Anna watched his profile for a moment. ‘What do people mean,’ she asked, ‘when they say you should be “over it”? Over what? The fact that you loved your wife? That’s not how it works, is it? Are you supposed to somehow forget that feeling? I don’t think you ever do that. All you can do is learn to make it a part of your life. How and when you manage to do that isn’t down to anyone else. There’s no time limit on grief. There’s no road map to guide you through it, either. Everyone deals with loss differently.’

He turned to look at her. ‘How did you get to be so wise?’

She looked away.

‘I’m sorry,’ he said quietly. ‘Now I’m the one putting my foot in it. You’ve been through it yourself.’

‘It’s not that long since my dad died,’ Anna admitted. ‘I hadn’t lived at home since I went to college, and thanks to my ex I hadn’t spent nearly enough time visiting as I should have in the past few years. His passing has hit me really hard. I miss him such a lot. It keeps catching me out when I least expect it. The realization that I’m never going to see him again. It was only the two of us for so long.’

She wasn’t looking at him, but from the corner of her eye, Anna saw Robert nod in understanding.

‘It’s brought back how I felt when Mum died, too,’ she went on. ‘I saw my dad go through what you’ve experienced. She died when I was ten and my dad… I don’t think my dad ever got over her passing. Not really. They were the way I think you and Cassie must have been – perfect for each other. That’s not to say he was never happy after she’d gone. He was, often. But it took years, and most of his time was taken up with me. He put everything into raising me, and I’m not sure that left him enough time for himself. He was so young when she died, really. Looking back now, I do wish he’d met someone else. But I never would have told him that he had to leave my mother behind to do that. I don’t think he’d have been able to even if he’d tried.’