Not that he would ever reveal that to Hannah Cole or Rosie Emerson. At least not until it was time.

While he waited for Hannah to appear, he filled his belly with a breakfast bap and coffee purchased from one of the local cafes, ignoring the doleful eyes of his passenger, Tank, who was going to leave a puddle of drool all over the seat if he didn’t put his tongue away.

In the past, Liam would have been tempted to buy Tank a bap of his own, but during his last check-up, the vet had warned that the dog was overweight and told Liam he needed to stop overfeeding him. Easier said than done when you had 93lbs of slobbering fur trying to guilt you into sharing every mouthful of food, just like he was doing right now.

Tank had already eaten breakfast, but seemed to have forgotten that and the staring was now being accompanied by lip licking and agitated whining, guilting Liam into feeding him the last piece of sausage. He was too bloody soft for his own good where his dog was concerned.

Breakfast polished off, Liam was just about to get out of the car to find a bin to dispose of the rubbish when the main door to the flats opened and Hannah emerged, hair tied back in a ponytail and her eyes hidden behind a pair of oversized sunglasses.

Tossing the cardboard cup and breakfast bap wrapper into the back of the car, he turned to Tank.

‘Okay, you’re up, pal. I need you to be your most charming self.’

Liam had studied Hannah’s Pawsome Pet Services website, where she spoke about her love of animals, especially dogs, so he was certain she would soon fall for Tank. Part Bernese mountain dog, part poodle, he was an oversized teddy bear. What was not to love?

Hannah had already disappeared round the corner, but he had seen the direction she had gone and he clipped on Tank’s lead, coaxing him from the car. This was the tricky bit. The giant bundle of fur would have happily stayed on stakeout all day if he had his way, letting out what sounded like a reluctant huff as he plonked his arse down on the pavement.

‘Come on, mate. We need to go.’

By the time he had persuaded Tank to get up, Hannah had a considerable lead, but the seaside town was small. She couldn’t have gone far without a car.

Or so he thought. Minutes later, Liam found himself on the quayside with no idea where she was.