When Amy turns away from the counter and sees Cosmo pulling out a chair and sitting down opposite her father, she feels a thrill of apprehension. It’s happened at last, unplanned, unpremeditated, and suddenly relief sweeps away her fear. She’s been slightly dreading the party, and she didn’t want to repeat the mistake she made with Charley of setting up a meeting, so this is the best way. Everyone on the back foot, everyone equal. Both men look cool, friendly, both acknowledging that this is not quite a casual meeting of two strangers.

Taking courage from their relaxed body language, the amusement on her father’s face as he strokes Reggie, she goes to join them.

‘Hi,’ she says, hoping she sounds as casual as she feels. ‘So you seem to have introduced yourselves.’

‘Your father recognized me,’ Cosmo says, half getting to his feet, grinning at her, ‘not because of your glowing reports, I hasten to say, but because I’m the only stranger in here.’

His eyes sparkle. He seems to be enjoying himself, equal to the situation. As she sits down beside her father she can tell that he’s not totally taken in by Cosmo’s apparent equanimity and she hopes that they really will hit it off. Unexpectedly, she thinks of how she and Cosmo made love last night, how exciting it was, and, as she catches his eye and he sends her a tiny wink, her face is suffused with bright colour and she wants to burst out laughing – and at the same time simply to run away.

Cosmo is talking enthusiastically to her father about the town, the creek, the magic of it all, distracting attention from her confusion, and by the time Lydia arrives with the coffee Amy is able to behave with some semblance of normality. Cosmo gets up to go to order his own coffee and Amy waits for her father to make a comment.

‘Well,’ he says, pouring milk into his Americano, ‘I can now see why he’s called Cosmo. It’s so absolutely the right name for him. Cosmopolitan, smooth, and not easily fazed.’

There’s a little silence whilst Amy tries to work out if this is a compliment.

‘Does that mean you like him?’ she asks uncertainly.

Her father smiles at her, purses his lips and shrugs. ‘You know me. I never make snap decisions. But he’s welcome to come to my party.’

Amy bends to stroke Reggie so as to cover her relief. From her father, this is quite a positive statement.

‘That’s good,’ she says casually. ‘It would be embarrassing to have to cancel our invite.’