‘Yes I know that, dear. But he’s at Heathrow Airport,’ Larry stated, animatedly. ‘He’s just arrived. Talk to him, love, he wants to know about the train, the fast one – what’s it called? The express. Or is he better in a black cab? I’ve told him not to go in one of those Uber ones, but—’

‘Shush. I won’t be able hear him,’ Betty chided softly, waving a hand in the air as she lifted the phone to her ear. ‘Hello, love. Are you really here, in London, in England?’ A short silence followed. ‘Well, I never.’ She lifted her eyebrows and pulled an impressed face. ‘On business, you say. Fancy that.’ Another silence. ‘That’s nice of you to take the time to visit us. Really? How exciting. Yes.’ She looked deep in thought now. ‘Yes. Yes. That’s right. Oh I don’t know. Here, let me pass you over to Grace. She’ll be able to help you, I’m sure. See you soon, Ellis. Safe journey.’

Grace immediately sat upright and closed Connie’s diary. A dart of anxiety flitted into her stomach. She’d never actually met Ellis, only heard about him from Larry and Betty – about how successful he was at the auction house where he worked in New York and lived in a penthouse apartment with its own lift ‘that goes right into the lounge’ is what Betty had told her. And the apartment was in the trendy Tribeca area where lots of cool celebrities lived – and he was American, so bound to be assured and confident. Certainly more so than she was. So Grace already felt way out of her depth. After swallowing hard she managed to speak.

‘Um … hello.’

‘Hello, Grace, this is Ellis,’ he said, his accent smooth and a little drawly and just as she imagined a native New Yorker to sound. ‘Can you tell me if Paddington is near, err … Greenwich?’ he asked, getting straight to the point.

‘Oh, um … no, not really. Um, no I didn’t mean that I can’t tell you … just that Paddington isn’t near—’ she started, getting flustered and racking her brains to think of the best way for him travel. But then Larry cut in, making her anxiety escalate further when he said, ‘Grace, you could go and meet him. Show him the way here … it’s only early and you’d easily be back by lunchtime,’ he boomed.

Silence followed.