I settle on the sofa, between the boys, and start to read. I love reading out loud. I was into amateur dramatics when I was younger, so I enjoy putting as much expression as I can into every sentence, and playing with my voice. The boys, one each side of me, snuggle against me as if they’ve known me forever. Saffron stands watching us, a fond smile playing on her lips.

Once the story is over, Saffron prises the boys away from me, and we step back into the hallway.

‘Thanks for coming to visit,’ Saffron says. ‘I’m definitely offering you the job. If you’re interested, I’ll send the contract to your agency tomorrow. You could move in on Sunday, and start work on Monday. That would be great for us.’

I am so thrilled I feel like taking her in my arms and hugging her. Just as I am trying to stop myself from doing that, I see a man walking towards us. A man with foppish brown-blond hair and broad shoulders, smiling a high-wattage smile. My stomach rotates.

‘This is my husband, Miles.’

4

Saffron

I’m sitting on the train to work when a woman with square shoulders sinks down next to me. She presses against me, squashing me. Making me feel claustrophobic. I lean away from her, against the carriage window, contemplating the late payment from my client, Sasha Reznikovitch, who promised the money three weeks ago. We chased her and she agreed to send it by BaccS, last Monday. It still hasn’t arrived. We need to chase her again.

My law firm, Belgravia Private Clients – BPC – is a high-turnover outfit with only three members of staff. Me – the only lawyer; Ted Beresford-Webb, a friend from my school days who acts as my financial and office manager; and Julie Walsh, my PA. Julie was Miles’ first girlfriend and is Aiden’s ex-wife. And we have three clients. Three high-net-worth clients, demanding access to legal advice 24/7, which is why they pay generously.

For a second, as I sit on the train, worrying about cash flow, I regret leaving the magic circle law firm where I trained. I was a senior associate, aspiring to be a partner one day. But then I remember the excitement that tingled through me like electricity when my major client, Aristos Kaladopolous, began talking me into leaving to set up my own firm. Promising to bring all his legal issues to me lock, stock and barrel, if I did. He kept his word. And, so far, it has worked like clockwork.