was suddenly grave, ‘when you get married, these wives … they force you to watch these films. Cartoons. Things that men shouldn’t—’

Ben’s words were stopped short by the cushion Henry chucked at him.

‘What can I say?’ Ben exclaimed, laughing and shrugging. ‘Mina likes fairy tales. So I’ve seen quite a few. And yeah, I’m not surprised Lily called you a beast. I can see similarities.’

‘What do you mean?’

‘Sending the staff away, holding up in your rambling estate—’

‘Being lynched by the villagers.’

‘Enticing the local village girl.’

‘Yeah. I don’t think she’d see it as “enticing”.’

‘You like her?’