‘This is just what we need!’ he said earnestly. ‘People are much more value-conscious now with all the different websites, and we’re placed really well for wedding overflow!’

‘All right,’ Steph agreed reluctantly. ‘I’ll mention it to the girls and see what they think.’

‘Great.’ He seemed suddenly almost a different person. ‘And let’s go somewhere really nice when Jean-Christophe does his next stint.’

‘Have you seen this email from Steph?’ Jo asked Meredith at breakfast the next morning. ‘Her niece is looking for a château round here for her wedding. Sounds heaven-sent to me. We could offer her an attractive rate if she’ll let us make the thing into a bit of PR and get a photographer to take some glorious photos!’

‘As long as she doesn’t look like the back end of a bus,’ Meredith commented in her usual outrageous manner.

‘Meredith!’ Jo tutted. ‘I don’t know how you survived all these years in the workplace with attitudes like that!’

‘Oh, come on, don’t be so drearily PC!’

‘As a matter of fact, she’s very pretty,’ said Jo reprovingly. ‘Both Steph’s nieces are, so maybe you’ll get the other one as maid of honour in a two-for-one deal.’ The irony was lost on Meredith, she noted. ‘So what do you think?’

‘I think it’s brilliant,’ Sophie interrupted. ‘We really need some content for Instagram. As long as it’s not too far ahead. Some brides book their weddings years before. When does she want to get married?’

‘Steph says sometime late summer, but she’s pretty flexible. She thinks people spend far too long planning and wants hers to feel more spontaneous.’

‘Spontaneous, yet meticulously planned by someone else!’ laughed Meredith. ‘That’s the kind of spontaneity I like.’

‘Blimey, that doesn’t give us long!’ yelped Jo.

‘I think we should definitely go for it,’ Sophie enthused. ‘We could get stuck in straight away.’

‘What if she or her mother’s a nightmare?’ Jo protested, faintly remembering something Steph had mentioned about her sister.

‘That’s something we’ll just need to cope with,’ Sophie dismissed. ‘We’ll have lots of Bridezillas to deal with. Not to mention mothers of the bride from hell. Good practice. Come on, Mum, let’s go for it!’

‘I agree,’ seconded Meredith. ‘Best way of learning is on the job.’

‘All right then,’ endorsed Jo. ‘Where do we go from here?’