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his feet. ‘Ladies and gentlemen, I’d like to take this opportunity to invite you to a wedding in London on the eighteenth of next month. Formal invitations will follow, but this is advance notice so you can note the date in your diaries.’
    There was an outbreak of exclamations.
    ‘So soon?’ Tina, thinking of Sylvie, who’d been told to wait for a spring wedding.
    ‘But that’s only – what? – three weeks away!’ Rosemary.
    ‘Three weeks today,’ James confirmed. ‘Time enough to buy a new hat, Ma!’
    ‘But – aren’t there things to arrange?’
    ‘Nothing major. Obviously, we’ll be living in my flat, and Abigail will lease hers. She’ll use the converted loft as her studio.’
    ‘Is there any heat up there?’ Andrew, ever practical, enquired.
    ‘I’ll get one of those portable radiators; it won’t be a problem.’
    Soon afterwards the party broke up, and having helped carry dishes inside and had their offers of further assistance declined, the guests made their various ways home.
    ‘What did you think of her?’ Andrew asked, as he helped stack the dishwasher.
    Rosemary straightened, rubbing her aching back. ‘I’m not sure. She’s intelligent and charming, and, of course, stunning to look at, but – I don’t know. There’s something I can’t put my finger on that makes me slightly uneasy.’
    ‘She seems to adore James.’
    ‘So I should hope, after causing this upset.’
    ‘And he her, of course.’
    Rosemary sighed. ‘Poor Sylvie,’ she said. ‘I’d be much happier if it was she who was joining the family.’
    ‘What did you think of her?’ Charlie enquired of his sister, as they lay in the long grass of the meadow.
    ‘She’s all right,’ Lily replied, guarded as always in her brother’s company, since she never knew when her comments might be repeated. In truth, she was torn, being fond of Sylvie, whom she’d known all her life. But Abigail was glamorous and sophisticated, and her clothes and shoes were to die for. What was more, she liked horses, a sure way to Lily’s heart. All in all, she was just the role model she’d been looking for.
    ‘Actually,’ she added more honestly, ‘I rather liked her.’
    ‘What did you think of her?’
    With no meal to prepare, Tina had joined her husband in their sitting room.
    ‘She seemed very edgy to begin with. Not that you can blame her.’
    ‘And?’
    He was quiet for a moment. Then he said slowly, ‘I know it sounds ridiculous, when she and James are so obviously in love, but I got the impression that she’s deeply unhappy.’
    ‘Belated conscience, perhaps, for ousting Sylvie.’
    ‘I doubt if that worries her. No, this goes much deeper; an old unhappiness that she’s spent years fighting.’
    Conscious of his wife’s stare, he gave an embarrassed grin. ‘Sorry to go all psychic on you, but you did ask. It was something in her eyes.’
    ‘Oh, so you’ve been gazing into her eyes, have you?’
    He laughed. ‘You must admit they’re worth gazing into. Seriously, though, did you notice how she reacted when Charlie mentioned riding?’
    ‘Can’t say I did.’
    ‘She actually swayed in her chair. I thought she was going to pass out, but she quickly recovered herself.’
    ‘Oh, come on! You’re imagining things!’
    He shrugged. ‘Possibly. All the same, I think there’s more to our Abigail than meets the eye.’
    ‘No wonder poor Sylvie couldn’t compete,’ Tina said.
    ‘Where shall we go on our honeymoon?’ Abigail asked idly, as they lay in bed on the Sunday morning. The sound of bells drifted in from several of the town’s churches, mingling and chiming in repetitive relay, and she felt a passing regret that they wouldn’t ring for her wedding.
    James smiled. ‘That’s supposed to be a secret!’
    ‘I hate secrets!’ She propped herself on one elbow and looked down at him, her hair falling forward. ‘Tell me.’
    ‘Well, if you insist; I’ve booked us in at a very luxurious hotel