I haven’t seen Penny at all since Sunday night. I have been busy with the aftermath of the show, starting to parcel up some of the clothes, which need to be returned – whilst trying to get my head around my own future. Hannah has asked to drop in for a meeting tomorrow evening, presumably for a debrief. I’m also keen to discuss how we might keep the public’s interest up, after our big success. I suggested bringing Penny this time; after all, she’s the expert on fashion, and the last thing I want is for her to not feel consulted.

‘Perhaps next time,’ Hannah said quickly. ‘For this meeting, I’d like it to just be me and you.’

Thursday, December 12

I smile when I see the old-school Christmas decorations in the main open-plan museum office. With paper chains strung about, and several tiny tinsel trees perched on desks, the place looks almost homely. Back home, our decorations are a more full-on affair; Izzy insists on it, and I wouldn’t be such a spoilsport as to rein her in. We have a large, real tree in place already, which Nick helped us to set upright and drape with lights, once it had been delivered.

‘So, Penny says she’s happy to come in and do a question-and-answer session with an audience,’ I tell Hannah as she hands me a mug of tea.

‘That would be great. I’m sure we could get more media coverage for that. You know, we’re being featured in all the supplements this weekend, and there’s been tons online already.’

‘Yes, I’ve seen some of that. The photos of the show looked great.’

‘The models were brilliant, weren’t they? And Spencer did a fantastic job with the lighting!’

I grin with a surge of pride. ‘Thanks, I’ll pass that on to him.’ I pause. ‘You know most of the Girl Friday pieces were lent to us, don’t you?’ Hannah nods. ‘Well, quite a few of their owners are happy for us to keep them on long-term loan, so I was thinking, perhaps we could set up a small collection here? A sort of capsule collection?’

‘I think that’s a wonderful idea. It would be a lasting legacy of the event.’

I smile. ‘Can I ask you, honestly, do you think the museum has a future now?’

She looks at me, levelly, as if I have just asked a ridiculous question. ‘I should think so, Viv. It seems we’re the talk of the town now, and it’s already had quite an effect on visitor numbers.’ She smooths back her fine light brown hair. ‘Of course you can never tell, in today’s climate, what the future holds – but, yes, things are looking good for now.’

‘That’s so good to hear.’

A small pause settles over us. ‘And what about you, Viv?’ Hannah asks. ‘How d’you feel about your job these days?’