‘And you were up there with Luc, who saved the day. That sounds exciting,’ Natasha said, pulling a cocktail cherry from her glass and running it to and fro over her bottom lip.

‘A bit too exciting for us both. I nearly squashed him when he pulled me back over the wall, then he spent the night patching me back up. My leg bled all over his bedsheets, so I owe him a new set to add insult to injury, and now he’s going through …’

‘Overnight? In his bed? Just the two of you?’ Natasha raised her eyebrows. ‘Two champagne cocktails, please,’ she directed at the approaching waiter.

‘Don’t start,’ Ava warned her.

‘My oldest friend spent the night in bed with the best-looking man in Scotland – although he doesn’t do anything for me, so I’m taking everyone else’s word for that – and I’m not even allowed to ask about it? Does the delicious Spanish doctor know what the two of you have been getting up to?’

‘Selina and Luc aren’t together any more. And no, I’m not giving you her number.’

‘Damn, when did that happen? How am I so out of the loop? Hold on …’ Natasha continued before Ava could answer any of her questions, ‘you and Luc spent a whole night cuddled up in bed together and you’re both currently single? Wait, don’t tell me anything else until I have a drink in my hand, and take it really slowly. I want a blow-by-blow account. Hopefully literally. You have no idea how relieved I am. I was starting to think you’d taken some sort of vow of celibacy.’

‘Would you stop? Sorry to disappoint, but my night with Luc was completely platonic. Both nights, in fact. Believe it or not, we’re grown-up enough to be able to offer each other support without getting so carried away that we end up naked as soon as we’re alone together.’

Natasha stared at her, frowning. ‘Both nights?’

‘Listen before you put two and two together and come up with the answer to what’s beyond the limits of the known universe. Give me a chance to explain. The first night I was badly injured and in shock after my near fall. Then last night, we’d come back from a crime scene and needed to talk. We had a few drinks and it was really late. I’d just had the stitches put in my leg, so it was easier to stay.’