I was talking and talking and talking because I could. Because Patrick listened to every word I was saying and didn’t interrupt or look away. He was interested. Interested, and also drunk. His eyelids were drooping just a teeny-tiny amount. It was nice, though, being tipsy and just moving on from one topic to the next, delighting in the way the other person thought or framed something.

He lined up a shot with his ball, holding his club lightly and getting a hole in one.

‘All power to you,’ he said, satisfied by his point. He leaned towards me and executed a very poor stage whisper. ‘I’ve got to tell you though: you’re in luck.’

‘Why?’

‘Because life has handed you lemons, and you can make a honeymoon out of it.’

I sighed audibly and took my turn. ‘A honeymoon without a husband is just a lonely singleton nightmare, I’m afraid.’ I shocked myself by getting a hole in one too. I think my inhibitions had been lowered, and so it loosened up my swing or something. Maybe it was beginner’s luck. We walked to the next part of the course.

‘Don’t go alone then.’

‘Alexander is in Singapore, Patrick. He’s gone. It’s over. I’m sure the last thing he wants is to fly to Australia with the woman he jilted. And that’s fine, really, because I don’t think I ever want to see his stupid face again.’

‘I reckon we’d have a great honeymoon together,’ Patrick supposed, and then stuck his tongue firmly in his cheek as he went for his next turn.

I scrunched up my face. I was sort of seeing double. I needed water.

‘Sure,’ I said, calling his bluff, and I realized I was slurring a bit too. ‘You and me on the other side of the world. Absolutely. Let’s do it.’

Another hole in one for him, but this time I missed.

‘Oh, you joke,’ he said. I moved to hit the ball again, landing it on the second try. ‘But I’m damned serious. I’ll take a free trip to the other side of the world. You said they’re loaded, right? And want to spend money on easing their guilt? If you need a partner in crime to do that with, it could actually be a hell of a lot of fun. I’ll pay my own way if I can use the spare ticket.’

We moved along to the next hole.

‘You want to come to Australia with me?’

He took a shot and missed, but got it the next time he tried.

‘Why not. YOLO.’

I got a hole in one again. I gave a pointed look of victory.

‘We don’t even know each other.’

‘We do.’

His turn again, a point pinging up on the small handheld screen we’d been given.