But Grace didn’t know. She hadn’t heard from Lawrence all day.

They ended up eating without Lawrence, who hadn’t replied to Grace’s text. Grace had to admit that the atmosphere was probably warmer without him there. She knew her mother found Lawrence’s company civil if cool, but Tina mainly kept her opinions about her son-in-law to herself. For her part, Grace noticed that she had started to put on a brave front now that she was staying with her mother. Grace didn’t criticise Lawrence or complain. She realised that she still wanted it to seem to others, even to her mother, that they had a comfortable lifestyle and a happy relationship. They had a delightful child they adored, both had absorbing jobs and career ambitions: surely that meant there was still hope for them?

But one layer below the surface, Grace was increasingly worried that Lawrence seemed estranged from her and from the rest of his family. His parents lived in England, and he had little contact with them or his sister. Grace had a lot of friends she’d grown up with at the beach, and she and Mel had gone to kindergarten together. Grace and her father were still close after her parents’ divorce; he had moved to Perth, but she still saw him whenever she could, at least a couple of times a year.

Since they had left the city to live in their big new home after Daisy was born, Grace didn’t seem to catch up with her friends as often as she used to. Melanie had a busy career as a university lecturer, but Grace knew that was not the only reason Mel didn’t make the drive out to Dural.

As they finished eating and Daisy ran off to play, Grace’s phone pinged with a text. It was from Lawrence.

Reading it, Grace said, ‘He’s going to be late. He’s dealing with all the insurance stuff. He says they need to interview me too.’ She put her phone down and sighed.

‘Heavens, why? There’s nothing suspicious, is there?’ said Tina.

‘It’s routine, apparently.’

‘This process could take ages,’ Tina said. ‘Don’t worry, darling, you know you can stay with me as long as you want while you work things out.’

‘Thanks, Mum. Thanks for everything.’

‘If you want to go anywhere, you can use my car. You’ve had a terrible shock. Go and see your friends – talking to them might make life seem more normal for you.’ Tina looked at her daughter and smiled. ‘Do you think you’ll start working again soon?’

‘Yes, if you’d be able to watch Daisy for a couple of hours now and then. I really have to pull my big water safety project back onto schedule.’

‘Take it slowly for the moment. You shouldn’t put too much pressure on yourself,’ Tina said. ‘Don’t rush into any plans. And you should decide what you want to do,’ she added, with subtle emphasis on the ‘you’.

Grace could tell that this was a barb aimed at Lawrence. Her mother never said it directly, but Grace knew that Tina thought Lawrence was too overbearing and that Grace acquiesced to him too much.