She nodded ‘I know him well. Will he be handling the legal side?’

‘He will.’

‘Then I’d say you’re in safe hands.’ She opened the folder. ‘Shall we review the offer Weaver made?’

The offer was to buy Cooper Electrical for three million pounds.

Martin enjoyed what he did and didn’t particularly want to sell, but it was a lot of money. He didn’t know how it could be worth so much, but when they had contacted him they had talked about revenue multiples and brand scalability and a bunch of other stuff he didn’t fully understand or care about.

The problem was that work – the constant hustling for new jobs and hiring new people and visiting new sites – was what kept him sane. It gave him the sense he was moving forward. At night he would still wake up, suddenly and completely, and think, She’s gone. My little girl is gone.

And then he would lie awake and imagine her working alongside him and wonder what kind of a person she would have become, who she would have married, the grandchildren she might have given him and Sandra.

And the sense of loss and grief would be as strong as ever.

Sandra was the same, but she found her distraction in exercise. Yoga, spinning, training for marathons and triathlons. She read magazines about diets and training programmes, went to clinics to work on her swimming, researched new bike technologies.

She was in remission from cancer and focused on living life to the full.

And maybe it was time for him to do the same. Maybe it was time to let go of work and move on, spend time with his wife, try to sort James out.

Melinda Jameson closed the folder.

‘Do you have an initial position? I assume from the fact you’re here that you have some interest?’

‘It’s a lot of money,’ Martin said. ‘I think I should accept.’

2

So,’ Sandra said. ‘How was it?’

She had come in from the gym and was drinking a glass of water. She was wearing running shorts and a T-shirt from a triathlon in Chester. Her arms and legs were lean, the muscles defined and visible.

‘They want to buy the firm,’ Martin said. ‘For three million pounds.’

Sandra put the glass down.

‘Three million?’

‘The lawyer suggested negotiating. We might get four.’

‘Holy shit. Then why do you sound so morose?’

‘Because I can’t decide if I’m doing the right thing.’

‘I can think of three – or four – million reasons you are.’

‘I know, but I had no intention of selling until the offer came in. I don’t want to sell. I enjoy it.’

‘You could enjoy something else. Set up a new business.’

‘I suppose. And it is a lot of cash. A fortune.’ He gestured around the room. ‘But the thing is, I’m happy with what we have.’