Desire tends to override common sense – and that, though it is not often that we realize it, is its business. It is the mirage effect - an illusion that knowledge makes us laugh at, in the comforts of our homes; but an illusion that knowledge fails to dispel, in an actual dessert.

It did not help that he had manners that charmed. There was something cold about him – ice, that seemed part and parcel of his personality – but she could not put her finger on it. More unfortunately, perhaps, she did not attempt to. She was aware that there was something muscular about his arm, something strong and quite at ease, and Nicola held on to it like a badge of pride, her key into a world she had often striven – and often failed – to be an unasked part of.

If she had expected an answer that would let her into his nature, hand her the key to the kind of person he was, she could not have been more mistaken. “Opinions and facts are not the same thing,” he said, and though his smile was light, she knew better than to broach the subject, again. “I keep the former to myself. Perhaps you would fancy a drink, Nicola? A firewhiskey to warm yourself up?”