‘Well this is a surprise,’ she says, as she re-enters the little ward, pausing for a moment in the doorway as if she’s waiting for applause. She gives a little flourish of her hands as James – looking slightly uncomfortable – steps into the room behind her.

‘So I found this young man in the corridor, looking for you.’ She raises an approving eyebrow and gives a wide smile. ‘Jess, you didn’t tell me how handsome he was. James, this is my mother, Beth.’

I stand up, and Mum – apparently oblivious to the fact that we’re in a hospital ward and not the foyer of a theatre after curtain fall – gives the whole room the benefit of her widest smile. She always perks up when there’s a good-looking man around.

‘Hi,’ says James, leaning over to give me a kiss, which lands on my temple. He looks slightly wide-eyed, as if he hadn’t quite been expecting the full Mum treatment. Nobody usually is. She gestures to the chair on the other side of Nanna Beth’s bed, her armful of bangles jingling. ‘James, do have a sit-down. You must be tired after working this morning and then driving down all this way. Was the traffic awful?’

‘Not too bad.’

‘Hello, James,’ says Nanna Beth. She smooths down the white cotton sheet over her lap and looks at me for a moment. It’s a look that says well, you kept this one quiet.

‘I thought I’d better come and see if there was anything I could do,’ says James. He’s still in a suit, the top button of his shirt undone and his tie off. He looks pretty good, actually. I notice the granddaughter of the woman opposite eyeing him up and I feel a little surge of pride that I have a handsome boyfriend in a suit and a whole life in London and all that stuff. I catch his eye and he gives me a quick smile, before turning to Nanna Beth.

‘So how are you feeling? I’m sorry we’re meeting in these circumstances.’

‘Not too bad,’ she says. She definitely looks brighter. Mum’s looking perky, as well. I – on the other hand – haven’t had a second to brush my hair, am wearing no make-up, and the same top I’ve had on for the last three days because I forgot to pack anything besides pyjamas, knickers, and a toothbrush.

Half an hour later, when James has left the ward to go and get some bits and pieces from the shop (on a mission that was clearly made up by Mum, just so she could pass verdict), I sit on the side of Nanna’s bed biting my thumbnail and listening to the two of them talking.