We gazed at her expectantly. And now we’ll begin—

‘My eldest, Willow.’

‘What’s she done then?’

‘Done?’ Nella’s eyebrows shot into her perfect fringe. ‘What do you mean, done?’

‘Chill, hon!’ Grinning, I drained my glass, trying not to relish her discomfort too much. ‘I must say, she’s an amazing dancer, isn’t she?’

‘Dancer?’ The woman had gone rigid, hands still clasped together.

‘Yeah, your Willow’s got the moves. The wicked old dears I do yoga with at the care home would give their falsies for her flexibility. I saw her on your Facebook page.’

Nella’s shoulders relaxed.

‘So, what’s the problem?’ I was actually intrigued now.

‘It’s – we’re moving her in September.’ Nella’s face didn’t reflect her light tone. ‘She wants to study dance, but her father thinks she needs to concentrate on academia first. So, she’s…’ Nella fiddled with the gold chains at the neck of her Bella Freud T-shirt. ‘She’s starting at Northgate High.’

Academia? At Northgate High? Ha! So that’s why Nella seemed so nervous: she was out and out lying. No one ever sent their kid to Northgate for the grades.

Beside me, Ruby was struggling to conceal her surprise.

I, on the other hand, was ace at hiding emotions. ‘Oh, brilliant. She’ll love it. Cecilia – my stepdaughter – does.’ An outright lie of my own: I knew Ceci bore the stigma of being Rex’s daughter in a very gladiatorial arena. ‘And your kids do, don’t they, Ruby?’

‘Oh – well yes, I suppose. And did, in Ali’s case, of course, she’s studying in Berlin now, but – yes, my son does.’ But a girl of Willow’s ilk would last about five minutes, I could hear Ruby thinking.

‘He’ll help her settle in, won’t he?’ Nella’s tension was palpable. ‘Your son?’ She turned her laser-beam stare on Ruby. ‘Melissa mentioned him to me.’

‘Of course,’ Ruby replied – for want of anything else to say.

There was something beneath Nella’s varnished facade I’d never seen before – a tiny tremor of uncertainty, perhaps. And I was sure Zach wasn’t the right mentor for a girl like Willow. I knew Ruby had tried to instil in her kids that the world was their oyster, but I wasn’t sure I believed it was even worth trying any more. Inequality was so rife in West London – well, in the whole flipping world, of course – and things had been so hard recently for poor Zach. I worried about our teens a lot.

The gorgeous Willow would be entirely terrifying to him, I was pretty certain. Fifteen-year-old Zach, being very much Ruby’s son, was a great kid, sweet and funny – but also shy and self-conscious.

‘A good friend will really help her process the change, Ruby, and if your lovely boy would come and meet her, well’ – the tension around Nella was obviously dissolving – ‘it would be the most massive weight off!’

‘Oh I see. Well, sure.’ I saw Ruby try to meet her gaze. ‘Well, I’ll definitely have a word with him.’ I could feel Ruby’s phone buzzing against my thigh. ‘Actually, sorry, before we start the party stuff, can I just use the bathroom?’ She stood up with a swoosh of her circle skirt.