‘Ah yes.’ He grimaced. ‘Not a good movie, I’m afraid. I started to watch it, but after half an hour I became so bored I went to the shop to buy chocolate. Because chocolate is the only thing that works when I am feeling the way I feel today. Well, chocolate or wine. But I decided that to drink wine would not be a good idea, because wine will make me drunk and tomorrow I will have a hangover, which will make me feel worse than I already feel. Plus, you cannot drink because of the baby and drinking wine by myself is not fun.’ He held up two bars of Toblerone. ‘So I chose chocolate instead. I didn’t mean to be rude about the film, by the way. But really it’s stupid. She is supposed to want to give that guy a second chance when he’s such a dick. He’s not even good looking. If he was, then maybe I could understand.’

‘Ivan, please stop talking.’

Thankfully, he shut his mouth.

‘Why were you watching that film?’

‘I wanted to see what all the fuss was about.’

‘Excuse me?’

‘Vivienne. Everyone always says she was so beautiful and such a talented actress and her death was so tragic. As if it is sadder that she died than everyone else who died because she was famous and they were not. It’s true, she was a very good actress, even if that movie is not so good. And yes, she was beautiful. But more beautiful than you? No. I don’t think that and I hope you don’t think it, either. You look tired. Is everything okay?’

‘I’m not sure. I need to talk to someone.’

‘Well then, you came to the right place. But not up here. My bedroom is very untidy. We’ll drink tea in the garden and eat chocolate and you can tell Uncle Ivan what has put that worry frown on your pretty face. Come.’

They sat in his courtyard garden, drinking the herbal tea he insisted on making ‘because caffeine is not good for the baby’ and eating chunks of Toblerone, while Clodagh told him about Robbie stealing money from the charity. When she’d finished speaking, Ivan was unnaturally quiet.

‘You knew?’ she asked incredulously.

‘No.’ He shook his head. ‘I did not know about the money. I swear to you. But I knew Robbie was in trouble. He came to see me before he left. He told me he needed to get away. He said he was leaving the following day and he wouldn’t be coming back. He’d had enough of life in England, he said. He was moving to Spain, and he wanted me to come with him. He begged me and it was difficult to say no because he was in such a strange mood.’