Emily was looking at me and I still couldn’t read her face. I saw Andrew notice she was studying me. ‘Let’s move on,’ he said.

The speculation about my sex life had lightened the mood. Emily and Sophie began to chat about novels they’d read recently, while Andrew encouraged me to follow up on my conversation with Susannah. ‘She likes you,’ he said. ‘She’s keen to help you.’

‘It’s very good, your new novel,’ Sophie was saying to Emily.

And perhaps Sophie’s aggression towards her was tributary, a failed attempt to show respect, like a boy pulling the ponytail of a girl as a way of trying to tell her, and himself, that he liked her.

‘Thank you,’ said Emily.

‘Very good indeed!’

‘Thank you.’

‘I’ve been telling everyone to read it. Apart from my mum. It’s very intelligent! Funny, too!’

I could see Emily struggling to lower her eyebrows. It was hard to tell whether Sophie was being unwittingly condescending, or whether she was being as condescending as she could possibly be.

‘And are you still planning to write fiction?’ asked Emily.

‘It’s on the back burner while I finish my essay book. English fiction just seems so moribund? So defeated? There hasn’t been a good political novelist since…’

She directed her speech to Emily first, then turned to her father. After a minute Emily stood up and walked from the room. Sophie turned to watch her leave. Andrew topped up our glasses again.

*

At about six I could tell it was time to leave, and I said I would be on my way.

‘Where are you going?’ asked Sophie.

‘Just back east. Home.’

‘Are you going out?’

‘Not planning to.’

‘Hmm. Walk me to the Tube, will you?’

‘Of course.’

‘Actually, Sophie, we did want to talk to you about something first,’ said Andrew. He looked at me and round towards the door.

‘Well, can Paul stay while you do?’ she said.

‘Um,’ said Andrew. ‘I suppose it doesn’t matter.’

‘And actually there’re some books I wanted to borrow – can I take them?’ Sophie said, leaving the room and pacing up and down the hallway.

‘Yes, just show them to me first in case I need them for a course or a piece.’

Emily stood up. She ran a sink full of water and started putting pans into it.

‘I’ll do that later, darling,’ said Andrew.

‘Do you want me to wait in your living room?’ I asked. ‘While you talk about whatever you’re talking about.’

‘No, stay,’ said Andrew. ‘Right, Emily?’

‘Yeah, why not?’ she said, sitting down again, before getting back up and putting the kettle on.

We sat there waiting for Sophie, whose company I was beginning to look forward to having to myself. I was curious about the type of alliance we were going to form.