She extracted his hand and said, ‘Please tell me what you came to say. I’m going to be called away at any moment.’

‘It’s all wrong you having to do this bed and breakfast thing! But anyway …’ He reached for her hand again but she kept it in her lap. ‘I don’t think, before, I took into consideration quite how much you love this house.’

‘Maybe not.’

‘So if we were together we could live here and not in my house. You’d like that better, wouldn’t you?’

‘What? Better than living in your house?’ It was his assumption that they should live together that really confused her.

‘Yes! We could live here, in the house you love. How about that?’

‘Well, I do like living here, that’s for sure,’ she said cautiously. While she could – and probably should – have sent him out of her house and her life forever, she was eager to know what his agenda was.

‘Exactly!’ He smiled as if her living in her house had been his idea all along. ‘Which is why here is where we’d live.’

‘But what about your lovely house? All your lovely things—’

‘Not important. What’s important is your happiness.’

‘Thank you,’ Gilly muttered, not sure how to respond to this.

‘Right. Well, the thing is, I don’t think I’ve made it quite clear what I want from our relationship.’

Gilly wasn’t aware they had one but didn’t comment.

‘I want to marry you, Gilly. I think we could make each other very happy.’ His statement sounded very rehearsed and strangely lacking in passion.

‘Really?’ said Gilly. She could imagine Helena’s reaction to this suggestion. She wasn’t sure Martin and Cressida would be all that delighted either.

‘I know! And for someone who’s always been a bit of a commitment-phobe, that’s quite a thing!’ He smiled as if he’d given Gilly a huge compliment. ‘But I realise that while it’s what I want, the prospect may be a bit daunting for you.’ He smiled again, fond and patronising.

‘Well …’

‘The thing is, I know that women of your age aren’t awfully keen on the physical side of marriage.’

This was news to Gilly who had very recent experience of the exact opposite. ‘Oh.’

‘They like affection and intimacy but not actual – you know …’

‘Do you mean sex, Leo?’

He seemed a bit embarrassed by her bluntness. ‘I didn’t want to be quite so obvious, but yes.’

‘Oh.’ Her gaze flicked towards the dining room, willing her guests to want more toast, more tea or more anything. They did not respond.

‘We could live here together, a happy, respectable couple, and keep each other company, do things – travel. I could take you to Vienna—’

‘Haven’t you cancelled that yet, Leo? I really think you should.’

He ignored this wifely suggestion. ‘I can take you to Venice! The world is your oyster.’