She does this even though she’s dreading the dinner as it is, let alone having to walk into that place without Greg, to face the questioning glances of the other wives. She tells herself she can do it, that she’s managed many times before so it’s no problem to do it again. After all, wasn’t she adept at putting on a show, a pretence that everything was perfect? Greg isn’t running late on purpose – it can’t be helped. He’d been about to leave when he’d had to take over a colleague’s operation – an emergency hysterectomy. The surgeon’s wife had collapsed at home and was rushed to a hospital near their home in Surrey. Being married to a consultant gynaecologist, Sienna is used to Greg being on call, having to deal with emergencies that keep him away from home, but lately, more often than not, he seems to take every opportunity to stay away as late as possible.

This isn’t one of those times, she convinces herself as she sits in silence with Jackson; Greg has been looking forward to this dinner. He always does.

Yet it’s impossible for doubts not to creep in. Sienna might try her best to focus on the positive, but her mind wrestles with itself. Are Greg’s late nights only because he cares about his patients? Yes, he is passionate about his job, there is no disputing that, but is this all too convenient? She tries to recall if it had been any different when he’d been married to Holly, and Sienna had been a secretary to another doctor at his hospital. It is easy to misremember things given the passage of time, so she can’t be sure. She’d hardly known him then. And when she had become part of his life, all she learned was what he’d let her see from a distance.

‘Why isn’t Dad back yet?’ Jackson asks again, staring at his iPad rather than looking at her. Like father like son. Sienna has already explained the situation to him, yet every few minutes he repeats his question.

She expels a deep breath. ‘Like I said, Jackson, he’s at work. Operating. But your mum’s picking you up instead, and you’ll see your dad again soon. I’m sorry you missed him this time. I know he’s really disappointed not to have seen you.’ She stops talking, not even sure Jackson’s listening.

The silence in the room is excruciating. ‘How’s school?’ she asks to fill the void. Yet as soon as she says it, she’s aware that if he’s being bullied and getting into fights, then this is the last thing he will want to discuss. Still, it is an opening for him to talk to her about it if he wants to, although she doubts this will be the case.