Chloe took her phone from the top drawer of her desk and held down the ‘on’ button. It took a few minutes to wake up. She watched as the screen began to buzz. Two messages from her mother, telling her to call. A text from Lissy asking if she wanted to take part in a charity netball match. And two messages from Zadie. ‘Did you have fun last night? So hung over I wish I was dead,’ read the first one. ‘Come over tonight if you’re not busy. Having another bloody party,’ read the other. It was a confusing feeling, the delight of Zadie’s attention mixed with the bitter disappointment that there was nothing from Rav.

10

Now

Chloe placed the glass jug carefully in the sink. It was heavy and intricately designed, probably worth hundreds of pounds, so she really mustn’t drop it. Rav would inevitably insist on replacing it if she broke it. She felt Max’s breath on her bare shoulder.

‘Having fun?’

‘Where the hell did you get that ring?’

Max looked confused. She didn’t believe it for a second. ‘It was my grandmother’s. Verity told you that.’

‘Don’t play games. You know exactly what I’m asking.’

‘On the contrary, I’ve got no idea why you’re so upset about my fiancée’s engagement ring. Jealous?’ He grinned and Chloe bit into the inside of her lip, trying to contain her rage.

‘Zadie was wearing that ring the night of your twenty-first. She was wearing it when I found her.’

Max went to the fridge. ‘Was she? I don’t remember. Let’s not do this again, Coco. If you still think I’m guilty of something, why the hell did you come here?’

‘It was important to Rav. When you love someone, you make sacrifices for them. Hopefully, you’ll work that out at some point before you take that poor girl down the aisle.’

She had promised herself she wouldn’t do this. She had promised that she would say as little as possible; get in, get out. But the sight of the ring had knocked her off her axis. Chloe started moving towards the table. She would sit down. Play nicely. Pretend none of this had ever happened, then tell Rav on the way home that they were never, ever doing this again.

‘So I take it you haven’t heard from her?’

She stopped, turning on the spot, almost in a pirouette. ‘Who?’

‘You know who.’