Again Sarah could see how much work had been done since her last visit and, sometimes, what work hadn't. A lovely antique basin and ewer were placed strategically under a drip. Fortunately nothing splashed into it until after Carrie and Mandy had passed into the next room.

The drawing room was a masterpiece. Someone, maybe even Fenella or Rupert, had extended the wallpaper by turning it into a mural. Now the pillars and exotic birds were the foreground for an Egyptian scene, with pyramids and sand dunes in the background. It was a masterpiece of simple painting and trompe l'oeil

‘Tradition and exotica,' declared Hugo. 'I like that. You really feel that behind the wall you can see this view. Did you copy the idea from Hazlehurst? Family seat,' he muttered sotto voce to Mandy, who was near him.

‘Sort of. We had to scale it down quite a lot,' said Rupert, after exchanging desperate looks with his wife. 'These rooms may seem spacious, but to me they are on the small side.'

‘That's what you get from a venue like this that you never could from anywhere else,' said Hugo. 'The personal touch. I mean, you could rent a castle if you wanted, with a lake, a pagoda, anything. But at Somerby you'd get intimacy, style, a secret place that the tourists don't know about. One word sums it up perfectly – class.’

At that moment Sarah realised that only Hugo could have said those things. She certainly couldn't, or at least, not in anything like the same grandiose way. Rupert and Fenella were far too modest, but Hugo had no shame -thank goodness.

‘Another bonus, in my opinion,' said Hugo, 'is that yours would be the first wedding ever to be here. Others will follow, but you'll be the first.' He crinkled his eyes at Carrie in a way that no normal woman could resist. 'I think you are a trendsetter, aren't you?’

Carrie shrugged, raised her shoulders and agreed in her body language that yes, maybe she was. 'It would be quite cool to be the first to discover this place,' she said to Mandy.

Mandy shivered in agreement.

‘We do want something for you that is totally unique,' Sarah broke in. 'Nowhere else I've researched has anything like the charm of Somerby.' She paused. 'It's good from the security angle, too. The way the roads are, it'll be very easy to keep the paparazzi under control.'

‘That's a good point,' said one of the lawyers. 'That does have to be taken into consideration.'

‘We'll have that checked out later,' said the other.

There was a moment's silence while this all settled, and then Fenella said, 'Let's carry on with the tour,' and she led the party to the room that opened off the chapel.

The chapel should do it, thought Sarah, aware that Fenella was probably pinning her hopes on this too. There was a long silence when Rupert opened the door and Carrie, Mandy and her two lawyers regarded what was in effect a miniature church.

‘Holy cow!' said one of the lawyers under his breath.

‘This was for just one family?' asked Mandy eventually.

‘Originally, yes, but the villagers used it when their own church was being repaired,' said Rupert. 'It's why it has this other entrance here.' He opened the door.

By some miracle the sun came out from behind a cloud, shining on the wet path that led through the park down to the road. It glimmered like white marble.

‘Your carriage could take you all the way up to the chapel door,' said Fenella, 'if you liked.'

‘Or you could walk up, with your retainers – bridesmaids – behind you,' offered Sarah.

‘Then after the service and the outside photographs, you slip into the house while your guests go round the long way,' said Hugo. 'Giving you a few moments to freshen up before your greet them.’

Carrie bit her lip and nodded, still non-committal. No one spoke. No one from the Somerby side wanted to say anything that would scupper their chances and no one from Carrie's team appeared to have anything to say, obviously waiting for her approval before they dared speak.

At last Sarah couldn't bear it any longer. 'I'm just thinking how wonderful your cake will look silhouetted against that fabulous window, with the parkland beyond.’

There was a pause as long as the Forth Bridge before Carrie eventually spoke. 'Oh yes,' she said softly. 'That would be truly fabulous.’

And Sarah silently sent a prayer of thanks up to God.

‘I can't believe we pulled that off,' said Fenella to Sarah as they watched the two black cars go down the drive. It had stopped raining and they were all standing in front of the house having said goodbye to their visitors.

‘It was touch and go,' said Rupert.

‘I think it was your stately background that clinched it,' said Sarah, laughing. 'You'll have to produce some family portraits now. You can probably pick them up from auctions quite cheaply.'

‘No need,' said Rupert. 'There are dozens in the attic at home.’

Sarah glanced at Hugo who was laughing.

‘I'm going to let the dogs out,' said Fenella, unaware of Sarah's discomfort. 'The poor darlings have been cooped up all day. You excelled yourself with the roast, Rupes.'

‘Yes, the lunch really was fantastic,' agreed Sarah, on safe ground again. 'The apple pie was truly heavenly.'

‘Fen made it.' Rupert watched his wife go into the house. 'She doesn't do such a good roast as me and refused to take her share of the credit.'

‘Well, it was all stunning,' said Sarah.

‘We'd better make a list of what still needs doing before the big day,' said Rupert. 'I can't believe we've done it. How much will we be able to charge, do you think?’

Sarah told him. 'Wow,' he said. 'Fan-bloody-tastic.’

And they grinned at each other, Rupert shaking Hugo's hand and hugging Sarah.

With mugs of tea now in their hands, they toured the house again. Everyone made notes and Hugo took photos from every angle. 'Remember, you'll want a before and after album,' he said. 'And maybe some shots for a brochure.’

It was only when they were alone for a few moments that Sarah turned to him. 'Hugo, I can't thank you enough. If it hadn't been for you, she never would have gone for it.' She wanted to make some gesture, to mark her gratitude and was about to kiss his cheek but, suddenly feeling a little awkward, she stood back on her heels again. She would have liked to say something about his exhibition too. She opened her mouth to tell him how impressed she'd been, then caught his glance. He looked quizzical and wryly amused, and yet slightly wistful.

‘Hugo…' she said.

‘Sarah,' he said back, but before either of them could go on, Rupert came back and the moment was gone. She couldn't tell if he'd sensed her desire to say something or not.

‘Are you sure you won't stay for supper? Cold beef and apple pie?' asked Fenella as they stood in the hall.

‘No, really, I should get back. It's six o'clock already and I've got loads to do,' said Sarah.

‘You could stay the night,' Fenella went on, 'test out the spare beds. As you saw, we have several.'

‘Honestly, Fen, we'd better make tracks. Sarah's not the only one who has to work in the morning.' Hugo put his hand on Fenella's shoulder and kissed her cheek.

‘Not a wedding, surely?' Fenella asked him, kissing him back.

‘Nope, thank God,' said Hugo and turned his farewells to Rupert.

Sarah was hugged firmly by both of them and it was only when she was in Hugo's car and they were halfway down the drive that she realised she'd never asked them if the chapel was now licensed for weddings. She said so to Hugo.

‘Do you want to go back and ask now?' he said, braking slightly.

‘No, they'll just be relaxing with a glass of wine. I can always ring them tomorrow. There are bound to be lots of things I need to ask them.' She yawned. 'Wretched Carrie, she still hasn't decided what wedding dress to have. Elsa begged me to try and get her to commit.'