‘Nicholas, stop doing that too.’ She could see him out of the corner of her eye and she was grinning.

‘I can’t help it. I love you,’ he said and suddenly tugged on her waist and hugged her into him, tight, too tight, as he tried to cover every inch of her with his body.

‘I love you too,’ she whispered into his chest and for a brief moment time stood still and all they could hear was the beating of each other’s hearts.

‘How about I invite my new partner, William, and his wife over to us for lunch on Sunday then,’ he said as they broke away and she threaded through the final loop of his tie. ‘I imagine his wife would appreciate the change of scene, as she’s got two little ones to look after.’ He chuckled. ‘You know, Bella and all the patients call him Dr William – they don’t realise it’s his first name.’

Her eyes met his. ‘Do they know about us?’

‘Well, not exactly, but he’s a doctor – we don’t judge like some others do. I’ll explain beforehand and it will be fine.’

‘Are you sure? Where are they from?’ She wasn’t nearly as confident in the charity of others as Nicholas apparently was.

‘Here, in Liverpool. He trained at St Angelus, obviously – a few years below me – which was where I first met him. I call you my wife at the practice, you know that, and so does Bella, who loves you.’ They may not have had family, but they had crumbs of affection from a limited number of people to sustain and carry them through. ‘Here, I have something for you. I meant to give it to you last night. Wait there.’

He dashed out of the bedroom and across the landing to his study. She heard the click of the lock on his Gladstone bag opening and closing, and before she had finished brushing her hair he was back at her side.

‘You know that emerald heart of your mother’s in the dressing-table drawer? Well, look, I took it without you knowing, and I did this.’

His smile was boyish, happy, and she stretched out her hand to take the box he held out to her. Her father had brought the heart over on his one visit to Liverpool, shortly after she’d got there. It had been a gift to Sarah from Mary Kate’s great-grandfather, Daedio. All Mary Kate knew about it was that it had come from America.

She opened the long box he held out to her and gasped. There was her emerald, and she had never seen it look so beautiful. It hung by a gold thread from a deep-green velvet ribbon.

‘It’s a choker – all the rage, so the jeweller told me. What do you think?’

Mary Kate turned back to the mirror and drew the ribbon around her neck. ‘Can you fasten it?’ she asked as her eyes met his in the mirror.