‘Bollocks. Left my wallet in the car.’

‘Haven’t heard that one before,’ said Bailey, teasing him.

He smiled as he stood up and eased himself out of the booth. ‘I’ll just nip out and get it. I won’t be a sec. Why don’t you look at the menu and see what you fancy ordering. And remember, don’t skimp because I am most definitely paying!’

She nodded obediently and watched him with a glow of affection as he walked off. It felt good to be spoiled. It had been so long. Maybe just for tonight she could allow herself to forget about all those concerns that had been playing on her mind recently – about her father, about Jennifer, about the upcoming operation – and just let herself go with the flow of what was shaping up to be a very promising evening.

She turned her attention to the menu. From a gastronomic perspective, it was definitely more high-end than what she was normally used to. And the prices… well, they were definitely right up there as well. But what the hell. It was a treat and Dale was paying, though of course she wasn’t planning on going mad or anything.

She scanned through the options, contemplating what to choose, and found herself both amused and a little intimidated by the strange array of dishes on offer. Venison satay. Shanghai pork dumplings with Mexican salsa. Miso jellied eels… That was the thing with these fancy places – some of the stuff they served was a bit out there.

She scanned the vegan options, wondering what Dale was going to have, but it seemed like they didn’t have a lot of choice on that front. In fact, looking at the main courses, it appeared that the only vegan option was the Indonesian chickpea curry. And she knew he didn’t like chickpeas.

She frowned. He wouldn’t be too happy about that. But then, for a special night out like this, she would have thought Dale would have researched the vegan options in advance online, like he told her he normally did. Why bring her to a place where there was nothing for him to eat… apart from a side order of chips, but she doubted a place this swish even did chips.

She sighed and turned the menu over, trying to work out just what kind of cuisine this was, with its weird selection of dishes. She began to read through the blurb.

House of Bamboo offers an eclectic mix of both classic and contemporary Eastern fare refracted through a truly global prism to give you an Asian fusion experience that you will savour forever.

Asian fusion.

That rang a distant bell.

Asian fusion? Where had she last heard that? She couldn’t remember…

A waiter came over and placed a plate in front of her, momentarily breaking her train of thought. The plate was covered by a silver dome.

‘A taster, madam.’

She absently smiled without looking at him, staring at the plate as he lifted up the silver dome.