‘I don’t want to. I lost my faith in’ – he searched for the right word – ‘stability, I guess. I’d always thought that things moved along slowly, bits and bobs changed here and there, but for the most part they stayed the same. But the whole episode taught me that life is fragile. You think you have all these structures around you – relationships, jobs, institutions, even your own beliefs and principles – but they can all vanish in an instant.’ He took her hand in his. ‘But you’d know all about that.’

She frowned at him. ‘What do you mean?’

‘Your parents. The car crash.’

‘Oh,’ she said. ‘Right. I guess I never thought of it in those terms. It was just something that happened.’

‘Did you ever see a therapist about it?’

She nodded. ‘A bit, early on. It was helpful, kind of. Did you?’

‘No. No one ever offered it. It was swept under the carpet.’

‘Until now.’

‘Yeah,’ he said. ‘Until now.’

Joanna lay in the crook of his arm, her eyes wide open. It was dark outside, the warm summer air drifting in through an open window. He heard a group of people walking past the house, laughing and joking on their way back from the pub.

He moved into the living room, away from the noise.

‘Come on,’ he muttered. ‘Come on, baby girl. Go to sleep.’ He rocked her gently. She smiled and made a gurgling sound. It was adorable, but it was not what he was hoping for. She didn’t look like she had any interest in sleeping.

Which was unfortunate. His mind was fogged; it was an odd sensation, almost like his thoughts were heavy and slow moving.

‘Well,’ he said. ‘You’re a night owl, that’s for sure. I suppose I’m going to have to be one as well for a while. The only problem is that my job takes place in the day and I’m too tired to do it.’ He kissed her warm forehead. ‘But it’ll pass. One day I might even miss this.’

‘You might,’ Alice said, from behind him. ‘But then again, you might not.’

She came up and put her arms around his waist. She yawned into his neck. ‘Nearly 1 a.m.,’ she said. ‘My turn.’

‘Did you sleep?’ Tom asked.

‘Out like a light at nine,’ she said. ‘So nearly four hours.’

‘I’ll set the alarm for five,’ Tom said. ‘See you then.’

‘OK.’ Alice squeezed him tighter. ‘Let’s not argue, all right?’

‘Sounds good to me. I’m sorry about getting mad at you.’

‘Don’t be. It’s a difficult time.’ She kissed him and let go. ‘I’m going to the loo. Then you can go up.’