I was not expecting her. Not that day. Not ever again, if I was honest with myself.

The knock came early, before the office lights had fully warmed, before the staff arrived, before Claudia had even opened her laptop. The boutique floor was still dim, shadows stretching long across the sewing tables, and the windows wore a sheen of condensation from the storm the night before.

I was holding a cup of tea, still too hot to drink. I had not yet sat down. I had only just placed my bag by the desk ...