‘But you’d still own it. The profits would go to you.’ Clancy was sorry she couldn’t provide the answers Kaz and Oli had obviously hoped for. ‘I don’t know any charities that support rural businesses.’

Kaz and Oli looked so disappointed that Clancy felt sorry for them, though she was surprised that anyone in business could be as naive as they seemed. As if reading her thoughts, Kaz sighed. ‘This is our first time working for ourselves. Oli’s uncle owned the B&B and he didn’t have kids of his own so he left it to Oli in his will because Oli was the only one out of his brothers and sisters who stayed in Nelson’s Bar.’

‘Wonderful of Uncle George,’ Oli put in. ‘I was sick and tired of driving into King’s Lynn every day to work in a ghastly admin job. My company HR department was looking for people to take redundancy so I put my hand in the air and got a lump sum, which came in handy. The B&B had gone a bit downhill under Uncle George.’

‘What money’s left has to be looked after,’ Kaz put in anxiously.

Oli reached out and gave her a sudden hug. ‘Don’t look so worried. We’re not losing money or anything.’

‘But we aren’t earning a lot either,’ Kaz said mournfully. But then she sighed. ‘Really? Shall we show you the bar anyway?’

More out of curiosity than because she thought it was going to affect anything, Clancy agreed, following on into the B&B through a pair of oak doors, propped open, and across a cramped flagged area to the dining room. There, the walls were painted dark green and there was room for only six tables, all set with gleaming cutlery and white paper napkins. A door gave directly into the kitchen.

‘Right.’ Clancy nodded, thinking the room would look more spacious with lighter walls and less fussy brocade at the windows.

‘And this is the bar.’ Kaz led the way into a really small room. The actual bar itself was quite nice, a polished wooden counter with barley twist spindles supporting a glass rack above and gleaming optics on the wall behind, but it took up a third of the available space. Clancy almost knocked over a bar stool as she pirouetted to observe the profusion of prints of Admiral Horatio Lord Nelson on the walls – who was better-looking in his much-decorated uniform than Clancy had ever supposed – HMS Victory and even Nelson’s column.

Oli straightened one of the picture frames carefully. ‘I believe Horatio Nelson’s dearest aunt lived in Nelson’s Bar.’

Kaz sent him an incredulous look. ‘She didn’t!’

He gave an impish smile. ‘She will when I go to the bank, if I think it will help sell them on the idea of our extension.’

He explained to Clancy which wall they’d need to break through, then they went outside again while he paced out what he saw as the projected building line, allowing not just for a larger bar but a bit on the dining room and kitchen too.