There’s a tiny pause. For Elizabeth, it is a moment of complete clarity. Well, there is her question answered before she has asked it. Perhaps it was as well to wait.

‘I see,’ she says in what she hopes is an expressionless voice, but Philip stops and swears under his breath.

‘I’m sorry,’ he says, taking off his cap and dragging his hand through his hair. ‘I’ve a tendency to speak without thinking sometimes. It’s a bad habit of mine.’

‘What would you have said if you had been thinking?’

‘I don’t know … I hope I wouldn’t have made the idea of commitment sound so ghastly, for a start.’

‘Even if it is?’

‘It isn’t,’ he insists. ‘At least, not always. Of course I’d like to get married one day. It’s just … I’m not sure how good I would be at it. I haven’t seen many examples of a successful marriage – your parents excepted.’ He stares at Elizabeth. ‘How do you do that?’

‘Do what?’

‘Say almost nothing and yet make me be more honest with you than I am with almost anyone else.’

‘I’d like to think we can be honest with each other,’ Elizabeth says, choosing her words with care. ‘I know why you’re here. I’m sure you had more exciting and enjoyable offers of where to spend Christmas.’

She holds up a hand as Philip opens his mouth to deny it. ‘It’s all right. We have a very quiet life here. It’s how we like it. At least,’ she amends with a wry smile, ‘Mummy, Papa, and I do. Margaret would probably like more excitement.’

Calling the dogs, Elizabeth sets off once more. Now that they have started, she feels more composed and the conversation they need to have will likely be easier if they are walking. ‘I know Uncle Dickie thinks a match between us would be good thing … one day. You’re a prince, I’m a princess. We would both expect to marry … one day. Neither of us has a vast pool of potential partners to choose from.’ She is rather proud of her steady voice. ‘Things are different for us. We need to be pragmatic when it comes to marriage, so I perfectly understand why you’d want to come and … look me over, as it were.’

‘You make it sound as if I’m some horse trainer inspecting a prize filly!’

‘It comes down to the same thing, doesn’t it?’ Elizabeth’s cheeks are pink. ‘Breeding, bloodlines, finding the right match.’

‘You don’t think it’s about finding someone to love?’

The colour in her cheeks deepens at the thread of amusement in his voice.

‘I think my options, frankly, are limited. Yours are much wider. If you don’t want to, you needn’t marry at all. I, on the other hand, won’t have a choice in the matter. But I do want to get married,’ she adds honestly.

‘One day?’

‘Yes, one day.’

‘If you can find the right prince.’

‘Yes,’ she agrees on a breath.