And that was the reason I hadn’t been in touch for the best part of a year. Vine & Walsh was an executive recruitment firm, not just your average temp agency, and every time I spoke with Rose, she told me about one incredible job after another and I had to turn each and every one of them down. In my wildest professional fantasies, I was totally jet set. I dreamed of travelling, seeing the world, of waking up to find I was the kind of woman who could pack two weeks-worth of clothes in a carry on and could go from conference room B to the bar to an all-night karaoke party with nothing more than a swipe of red lipstick and a change of earrings, but after we moved back to Sheffield, Stew and I had both agreed we wouldn’t travel for work. Admittedly, that deal was made three years ago when we were living in London and there were a lot more jobs to choose from, but a deal is a deal and it was made for a reason, so I kept my ambitions local.

‘Sorry, no,’ I said as my heart sank slowly back towards my feet. ‘Just thought it was worth checking in.’

As Rose let out a quiet, frustrated sigh, a new email from one of the local temp agencies appeared in my inbox. A vet in Brincliffe needed an office manager to do a two-week holiday cover starting Christmas Eve. Utterly depressing and still the best offer I’d had in months.

‘There is one thing, and you’d be perfect for it,’ Rose said, a note of possibility in her voice. ‘It would mean you’d have to travel, but it’s very short term and the money is amazing. I need a personal assistant for a very, very – let me say this again – very high-profile client.’

I looked out of the window at the stone-clad buildings opposite, almost the exact same shade of grey as the sky above them.

‘How short term and how much money?’

‘Not even a week, it’s five days. All your expenses would be covered, and the salary is very generous. Extremely generous. And the money isn’t even the best part.’

I wound the cord from my earbuds around my finger and squeezed it tightly. Curiosity might have killed the cat but perhaps I could get away with only being lightly maimed.

‘OK,’ I said, breathing out slowly. ‘What’s the catch?’

Rose gave a slightly maniacal laugh down the line. ‘Don’t let this put you off, but I can’t say. Fran, it is VV VIP. You’ll have to sign a non-disclosure agreement before I can even send the job description over, and I’ll need you down in London to interview ASAP, but if I were you, I would seriously consider this one. It could be a huge break. This is a life-changing opportunity.’