He sighed and finished undressing. It was enough. They’d put on a good show.

Esther was brushing out her long dark hair now. It was like a skein of silk. He used to brush that for her, once.

When they’d first met, introduced by their mothers, Joseph couldn’t do a thing wrong in Esther Jewell’s eyes. But they’d married too soon; they’d been little more than acquaintances. And now they were stuck with each other. Till death do us part and all that.

‘I’m heading back to The Dorchester on Monday,’ Esther said. ‘Safest place in London! Reinforced concrete, you know.’

‘So you keep telling me.’

He wondered what other attractions The Dorchester offered, because safety wasn’t usually one of Esther’s concerns. She was fearless. She drove like a maniac and, on the hunting field, she tackled fences that men on bigger horses baulked at. No, there was something – or, more specifically, someone – calling her back to London.

‘What’s going to happen to Rudi if you disappear off to The Dorchester?’ he asked.

She shrugged. ‘I could take him with me.’

‘You can’t! To London, with bombs raining down every night? Don’t be ridiculous, Esther. We’re supposed to be keeping him safe. I won’t allow it. Did you get in touch with Sarah?’

‘Hmm?’

‘Sarah. Your niece. You thought she might be game?’

‘Oh yes, I’ve written. Let’s see.’

Flighty Sarah. As far as Joseph knew, she had no experience of nannying. What had she done, up to now, apart from shine as a debutante? Before the war, Sarah had been in Germany of all places, for the season, looking for a husband. Thank goodness she hadn’t found one.

No, Sarah Jewell was not ideal but Esther had assured him there were no governesses or nannies to be had. They couldn’t expect house staff to look after Rudi in between their other tasks. Sarah would have to do.

‘What else are you mixed up in, Jay?’ Esther asked, suddenly.

He was pulling back the covers, getting into bed. ‘I don’t know what you mean.’

‘Before the war, it was the children. I know you. Banking isn’t enough. There’s bound to be something.’

Joseph shook his head. He couldn’t tell her. Heaven only knew who she was associating with these days.

‘Oh, I know you don’t trust me with anything,’ she said. ‘Loose lips and all that. But be careful, won’t you, Jay? Whatever it is?’

There was a moment’s silence.

‘I’m having the pools drained,’ he said.

‘Oh no! Must you? Not the Mirror Pool?’

He nodded. ‘Both of them. They shine like glass in the moonlight.’

‘But what about skating, in the winter?’

‘They’re like beacons, showing the enemy exactly where they are, helping them find their targets. Coventry, Oxford, Birmingham.’

‘Oh, Jay!’