Sara blinked, a shimmer of dread running through her. James gave an exasperated sigh, fingers tugging at his beard. ‘I’m sorry, that came out wrong. I’m just panicking, you see. I really must be there, and everyone’s taking a plus-one. If I don’t have a partner, I’ll look like Billy-no-mates – which is close to the truth, if I’m honest, but it makes me seem… I don’t know, vulnerable, I suppose, and that’s never a good negotiating position, is it?’ He gave her a sheepish grin. ‘I thought with it being over a week away, there’d be plenty of time for you to sort out babysitting. So I bought two tickets and, well… I need you there.’ His eyes met hers, and in that moment, she felt sorry for him. ‘It’s what we agreed, isn’t it?’

She put her cookie down, the smell of it making her feel nauseous now. She thought about the stolen money, how James had put himself in danger of reprisals to conceal her crime. She felt ungrateful. Unprofessional. They’d made a deal and she had to stick to it, and to be honest, he wasn’t asking a lot, was he? Going to a sales dinner with him didn’t sound that onerous. What choice do I have?

‘Okay.’ She forced a smile. ‘I’m sorry, James. I know we have a deal, and of course I’ll stick to it. Thursday night is football practice for the girls, you see, but my sister said she could take them, so maybe there isn’t a problem. I’ll talk to her tomorrow, see if I can arrange it.’

A relieved grin lit up his face, eyes sparkling. ‘Excellent. I’ll look forward to it, and I think you might quite enjoy yourself. It’ll take you out of your normal environment – and you know they say a change is as good as a rest.’

She nodded, hoping it was true, even as her mind presented her with the real problem. What am I going to tell Matt?