‘That not the kind of help I need from you,’ Gilly assured her.

‘Then what have I got to do with it?’

‘I need you to sit for me,’ Gilly said.

The look on Edie’s face was a picture in itself – part astonishment, part incredulity. Gilly almost laughed.

‘Me?’ the artist said. ‘You’re going to do a portrait of me for your final piece?’

‘That’s right,’ Gilly said. ‘Although… it’s not just of you.’

‘Oh?’

‘The exam brief is that I have to produce a piece of art that reflects something important to me, and you’re not the only person who’s helped me since I’ve been here.’

Edie nodded and gave a faint smile. ‘Ahh. So is Rachel going to be part of this piece as well? That’s nice, she’ll appreciate that.’

‘No,’ Gilly said. She had already spoken to Rachel, not wanting to offend her with the exclusion. It seemed that the idea of having her likeness inscribed as a piece of art was Rachel’s idea of a nightmare, though, so to Gilly’s relief she hadn’t cared at all when the girl had explained she wouldn’t be in the piece. Rachel had been less keen when Gilly let slip her actual plan, but wasn’t really in any position to stop it going ahead. ‘No, not in this one.’

Edie frowned. ‘Well, who is it, then?’

‘Ezra,’ Gilly said. ‘I want the piece to be of you and Ezra. I’ve got this whole idea for how I want it to look.’

‘Ezra? Ezra Jones?’

‘Yes. He’s really been helping me, Edie, just as much as you have. Okay,’ Gilly admitted, ‘so he didn’t give me a place to stay. But he’s been there for my lessons and also with helping me think about what I want my life to be in the future, so—’

Edie stood up abruptly. ‘That’s fine, Gilly. It’s your art, you can do what you like. As long as you’re not expecting me to sit for this piece with him.’

‘Well… yeah, obviously I am. It won’t have to be for long,’ she said quickly, as Edie opened her mouth to say something, an angry look on her face. ‘I thought we could do a photo session.’

Edie stood over the breakfast table with her hands on her hips, looking out of the window with a scowl. ‘Are you sure there’s nothing else you want to do for this project?’ she asked.

‘No. I’ve got a really clear idea for this, and I think it fits the brief perfectly. I don’t…’ Gilly bit her lip. ‘I don’t have much in my life, Edie, you know that. This is what’s important to me. You and Ezra are important to me.’

Edie was quiet for a moment. She didn’t look at Gilly, fiddling instead with a button on her cardigan. ‘All right,’ the artist said eventually. ‘But that man had better be on his best behaviour.’

Ezra’s reaction was about the same. Gilly went to see him later that same day, pulling open the garden gate and petting Georgette as the goat bounced happily down from the boulder to greet her. Ezra was in his kitchen and opened the door when he saw Gilly arrive, inviting her in for tea and shortbread.