Ellie bit her tongue.Oh, hun, you really need to readjust your idea of ‘going it alone’.
‘I can imagine,’ she said. But could she? Time to change the subject before she said something mean. ‘So, which properties have you narrowed it down to?’
‘Those are my top ten.’
She stared at him in shock. ‘And how many are we viewing today?’
‘Uh… Ten?’ He gave her a hopeful smile.
Her mouth dropped open. ‘You don’t do anything by halves, do you?’ She’d be exhausted by the end of the day; the viewings were dotted all over central London.
‘They all looked nice… You don’t mind, do you? Martin will drive us to each one. Hopefully it won’t take too long.’
‘Hey, he’s paying me per hour, so don’t short-change me, love,’ joked Martin from the front of the cab, and he gave her a playful wink in the mirror.
‘Have you heard from Hannah lately?’ she asked, leaning towards the partition so that she could hear him better.
‘Yeah, my sister’s spoiling her rotten, taking her to the beach every day. She’s learning how to surf. Can you believe it, our Hannah, learning to surf!’
‘Ha-ha, I’d heard. Good for her, I’m so glad she’s trying it. She deserves a break and a bit of fun.’
‘So do you, love,’ he replied softly, his kind eyes catching hers in the rear-view mirror.
‘I’ve booked a little holiday, actually.’ She glanced at Alex. He’d given her the dates for the Bahamas and taken her passport details for the flights, so she was ready to go. But it didn’t feel real. None of this felt real; it was as if she were living in some parallel universe.
Martin raised an eyebrow in quiet disbelief – she’d booked time off before and always ended up working regardless. Alex gave her a thoughtful look as if he were filing away some factoid about her for later use.
‘Here we are,’ said Martin, as he swung into a parking space in front of an imposing white stucco villa with iron railings, situated on a quiet tree-lined avenue. The quintessential Holland Park townhouse.
They stepped out onto the pavement, Alex frowning between the building and its brochure. ‘I hope it’s worth it. This is the very top of my budget.’
A woman in her late fifties came skipping down the steps to meet them, which seemed a little odd. But with so much commission almost in the bank, who could blame her? She wore a twinset and had an Eighties perm, but she had a sharp and uncompromising gaze that reminded her of Martha Stewart, and Ellie suspected she wouldn’t mess around when it came to business.
‘Alex! So wonderful to meet you in person.’ She gave Alex a double-handed shake and then turned to Ellie with an equally warm expression.
‘Hi, I’m Ellie. I’m here as moral support.’ She gave a limp-wristed wave.
The woman gave her a slow calculating smile. ‘Then it’s reallyyouwe should be trying to impress. I’m Barbara, lovely to meet you.’ Ellie was treated to one of her brisk double handshakes.
Barbara spun on her heel and marched up to the villa, cheerfully chatting back to them without missing a step. ‘Alex, I believe you’re not familiar with the area? Holland Park is a much sought-after location. The beautiful Japanese Kyoto Garden, and walled spring tulip garden, are just a short stroll away in that direction. The schools – if you’re interested…’ she paused, her gaze flicking curiously between them, before she turned back to unlock the door, ‘areoutstanding. The best in London. And this being a popular choice for those in the public eye ensures a safe and most importantlyprivatearea in which to live.’
Ellie remembered the way her line manager, Hazel, had warned her yesterday about inappropriate behaviour in her personal life. She’d pushed the dressing-gown photo of Ellie in a tabloid towards her like it was a leaky specimen, and given her the following warning, ‘If you want to go into mentoringor teaching, you might want to watch your professional reputation… No more messy nights out with celebrities.’ It had been a timely reminder that, even if you weren’t a celebrity like Alex, you had to be careful.
Barbara swung open the door and they stepped into a blue-carpeted, narrow corridor that made nothing of the high ceilings and ornate cornicing.
‘This used to be an embassy. It’s empty at the moment, so you can really get a sense of the potential space, but I’m afraid the whole property will need extensive refurbishment throughout.’
‘It still needs work, even with that price tag?’ Ellie muttered to Alex out of the corner of her mouth, and he grimaced in response. She imagined home improvements weren’t at the top of his list, no matter the amazingpotential.
Barbara turned her steel gaze on her. ‘Oh, don’t worry. I’ll negotiate a crackingly good deal for you if youdolike it.’
They were shown around room after gigantic room, each with more hideous carpets and curtains than the last. The whole time Barbara was pointing out the beautiful original features and huge potential, Alex was very quiet, nodding occasionally and seeming to agree with everything she said, not once offering any ideas of his own.
‘Now, the garden does need some imagination…’
For once, Ellie couldn’t be snarky. An actual garden? They stepped out onto a large patio and looked down at a sea of overgrown grass at the bottom of the steps.
‘I’ll be at the front door. Take your time, explore or revisit any of the rooms and let me know what you think after.’
