She took a deep breath and steeled herself. ‘I know you’re right. About everything. I promise I’m not going to do anything stupid.’

‘Good,’ Zoe answered. ‘Because if you do, I’m gonna … ’

‘You’re going to do what? Fly all the way over here and slap some sense in me?’

‘If I have to.’

Hannah laughed. ‘Well, if that’s what it takes to get a visit … ’ she teased, which earned her a guffaw in return.

‘All right, all right. I guess I should be relieved things aren’t so bad that I need to step foot into that cesspit. Guess where I’m heading now?’

‘No idea.’

‘I’ll give you a clue. Huevos Rancheros à la Polo.’

Hannah’s mouth actually watered like one of Pavlov’s dogs. ‘The Pink Palace? I hate you.’ What she wouldn’t give just then to be in the Beverly Hills Hotel with her friend eating breakfast in the sunshine at their favourite Polo Lounge poolside table. She could visualise the blue skies and palm trees already.

‘I’ll get an extra portion in your honour. Especially since I’m not paying. Speaking of … ’ she continued, ‘I’ve been following all the recent coverage on McKenzie. It’s good.’

‘Yeah, and a podcast he just recorded is excellent. He’d never admit it, but he is a natural at this stuff. You can tell when he’s enjoying himself – he was this morning – and that will show through to the audience. I’m looking forward to it airing.’ She paused for a moment. ‘Although, I think I might owe him a bit of an apology.’

‘Why’s that?’

‘Well, I was feeling a bit … out of sorts after the Rob thing last night and I was late and irritable. I snapped at him a few times. Started to take some of it out on him, which wasn’t fair. I mean, he’s been really good to work with lately. Going along with my ideas, showing up on time, not falling down drunk, even seems to be occasionally enjoying himself. There are still some teething problems and a few hiccups too. But, he seemed to get that I was in a bad mood today and my mind was elsewhere … and was actually really sweet to me … ’

Hannah’s voice trailed off, remembering Ward’s kind eyes and genuine concern in Soho earlier, and her stomach did that flip-floppy thing again. After the podcast recording, he’d even suggested they grab a coffee if she needed an ear and only for the fact that she had another client appointment lined up, she was sorely tempted. But knew deep down that it was way too dangerous.

‘I’m not going to have to have a “Come to Jesus” talk with you about this guy now too, am I?’ Zoe drawled.

Her friend’s tone very quickly brought Hannah back to earth.