Louisa stared at her in shock. ‘What’s she doing in London?’

Megan tried to appear casual. ‘She didn’t say. Who is she, exactly?’

‘Someone Ben used to know. She married a friend of his about eighteen months ago. An Australian. Nick Berevic is also into property development, which is how he and Ben met.’ She looked at Megan with a conspiratorial smile. ‘The Berevics live in Sydney, on the other side of Australia, so you won’t need to see much of her.’

‘Was this woman a – well, a close friend of Ben’s?’

‘Used to be. More than a friend, obviously, but that’s been over for a long time, thank goodness. I never did take to her. And Nick’s a close friend of Ben’s, too. He’s a really nice man.’

Louisa chewed at one fingertip thoughtfully, then said slowly, ‘I wonder what she wanted with Ben. She surely doesn’t think that he would…’ She broke off and shrugged. ‘What exactly did you tell her?’

Megan could feel herself flushing. ‘I, um, pretended to be your maid and said I’d refer her query to my mistress. In the end she threatened to get me sacked for being so uncooperative.’

Louisa roared with laughter. ‘Oh, I’d love to have heard that!’

Megan smiled reluctantly and her anger began to fade. ‘She was absolutely furious.’

‘Well, you just referred her question to me and I don’t think I’ll sack you this time.’

After another thoughtful silence, Louisa said, ‘Look, Megan, I think we should forget all about Cynthia’s call. I shan’t return it and there’s no need to bother Ben about it. After all, their relationship is ancient history now. He won’t want to invite her to the wedding, I’m sure.’

Megan nodded slowly.

‘Well, I think I’ll go and take a quick shower. What time is Ben picking you up tonight?’

‘About seven.’

As Megan sat wondering why Louisa did not wish Ben to know that this woman had called, her mobile phone rang. His voice was abrupt. ‘I’m afraid we need to have dinner with one of my former clients tonight. I’ll pick you up around seven, as agreed, but you’ll need to wear something extra smart. That blue thing we bought would be OK.’ He put the phone down without waiting for her to reply.

Megan slammed the receiver down and breathed deeply. When Louisa came back, she asked, ‘Has Ben always been so abrupt and – and arrogant? He just tosses orders at me and doesn’t bother to ask whether it’s convenient to do something. I’ve a good mind to refuse to go out to this dinner tonight!’