The light was dim inside, but as my eyes adjusted to the gloom I spotted Eddie standing near the dartboard passing the time of day with a bloke who was idly throwing darts into the triple-twenty segment with astonishing accuracy. Always aware of who had come in or gone out of his establishment, Eddie had caught sight of me before I’d had time to call over to him.

‘Leah Allen,’ he said, his voice deep and rounded. He walked quickly over to where I was standing and gave me a curt little nod in lieu of a hug.

‘How the devil are you, hinny?’ he asked, looking me up and down like he couldn’t believe that I wasn’t a little girl any more. ‘Aye, how time flies,’ he added.

‘I’m good, Eddie,’ I replied simply, not wanting to get lost down memory lane. ‘And yourself?’

I could see how he was. Eddie did triathlons, an unlikely pastime for a landlord, and every muscle he possessed was toned, every sinew taut despite his age. He radiated health like he hailed from Mount Olympus itself.

‘Good,’ he confirmed. ‘All good. What can I get you?’ He gestured to his bar, but I shook my head.

‘I can’t stay long,’ I said. ‘I’ve left the kids playing outside. I just wanted to ask you a favour.’

Eddie led me to a table, pushed a chair across to me with his foot and hopped on to another himself.

‘Fire away,’ he said, a mixture of caution and curiosity flicking across his face.

‘Could you give a friend of mine a job?’

‘What kind of job, like?’ he asked, sounding unsure.

‘As a barmaid. It wouldn’t be for long,’ I added. ‘More like work experience than a job as such.’

Eddie grinned at me, his whitened teeth flashing in the gloom. ‘And who’s this job I’m supposed to create for?’ He eyed me suspiciously, but I could tell he was intrigued.

‘She’s called Clio. You’ll like her, honest.’

‘And has she done much bar work?’

I shook my head. ‘She’s never even had a job.’

Eddie looked less sure now. ‘She’s not a junkie, is she?’ he asked.

The idea of Clio as a junkie was so hilarious that I had to laugh. ‘God, no. She’s never had a job because her family are loaded. But she’s sad and I just thought that if she had a taste of the real world it might cheer her up a bit. She’s dead nice, honest. And she’s smart, too, and really pretty. I’m sure she’ll get the hang of it without any bother. But you might have to cut her some slack to start with. When I say she’s never had a job, it’s actually worse than that. She’s never lifted a finger. They have staff where she lives.’