‘Ah, the marbles’ thieves.’ Tommy smiled. ‘Are the marbles actually in his house?’

‘Yes. Some. In the hall actually.’

‘Really? What a rascal. Continue.’

‘I had no idea that the Elgins were related to the Duke and Duchess of York until they came over for tea with the little Princesses. I was not expecting to be introduced to them but they seemed so friendly and kind, and the girls so well behaved that they made me feel at ease and asked me all sorts of questions about my work. A few days later, I had a letter asking me to come to London.’

‘And you went? You gave up your desire to be a child psychologist?’

‘Not at all. I thought it would be for the summer only and that I would be back in Scotland for the start of the autumn term.’

‘But you decided that you liked London and royal life.’ His tone as he said this was dismissive, as though almost disappointed in her.

‘Not at all.’ She was maddened by his assumption. ‘Once I was here and time was ticking on, I spoke to the Duchess about going back to Scotland, but she said not yet and kept saying not yet, and so, I stayed.’

Tommy leant back with a bark of laughter. ‘Sounds as if you were snaffled. Typical behaviour of our glorious royals. No one can say no to them. But why on earth did you come to look after two of the most fortunate children in the world, when the sort of children you had originally planned to assist still need your help?’

Marion was shocked. ‘I consider it an honour to work for them. The Princesses may not lack food, love or education, but they have other limitations. They have few friends, and there is no chance of a train ride to Brighton for the day to spend some money on the pier and paddle as ordinary children do. The kind of secluded childhood they have can do as much harm as any other. I see it as my duty to show them the world as the rest of us see it, and I thank God that they are not the daughters of a king so they will never have to face the rigours of life as a senior royal. They can fall in love, marry, have children and live a peaceful, private life. I see first-hand how hard the Duke, as the King’s second son, and the Duchess, as his wife, work to fill the engagements that the Prince of Wales’ – she stumbled, unused to the new name – ‘I mean, King Edward, cannot do until he marries and has his own family.’

‘My, my.’ Tommy smiled wryly at her. ‘Another fully paid-up royalist in the ranks.’

Marion frowned. ‘But you must feel the same?’

‘To be honest,’ he said, lowering his voice, ‘I don’t altogether. I worked with the Prince of Wales as his assistant private secretary for several years. In the end I resigned, unable to continue mopping up after him. He took every ounce of privilege he could gather, and more. He is a drunk and a womanizer – in short, a man with no solid foundations. However, he is our King and I would rather die than see the Crown humiliated. My job is to make them look irreproachable, even when they aren’t.’