She still knew very little about his background, because he rarely spoke about himself. ‘You have an Irish name, are you Irish?’ she asked him one day as they were taking time out from rehearsing. Blue eyes lit on her, and they were guarded. ‘That’s the first time you’ve asked me anything about my background. Does that mean you’re interested?’ She shrugged. ‘Only to the extent of the question.’ ‘You certainly don’t give a man much room in which to move. Am I Irish, you ask? No, I’m not. Do I sound Irish?’ ‘No.’ She waited for him to say more but it wasn’t forthcoming. ‘Is that all you’re going to say?’ ‘I answered your question to the extent it required.’ He laughed when she stuck her tongue out at him. ‘My name is William and I shortened it to Liam. I thought it sounded better than Will, and would make a less common professional name than Bill.’ ‘I knew someone called Billy once. You look a bit like him.’ The expression in his eyes sharpened.
