“I saw someone.” He shook his head. “Or at least I think I saw someone, I couldn’t be one hundred per cent sure, but I think…”

“Who?” Megan clamped her hand over her chest. “You’re worrying me, Brendon. Who did you see and why can’t you be sure?”

“Well I’ve never seen him in real life, have I?”

“You’re talking in riddles.” Irritation swarmed over her.

“I’ve only Googled him, not had the pleasure…” He paused. “Were you expecting company tonight?”

The room began to spin, her ears buzzed.

No. It couldn’t be true.

“Tell me who you saw, Brendon, or I swear I’ll…”

“What? You’ll what?”

“I’ll…I’ll…” She couldn’t think straight—it was as if all the neurons in her head had disconnected.

“Hot Guy. I saw Hot Guy, standing out there, on the path.” Brendon pointed at the kitchen window.

“James,” Megan whispered. “James was here?”

“Well no, not here, out there. Standing on the path, looking in.”

“No.” She shook her head. “Why would he do that? Why wouldn’t he come in?” She stared at the blinds that now covered the kitchen window. The lights had been on, Dylan had been looming over her. Whatever James had seen had made him leave, turn around and walk away.

“Oh God,” she muttered. “This is terrible. What must he think?”

Brendon took a big slug of wine, the drink creating tiny pink crescents above his top lip on either side of his mouth. He set the wine down and shrugged.

“Brendon,” Megan said, feeling the sting of tears again. “Tell me, what did he do, what did he say? Did he look mad?”

“He looked…”

“What?”

“Well it’s hard to say, he was just standing there, holding a bottle of champagne by the looks of it, but I was in rather a rush, darling, I’d just nearly taken out an old dear walking a poodle and a jogger with a flashing hat.”

“Champagne.” He’d brought champagne. He always spoilt her. Champagne was becoming a habit, one she could get used to.

Or could have, because it sounded like he’d just gone, vanished.

How could he?

“He didn’t say anything, though,” Brendon went on, stroking Gucci who was now sitting by his feet. “He was just staring through the window at…well, whatever he could see.”

“Damn. He’ll have seen me and Dylan, likely Dylan half undressed, prat, and trying to kiss me. Oh, God, this is awful.”

“Well that’s what I saw. In fact anyone walking on by could have seen the whole spectacle.”

“And just when we’d worked things out,” Megan said, shaking her head. “I’d apologised for running out on him the other morning, he was coming round for…dinner but I had no idea what time and how typical it was the exact moment…”

“Dinner and…?”