Jean-Christophe put down his laptop. If he was taken aback at this sudden change of topic, he didn’t show it. ‘It is wonderful, of course, in some ways. But you must remember, I always had my father. We developed a closeness I do not see in other families. It is for him I feel, not myself.’

Jean-Christophe, a sensitive young man, who seemed to know that Meredith would be listening to his every word, came to a halting conclusion. The question hung in the air as to exactly how his father was reacting to the sudden reappearance of Lucille in their lives.

It was Sophie who spoke next. ‘The bride will love that,’ she announced brightly.

He shot her a look of gratitude. ‘Will you be having a wedding cake? And will that be the dessert, as in France – or will people take it home, as I think you sometimes do in England?’

‘Oh my God, I’d forgotten Granny’s chocolate château!’ Sophie confessed. ‘Yes, we will be having cake – for the dessert. Nicky’s grandmother is bringing it all the way from England. We may need cream to go with that.’ She noted it down on her list. ‘I’m sure there’ll be a million other things, but I think that’s it for today. Thank you very much for coming.’ She got up to show him out.

‘Avec grand plaisir,’ Jean-Christophe smiled. He wondered if he should mention the madness of driving a chocolate château for hundreds of miles in the middle of summer. ‘And thank you for adding me to your list. It’s a great honour.’

Sophie stopped for a moment and almost said she’d like to add him to more then her catering list, but for once her nerve failed her. What if she’d got the signals wrong? There was a reserve about Jean-Christophe that made him hard to read.

She found his dark eyes fixed on hers as she opened the vast front door for him. But neither of them broke the slightly awkward silence.

‘Come on, girls,’ Jo announced when she got back. ‘Time for a restorative glass of our very own rosé. So what if it’s only five o’clock? We’re just doing a bit of quality control. We wouldn’t want to give our guests something we hadn’t tested ourselves, now, would we? And this wedding’s coming up pretty bloody soon!’

Sophie drank her glass and disappeared back inside. Jo glanced at Meredith and decided to take the plunge.

‘Don’t you think you’re being a bit hard on Philippe? It would have been difficult for him to just send Lucille away. After all, she was his wife and Jean-Christophe’s mother.’