As Easter approached, Max said to her, ‘You and Grandpa must come early to end-of-term prize-giving so that you get seats at the front because I’m going to be presented with the Inter-House Rugby Trophy and Hugo will be receiving a certificate for having come top of his year in English and maths.’

‘Don’t worry, sweetheart, we’ll be there so early we’ll have seats in the middle of the front row.’

‘That’s good,’ he said, well pleased. ‘And will you wear your new-length lilac suit, the one that shows your ankles, and the lilac hat trimmed with violets and your long sable stole?’

Aware that Max wanted her to be in what he called ‘full fig’ and to look as grand as possible, she said, ‘If that’s what you want me to wear, then I’ll wear it.’

‘Good,’ he said again, ‘because you’ll look spiffing.’

The next weekend when Paul, Max and Hugo were again home from school, Paul said to her, ‘It’s splendid news about Max winning his trophy for rugby, isn’t it? I wish when I’d won it I’d been presented with it by Captain Priestley.’

‘Captain Priestley?’ She had been writing out a list of needed medical supplies and her hand came to such a sharp halt ink spilled in a huge blot.

‘Captain Priestley, DSO,’ he said, thinking she had been prompting him to add mention of it. ‘All the chaps think it’s ripping news he’s going to be presenting the prizes. They’re hoping he’ll talk about how he won his Distinguished Service Order, but I bet he doesn’t.’

Vicky didn’t think he would, either. Not only that, but if Adam were to be giving the prizes, she didn’t want to be seated conspicuously in the middle of the front row. She had never deliberately disappointed Max, but when it came to at least one of his requests, she had every intention of doing so.

When prize-giving day dawned it was as warm and as sunny as midsummer.

‘But it won’t last,’ her father said, adjusting his gold watch chain across his waistcoated chest. ‘The thermometer is already falling. You’re going to need that sable stole.’

Ridiculously, she felt as if she was also in need of a drink—a brandy, for preference.

As she waited for Jenny to bring Nancy downstairs she knew very well why she was so nervous. It was because the last time she had been in Adam Priestley’s company she had come perilously near to letting her feelings for him show in her eyes. Even just thinking about the moment when his arms had closed around her, to steady her, caused her cheeks to flush with heat. Whatever happened today, she couldn’t allow such a response to him to arise again. It would be too shaming. Too embarrassing.

Her hope of arriving late enough to have lost all chance of sitting near the front were dashed as Max darted up to her, saying breathlessly, ‘Thank goodness you’ve arrived! I’ve had a jolly hard job keeping seats in the front row for you. Hugo put a pile of books on one chair and an umbrella from Lost Property across the other two, but it isn’t a wheeze that would have worked for much longer.’