They both sipped their wine, rather self-consciously – which was a shame, because it was really fruity and delicious, the sort you could enjoy quaffing in big gulps – and then Craig went on. ‘Look, what you were saying earlier, about being sidelined and me not listening . . . I’m sorry. I can see why you’d feel that way, when I’ve gone bulldozing ahead each time.’ He hung his head. ‘I’ve not handled this terribly well, have I? Panic and smash things, that seems to have been my strategy, in hindsight.’

She managed a small smile. ‘I wouldn’t say you’ve been your most diplomatic, no,’ she replied, then took a deep breath. ‘I get where you’re coming from though. I don’t want to lose Fergus, either. Because, selfishly, then I won’t be a mum any more. And I love being his mum. I couldn’t bear it if that was taken away from me.’ Her voice wobbled dangerously and she did her best to swallow down her emotion. ‘You’re always going to be Fergus’s dad, but for me . . . For me, the stakes are high in a different way.’ She closed her mouth abruptly, not wanting to risk getting into a whole other conversation about babies now, when they’d never explicitly discussed this before. If that was ever to be an option – as she hoped one day it would be – then it had to come from love, not merely as a knee-jerk reaction to Craig’s nightmare ex.

‘Anyway,’ she went on, turning the stem of the wine glass between her fingers and trying to compose herself, ‘I know you feel strongly about Julia, and I can tell there’s a whole stew of resentment and anger simmering inside you. Fair enough. I’d probably react the same way, in your position. But we can’t just close her out and hope she’ll go away. Because she means business.’

He gave a rueful nod. ‘I didn’t want to break the spell, that was the thing,’ he admitted after a moment. ‘I didn’t want Fergus to know the facts because I thought it would be too hard on him, too confusing. But you’re right – we can’t keep it from him forever. We can be straightforward about the whole biological situation, without it changing how he feels about you.’

‘I hope so,’ Frankie said.

‘And as for Julia . . .’ He sighed again. ‘You know, given the choice, I’d rather she had stayed away forever. Although I can see, for Fergus, that would have left this hole in his life, even if he isn’t aware of it now. So I guess we talk to her, like you said. Go back to Plan A and get round a table with her, see if we can thrash something out.’