‘They think Violette might show her face if she knows I’m in London,’ he says.

Layla unlocks the door and lets him in. Already he fills the space of the room. ‘Have you seen Noor?’

He nods, looking around.

‘How is she taking it?’ Layla is trying to ignore how uncomfortable she feels having him look at everything she owns. The art on her walls and the flawless cream furniture suddenly look pretentious. When they were teenagers they knew each other’s interests by heart. Layla knows nothing about him now.

His eyes settle on the piano in the corner. It’s ridiculous to have one in a flat this size but it belonged to his family. Both their mothers forced them to learn to play. Layla failed miserably. Jimmy never failed at anything, and had shown as much talent for the piano as for football. When Etienne sold off everything belonging to Noor and her family to pay the lawyers, people were getting their belongings for a steal, so Layla’s mother bought the piano to stop others from taking it.

‘Does my mother know you’re here?’ she asks.

‘I rang Jocelyn.’

‘She’ll want to see you. My mother.’

There had always been a complicated but profound relationship between their mothers. Especially at the end.

Layla walks past him into the kitchenette. ‘I know who Eddie is,’ she says, sensing him close behind her, and when he doesn’t respond she figures that if he hadn’t trusted her enough to tell her about Noor’s pregnancy all those years ago, then he wouldn’t want to speak of it now.

‘Do you want a drink?’ She’s desperate for another herself.

‘I don’t drink.’

To the point. She feels judged. ‘The couch turns into a bed,’ she says, and without a second thought walks out of her flat.

She flags a taxi and tells the driver to take her to St John’s Wood. Jocelyn phoned earlier that day. ‘School’s starting soon, the kids need to be home,’ she said. ‘And Mum was driving me insane.’

When Jocelyn opens the door she doesn’t ask any questions. Gigi’s the only one of the kids still up. Sulking.

‘She didn’t come home until an hour after I told her to,’ Jocelyn says. ‘She’s angry because I checked in on her a couple of times last night.’

‘You think Violette and Eddie are hiding in her closet?’

‘I don’t know what to think any more.’ Jocelyn is watching her closely. ‘Is he staying with you?’

‘I don’t want to talk about him.’

‘Good,’ Jocelyn says. ‘You can stay up with Ali and smoke your lungs out. He doesn’t want to talk to me either. I’m going to bed.’

‘You don’t have to be so judgemental!’

‘What do you want me to say, Layla? Go home. Deal with Jimmy so you can get on with your life.’

Layla ends up on the back balcony with Ali, smoking a couple of cigarettes and arguing about Jocelyn.

‘She shouldn’t have lied to me.’