Godfrey and Elspeth Piper were sitting under an old cedar tree in the garden doing the crossword and listening for the sound of the car when Christopher and Marnie drove up to the front of the house. Juno, the stoutest and deafest of the pair of ancient Labradors who were dozing at their feet, had alerted them a few minutes earlier to an imminent arrival. She had suddenly raised her head, though no sound was detectable to human ears, and struggled to her feet – arched back sagging like a favourite armchair – before pottering off round the side of the house to station herself by the front door. Juno always knew when a member of the family was about to appear. Her timing was infallible and Elspeth swore she could have greeted her family with perfectly soft-boiled four-minute eggs at the ready by relying on Juno’s inner clock. The Pipers heard the scrunch of wheels on gravel and then – after what seemed rather a long pause – the slamming of a car door and voices.

‘Well, that sounds like them – pity we shan’t be able to finish the crossword now,’ said Godfrey, who would never have admitted that he was just as anxious as his wife to see Christopher. ‘Wonder what this American he’s picked up will be like?’

Marnie turned off the ignition and surveyed the house that Christopher had so lovingly described to her, with its wisteria-covered walls of mottled stone that seemed to have soaked up centuries of both sunlight and shadow. She knew that the house, and even more its occupants, were extremely important to him and felt her own dysfunctional home life had not equipped her for being thrust into the middle of what was obviously a close and happy family. Christopher read the anxiety in her eyes and leaned over to kiss her – a loving, lingering kiss.

‘Courage,’ he said, when they finally got out of the car. ‘Don’t run away! Here’s Juno come to greet us – now I know I’m home.’ The old dog circled round them doing a geriatric impression of a frolic, as if a very old rocking horse had been gently set in motion. Christopher fondled her ears. ‘Hello, old faithful,’ he said. ‘I see you haven’t got any thinner in the last fortnight! Meet someone very special in my life. We’ve got to make her feel at home – d’you know that?’ Juno wagged her rudder of a tail as Marnie bent down to pat her.

‘See?’ said Christopher. ‘You’re approved of already! Come on,’ and he took her hand and led her into the house.