‘That’s so kind!’ I exclaimed, noticing that our table was still attracting an awful lot of attention.

Jensen passed me the wine list with a flourish. ‘My fiancée is the wine expert.’

I glanced at it fleetingly. ‘What I’d really like is some English sparkling wine, but there’s none on the list.’

Didier inclined his head. ‘A very discerning choice if I may say so, madam, let me have a word with our head sommelier. In the meantime, what would you like to eat?’

Jensen looked at me questioningly and I nodded.

‘We’ll both have the sausage and mash please.’

‘Two or three?’ said Didier, leaning forward discreetly. ‘They are very large, madam.’

I shrugged; I was eating for two, after all.

‘Three please. With extra gravy,’ I added. ‘Not jus.’

Twenty minutes later, we were tucking in to a huge pile of sausage and mash. I took it back; the wild boar sausages were amazing, the ones at the Royal Oak weren’t a patch on these. And to accompany our lunch, the maître d’ had unearthed a bottle of sparkling wine from Cornwall which, according to the sommelier, was regularly served at Buckingham Palace and the Houses of Parliament.

‘But not Devine Kitchen?’ I asked.

Didier shrugged apologetically, bowed and left us to it. I got my phone out to take a picture to show Clare later; she’d be so impressed that we were drinking the Queen’s favoured fizz.

‘To us,’ said Jensen, tapping his champagne flute gently against mine.

‘To the Butterworths,’ I said and swirled it round before inhaling it. ‘That is lovely. Vibrant and full of fruit.’

‘Impressive.’ Jensen sniffed his, eyeing me with interest. ‘You’re quite good at this.’

I let the flavours develop in my mouth. ‘I can see why the Queen likes it; it’s like an English meadow in summer: fragrant and fresh with a hint of honey. Yum.’

He looked at me, amazed. ‘How do you do that?’

‘Matt taught me, and your granddad taught him. It’s all about letting go of your inhibitions and letting your taste buds take over.’

Jensen sipped his sparkling wine and a tiny sigh escaped. ‘I wish I’d had more time with Granddad. We think we’ve got all the time in the world, don’t we? It’s a cliché but moments really should be seized.’

‘They should.’ I reached over and squeezed his hand. Our eyes locked and we stayed like that for several seconds and I knew that whatever happened I’d always look back on that particular moment and remember how my heart was so full of joy that it was almost bursting with happiness.

‘Ted would be thrilled with this year’s harvest,’ I said finally. ‘I’ve got nothing to compare it to, of course, but the rest of the team are convinced that we’ve got a bumper crop on our hands.’