Jessica glanced after Justin and then back to Alicia, who was still talking to Paul Radley. Seeing him there was clearly more than a little disconcerting for Justin, given the attention Paul had paid Alicia at her party. She really couldn’t blame Justin for leaving, after seeing the man attempt to monopolise her again, here of all places.

She should intervene, she supposed. Clearly, Alicia needed rescuing. Her daughter needed her right now. Jessica doubted she would do in lieu of her mother.

Seeing Sophie was extremely upset, Jessica placed an arm around her niece’s shoulders and eased her towards her.

‘Why is he going? Without Mum?’ Sophie asked, tears cascading down her face. ‘I don’t get it?’

Jessica hugged her closer. ‘I think he just needs some space, sweetheart,’ she said. ‘Don’t worry, he’ll probably be at home when you get there.’

‘They’re not coping.’ Sophie cried harder. ‘They’re avoiding talking about him, about anything meaningful. I don’t know what to do.’

‘They’re hurting, lovely,’ Jessica said soothingly. ‘Probably both feeling guilty and not sure how to reach out to each other. I know you want to help, but there’s nothing you can do in reality. Just give them some time, and remember they love you however preoccupied they might seem.’

Sophie nodded. ‘I don’t want to go to the reception either,’ she sniffled. ‘Not without Dad. People I’ve never even met will be trying to talk to me about Luke, and I know they’ll mean well, but they didn’t know him, did they? It’s just…’

‘Too much?’ Jessica suggested.

Sophie’s nod this time was one of relief.

‘I tell you what, why don’t you come and stay with me for a few days? We could have a good natter, try to put the world to rights, watch romantic films when that fails, and then have a good cry together.’

Sophie didn’t look sure.

‘It would be good therapy,’ Jessica said. ‘We could even go out for the odd pizza, or whatever you fancy. What do you say? I could use the company. I’m a bit fed up of knocking around my empty house on my own, to be honest, and it might give your mum and dad a bit of space.’

‘I don’t know,’ Sophie said hesitantly. ‘Do you think Mum would mind?’

Jessica glanced towards where Alicia was still talking to Paul Radley. ‘I shouldn’t think so. She’ll understand you need some space, too. She’s going to be tied up at the reception anyway from the looks.’

Sophie followed her gaze. ‘Who’s he?’ she asked, perturbed.

‘Just a friend,’ Jessica supplied. ‘An old work colleague. He’s been working in Dubai for a few years. They’ve obviously got things to catch up on. Look, if you really can’t face the reception, we’ll have a word with your mum and slip off now. We could go and grab your stuff on the way. Your dad’s probably headed off home, so you might be able to have a word with him before you leave. Sound like a plan?’

‘But how will mum get to the reception?’ Sophie asked, clearly concerned about her mum, which was commendable. Sophie was turning out to be a very caring young woman. Jessica would be proud to have a daughter like her. She couldn’t help but feel a pang of jealousy as she recalled her own lost babies. The man who’d been in her life back then had seemed to think she shouldn’t even grieve over them, since she’d never managed to get past the crucial three-month stage of her pregnancies.

She had grieved for them, silently. She’d even grieved for their indifferent father, pathetically, since a man who’d walked out on her while she’d been losing their child hadn’t been worth wasting a single tear on.

Shaking off her sadness, because here wasn’t the place if she wasn’t to end up sobbing like a child herself, Jessica turned her attention back to Sophie, Alicia really should be paying her a bit more attention. She was bound to be emotional after standing up there and giving the eulogy so beautifully. But then, Alicia wouldn’t know whether she was on her head or her heels right now. And Paul Radley reappearing certainly wouldn’t be helping her emotional state.

‘She’ll travel in the funeral car,’ she said, smiling reassuringly. ‘And if she doesn’t want to do that, I’m sure one of the guests won’t mind taking her.’

Paul Radley, for one. Jessica debated the wisdom of allowing Alicia to be alone in his company for too long. But she clearly did need to talk to him. As Alicia had said, when he’d turned up at her party uninvited, she needed to establish why he’d reappeared after so long. She could hardly bury her head in the sand and ignore the fact that he was here.

She actually might be doing Alicia a favour, taking Sophie off her hands for a while. And with a bit of luck, they would catch Justin at home. Plainly, he’d been upset and angry, seeing Paul Radley here. Jessica really couldn’t blame him. The least she could do was offer him a shoulder and try to reassure him.