Emma ushered them all into the dining room then; she had gone to great pains to lay the table earlier that morning and it looked truly beautiful. The crystal glasses sparkled as did the best silver cutlery and her finest china and all down the centre she had dotted bowls of freshly cut holly, their bright green leaves and startling red berries making a perfect contrast against the snow-white tablecloth.

She disappeared off into the kitchen then to help Cook bring in the meal. There was a perfectly cooked goose stuffed with Cook’s own stuffing recipe, mounds of creamy mashed potatoes and roast potatoes, and turnips along with Brussels sprouts, broccoli and a jug of thick gravy. This was followed by a huge Christmas pudding that Cook had had soaking in brandy for weeks and by the time they had finished Holly was so full she was sure she wouldn’t want to eat again for at least a month.

‘Oh goodness me, I haven’t enjoyed a meal like that for years,’ Walter declared, stroking his stomach after a second helping of Cook’s Christmas pudding and thick, yellow custard.

‘Well I hope you have some room left because there’s hot mince pies and coffee to come yet,’ Emma teased him and he groaned, much to everyone’s amusement.

Holly spent most of the afternoon playing tiddlywinks with Florence and Katie, until Walter and his family left at a little after six o’clock that evening with promises of coming back very soon.

‘Well, that went well,’ Holly said as she helped her mother to wash and dry the pots when everyone was gone. ‘And as you said Mr Dolby and his family are very nice indeed.’

‘Yes, they are. Katie is a little darling,’ Emma answered wistfully. ‘I’ve grown quite fond of her over the last few months.’

‘I can see why, although she’s a terrible cheat at tiddlywinks.’ Holly grinned. They had all been invited to the Dolby’s for lunch the following day but while Emma and her father had accepted the invitation, Holly had chosen to stay at home with Ivy. She was still very fragile both emotionally and physically and Holly was keen to spend as much time as she could with her before she had to leave to go back to London the following day.

That night she curled up on the end of Ivy’s bed and asked, ‘So will you be all right? When I go back to London, I mean.’

Ivy shrugged. ‘Of course … but if you should see Jeremy—’

Holly sternly stopped her from going any further. ‘If I see Jeremy I shall tell him in no uncertain terms what a cad he is,’ she answered truthfully. ‘And I most certainly won’t tell him where you are.’ When she saw the stricken expression on Ivy’s face she went on in a softer voice, ‘You have to try to put him from your mind now, Ivy, and accept that he was just using you as he uses all the women whose affections he toys with. He’s probably already got some other poor fool to fall into his trap if he isn’t still milking Lady Hamilton for all he can get that is.’