“Perfect,” she said, as they stood on a patch of lawn in the backyard. “The ideal size for something with terrier or Staffie in it. Will you come to the rescue centre with me?”

“Absolutely not,” replied Derek, folding his arms over his chest. “Nor will you go alone.”

“What? But why?”

“Faye, you know how I feel about pets.”

“No. I mean, you said you liked dogs. I remember the—”

“I like dogs?” He scoffed. “You must be confusing me with one of your other men. I’ve never liked dogs.”

“But when we met and I—”

“I’ve always disliked dogs. Any pet, for that matter. You knew that.”

“But Wallis?”

He grimaced. “Did I have a choice when it came to Wallis?”

She stared at him, baffled. How could she have got something so significant so wrong?

“It looks like you doubt me?” he said, tilting his head. “I do know my own likes and dislikes, you know.”

So it was that Faye had lived without a dog for more than twenty years, but that would change now. If she had a dog, she wouldn’t be lonely. Perhaps she could also rekindle some of the relationships that she’d allowed to lapse to appease him. If she were able to find her old friend, would Eva forgive her?

Faye and Eva had been friends since their early teens when Eva’s family moved into the neighbourhood. Although they attended different schools, their schedules were similar and, before long, Eva regularly met Faye at her gate and they walked Dingo, Wallis and Eva’s nervous Maltese poodle, Frank. Faye helped Eva with her maths and Eva designed and drew graphs for Faye’s projects. They went shopping and to the movies together on weekends, read the same books and discussed them at length. The girls shared their dreams and imagined their lives forever intertwined.

Eva cried in Faye’s arms when her mother died suddenly and agreed to go on holiday with Faye and her family when, months later, she still couldn’t see beyond her grief. When they returned, tanned and calm, Eva presented the family with a painting she’d done of Faye on the beach, accompanied by a card on which she’d written, “To the kindest person I know and her equally caring family, thank you for helping me see that the sun still shines and that its rays can reach me.” Although she’d never hung it in the places she’d shared with Derek, Faye still had the painting. She’d hang it soon, when she had a place of her own.

When Faye went to university, Eva enrolled at art school, planning a career in graphic design. In the evenings and over weekends, they compared stories about their courses, lecturers and new friends. Faye introduced Eva to Derek when they met for coffee in town one Saturday morning.