The doorbell went and Jessica heard Caroline calling, ‘Can you get it?’

As Jessica opened the door, Randall gave her a big grin, a hug and a ‘hi’. He kissed her on the cheek as his friend followed him in. Jessica closed the door behind them and turned around, noticing the other guy for the first time. He was a little taller than her with short black hair and a nicely trimmed stubbly beard. He was wearing fashionable dark blue jeans and a nice loose-fitting linen shirt. It had an extra button undone at the top and his thick dark chest hair was clearly visible. He had a cheeky-looking grin already on his face as he eyed her nervously, keeping his hands in his pockets.

‘How ya doin’, Jess? This is Ryan,’ said Randall.

‘Hi.’ The two of them shook hands.

‘You’re probably better waiting in the living room,’ Jessica said. ‘Caz is still getting changed and I’m on kitchen duty.’

Jessica returned to the kitchen but soon heard Caroline’s bedroom door open and then the ‘hellos’ from the other room. Her friend then came back into the kitchen. She had clearly put a lot of effort into her appearance. She was wearing a short low-cut red cocktail dress with heels, even though they were inside, and had her hair tied up away from her face, which was impressively made-up. She looked adult and sophisticated, leaving Jessica feeling a bit silly in her work outfit. ‘You look great,’ Jessica said.

Caroline gave a half-curtsey. ‘Thanks, do you reckon Randall will like it?’

‘He’d be crazy not to.’

‘Did you say hello to Ryan?’

‘Yes.’

‘What do ya reckon?’

‘Of what?’

Caroline looked sideways at her friend. ‘You know. What do you reckon?’

Jessica smiled. ‘He’s okay.’

‘Do you know he’s a vet?’

‘So?’

‘Y’know. Good with his hands, cares for animals, nice guy.’

Jessica ignored the insinuation. ‘When’s tea?’

‘Soon. Go say hello to the boys.’

‘Okay, fine. But let’s open the wine first.’

Jessica went into the living room with her topped-up glass where Randall and Ryan were watching a show on television about American truckers. It wasn’t the kind of programme she would usually have sat through. Randall was in the reclining seat, giving Jessica little option but to sit next to Ryan on the sofa. She would have to have words with Caroline when they were next alone. If she and Randall were going to try to fix her up with someone, they should at least try to be less obvious about it.

‘All right?’ she said as she slouched on to the sofa. ‘Tea won’t be long, apparently.’

‘I’ll go see how Caz is getting on,’ Randall said, standing up and heading off to the kitchen.

‘Be more obvious about it . . .’ Jessica thought but said nothing. She suddenly found the television programme incredibly interesting but noticed Ryan looking at her and gave him a half-smile.

Ryan was smiling back at her. He really did have a boyish grin. ‘So is it “Jess” or “Jessica”?’

‘Either, I don’t mind.’

‘Okay then, “Jess”, Randy says you work for the police?’

‘Yeah . . . Er, “Randy”?’

‘Ha. Yeah, Randy. It started off as a bit of a joke really but it kind of stuck.’

‘How do you know him?’

‘Just from out and about. Nowhere special.’ There was an awkward pause. ‘He’s a nice guy. He likes your mate a lot.’

‘He better.’

‘I’m not sure he’s really had a girlfriend before.’

‘Really?’

‘Well, I’ve never seen him go around with someone like he does Caroline.’

Another bout of quiet was broken only by the sound of the TV. ‘So . . . police then?’ Ryan tried again.

‘Yes.’

‘What is it you do?’

‘I’m in CID.’

‘Oh, are you . . . ? Oh yeah. You were in the papers, “The Houdini Hunter”.’

Jessica sighed. ‘That bloody headline . . . yeah, something like that.’

‘That’s pretty cool. You’re famous.’

‘Not really.’

Ryan’s small talk was beginning to break through Jessica’s apathy. It wasn’t that she didn’t think he was good-looking, she just wasn’t interested in having a boyfriend or anything like that. She didn’t like the fact Caroline and Randall had more or less forced her into the situation either. As for the actual talk, she didn’t make a habit of chatting to anyone about her job but there was something about Ryan; he was persistent at least.

Jessica could barely believe she was saying the words. ‘I hear you’re a vet.’

She didn’t even really like animals and had never been impressed by what people’s jobs were. In the course of being a police officer, she had come across despicable people with terrific professions and lovely people who earned terrible money doing jobs most others wouldn’t even think twice about taking. You learned to judge people on their actions, not their wealth, name or occupation.

‘I work at a practice in the centre. I only passed out a few months ago and was lucky to get a job so quickly.’

‘So you like animals then . . . ?’

‘Yeah, it kinda comes with the job.’ They both laughed but Jessica knew it was a stupid question. She would have been embarrassed if she had asked something so silly in an interview room. There she felt natural but trying to talk to someone normal felt alien.

‘How long have you been with the police?’ he asked.

‘Seven or eight years. Two and a bit in uniform, two training as a detective, then three or so since then.’

‘Do you enjoy it?’

‘I don’t know. Sometimes.’ Jessica felt vulnerable admitting that. A chill went down her back. She did enjoy it, of course. She enjoyed the wins, the results, the convictions. She didn’t enjoy the inertia and frustration, the acquittals and failures. She wasn’t having fun at the moment.

She could feel Ryan looking at her, almost analysing her discomfort. It was broken by Caroline’s voice from the kitchen. ‘Tea’s up.’

The dining table was fairly small for four of them but the meal was fabulous. It certainly made a change from Jessica’s usual diet of takeaways and microwaved food. The first course was some type of potato balls with a tomato sauce. The main course was a fish and rice dish, while dessert was a fully homemade cheesecake. It was a truly terrific effort. They all thanked Caroline for her work and Jessica volunteered to do the dishes. It wasn’t something she would usually do but, seeing as her friend had put so much energy into the evening, whereas she had simply come home and been a bit grumpy, it was the least she could do.

Caroline and Randall went to relax in the living room. Jessica had now taken to calling her friend’s boyfriend ‘Randy’ now she knew about the nickname. The poor guy seemed a little embarrassed but it was all in good humour.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Ryan hung around in the kitchen to help out too. She found herself not minding. ‘Your mate can’t half cook,’ Ryan said.

‘Yup, she’s always been a top chef.’

‘Can you?’

‘Cook? Yeah. Beans on toast or pot noodle and there’s no one better.’ She gave Ryan a grin. At some point during the evening another button on his shirt had come undone, possibly deliberately. Maybe it was the wine but Jessica seemed to think his chest hair had grown during the evening. His chin stubble certainly seemed to have done. His eyes were dark and friendly.

Jessica washed the dishes, while Ryan dried before they realised they hadn’t thought it through, seeing as the guest didn’t know where anything went. Given her lack of skill in the kitchen, Jessica was fully aware that she wasn’t entirely sure where all the pots went either – but she at least had a better chance of getting it right than Ryan did.

They made more small talk and giggled to each other. Jessica finished another glass of wine and opened a further bottle from the selection they kept under the sink. ‘Emergency alcohol’ they called it. As they finished, Jessica took the bottle and went into the living room with Ryan. Randall was still sitting in the recliner, with Caroline cuddled across his lap, her short dress riding around her thighs. Jessica refilled her friend’s glass and went to sit on the sofa next to Ryan. She wasn’t complaining this time.