Harry didn’t answer immediately, but when he did his tone was more sombre. ‘Elizabeth and I had a lot of fun in the early days. We did lots of things together, but after the wedding I had to knuckle down. The business was going well and we were really busy, trying to expand. Work took up a lot of my time. And when I say a lot, I mean it.’ He blew out a long breath. ‘I spent all hours working and I didn’t see it at the time, but it meant I neglected my marriage. Elizabeth found other ways to amuse herself. But deep down I knew she wouldn’t settle for just being someone who stayed at home. I knew she wasn’t like Natalie.’

‘Didn’t you want children together?’

He gave a small rise of his eyebrows and she wondered for a moment if she’d asked too much, but he answered after a moment’s pause. ‘I did, but at some point in the future. Elizabeth agreed, it’s just that her point in the future was a lot further away than mine. She still wanted fun and excitement. Elizabeth always wanted more. I thought I could keep up but I took my eye off the ball.’

‘It takes more than one person to make a marriage.’

‘But only one to break it.’

‘It doesn’t sound like that was you.’

‘Depends how you look at it. Just because I didn’t pull the trigger, it doesn’t mean I didn’t load the gun.’

‘I think you’re being very harsh on yourself,’ said Steph. She thought back to what Cameron had said about Harry’s temper. She still couldn’t reconcile his version of Harry with the version before her. ‘You sound very calm about it all.’

‘Time does that to you.’

Her heart beat a little faster as she realised this was her chance to find out from Harry his side of the story. ‘Did Elizabeth have an affair?’

The silence stretched before them and she could see the look of indecision on Harry’s face as he debated how to answer. She resisted the urge to fill the gap.

At last he spoke. ‘I think she did. She denied it and so did the bloke, but I found it hard to believe either of them.’

‘You confronted them?’

‘Hmm. You could say that.’

‘What did you do?’ she pressed. She needed to hear it from him.

‘Honestly, I really don’t want to talk about it. Let’s just say, I wasn’t a particularly good husband and I didn’t respond well.’

‘And now? What are you now?’

‘I don’t know. I’ve never tested myself again.’ He looked earnestly into her eyes. ‘That doesn’t mean I don’t want to. I’ve just never felt the need … until now.’