I pull away but I don’t know why. He saw me first thing this morning; Marigolds up to my elbows and messy hair aren’t any worse than that sight, which was terrifying enough to send even the most haphazard of scarecrows running for cover.

He’s got boards of wood under his arm, a huge toolcase in his hand, and a holdall slung over his shoulder. Glenna appears behind him with Gizmo under her arm, carrying her own bucket of cleaning products and rubber gloves. ‘Come to help, flower.’

‘Gizmo’s going to help too,’ Noel says. ‘Assuming a vital job is keeping a Chihuahua-sized spot on your sofa warm.’

‘Giz!’ I pull the gloves off with my teeth and push past Noel on the step to get to the little dog when he starts wagging his tail so hard that it looks like Glenna’s having trouble keeping hold of him. I offer him my hand, which he sniffs and licks, and then I give him a double ear rub when he moves from sniffing to trying to nudge my hand onto his head. He strains in Glenna’s arms to get closer, and I can’t resist his happy little brown and white face. I bend down to rub my nose against his, but accidentally get a bit too close and a slimy doggy tongue swipes across my mouth.

As I splutter, Noel’s laughing so hard he has to lean against the doorframe. ‘I know which member of the Roscoe family I’d rather kiss too.’

I follow him and Glenna inside, glad the farmhouse is looking marginally better than it did on the first night. After coming back from the walk with Noel and Gizmo yesterday, I found my way to the nearest supermarket to buy food and just about every product in the cleaning aisle. I spent the rest of the evening scrubbing, mopping, turning furniture the right way up, hoovering with a vacuum cleaner I found in the cupboard under the stairs, washing out the fridge and kitchen cupboards so I could actually put my food away, cleaning the bath so I could wash after such a sweaty day, and not worrying about how much water and electricity I was using until the bills come in next month.

I didn’t expect any help with cleaning, but seeing Glenna and Noel come to help touches me in a way I’ve never known before, and I have to turn away for a moment and blink furiously to stop tears forming.

They both have their own work to do – Noel has made no secret of how busy he is in October more than any other month – but they’ve both come to help me because some people are just that kind.