They had taken up deep-sea fishing and, out on the boat, they could do what they liked. They found time to be together, and they made the most of it.

What other choice did they have? But they couldn’t escape the fact that it was wearing, constantly living a lie, living with the fear of being found out. And if anyone ever did find out they would be finished in more ways than one – not to mention if Jack ever got wind of his lucrative ventures outside the Smoke.

‘You all right, Len? You were miles away.’

He smiled tiredly. ‘Just thinking about work, darling.’

He pulled her on to his lap and squeezed her tightly. ‘Tell you what, get a babysitter and I will take you out for a nice meal tomorrow night, eh?’

She kissed him full on the lips. ‘Sounds good to me!’

She stood up and called the boys to the table for their meal, pleased that she was going to have a night out to look forward to with her big, handsome husband.

Chapter Forty-Five

Reggie Dornan had bought a flat in Kensington, and he loved it there. It was far enough away that no one dropped in unexpectedly and it had a doorman, so if anyone did arrive, he was warned well in advance if he was with Lenny. As he stepped out of his black marble shower he eyed himself in the mirrored tiles. He knew he looked good. He set about his ablutions carefully. He looked after himself, even used women’s face creams, but he didn’t care – he felt it was important. You have one life – you might as well enjoy it, was his mantra. Lenny laughed, saying he could just see the expression on Sharon’s face if he started using Oil of Ulay.

Reggie sighed. He liked Sharon, but he felt such a jealousy of her at times, even though he granted it wasn’t her fault. He felt the same about the boys. He resented the times when they had to take them out on the boat and actually fish. Yet he understood the importance of having to do that. They took some of the men sometimes as well so as to make it look normal – like a thing guys would do together.

He wrapped a towel around his waist, went into his lounge and poured himself a brandy. Then, sitting in a leather wing chair, he lit a cigarette and, pulling on it deeply, picked up his book. He was looking forward to tonight. Lenny was like him – tired out and in need of some R&R. He enjoyed their time in his home. It was perfect for them as a cover to others, but it also meant Lenny could keep clean clothes here, etc. They were just two mates having a game of cards and a beer. The phone rang and he picked it up.