The next morning Penny stood at the window of her front room and waited to see him coming down the hill opposite so she could intercept him at the door. She hadn’t slept, and it was his fault. She fully intended to give him a piece of her mind. She wouldn’t be spoken to like that and then shut out. It was totally inappropriate, especially since she was his boss.

At exactly ten to the hour he came over the hill and Penny picked up her phone to call him. She watched through the glass as he answered.

‘Hello,’ he said. He sounded gruff.

‘Can you come straight up to the flat when you get here please?’ Penny said.

Francesco sighed. ‘Fine,’ he said.

Penny expected him to be contrite and apologize from the off about storming out on her. As far as she was concerned, she had every right to be furious, and only him saying sorry would do. Except the Francesco who came through her door wasn’t sorry at all. If anything he was as angry as her – he was almost shaking with anger. If she’d tossed and turned in fury all night, it was apparent that he had too.

‘No,’ he said, as Penny went to speak. ‘Me first. I get to talk.’

Penny was taken aback at his tone. He didn’t sound hard in his rage. He sounded sad with it.

‘You need to do some soul-searching, Pen,’ he began. ‘Because you don’t realize your capacity to hurt people and it’s making you not very nice.’

He stood opposite her, so furious it looked as though he was moments away from smoke escaping from his ears.

‘Why don’t you understand how loved you are?’ he continued. ‘Why can’t you see what’s right in front of your face?’

He looked at her, his eyes bright with craving. It hit Penny hard when she got what he meant.

‘You?’ she said.

‘Yes me,’ he replied. ‘Come on, Penny. This is so stupid.’

‘Don’t call me stupid.’

‘I didn’t. This – the situation – that’s what is stupid.’ His tone was softer, now. He was calming down, like the pressure that had built up in him was slowly being released.

‘We’re supposed to be friends,’ she said, barely above a whisper. ‘Why are you saying all this?’

‘This isn’t friendship.’

Penny looked up at him.

‘It’s not, is it? These other men – the Lizzo guy, Priyesh. You don’t have with them what you and me have.’

Penny shook her head.

Francesco carried on: ‘Penny, I love you. And I think you love me too.’

‘You’re supposed to be my safe person,’ Penny croaked, spooked. ‘I don’t want you to go anywhere.’

‘That’s the point,’ he said, softer now. ‘I’m not, am I? I love you.’