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Alyssa spluttered out a laugh. ‘She was not this cheeky in the days when she used to dish out fizzy sweets in the corner shop,’ she whispered to Devan.

‘We’ll watch out for those gooseberries,’ Devan called back, giving Alyssa’s bum a quick squeeze and making her jump.

When they’d grabbed tea from Mrs H and found themselves a quiet spot to sit under the apple trees, Alyssa talked Devan through her allotment plans and he offered to help, even though it wasn’t an official task day. Alyssa had once thought it was sneaky of the app to throw them into an ongoing project, but much like they’d both enjoyed going back to check on Nicole Pigman and had agreed to help out more at the animal rescue centre, Alyssa was coming to embrace most of the app’s ideas. Which brought her to another reason she wanted to talk to Devan.

‘Can we influence the love tasks ’Appy Together chooses for us?’

He ran a hand through his hair. ‘No.’

Did he sound a little shifty?

She gave him a teasing nudge. ‘Go on. You fixed it for us to get stuck in that tiny tent, didn’t you?’

‘I did not! I would have arranged something swishier than a piece of two-man polyester. Thanks for your faith in my taste in romantic dates, but nope. You can’t beat the algorithm.’

‘But did you try?’

‘What do you take me for?’ He nudged her back. ‘I only use my powers for good.’

‘Would it count as good if I wanted to use our next task to bring more love to Hartglove? I know it’s a cause that’s important to you, what with Emmalina and your general adoration for this kooky place. Not to mention that you and your T-shirt twin always like an excuse to get new tops printed.’ She nodded to Mrs Halfpenny’s current ‘Save Hartglove – Lettuce Be Friends’ number.

‘I do love an ill-fitting, badly sloganed T-shirt,’ he admitted. ‘So what are you thinking?’

It didn’t take her long to reel off her idea, even if part of her was still petrified at the thought. It would mean facing something she’d barely been able to think about since she’d come back here. There would be a lot of cobwebs to dust off, both real and metaphorical. But like Hedgehog from the animal centre had said – sometimes your mission had to be bigger than your own crap. And now and again, your mission had to change its course – even if she wasn’t going to make a song and dance about it.

‘Miss Heart, are you starting to care about your little old hometown?’ Devan asked quietly, when she was finished.

‘Shh, we can’t have people saying that,’ she joked. ‘It would be bad for my high-flying, girl-about-London image.’

‘True,’ he said. Although she wasn’t sure his smile met his eyes.

Then he stood a little abruptly as though he was as spooked by the L-word ‘London’ as much as she was by ‘love’.

Perhaps he was stuck with the thought that she’d once chosen it above staying here and being with him, and she could again.

He brushed himself down and began to stroll, so she followed.

‘You’re not missing your yoga retreats and the glamorous London parties?’ he asked. ‘I mean, I wouldn’t blame you.’

She laughed, a touch sadly. ‘Some of it was just for the pics. Yoga gives me a crick in the neck, and don’t get me started on fake-smiling until your face cracks.’

‘Damn it. I quite enjoyed your Instagram snaps in those extremely figure-hugging yoga pants.’

‘How dare you!’ She gave him a play slap.

‘Though I prefer you in the flesh, wearing allotment-muddy joggers. Or anything.’

They’d reached a spot near some bushes, and he pulled her towards him by the waistband. She giggled, their faces coming close.

‘Apologies for my weird, jealous of London moment. And I’m sorry I can’t hack my own app to help with your idea. But I know you could make it happen without an algorithm fixing it. And I’m here for the donkey work. I know the community would be right behind you too, with their bunting and banners.’

‘And probably a lot of apple-themed cake,’ she added. Because thinking about sugary offerings detracted from the part of her brain that was screaming, What fresh hell are you getting yourself into?

‘You had me at cake,’ he whispered, his hands moving around her waist and settling gently on the small of her back, giving her happy shivers.

Their faces drew nearer, and she couldn’t resist pressing her lips to his, even if she wasn’t usually the sort for making out in the town centre’s foliage.

Pastel pink blossom petals wisped around them in the light breeze, one landing softly on her cheek but not distracting her. Her hands slid up to his hair, her fingers running through the back of it, tugging him down so they could kiss more deeply.

‘You are going to single-handedly ruin my good-guy image,’ he groaned, as she let her hands move down his back to that firm bum of his.

‘Who says I’ll only use one hand?’

When they finally pulled away from each other, Alyssa trying not to think about bare bottoms and gooseberry bushes, she thought she heard movement close by. Did she just spot someone with a phone angled towards them, hiding in the next row of shrubbery? But whoever it was ducked away quickly and disappeared.

Then Alyssa laughed. They’d probably just been waving their phone around to get a signal, because reception was pretty iffy. She wasn’t living in a spy movie, and nobody around here much cared what Alyssa Heart got up to. And she was learning she liked it that way.