‘Calm down, Scrooge,’ I tease as we leave the salon floor and head to the small staffroom at the back to wolf down a quick sandwich in between clients. Becky’s one of my best friends, although we’re total opposites; we’ve worked at Waves together for over a decade. She lives with her long-term boyfriend Sam and neither of them want kids – they love their freedom too much and spend all their spare time going out to gigs and travelling the world. They’re like a couple of perpetual teenagers. Sometimes I wonder how they can live like that, and other times I envy the pants off them.

She continues her tirade. ‘The annoying songs we’ve all heard a thousand times before, the insane lights, the tacky decorations, it all gives me such a stress headache.’ She puts her fingers to her forehead. ‘I mean, I like Christmas as much as the next person, I really do, but why does it have to start so early every year? Jennifer had this place decked out in November. That’s a whole month’s worth of crazy. Of Slade and The Pogues, Band Aid and Chris flipping Rea.’

‘You have to admit, she did a good job though.’ Jennifer has really gone to town with the salon decorations this year, having decided on a tasteful rustic theme. There are twinkling white lights, wooden decorations, gingerbread stars, several wicker reindeer and a nine-foot tree in the window which has been liberally sprayed with fake frost.

‘It’s like working in Lapland,’ Becky grumbles, taking her lunchbox out of the fridge. ‘Which basically makes us elves. You watch, next year she’ll issue us with pointy hats and stripy knee-high socks.’

‘You’re such a drama queen, Becky. I think your blood sugar might be low. Eat your sandwich.’

She gives me the middle finger before plonking herself down on the worn leather sofa. ‘Sorry, just tired today. We were out late last night.’

My phone rings and I’m so hungry I want to ignore it, but it’s my sister-in-law. ‘Hang on a sec, Becky, I better take this.’ I settle myself at the table on one of the wooden dining chairs. ‘Hi, Madeline.’

‘Hello, Zoe. Are you free to talk for a minute?’ She sounds serious.

‘Yeah, sure, I’m on my lunch break so fire away.’ I gaze distractedly through the window at the tiny yard at the back of the salon. It’s bare of any foliage at this time of year. Just a few dead-looking vines twisting up a trellis on the brick wall.

Madeline clears her throat. ‘Okay, well it’s just to say that we won’t need you to have Beth and Freya this weekend after all.’

I sit up straighter, suddenly giving my full attention to the conversation. ‘What happened? Did you cancel your London trip? Is everything okay? Nick didn’t come down with that bug, did he?’