The hurt was all the sharper because I had no idea why Laura* did it. I had long regarded her as one of my best friends, our bond built on a shared love of the Kardashians and Victorian literature.
When I found out I was pregnant in January, after two miscarriages and a round of IVF, I was overwhelmed with delight...quickly followed by a state of anxiety.
Every time a barista yells a name across the room, I try to imagine myself yelling it across a playground for the next decade. But nothing has stuck - and I'm six months pregnant.
It's easy to take our friendships for granted. I never really analysed mine properly until there were two seismic events in my life: leaving my marriage and leaving my job.
It is ten years since my life imploded in my mid-40s. I wish I'd known back then what I know now: that a midlife crisis is not only a good thing, but essential for all women.
Like many people, I've been gripped by rumours of a feud in the Beckham clan. Did Brooklyn, 26, really snub David's 50th birthday celebrations? Do his wife and his mother really hate each other?