We spent Sunday morning in bed, then pottered to a local café for a fry-up. I kept my body as close to Matt’s as I could, conjoined by sex and sleepiness and the laziness of a slowly dispersing hangover.

He finally left in the afternoon and I was just sorting out the washing and putting the house straight again when you arrived home. You came tearing into the house – bear under your arm – as I opened the front door. You were on fire with excitement.

‘Mummy, Mummy, I’ve got bunk beds!’

‘Bunk beds?’ I looked back to Richard who was wiping his feet on the mat, his face turned to his shoes.

‘She’s always wanted them.’

‘I know that.’ I blinked, already cross. ‘And we always said no because they’re dangerous. What if she falls out in the middle of the night?’

‘She won’t.’ Richard shrugged, avoiding looking at me.

You skipped round the kitchen, calling out to me: ‘There’s a hidey-hole underneath the stairs! Full of toys.’

‘You should have talked to me about it first,’ I said to Richard. ‘I’m her mother.’

‘And I’m her father.’ He moved into the hall and set down your bag there. ‘It’s perfectly safe, OK? It’s got proper carpeted stairs for climbing up and down and a big lip on the top bed. She couldn’t fall out if she tried.’

We were talking in low voices and you came running back to find out what was going on.

‘Mummy!’ You stopped in your tracks, stared at my face. A red weal stretched across my cheek where I’d hit the edge of the chair. I thought I’d done a good job concealing it with make-up but you weren’t fooled for a second. ‘Was it a wolf?’

You lifted your hand and I stooped to let you touch it, tracing the lines with your finger.

‘I had a bang, Gracie. That’s all. Silly Mummy.’

You looked doubtful. ‘Will it get better?’

‘Of course it will. Now take your coat off. You can have a quick play and then it’s bath time.’ I held up my hand. ‘Five minutes.’

You disappeared into the sitting room.

When I turned back to Richard, he narrowed his eyes, looking too at my bruised cheek.

‘Your girlfriend gave me that. Did she tell you? She just happened to bump into us.’ I drew sarcastic quote marks in the air around the words ‘just happened’.

‘My fiancée.’

‘Oh, please.’

He hesitated, shuffled his feet. His brown lace-ups looked cheap compared to Matt’s shoes. I thought of him in the evenings, sitting cross-legged on the kitchen floor, surrounded by brushes and tins of polish, one hand inside a shoe and the other patiently buffing the leather.

‘Ella was very upset when she came home.’

‘She was upset?’

‘Look, I don’t know what happened—’

I opened my mouth and he held up his hand to stop me.

‘And I don’t want to know. I said the same to Ella. I’m not interested. Leave her alone, Jen. Please. This isn’t about us any more. It’s about Gracie. You two need to get along, for her sake. Alright?’

I wanted to defend myself, to point out that Ella was the one who’d bothered us, who’d gone out of her way to cause trouble, but I saw his face and swallowed it back. It wasn’t worth it. He’d never believe me anyway. I took a deep breath.

‘You told me she couldn’t have children.’

He looked taken aback. ‘What’s that got to do with it?’

I hesitated. I knew Richard and he didn’t look guilty or embarrassed. Quite the opposite, in fact. He looked indignant, as if I were the one being mean.

‘Richard.’ I didn’t know how to tell him my suspicions. ‘I think Ella had a daughter.’

‘What’re you talking about?’

‘Ask Gracie. She says she’s seen her. Ella’s daughter.’

Richard looked cross. ‘That’s ridiculous.’

I pulled a face. ‘But Gracie—’

‘What? She’s three, for god’s sake. She wants to pretend she’s got a sister. That’s all.’

I opened my mouth and closed it again. How could I tell him about the look on Ella’s face, her utter shock? About Venice and the strange giggling inside the bell tower. About the shadowy presence beside you in the mist.

He went into the sitting room to say goodbye to you, then pushed straight past me to the front door. He hesitated there and turned back.

‘I’m sorry for what happened, Jen. Believe me. I never wanted to hurt you.’ He hesitated. ‘But I’m starting to wonder if I knew you at all. I never had you down as silly. Or cruel.’

Afterwards, I joined you on the sitting room floor where you had the bricks out and were building a multi-storey garage for your cars.

‘So, sweetheart.’ I tried to join in, to win you back. ‘How was your sleepover? Did you have a nice time?’

You didn’t answer, just scrabbled through the box of bricks looking for the piece you wanted. I moved in closer and added a few bricks of my own to your wall.

‘How was Auntie Ella? Was she fun?’

You nodded without looking up.

I reached round you and kissed your hair, inhaled its fresh, lemony smell and tightened my arms in a hug.

‘Don’t, Mummy.’ You fought me off, cross. ‘I’m busy.’