‘You’ve got some serious gall, inviting me into my own flat, Max.’ She pushed past him and put her bag down on the hall floor. ‘Why are you here? Get out before Rav sees you.’

Max pointed through the hall, through the kitchen and living room into the garden. ‘Oh, Rav’s already home. We’ve been waiting for you.’

‘What the fuck is going on?’

Max went through to the kitchen. He opened the fridge and seemed to be perusing the contents. ‘Do you want a glass of rosé or a glass of white? It’s too hot for red, and I know you hate champagne.’

‘I don’t want a drink.’

‘Oh, I think you do.’

Chloe’s hands were by her sides and yet, for some reason, her index fingers were twitching. She stretched them, trying to make it stop. ‘It’s my kitchen, Max. I’ll get my own wine.’

‘Fine. Come and join us outside when you’re ready.’

Chloe watched the wine glass flood with pink liquid and took a steadying breath. Max was only here because he was trying to call her bluff. Rav was only home early because Max had summoned him. This would be a work meeting. In a moment, when she went outside, she would find that Max and Rav were talking about some boring building project and Max had just been trying to scare her. She took another deep breath and willed her feet to move. The longer she stayed in here, the longer she didn’t go into the garden, the stranger this seemed.

‘Hello, darling,’ she said brightly, kissing Rav on the lips. ‘Welcome home.’

‘How was the inset day?’

‘It was great, actually. Everything’s in order, I think. Or at least as much as it ever is.’

‘Max popped by to chat to us about something. I was thinking we’d give him supper.’

‘Oh, I don’t know if that’s going to work.’ Chloe tried to keep her voice even. ‘We’ve hardly got anything in the fridge.’

‘That’s no problem,’ smiled Rav. ‘I’ll pop to the shops and grab a few bits. You two will be all right here for a bit, won’t you?’

Chloe forced lightness into her tone. ‘Yes, of course.’

Rav patted himself for his keys and his wallet, whistling as he closed the front door. The local supermarket was only at the top of their road. It would take him fifteen minutes at most to get back. Could she get rid of Max in that time?

‘So what happens on an inset day?’ asked Max jovially. ‘I’ve always heard people talking about them but I’ve never really understood what one was.’

‘What the fuck are you doing here?’