Luke had fitted into the family so seamlessly and Bella hadn’t noticed until now how Evan had always been a little apart from the rest of them. It wasn’t that he hadn’t been welcomed. Her family couldn’t help but welcome people in, but Evan had always held something of himself back. She’d always believed it was shyness, but she’d begun to wonder recently if it was because he didn’t entirely approve of the unremitting good time they always had. Maybe even a hint of jealousy was mixed in there too. She had no fear that Nick and Freddie would be welcomed into the family if that ever were to happen.

What was she even thinking about? They’d had a nice evening together as neighbours. One. Nothing more. Nothing had happened. Nothing was even close to happening. It was more than a little presumptuous on her part, but she couldn’t stop herself imagining. As she sat eating her dinner, the scene before her played out with two extra guests and her heart skipped. At one point she had to pretend Luke had been especially funny so that no one thought she was insane for grinning like a lunatic at a roast potato.

The plates were cleared, and she and her sister washed up while everyone else had gone to the living room.

‘When are you and Nick seeing each other again?’ Caro asked.

‘I’ll probably see him at drop-off and pick-up but the next time we’ll get to speak will be at Bluebell Park next weekend. He and Freddie have started volunteering.’

‘Have they now? I wonder why?’

‘Don’t look like that,’ Bella said, handing Caro a soapy plate. ‘Nick thought it’d be good for Freddie after the whole thing in school.’

Caro tutted. ‘I still can’t believe that little toad did that.’

‘Amias isn’t a little toad,’ Bella said. ‘Something’s got to be going on for him to act like that.’ He’d always been a bit excitable in class and a bit of a tease to the other kids, but this was something else. She was worried about him, and with his dad’s antics his behaviour was probably related to that.

‘You’re too nice, Bella. You’ve always been far too nice about people. When this one arrives’ – she patted her bump – ‘I hope they never do anything like that.’

‘I’m sure they won’t with you as a mum.’

‘I’ll threaten them with living with Luke’s parents if they do.’ Caro began stacking some plates away in the cupboard.

Bella tried to say her next words easily, playing them in her head first. ‘Oh, and I’m seeing Nick and Freddie at the Christmas parade as well, but we probably would have anyway. So it’s not like a … thing or anything.’