‘You’d best not sell to them, then,’ Davina says, closing the door again and finally sitting down. She eyes me over the top of her mug as she begins noisily sipping her tea.

I don’t quite know how to take her statement. It almost comes across as a demand, or a threat. I suppose it could’ve just been meant in a jokey kind of way, but that didn’t seem apparent in her tone. I laugh awkwardly and change the subject.

‘What type of novels do you write?’

She sits up straight, a broad smile on her face, and becomes animated now I’ve asked her about her writing.

‘Crime, mostly,’ she says. She goes on to tell me she sits at a desk facing the lounge window, and the view of the road and people wandering by often gives her inspiration. So, that’s one reason she’s always watching this street like a hawk, then. It could also account for her interest in Nick – maybe she wants to tap him up for insider knowledge – she had been trying to ask him a question when I rudely interrupted her yesterday evening. All this time I’d presumed she just wanted to know the gossip about our separation and maybe it was information about his job she was after so she could give her crime novel authenticity. Perhaps I really do have Davina all wrong.

‘That’s really interesting, Davina. I had no idea Apple Grove had its very own Miss Marple,’ I say. I’m trying to be light-hearted, but she stares at me for a moment saying nothing. Is saying that to a crime writer not the done thing? She’s probably heard it a million times, which is why she seems to have ignored my statement.

‘Don’t tell him, but I’ve put your sexy estate agent in my current book!’ Her face lights up when she mentions Carl. She really does seem to have a thing for him. Personally, I’ve never looked at Carl in that way, and certainly not thought of him as sexy. But I can see the attraction, I suppose. Visually, he is appealing – what I’d call a typically good-looking man with all the features that might come high on a tick list of ideal physical attributes – and he’s financially secure. I laugh and tell Davina her secret is safe with me.

‘And the way he’s so shifty, it got my mind working overtime,’ she continues, her eyes widening. ‘So, I’ve created a whole story around his character.’

‘Oh?’ I frown. ‘Shifty in what way?’ I’m curious now – maybe Davina’s tendency to be nosy will be helpful in this instance.