‘You coming in?’ Matt calls. ‘Or are you just going to stand there on the pavement all day?’ He grins and raises an eyebrow.

‘Sorry, miles away.’ I hurry down the street and into my boyfriend’s arms, where I let myself linger a while, feeling safe and loved. The kids have already squeezed through the narrow hallway and beyond into the kitchen to see what delights they can find in the fridge and cupboards. Which reminds me, I need to go shopping.

‘Mmm, that feels good.’ Matt gives me an extra squeeze before letting go.

I don’t know why on earth I had the notion that I didn’t want Matt to be home early. Even years after first meeting, he still has the power to make my stomach flip. ‘How was your day?’

‘Irritating,’ he replies. I follow him into our pretty white-painted kitchen where he leans against the oak worktop, a frown darkening his blue eyes.

‘How come?’

‘Just people not showing up on time, so I can’t get on with what I need to do. That’s why I’m home early, and why I’ll probably have to work late tomorrow.’

‘That’s annoying.’

‘Tell me about it.’

‘Don’t eat those,’ I say to the kids, who are about to open a packet of biscuits. ‘You’ve already had chocolate. You’ll ruin your tea. There are satsumas in the fruit bowl.’

The children wrinkle their noses and sidle out of the kitchen.

‘Got any homework?’ I call after them, feeling mean about asking them, as they’ve only just got in.

‘Mathletics,’ Jess replies. ‘I’ll do it now, get it out of the way.’

‘No,’ Charlie says, trying to slip out of the room.

I catch his arm before he can escape. ‘What about your spellings? You’ve got a test tomorrow, haven’t you?’

His shoulders drop.

‘Go and practise them now, and Daddy will test you in a few minutes while I start cooking.’

Matt gives me a pained look, but I know he enjoys helping the kids. ‘How was your day?’ he asks.

I pause before giving him a light smile. ‘Fine. You know; the usual.’ I sit at the breakfast bar and pick at a dried-on milk stain left over from breakfast. ‘One interesting thing – Dee wants to give me some extra shifts after Christmas.’

‘Really? Are you going to take them?’