Francesco flashed his smile once more. ‘Cool,’ he nodded, and dropped her hand to turn on his heel.

‘Francesco?’ Stuart said, and Penny realized with mortification that he’d been stood behind the counter watching as all of this happened.

‘Yes mate?’ Francesco replied, not making eye contact with Stuart as he spun back around, instead immediately catching Penny’s eye again, grateful for the excuse to elicit another smile. She had bright red hair piled on top of her head and not a scrap of make-up. She looked tired, like she’d already been in the kitchen for hours, but her cheeks had flushed to make her glow, and her voice, when she’d spoken, had reminded him of something. He felt like he’d met her before, somewhere. He wanted permission to keep staring, to keep looking.

‘Are you seeing anyone?’

That got his attention. Francesco looked to Stuart. ‘Ah, I’m not gay, mate. Sorry.’

Stuart rolled his eyes and motioned towards Penny. ‘Not for me. For her.’ Penny’s eyes widened in horror. ‘The one that’s slack-jawed and dripping over there.’

‘Me?’ Penny squeaked.

‘You’re single?’ Francesco questioned.

Penny looked from Francesco to Stuart, and then back again.

‘Well, yes, but—’

‘Oh. Cool. Well—’

Stuart cut him off by handing him an order pad and pen.

‘Write your number down,’ Stuart commanded.

Francesco laughed. ‘God, there’s no messing around here, is there?’ he laughed. He looked at Penny. ‘Is that … okay? If I do that?’

‘Sure,’ yelped Penny, three octaves higher than she normally spoke. ‘Yes. Okay. Um … awesome. I will … use it. Yes.’ She inexplicably did a thumbs-up mixed with a finger point. Later Stuart would say to her: you were real cool, Pen. Real, real cool.

Francesco scribbled down his digits as Penny glared at Stuart and Stuart supervised Francesco, nodding encouragingly as he handed the slip of paper over to her.

Penny smiled.

Francesco smiled.

They stood, neither of them saying anything.

This stuff doesn’t happen! thought Penny. This stuff doesn’t happen to ME!

‘Okay then,’ said Stuart. ‘This is the bit where you both say goodbye. We’ve got a café to run.’

‘Bye,’ Francesco said, shaking his head as if he couldn’t quite believe it.

‘Bye,’ said Penny, giddy.

‘You’re both very welcome,’ said Stuart, ushering Francesco out. ‘Especially you,’ he added, for Penny’s benefit, winking. When Francesco was out of earshot he added: ‘I told you it could be the very next man to walk through that door.’

‘Well yeah,’ said Penny, lowering her voice, her eyes fixed on Francesco’s bum through the window – she’d have to have been dead not to notice how his jeans hung low on his waist, his boxers peeking over the top. ‘But a man who looks like that – there’s got to be something wrong with him, hasn’t there? Nice guys don’t … swagger.’