Heart thumping, I ran back down to the living room in time to hear Seth’s key in the front door, and suddenly they were inside, and Bridget was trying to smother laughter and saying, ‘Shhh!’ in an exaggerated whisper.

I threw myself on the sofa as she came in, face aglow in a way I couldn’t remember seeing since Romy was born, though the glow had been short-lived and she’d merely looked exhausted. Chad had live-streamed the birth to us in Canada.

‘You didn’t drive?’ I said, as though I didn’t already know.

‘Had a teensy drink, so left the car at the restaurant.’ She pointed, all gooey-eyed. ‘There she is! My beautiful, beautiful girl.’

‘Why, thank you,’ I said.

Bridget giggled for an unsettlingly long time. ‘I was talking about Romy.’

‘I know, I was joking.’ I glanced at Seth who’d followed her through, smelling of wine and good food, and the cold air outside – surely tonight it would snow – but he seemed to be avoiding my gaze. I noticed his hair was rumpled, as if Bridget had run her fingers through it; though it could have been the breeze. ‘I hope you weren’t bombarded with fans, and requests for selfies,’ I said to him.

‘Lovely food.’ Seth pushed his keys into his coat pocket, still not looking at me. ‘And no one seemed to recognise me or, if they did, they left me alone.’ His face was harder to read than Bridget’s. ‘How was Jack?’

‘Perfect.’

At last, his eyes landed on mine. ‘Honestly?’

‘Cross my heart.’

Bridget had lurched to the sofa to gaze at a still sleeping Romy, but now straightened and grabbed Seth’s hand. ‘I want a grand tour,’ she said. Her slightly glazed eyes flashed around the room, taking it all in. Despite her assertion that living in a cottage by the sea was ‘romantic’, I knew she’d have expected something grander because of who Seth was, and the images she’d seen online of his villa in Italy. ‘Bit bare,’ she concluded, though her Notting Hill house – from what I recalled from my very infrequent visits – was hardly stuffed with furniture, just expensive ‘pieces’ that spoke more of her ability to be able to afford them, than her own, personal taste. ‘And what’s that?’ She recoiled from the sight of the Christmas tree before sweeping Seth out of the room, heels clacking like a shire horse.

‘Can we do this another time?’ I said, as Seth threw me an unguarded look of helplessness over his shoulder, but she was already dragging him to the room next door and I got up and hastily followed.

‘Hey, you’ve done a nice job in here,’ she said, after crashing the light on and tottering over to the gleaming dining table. ‘I was telling Seth how good you were at interior design and that he was lucky to have you.’

‘You were?’ I found it hard to imagine Bridget bigging me up to anyone, let alone Seth.

‘She was,’ Seth confirmed in a meaningful way, and I realised he was letting me know that, as far as my sister was concerned, I was still doing up the cottage – that he’d guessed I hadn’t told her Felicity had beaten me to it.

‘Oh. Well, thanks,’ I muttered, a hot wave of guilt moving through me.

‘And you think you’ll get it all done before Christmas?’ Doubt clouded Bridget’s features, as if what she’d seen had convinced her I’d need at least a year to make the place look habitable.

‘She’s got a team in to help,’ Seth said.

‘Ooh, I didn’t know you had a team.’ Far from being sarcastic, Bridget sounded impressed as she sized up the room through narrowed eyes. ‘Good for you, Tilly Campbell,’ she slurred. ‘I always knew you had it in you to be successful, once you stopped being a lazy cow.’

There was the Bridget I knew. ‘How much has she had to drink?’ I asked Seth. He was looking intently from Bridget to me as if trying to work out how we could possibly be related. I guessed I wasn’t coming out of it well.

‘Oi!’ She wagged a finger at me. ‘You know I don’t drink.’ She hiccupped gently. ‘I might have had a couple of glasses of vino, but I’m not battered.’ She was definitely battered. She’d never have used the word battered otherwise, and definitely not with a hint of her old Devon accent.

‘It was just a couple of glasses, but she did mention she doesn’t normally drink, so…’ Seth shrugged, seeming amused, and I could tell he was completely taken with her – and why wouldn’t he be? Apart from her ferocious intelligence, she could be warm and witty, and looked stunning – even with faded lipstick, and a hint of curl returning to her straightened hair.

She leaned on one of the dining chairs, presenting her cleavage like a gift, and I noted Seth’s gaze was drawn there, as if her breasts were magnets.

‘I expect I’m driving you home, then.’ My voice was too loud.

‘I wanna see the rest of the house.’ Straightening up, Bridget crossed her arms, hoisting her bosoms even closer to her chin. ‘Can we go upstairs?’ she asked Seth.

‘Erm…’ He rubbed his cheek, darting me a look I couldn’t decipher. ‘I’d rather not disturb Jack,’ he said.

It dawned on me what Bridget was really asking.

‘What about Romy?’ I’d gone the full Mary Poppins now – only sterner, and more disapproving. ‘And what am I supposed to do, while you two…?’ I flapped my hand between them. ‘Do the business?’

‘The business?’ Bridget looked befuddled.

‘Business?’ Seth sounded vaguely appalled.

‘You know I like checking out bathrooms,’ said Bridget. I didn’t, but I’d clearly misunderstood. She was merely hoping the decor upstairs was a touch more luxurious than what she’d encountered so far.

‘I thought…’ I began, but Seth leapt in.

‘The bathroom’s the least appealing room in the house, and I promise you won’t like it one bit.’ He cocked his elbow for Bridget to hold onto. He still had his coat on, as if he wasn’t planning to stay. ‘Next time, you can have the grand tour.’

So, there was going to be a next time. Of course there was. Which was brilliant, obviously.

‘I’ll hold you to that.’ Bridget slipped her arm through his and let him escort her into the hallway, where she screwed up her eyes at the carpet as if seeing it for the first time. ‘Christ, that’s hideous,’ she said. ‘It’s like looking through a kaleidoscope only… much worse.’ She squinted up at Seth. ‘I got a kaleidoscope for Christmas, once. It did my head in.’

‘I’m sorry to hear that.’ Seth smiled at her, clearly enchanted. ‘I can’t imagine any child being satisfied with a kaleidoscope these days.’

‘I wasn’t satisfied then,’ Bridget declared. ‘I wanted a Rubik’s cube.’

‘She was only five.’ I’d heard the story before. ‘When I was five, I wanted a doll’s house.’

‘Dad made one for her.’ I immediately wished I hadn’t brought it up. Apparently, he’d spent hours designing and building it – had insisted on putting in a spiral staircase and a working lift – leading to accusations of favouritism from fifteen-year-old Bridget, even though she’d got the violin she’d asked for that Christmas (she gave it up six months later). ‘It was amaaaaazing.’

‘Which is why you set it on fire.’ The words were out before I’d even thought about saying them.

‘I didn’t mean to.’ Bridget checked Seth’s reaction out of the corner of her eye. ‘I’d been secretly smoking in Tilly’s room, and accidently dropped a lit match.’

‘Uh-oh,’ he said, seeming fascinated.

‘She did put it out, to be fair,’ I explained, grabbing my jacket off the banister where I’d left it earlier. ‘By throwing a glass of Coke all over it.’

‘Dad only went and “renovated” it for you, anyway,’ said Bridget, which was the closest she’d ever come to admitting she’d done it on purpose.

‘I don’t think Seth wants to hear about our childhood squabbles.’ I pointed to the door. ‘Why don’t you wait in the car, and I’ll fetch Romy out?’

She pointed at herself. ‘I’ll get Romy, and you wait in the car.’

‘You’re a bit drunk, Bee. It would be easier if I carried her out.’

‘She’s right,’ said Seth, flashing me a bland smile. ‘I’ll walk you to the car, Bridget.’

No doubt he was planning to thoroughly snog her again.

‘Okey-doke.’ She shot him a lopsided grin. ‘So nice to meet a real gennelman.’

Seth glanced towards the living room. ‘You might not be able to get Romy’s coat back on if she’s asleep,’ he said, directing the words somewhere over my shoulder. ‘Take the throw. You can drop it back sometime.’

‘Tomorrow.’ Bridget was fumbling with the door latch.

‘Sorry?’

‘She’s workin’ here, yeah? Gotta finish the job.’

‘Oh.’ Seth grimaced at me. ‘Of course, I meant tomorrow.’

It looked like the last thing he wanted was me at the cottage, and I couldn’t help wondering whether Bridget had said something about me that had made him wary – perhaps even convinced him I wasn’t a fit person to be around Jack, after all.

As he manoeuvred her outside, I plucked Romy’s coat and shoes from the living room floor and, making sure the throw was firmly tucked around her, picked her up and carried her outside. She barely stirred as I strapped her into her seat, while Seth did the same to Bridget in the front.

‘Thanks for a lovely evening,’ she was saying, pronouncing her words very carefully. ‘I had a very nice time, and hope we can do it again.’

‘I hope so too,’ he said.

I tried to ignore the little drop in my stomach, and told myself I was glad they’d hit it off.

‘Tilly’s lucky getting to see you every day,’ she grumbled, snatching at the lapels of his coat. Yanking his head close to hers she planted a smacker on his lips, and I looked away as I got in the car and started the engine, turning the heating up.

‘Thanks again for taking care of Jack,’ Seth said.

‘No problem.’ I sensed him looking at me, but couldn’t meet his gaze, and was glad when the interior light went off.

As he closed Bridget’s door, I drove off quickly, and even though I didn’t check my mirrors, I knew he was watching us go and wondered what he was thinking.

‘Such a nice man,’ murmured Bridget, sounding sleepily happy. ‘Thank you for setting me up with him, Tilly. I know I’d never have met him if it wasn’t for you.’

‘That’s OK.’ I was suddenly ashamed that I’d thought she might have bad-mouthed me to Seth. She’d even praised my design skills to him.

‘Why didn’t you tell me you’d saved his son from drowning?’

My head whipped round. ‘He told you that?’

‘Hey, watch the road!’ She flapped a floppy finger at the windscreen before her head lolled back against the seat. ‘Of course he did,’ she said. ‘He’s so grateful, Tilly. He talked about you a lot, actually.’

‘Oh?’

‘He obviously feels like he owes you big time, even though he’s let you loose on his cottage as a favour.’

Ignoring the last bit, I said, ‘Oh.’ What had I expected? He was still hung up on trying to repay me for saving Jack’s life, which was the only reason I was still around.

‘It was funny hearing someone talk about you like that,’ she mused.

‘Like what?’

‘As if he’s got a lot of respect for you, but then he would,’ she went on, as if talking to herself, ‘considering he’d watched you drag his son from the sea.’ Now her finger was wagging in front of my face. ‘Trust you to make a big splash.’ She paused and chuckled. ‘Splash! Do you get it?’

‘Yes, Bridget, I get it.’

‘You weren’t stalking him, were you, and that’s why you were on the beach at that precise moment?’

‘Of course I bloody wasn’t.’ I was having a ‘grown-up’ conversation with Rufus. ‘I just happened to be taking a walk.’ I threw her a look. ‘Why do you always think the worst of me?’

‘Because I know you,’ she said with a drowsy chuckle, as if I had a history of criminal behaviour, rather than a lack of ambition. Though, in Bridget’s book, they amounted to the same thing. ‘I expect Seth’s going to pay you well for doing up the cottage.’

I focused on a tricky bend. There were no lights on this stretch of road, and the moon had vanished behind some clouds.

‘You could have just accepted some money, without doing any work, but you didn’t and I really admire that, Tilly. Great idea to showcase your talent instead.’

‘Why would I take his money, Bee? Apart from anything else, I don’t need it.’

‘Well, you could have asked him to make a donation to charity,’ she said. ‘You know he’s a patron of Save the Children, and he supports war heroes too?’

‘I didn’t know that.’ Why hadn’t I accepted his suggestion of a donation to charity, instead of persuading him to date my sister?

Suddenly Bridget was upright and I slowed a little, certain she was going to ask whether Seth’s invitation to dinner had been a favour to me, but instead she said, ‘Tilly, do you fancy him yourself?’ She clutched at my arm. ‘I know he’s not your usual type, and you don’t like being around children, but he’s soooooo handsome and famous, and Jack sounds amazing—’

‘I’m not sixteen,’ I said coolly. ‘I don’t fancy Seth Donovan.’ My hammering heart said otherwise, but I wasn’t listening to it. ‘Why would you even think that?’

‘Er, because of everything I just said about him being handsome, et cetera.’ She let go of me and sank back. ‘I know you’re with Rufus, but it wouldn’t be surprising to have a crush on someone like Seth,’ Bridget continued. She turned to me, her eyes illuminated in a flash of headlights coming the other way. ‘I really like him.’

‘Well, that’s good,’ I said crisply. ‘Because he obviously likes you too.’

‘I know.’ She twisted to check on Romy and, before I could begin to process my train of thought, she said, ‘I told him about you and Rufus, and how it’s your first proper relationship and that you’re really making a go of it.’

My grip on the steering wheel momentarily loosened, and the car did a little swerve. ‘You talked to Seth about Rufus and me?’

‘He was really interested.’ She paused to yawn. ‘Asked me what he was like.’

‘What did you say?’

‘That he was a teacher, came highly recommended by our father and that you’re going to a wedding with him on Saturday, which might give you ideas.’

‘Ideas?’

‘About walking down the aisle.’

‘For god’s sake, Bee, can you honestly see me walking down an aisle?’ I felt furious all of a sudden. I hated the idea of her discussing me with Seth behind my back. Or, at least, discussing Rufus and me, when I wasn’t even sure where our relationship was going. ‘We’ve only been seeing each other for a month or so. I’ve never even met his family.’

‘You’ll meet them on Saturday.’ She tried to cross her legs, but there wasn’t enough room, and she gave up. ‘Good idea to see them all together under one roof.’

The thought of it made my scalp itch, and I was grateful that we’d finally arrived home and I didn’t have to respond.

‘Better get Romy into bed.’ I whipped my seat belt off, and before Bridget had time to react I was out of the car and releasing my niece from her seat.

‘Tilly,’ she murmured, her breath sweet and warm on my cheek as I lifted her out. ‘Want a doggy.’

‘Of course you do,’ I whispered, hoping Bridget hadn’t overheard, but she was on the drive in her stockinged feet, shoes dangling from her fingers, gazing up at the sky.

‘It’s snowing,’ she said, with uncharacteristic awe.

Sure enough, white flakes were whirling down, melting on my upturned face. ‘Look!’ I made to show Romy, but she was sleeping again, her cheek pressed into my shoulder, so I made a wish for Jack to open his eyes and look out of the window, and for Seth to be with him when he did.

‘Snow!’ Bridget twirled on her tiptoes, arms outstretched, as if briefly transported back to childhood. ‘A perfect end to a perfect evening,’ she said.