Laura tapped on her mobile and opened up Rightmove. House prices were so much more affordable there; they didn’t have to be right on her in-laws’ doorstep, and Nate could find work anywhere. She scrolled through the houses for sale, ignoring the feeling that Bridgend was so not what she wanted.

‘Moving house?’

Laura jumped and closed down her mobile, tossing it across the desk. ‘No,’ she said.

‘I was going to say: not that bad, is it?’ Patrick asked.

Laura smiled thinly and shrugged. She hadn’t caught up with Patrick properly all week. He hadn’t been in since Monday.

‘Yeah,’ he went on. ‘I can imagine it probably is.’

Laura felt herself turning in the direction of Mia’s desk. She had no idea what Patrick thought of Mia, but didn’t dare ask when everyone else in the office appeared to love her. There were a couple of women hovering near her desk, listening to Mia, who was gesturing her arms dramatically. Even from the other side of the floor, Laura heard one of them laughing.

‘Well, it’s short-term,’ Laura said. ‘As soon as the TV ad’s up and running there’ll be no need to keep her contract on.’

Patrick frowned uneasily and cocked his head as he looked at Laura.

‘What?’ she asked.

‘Harry didn’t say, did he? He made Mia permanent. A week before you came back.’ Patrick paused and glanced over his shoulder in Mia’s direction. ‘I’m afraid she’s here to stay.’

Chapter Nine

Mia sat beside Mike Lewis who was leaning back in his chair, arms folded across his chest, both of them staring at his screen.

‘I don’t know,’ she muttered. ‘I don’t even know which ones looks better any more.’

For God’s sake, help me, Mike, she thought. He was the creative director, the one who should be pointing her in the right direction, instead of just sitting there. Waiting for her. She’d been thrown in at the deep end with Coopers; it wasn’t that she couldn’t do it, but she didn’t have history with them – not enough experience with the team to read between the lines of their briefs and work out what it was they really wanted.

‘You’re going to have to help me out,’ she laughed. ‘I’ll go with whatever you say.’

He shook his head and carried on staring at the screen. ‘They’re both what you asked for,’ he said bluntly. ‘It’s your call what you give them.’