The knock at the door was a welcome intrusion. Tension buzzed in the air; the atmosphere so charged that Sara had developed a splitting headache, which pounded at the base of her skull. Ezra was in bed, the girls still shut in their room, muffled chatter drifting down the stairs. Matt and Sara were in the lounge, sitting next to each other on the settee but lost in their own worlds. The late-evening news flickered on the screen, the words unheard as Sara’s mind searched for ideas to try and put right her terrible mistake.

She jumped up and opened the door, glad to see Fiona on the doorstep, immaculate as ever in a red puffa jacket, black trousers and leather ankle boots. She wore her blonde hair cropped close to her head, in a style only people with her elfin features could pull off, emphasising her large blue eyes. Her look was effortlessly chic but down to earth at the same time, and probably cost a fortune to achieve.

‘Hiya.’ She gave an apologetic smile. ‘Sorry I’m so late. We had quite a few thorny issues on the agenda and I was determined nobody was going home until we’d got everything sorted.’

Sara opened the door wider, gave a tight smile. ‘No problem,’ she lied, knowing that she’d have a tussle on her hands getting the twins up and ready for school in the morning. Nine o’clock was their cut-off point for friends during the week, something Fiona was well aware of, but she didn’t feel she could say anything. Not when she wanted Fiona to do her a favour. She tried to inject some warmth into her voice. ‘Come in, come in. To be honest, I’d lost track of what time it was. I’ll go up and get Chelsea.’

Fiona tutted, frowning. ‘You’re upset with me, aren’t you?’

Sara realised how uptight she’d sounded, and quietly closed the lounge door. Just tell her, she counselled herself. It’s better than her thinking you’re mad about her being late. ‘Bit of a crisis, actually,’ she murmured, not wanting anyone else to hear. ‘Matt’s just lost his job, so we’re reeling from that bombshell.’

‘Oh my God, you are joking!’ Fiona’s eyes widened, her hands covering her mouth for a moment, before she lowered her voice to a conspiratorial whisper. ‘But the company have been expanding. In fact, I had them down for some sponsorship funding for the community centre. I thought…’ She shook her head slowly and blew out a long breath, clearly shocked by the news. ‘That’s terrible.’ She put a hand on Sara’s arm, a reassuring touch. ‘Look, if there’s anything I can do to help, just let me know.’

Be brave, seize the moment.

‘Well actually, there might be.’