‘Heck no, I’m driving important stuff around with you in the car, Parcell.’

I turned to the barwoman. ‘I’ll have a lemonade, too, please.’

‘Edi, you don’t have—’

‘We can have a proper drink when we tell everyone.’

Rowan shrugged and turned back. ‘Two lemonades then, please, and whatever you’re …’ His offer died out as the woman turned away from him. ‘Okay, never mind,’ he faced me. ‘I’ll tell her when she’s back.’ He held his hand palm up and out towards me and I placed my hand into it. He laughed. ‘I want your phone.’

I dug around in my pocket. ‘Why?’

‘To turn it off.’ He powered down his handset and rested it on the bar. By then the woman was back, setting two half pints of pop in front of us. ‘Thank you. Take one for yourself, too?’ Rowan handed her a twenty-pound note and she smiled.

‘You’re celebrating?’ she asked when she gave the change back.

Rowan nodded to me to break the news and I felt myself bounce. ‘We’re engaged!’ I made the announcement with such enthusiasm that even the miserable sods around us murmured a congratulations. ‘Yes, we’re engaged,’ I said again, but a little quieter.

‘Congratulations,’ she replied.

We waited until she was out of earshot to pick up where we’d left off.

‘Why are we turning our phones off?’ I asked, powering mine down, too.

Rowan eased it free of my hand and rested it on the bar with his. ‘Because from tomorrow things are going to be mental and we’ll hardly have a minute to ourselves for bloody ages.’ He pulled me towards him. ‘And I’d like a minute or two with my future wife, to myself. Is that okay?’

Future wife. I felt the phrase echo in my head. ‘Christ. Wife.’

He laughed. ‘That usually comes after the engagement?’

‘I hadn’t thought about it that way.’ I quickly tried to change the tone. ‘So people know?’

‘Nope.’

‘You didn’t tell anyone?’

‘Not true, actually, sorry. Your parents know because I asked them.’

‘You asked both of them?’

He smiled. ‘I asked both of them whether they thought you’d say yes. I didn’t ask their permission, because you are your own woman, and no man or woman owns you. But I wanted your mum involved because, well, why wouldn’t she be?’

I kissed him. ‘Bloody love you.’

‘Bloody love you. So, they know. And the lads know but the girls don’t.’

‘And Mum and Dad don’t know you planned it for today?’

He shook his head. ‘Not a clue. But I know the temptation will be great to get on the phone to Betty and Molly and, and, and … So, before that temptation kicks in, let’s just be us for a bit?’

‘Deal.’ I sipped my drink.

‘Did I hear that right?’