It had stopped raining by the time she’d woven round the one-way system and parked on the seafront. No one was out in this weather. The pier to the west, its two iconic towers lit up, like a disco, with red, green and yellow neon, flashed out over the dark sea. She leaned against the guard rail and allowed the biting wind to whip off the hood of her parka, her hands numb on the cold wet metal, and closed her eyes.

She had brought Caitlin to this beach during numerous summers when she was small, brought little Bash once too. They’d both loved the donkey rides, splashing in the shallows, the ice cream melting down the cones and plopping onto the sand. That, she knew, would be another agonizing fallout from what she must say to Devan in the morning. Caitlin was kind, but she was also uncompromising. Connie cringed at the impact her announcement would unleash. Her daughter would never look at her in the same light again.

It had begun to rain. But her cheeks were wet with tears anyway. The unthinking recklessness of what she had done with Jared was like a knife twisting in her gut.

By the time Connie got back into the car, she was bone-frozen and soaked. She turned on the engine and waited for the heater to kick in and warm her numb fingers. Catching sight of herself in the rear-view mirror, she almost cried out in fright. Her damp skin was the colour of clay, her hair plastered to her skull, tendrils wrapping her face like seaweed, her normally light grey eyes so dark and crazed she looked almost inhuman.

For a mad moment she thought she might just keep driving, not go home at all. Escape Devan’s pain – which felt like a real, palpable thing, throbbing in her hands, despite his not yet being aware of it. But there was no escape. She turned the car around and headed for home.

The house was silent and empty. Riley stirred when she walked into the kitchen, then dropped back to sleep. Connie was relieved Devan was not back – there was no way she could face him tonight, not in the state she was in. She plodded upstairs and ripped off her damp clothes, standing under a hot shower until she felt warm again, at least on the outside. Then she huddled under the duvet in her pyjamas, body scrunched up, mind whirring, agonizingly alert for her husband’s key in the door.

The next thing she knew, Devan was climbing quietly into bed beside her. She’d been in a deep, numbed sleep and for a second she forgot the situation she was in, automatically turning to snuggle into his arms.

‘Good film?’ she muttered sleepily.

‘Fantastic,’ he replied, putting his arm round her and drawing her closer.