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Giles looked across from the driver’s seat. ‘What is it?’

‘No, it’s nothing,’ Holly said.

‘That’s obviously not true. It’s obviously something, or you wouldn’t be pulling that weird face.’

‘I’m not pulling a weird face.’

‘You absolutely are. I swear to God, if you don’t tell me why you’re sitting in my sports car looking constipated, I will stop right now and kick you out.’

Frustration shot through her, but Holly sighed a long sigh and relented.

‘Do you not think that perhaps you should know a little bit more about Sienna before you marry her? I mean, you don’t even know where her family is from. And six months, I mean, can anyone really know a person properly in six months? I don’t think you can. You don’t even live together yet.’

‘You’re saying I don’t know Sienna?’

It was an outright question and a perfect opportunity to give an outright answer, but she couldn’t do that.

‘Have you spoken to Faye?’ she said instead.

‘Faye? What’s Faye got to do with this?’

This was it. She had to get it out, or she’d go insane.

‘I just wondered if you’d spoken to her. If she’d had anything to say about the weekend? You know. Like how Idemandedwe go to the pub and that type of thing.’

Holly could see the anger simmering away in Giles. This was not how the conversation was meant to go at all, but she didn’t know how to get out of it. She was too far in now.

‘She’s sent me a couple of messages,’ Giles said. ‘She said she had a really lovely time and to thank Sienna for arranging it. That’s what people normally do when a friend does something nice. They say thank you.’

She knew it was a dig, aimed at getting a rise out of her, but she didn’t care. She ignored it. He hadn’t answered her question.

‘Can you just tell me if you’ve spoken to her?’ She reached her hand across the gear stick and placed it on top of his. It was something she must’ve done dozens of times, and yet a sharp spark of electricity fired between the two of them. Hurriedly, she pulled her hand back.

‘You have to understand, I just… I just don’t want you to get hurt. You know that’s all I care?—’

She didn’t have a chance to finish her sentence. The car suddenly swerved and Holly gasped as she grabbed the door handle. Before she could work out what was happening, they had stopped again; Giles had pulled the car up onto the verge where he slammed on the brakes and looked at her.

‘You want to do this?’ he said. ‘Do you really want to do this now?’

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The anger in his voice was enough to bring Holly to tears. She opened her mouth to speak, to explain herself, but even drawing breath was enough to make the tears flow faster.

Hastily, she wiped her face. Giles let out a loud groan.

‘Let’s just get through today, okay?’ he said. ‘Let’s go to this damn exhibition so that I can find my fiancée the florist of her wedding dreams.’

His fiancée. It wasn’t the first time on this journey that he’d said that. Actually, it felt like he said it more than Sienna’s name. Was it to reinforce a point? They would be getting married, and anything Holly said about the woman would be seen as a personal slight on Giles? Or was it something else? He’d already said he’d seen her email, so was he responding without replying? Yes, now she thought about it, that felt like exactly what was happening.

Holly’s tears were replaced with a numbness.

‘Okay.’ She nodded as her voice choked out the words. ‘You’re right. Let’s just get through this.’

For the last remaining hour of the car journey, Holly didn’t even attempt to speak. There was nothing she could say. At least, no questions she could ask that she would like to hear the answers to. And yet, as they drove upwards along a steep and winding track and reached a set of large, cast-iron gates, she couldn’t help the words from slipping out of her mouth.

‘Wow,’ she said. ‘It’s a freaking castle.’

‘It would appear so.’