‘Isn’t it amazing?’ he asks. ‘Do you ever get used to it?’

She shakes her head. ‘I wouldn’t know,’ she answers. ‘I’ve only been here a few weeks. But I should think it’s very unlikely. It’s never quite the same.’

He remembers that she’s staying with her brother, looking for somewhere to live, and he envies her that freedom: to be able to choose without any restriction of work or relationship.

‘Is this your brother’s dog?’ he asks.

‘This is Oscar,’ she answers. ‘They seem to know each other, he and Reggie. I think you said that’s his name, didn’t you, when I met him in the Coffee Shop? Or perhaps they’re just naturally gregarious.’

‘Like me,’ he says, laughing down at her.

As she looks at him he is aware that this is more than just a friendly encounter. She seems to be studying him, observing him closely, as if she is trying to remember something, looking through the surface niceties to a deeper knowledge of him. He feels slightly discomfited, guilty. It’s almost as if she might have guessed that he has just returned from a weekend with his girlfriend and is already planning a meeting with another girl, with Amy.

‘I’m just having a quick leg stretch,’ he says randomly, looking away from her. ‘I’ve been on the train for a couple of hours and I wanted to breathe this wonderful air again.’

‘The train?’ she asks. ‘You’ve been away?’

He stares across the estuary, cursing himself for his stupidity. Nobody, except Amy, would know he’s been away and he doesn’t want to explain himself, his life, to this unusual woman who acts as if she might already have guessed his secrets.

‘A quick dash back to London,’ he says lightly, ‘to pick up some of my camera equipment. I had no idea it was going to be so photogenic here.’

He’s turning, as he speaks, heading back towards the car, and she walks with him, the dogs following behind.

‘Did you take Reggie with you?’ she asks.

‘No,’ he answers. He feels cross with himself and with her. Now he is going to have to explain about Al. ‘The owners’ son came for the night,’ he says.

After all, this is quite true. No need to tell her that Al is an old friend, that they work together. It’s none of her business and he wants to keep the distance between Salcombe and London: between romance and reality.