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‘The kitten goes with Tess—but what the blazes am I to do with her?’

‘Take her to bed by the looks of things,’ Hannah observed

Alex winced ‘You saw that? She s slipped She’s an innocent, Hannah, not the kind of girl to take to bed’

‘And you’d know But I’d agree with that She’s as green as spring grass, you’ve only to look at her’ That was definitely a verbal cuff round the ear, he thought ‘What’s she doing in London?’

Alex recounted the tale ‘I need to find her decent employment,’ he concluded There was no way he could wash his hands of her now

‘You need to get her out of this house,’ Hannah countered ‘She can come back with me tomorrow, if she’s up to it I’ve a spare roo fancy, but she’ll be safe, comfortable and respectable Then we can find her employment’

The relief of it caught hiret that Tess would be leaving ‘I’ll pay for her lodging, of course, and whatever you need to furnish her roo out with soht it was doing, sending her out at this tis’

‘I’ll see to it You’re used to setting up birds of paradise in bijou little houses, not respectable young woh the items on the end of her chatelaine and came up with a set of tablets and a pencil ‘Nohat are your plans? Where are you going for Christmas?’

‘I’ here, as well you know Will you join me for Christmas dinner, Hannah?’

‘I will not, but thank you I’ll be off to o home, you stubborn man’

‘I am home, and in the absence of a warm invitation to the ancestral ’ And there’d be the sound of trotters on the roof tiles as the flying pigs landed before that particular invitation arrived

‘It is ten years past, Alex’ Hannah looked into the fire, not ive?’