She knew what he was asking. She wasn’t a fool. But her feelings towards Ross were complicated – a mixture of tenderness and forbidden longing and trembling excitement. She wanted him to woo her – to make her feel special. And yet this was special, wasn’t it? There he was, alone in his house on a Saturday afternoon thinking of her. Not his beautiful wife, but her, Eva. It was clear from his texts that he didn’t think of her as some stupid kid he gave driving lessons to who occasionally babysat his son. What had passed between them that afternoon was charged with a sexual current. He had opened a door and now she stood on the threshold, waiting to be ushered in.

Eva got off the bed, slipped down on to the floor, her back against the wall. Light was angling in through the open window, casting shadows over the bare boards, the rough plaster. Beneath her T-shirt, she unclipped her bra and slipped it off. The T-shirt was thin cotton with a wide neck that fell over her shoulder to expose it. A simple adjustment as she leaned forward, the camera-phone angled above her, revealed the delicate curve of her breast, the barest shadow of a nipple. Keeping her head turned to the side, her eyes averted, she allowed herself the slightest smile, then clicked.

She did this a few times, playing around with the filters. Finally, having made her choice, she held her breath and pressed send.

As soon as she did it, she was seized by a feeling of intense regret. Scrabbling for her bra, she clipped it back on, rearranging herself. The room was still hot, but she felt cold now, a dozen questions filling her head: What if that wasn’t what he’d been asking for? Had she taken things too far? What if Becca saw it by accident? All of these questions crawled around inside her brain – she felt itchy with them.

When the door to her bedroom opened and she saw Corinne leaning a shoulder against the frame, she almost welcomed the intrusion, anything to escape her own thoughts.

‘Hey. What’re you doing?’ Corinne gave her a lazy smile.

‘Nothing.’ Eva tried to keep her voice nonchalant, but she could hear the jump of nerves in it.

‘We’re going out,’ Corinne said. ‘Will you come? There’s something I want to show you.’

Eva didn’t really want to spend any time in their company, but the thought of being alone, waiting for Ross’s response, filled her with despair.

‘Come on,’ Corinne said in her wheedling tone. ‘I need you to do something for me.’

19