Merrin looked towards the narrow corridor as her dad came from the bathroom, racing into the kitchen in his boxers, socks and shirt with the collar poking up under his chin and the cuffs flapping over his hands. ‘I feel like a trussed-up turkey!’ he moaned. ‘I can’t get the collar stick things in the little holes and I can’t do the cufflinks by myself. I don’t know how people put a suit on every day. It’d kill me! Why in the name of God do we have to get dressed up like this? As if today wasn’t going to be stressful enough; I don’t see why I can’t go in my best trousers and—’

‘Sports jacket!’ Merrin and Ruby finished his sentence, laughing and pointing at each other on cue. He had been moaning about his hired attire since they had collected it from the shop in Truro two days ago, keen to point out he had a perfectly serviceable navy sports jacket that had only been worn a handful of times in the decade he had owned it.

Merrin watched as her mum stood, arms outstretched, willing as ever to help the man she loved, walking over to him with her head on a tilt, as if he were a child that needed placating. She loved how they interacted and relied on each other, knowing it was something she and Digby would build for themselves too.

‘Come here, love, and don’t go getting in a tizz.’ Her voice bore the soothing tone she reserved solely for him and her girls when they were a little under the weather. Ruby and Bella smiled as they looked on. Ben getting in a tizz and his wife having to calm him down was a standard occurrence. They seemed to thrive on it.

By the flustered look on her dad’s florid face, Merrin knew her mum’s work was not yet done. With deft movements, Heather plucked the collar stiffeners from her husband’s palm and inserted them into the little slots, while he raised his neck and poked out his chin. Next, she carefully folded his cuffs and placed the fiddly cufflinks into the holes. Finally, she patted his arm.

‘There.’ She kissed his nose. ‘Look at you, Mr Kellow, you look very handsome.’

‘You are only saying that because it’s true!’ He bent and kissed her cheek in return. ‘Thanks, my lovely.’

‘It’s true, Ben, you’d give that George Clooney a run for his money today,’ Bella enthused.

‘What do you mean, today, Bells? I might be dressed up like him, but he made that whole movie where he dressed up like me, what was it called, Heather?’

‘Perfect Storm, and how I truly hate that film.’ Her mother’s tone was clipped. No one needed to ask her why.