‘He misses you too,’ David said. ‘He’s out in the garden just now but has found the perfect place for his birthday next week. Come hungry! Offft – sorry Pen. This heartburn is chronic.’

‘Maybe you should go and lie down,’ Penny said. ‘I can call later this week if you don’t feel well now.’

‘Okay. Yes. Sorry poppet.’

‘It’s okay. I just wanted you to know that everything down here is good. I’m good.’

‘And his name is Francesco?’

‘Yup,’ Penny said, smiling. ‘And I think I might actually quite like him.’

‘Hey, you,’ Penny said, picking up the phone to Francesco as she prepared the vegetables for that day’s service. ‘Hold on, let me find my ears.’

‘Find my ears’ was their shorthand for ‘find my earbuds’ – it had become a habit of theirs to call one another during morning prep, both talking to the other from their respective kitchens via hands-free Bluetooth headphones.

‘How are you today?’

‘I’ve just been online shopping,’ Francesco said down the phone.

‘Uh-huh,’ Penny replied.

‘For some fun things …’

‘Fun like party poppers fun? Or fun like a new ACNE handbag fun? I’m devastated I still don’t own one of their bags. It’s just so much money! And I never even use a handbag, which I cannot discount totally from the argument …’

Francesco dropped his voice. ‘More fun than both of those things …’ he said.

‘More fun than both of those things. Okay, well then I am all out of ideas. You’ll just have to tell me.’

‘Well,’ he replied, and Penny couldn’t place his tone. ‘I’d rather show you.’

Penny stopped what she was doing. ‘Are you … using a sexy-time voice?’ she suddenly realized.

‘Well picked-up on,’ Francesco replied. ‘I am.’

‘You got me a sexy-time surprise …’ Penny ruminated, aware that pot-wash Bobby had slowed down his movements, probably because he was trying not to make too much noise as he eavesdropped.

‘Uh-huh,’ Francesco said.

‘I can’t talk about that right now then,’ Penny said, immediately a bit more prim and proper. ‘Perhaps we can address the … matter at hand … um, tomorrow?’

Francesco laughed. ‘I certainly hope so,’ he replied. ‘Because I am very, very excited for it.’

Penny was under instruction to meet Francesco at the bar of The Standard in Kings Cross.

‘This place is phenomenal,’ she said, approaching him where he was perched on a stool towards the right-hand side. It was a hotel primarily, with signs in the lobby pointing to various bars and restaurants. It was incredibly plush, and Penny was relieved she’d worn the same red dress she’d worn the night of Dofi’s restaurant opening. It made her feel confident and sexy. ‘Also: hi,’ she added, leaning in for a kiss.

‘Hi,’ he said into her mouth, and then, ‘You smell amazing. Mmmm.’