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bring the tray
in."
    They did as they were told.
    Adrian sat beside her on the sofa and dropped his voice.
"I am utterly besotted. If I'd been given carte blanche to design
my perfect man, I'd have never thought of some of those details. He's almost
too good to be true."
    "I must say, every time I see him, he gets better
looking. When is he going back to Hamburg?"
    "Monday. But two weeks later, he'll be back to stay for
three months. He's got a job with an instrument-making shop in... where's that
place again, Holger?"
    Holger entered the room and placed a heavily laden tray on
the coffee table in front of them. "South Thames College. I'm teaching
advanced guitar-making. In Morden."
    "Morden? Bit of a trek. Still, at least it's only one
Tube line from here."
    A look passed between the two men. "Um, Holger's not
moving in, Beatrice. He has a place all lined up near Angel. But yes, it's
still only one Tube line."
    A blush crept up Beatrice's neck. "Sorry, I didn't mean
to make assumptions. You're absolutely right to take things slowly. I mean, who
knows what might happen in the next..."
    Adrian laughed. "I think you'd better stop there before
you dig yourself a deeper hole." He looked at Holger. "She means what
she says about taking it slowly. How long have you and Matthew been together?
Twenty years and they still haven't made the leap to cohabitation."
    Beatrice forced a laugh to join in with Holger, despite a
feeling of looming dread. Her observant neighbour picked up on her mood.
    "Come on, let's eat. Strictly 's on in ten
minutes. Beatrice, you said earlier, when I asked if you two had fallen out, you
said it was quite the opposite. Are you going to elaborate? Has he popped the
question?"
    This time it was impossible to fake a laugh. It took a
second for Adrian to notice her frozen posture and locked jaw, as he was
helping himself to a slice of Godminster and an oatcake.
    "Oh my God! Beatrice? He has!”
    She shook her head. "No, he hasn't. Not yet. But he's
going to, I know it. If I hadn't got the call from work, he'd be doing it now,
across the table at The Toad. As it is, he'll find the right moment next
weekend. What the hell am I going to do?"
    Holger stared at her and Adrian put down his plate.
"This is serious. Holger, top up the wine. I'll set the TV to record. Now,
DI Stubbs, kindly start at the beginning."
    It took some time to explain: Matthew's recent obsession
with planning the future, the 'just the two of us' dinner plans, Marianne's
call, Tanya's text message and the sudden realisation that every expectation
was pinned on an imminent wedding. She finally stopped talking and Holger
handed her a plate. Dear man, he'd already prepared a variety of cheeses,
slices of fruit and selection of crackers. Sharing her concerns left her
lighter, so she tucked into Brie on a water biscuit with a couple of grapes.
    Adrian swirled the contents of his glass. He seemed lost in
the deep colours. Beatrice and Holger both waited for him to speak. He looked
up and nodded.
    "I have to agree. It definitely sounds as if that is
what he's planning. Your detective work is flawless, as always. The question
now must be, what next? Holger, what do you say?"
    Holger examined a Twiglet and replaced it on his plate.
"For me, there is only one question. Beatrice, do you love Matthew?"
    She nodded, her mouth full.
    "So what is the difficulty here? Go to Greece, do what
you need to do quickly and return to him. Wait for his question and answer from
your heart. If you love him, if your relationship has already lasted twenty
years, why not marry the man?"
    Beatrice swallowed. That was the trouble with Germans.
Always so logical. His argument made perfect sense and only someone wilfully
perverse could disagree. She took a swig of wine and attempted to explain.
    "You're absolutely right. The problem is that I can’t
help but see marriage as an end, rather than a beginning. I've spent over fifty
years as an independent woman, and to give up