‘Don’t get me wrong,’ Sara whispered back, joining in the charade. ‘I really admire her. I’ve no idea how she fits everything into her life and still seems so bloody relaxed. Just like Julia. The two of them are awesome.’

James nodded. ‘Awesome they might be. Doesn’t stop them being scary, though,’ and something in his voice made her wonder if he was joking or being deadly serious.

A young man appeared with their food, and Sara hauled herself into a more suitable position for eating. The mood shifted and they were quiet for a little while as they started to eat. It took her a few minutes to pluck up the courage to ask the question that was buzzing at the back of her brain, like a bee trapped against a windowpane looking for a way out.

‘James, I’ve got to ask you about our deal,’ she blurted out. He glanced up, stopped chewing. ‘I need to know… well, this is a bit stupid of me and I should have asked before I agreed, but how do I know when I’ve paid back my debt?’

He finished chewing and swallowed, took a sip of water. ‘Well now, I haven’t really thought about it myself, but I suppose we should set some parameters, shouldn’t we?’

She smiled, relief melting the tension at the back of her neck, glad now that she’d finally made herself ask.

‘Let me have a think. We’ll see how things go next Thursday, shall we, and talk again after that? Then we can come to a definite agreement as to how much of your time it will take to pay back the nine thousand.’

Her jaw clenched. Nine thousand pounds. It was an awful lot of money to owe somebody.

James studied her face and gave her a warm smile. ‘Don’t look so worried. I promise I won’t be asking you to do anything you’re not comfortable with. It’s just a meeting. Eating great food, chatting to interesting people. You never know, you might actually enjoy yourself.’

Her mind grasped hold of his words and folded them into a new way of looking at things. ‘It’s like another job, then?’

He gazed at her, a little smile playing on his lips. ‘I suppose so, yes. If it helps, let’s consider it like that.’

It does help, Sara thought. It helps a lot. Because if by any chance Matt should find out, she could tell him it was just work and she was doing her bit to bring in some extra money.