So Milly took herself off to the Smoke. She spent too much in Harvey Nicks, wandered around Tiffany’s, offloaded a fortune of the very generous allowance Charlie paid her because no daughter of his, he always said, was ever going to have to work for a living. She blew hundreds in Harrods, raided Bond Street, then went back to the flat loaded with bags and flopped out on the couch, feeling a bit happier – until she thought of Nipper again, and wondered if she was being a fool, wondered if she was so desperate for affection that she’d just settled for sex instead.

Deep down she knew all too well that Nipper was a worthless bastard, Harlan’s glove puppet. But at least her and Belle were together again, best mates. No way was a man ever going to come between them.

Suddenly she choked back a tear and looked at all the purchases surrounding her. Her pleasure in them faded instantly. Then there was the noise of male voices, and the key turned in the lock. She straightened with a guilty jolt. If it was Dad, he’d moan like fuck about all the shopping bags. It was one of Charlie’s ‘things’ – he chucked money about like confetti on stuff for his own amusement, but he always complained if Milly or Nula or Harlan spent a penny.

But it wasn’t Charlie. It was Harlan, with a few hard-looking young men coming in behind him. He paused when he saw her sitting there.

‘What the fuck you doing here?’ he asked.

‘Right back at you,’ said Milly, annoyed. She hadn’t realized Harlan was staying here. She didn’t want to share the place with him and his mates. She saw that Nipper had trailed in among them. He looked at her blankly. And there was Ludo, decked out in more chains than the Queen Mary, nudging Nipper, grinning when he saw that she was there.

Harlan came and slouched down on the couch opposite her while his mates wandered around the big room, picking up vases and artworks that were probably priceless – Charlie liked his art – and slapping them back down, disinterested, then stopping by the floor-to-ceiling windows to admire the view.

She felt uncomfortable, red-faced, seeing Nipper here. And he was ignoring her. It was clear that Ludo knew about their relationship, but Nipper didn’t want Charlie finding out. And he didn’t want to acknowledge her in front of Harlan, either. That must be why he was blanking her.

‘I had the key for this place, so I thought I’d come on over here for a while and stay. What, the country getting too boring for you, was it?’ asked Harlan.

Milly shrugged. She wasn’t about to chat about family matters in front of all these tossers.

‘You can go now,’ said Harlan to the others, his eyes still fixed on Milly.