‘Oh.’ Edie fiddled with her napkin. ‘I’ve never done seducing before,’ she admitted. ‘I’ve been rather too busy. I haven’t had any practice. I don’t know what to say.’

‘I don’t think you should say anything.’

‘Oh.’ Edie sagged. ‘So you wouldn’t consider it?’

Pip seemed to recover some of his equilibrium. ‘Edie, you are a very attractive woman. Very attractive. There’s no doubt about that. But you’re married. Married with several children.’

‘I can get away,’ she said. They both looked at Archie. ‘Sometimes.’

‘Look.’ Pip shook his head. ‘I’m sorry if you thought I’d led you on. But I’m not that kind of guy. I’m hopeless at commitment, but I do sort of like monogamy. You and your sister are both very beautiful….’

My sister. Lyssa. Edie could hear her brain going whirr-whirr-thunk. It was Lyssa all those sideways longing looks were aimed at. She should have stuck by her original assessment. It was only Lyssa insisting that they were just friends which had convinced her otherwise. ‘Oh my word,’ she said. ‘It’s Lyssa. She’s the one you’ve fallen for.’

Pip flushed.

‘Oh, my word. Oh, my word. How can I have been so stupid? Of course it’s Lyssa! Why wouldn’t it be?’

Pip looked sheepish. ‘I have to admit I don’t really have a vested interest in seeing Lyssa and Jake get back together.’

Edie could have wept. ‘Now I feel very foolish.’

‘Don’t,’ Pip said. ‘Don’t. It’s an easy mistake.’

‘Ah, you get women every day asking if you want to have an affair with them?’

‘Not every day,’ Pip said with a smile. They both laughed. ‘And I am flattered but…’

Archie piped up again. ‘Twat!’

‘This is my life,’ Edie said with a weary sigh. ‘Old before my time with half a dozen kids in tow. I can’t blame you for not wanting to get involved.’

Pip reached out and took her hand. ‘Do you know what I’d do if I were you?’

Edie shook her head.

‘Go home, organise a babysitter and take your husband out on the town tonight. Tell him how much you love him and then both get blindly drunk and dance until dawn.’

‘That’s your recipe for getting some excitement back into my sad little life?’

‘If you want to be seen as a woman again, it’s better that it’s through your husband’s eyes. That way is a lot less painful in the long run.’

‘But a lot less fun.’

‘I’d put it to the test first,’ Pip advised.

Edie puffed expansively. ‘I guess you’re right.’

‘I am,’ Pip said. He took her hand and kissed it tenderly. ‘But that doesn’t mean that I’m not very flattered.’

Edie blushed. ‘I can’t believe I’ve been so stupid.’

‘Grandma!’ Archie shouted.