Claire looked up from her work. She hadn’t noticed them come in.

‘How about this one?’ the man said. A couple were browsing the wall display.

Had he just called her Eleanor?

She put down her pen, watching them for a moment, focusing on the woman, giving her a slow look up and down.

‘Morning…’ Claire came out from behind her desk. They were in their late thirties, professional-looking, browsing the half-million-pound and above properties. ‘How may I help you?’

The man turned, giving a polite smile. ‘We’d like some more details on this one, please.’ He pointed to a property.

‘And this one too,’ the woman added, smiling.

Claire hesitated before replying. Wondering, extrapolating, working out the age. Had she misheard the name? ‘Are you looking for an older place?’ she asked. ‘Or would you consider something new as well?’

‘Something with character,’ the man replied. She decided to give them the details for Cliff Lodge anyway. On the surface it seemed old, with its reclaimed bricks and gnarled timberwork. The builder had done a great job, but buyers were generally savvy. They’d soon realise it was overpriced.

‘This one has amazing views,’ Claire told them, slipping the details inside a glossy brochure. ‘You get the feel of an older property but with all the benefits of a new build. It scores top on energy ratings, has a media control panel for the entire house, underfloor heating, state-of-the-art security…’

‘It looks interesting,’ the woman said, glancing at her partner. ‘Though we really were set on something original.’ She smiled. Her hair was light brown, short and highlighted with flecks of red. Her skin was pale, slightly sun-kissed, and her height, Claire guessed, would be about right. Her breathing quickened.

‘Well, take it anyway,’ she said, handing over the brochures. She’d lost count of how many clients with fixed criteria would, three months later, be moving into somewhere entirely different.

‘I can make a few calls now to arrange some viewings if you like.’ She didn’t usually go for the hard sell, but it had been a lean month, though she also wondered if it was her interest in the woman making her pushy. ‘Would you like a coffee?’

The couple looked at each other and nodded, so Claire went into the back to pour the drinks. ‘Have you a property to sell?’ she asked, returning.

‘Our London place is sold. We’re renting down here,’ the man replied, turning the brochure pages.

Claire’s heart fluttered. With only ten days left in the month, she could do with a decent sale. ‘I’m Claire, by the way,’ she said, holding out her hand. ‘Claire Rodway.’

They both smiled. ‘I’m Gary and this is my wife, Eleanor.’ Claire couldn’t help gripping the woman’s hand for a moment too long.

---

An hour and a half later they’d viewed two empty properties. Cliff Lodge, followed by what Claire thought would be the perfect property, not far from Rock. She’d questioned Eleanor about her past as much as she could, but it turned out she’d lived in Kent and London all her life. As they stood outside the last house, gazing back at the façade, Claire’s phone buzzed in her pocket.

‘Excuse me,’ she said, stepping aside. She overheard Gary and Eleanor whispering about furniture, the piano, kids’ bedrooms and where they could put a vegetable plot. It sounded promising.

‘Hello, Claire Rodway speaking.’ There was silence on the line apart from background noise that either sounded like traffic or the tide rushing in. ‘Hello? Who is this?’

The line went dead.

Claire stared at the screen. It was the second time that day – and each call had come up as number withheld. She shrugged and went back to the couple. ‘So, what do you think?’

‘It’s certainly got potential,’ Eleanor said. ‘I’d just hoped for more of a project. Something I can put my mark on.’ The couple nodded at each other, joining hands.

‘We were wondering if you have any barns to convert or old farmhouses with potential, that sort of thing?’ her partner said.

Claire stifled a sigh. ‘Possibly,’ she said in a way that would make them believe there was hope, even though she knew they didn’t have anything like that on their books. ‘I’ll check the files and give you a call.’

If she’d known then what she found out later, she could have taken them straight to the perfect property and probably had an offer on the table by close of business.