Lionel said, ‘Did you know Vicky and Kitty had been estranged from each other?’ Gilbert nodded. ‘I noticed it during the winter. And it was obvious when Vicky came out here by herself to have...

Katharine arrived in the morning without advance warning. Lionel was sitting by Victoria’s bed when the door opened and she came in. For a moment Lionel thought it would be necessary to tell her of...

‘For your part, you could pray, perhaps.’ Lionel said bitterly, ‘Medically speaking, do you advise that?’ ‘From the point of view of the recovery of a patient, no. But it is sometimes of help to...

He had walked up from the house slowly, his limbs responding reluctantly as though in the partial grip of some paralysis. When he sat down on the bench it was with a physical relief, but...

The hay meadows were thick and high with the year’s second crop, less flowery now than in the abundance of spring but still colourful and perhaps even more richly scented. From somewhere behind them there...

‘I didn’t persuade him to leave Sickert’s. As a matter of fact he was sacked. He came to see me about it, and it was just the right time. I’d already been up here to...

She reached on tiptoe and kissed him. ‘I love you,’ she said, ‘wildly, passionately, and you’re quite right, I could never flirt with you again. I don’t want to. This is the best.’ ‘Not quite....

He had been sitting near the French windows; he got to his feet, with Victoria making a show of helping him, and they went outside. The night air was cool after the warmth of the...

‘You must remember, concerning Russia, that it is a country of snow and wolves, a vast and hard land. When I am there and I think of the Western cities, of London and Paris, it...

‘Do you ski yourself, sir?’ Tulenkov shook his head. ‘After forty, a man is a fool to attempt to learn new sports. And although I enjoy our season here – from my own point of...