‘I’m probably not the best person to ask …’ she says. She’s always felt like she’s a crap mum.

His eyes widen in disbelief and he leans forward, dropping his voice to a whisper. ‘Listen, I’ve see you with those girls of yours, and you’re incredible. Seriously. Nothing’s as hard as parenting in my book. Nothing. Particularly when it comes to the mother. Legends, the lot of them.’

She beams. This is a side to Clive she’s never seen – tenderness. He’s a hard-ass, dryly sarcastic at his warmest, and she’s often wondered how he’s earned himself a reputation as a Casanova. Now she’s seeing it, she thinks. He can go from withering condescension to full-blown charm in the blink of an eye.

‘I’m so pleased for you both. That’s terrific news, Clive, really.’

He grins. ‘Thanks. Not the best timing, obviously …’

‘There’s never a right time for a baby,’ she says, parroting the words her mother said to her when she confessed she was thinking of trying for a baby with Tom but didn’t think it was the right time. She was still getting commissions overseas in places like Durban and Pakistan.

‘You’re right,’ he says, still clearly elated. He runs his hands through his hair. She feels a twinge of something as she notes his flushed face and gleaming eyes, a man overjoyed to be having a baby. Tom’s reaction to the news of Gaia wasn’t exactly what she’d expected, or wanted. He’d fallen deathly silent. Couldn’t form a sentence. You’d have thought she’d announced she had a terminal illness, or was leaving him. Later, he told her he was thrilled. He’d just needed a moment to compute the surprise.

‘Well, it’s certainly made me appreciate how much of a sacrifice it is for a woman to give over her body like that. And her career.’ He flicks his eyes up and down her body. ‘How did you manage it?’ he says, refilling her glass. ‘When you had Gaia, I mean?’

Aurelia lifts her glass, considering this question. Did she manage it? She’s not quite sure. It’s always felt like utter chaos.

‘You must have superpowers,’ Clive fills in, and she grins, but the smile soon wanes. She doesn’t feel like she has superpowers. She feels like she’s failing everyone around her every single day.

Clive notices the change in her expression. ‘Are you all right?’

She nods, clears her throat. ‘Fine, fine.’

‘Actually, I think I may have just spoken out of turn.’

She looks up. He’s smiling at her.