While walking a neighbor’s dog for extra money, Connie sees a strange van parked at her mother’s house. She finds a tall, handsome man named Paul cleaning the gutters. He is initially dismissive and jokes with her when she questions him. Connie is immediately suspicious. Inside, Gwen explains that the local vicar, Reverend Edwards, arranged for Paul to do odd jobs through a charity. Connie feels uneasy about his sudden presence and the fact that the work was arranged without her knowledge. She brings Paul tea but remains wary of his charming demeanor.

The perspective shifts to Zainab Jenkins, one of Gwen’s neighbors. She encounters Connie struggling with heavy grocery bags and helps her carry them home. During their walk, Connie explains that she moved back to England from the Amalfi Coast in Italy, where she worked as a wedding planner, to care for Gwen after her father died. Connie reveals that her finances are tight, and Gwen’s condition is worsening; sometimes Gwen forgets who Connie is or that her husband is dead. Zainab expresses sympathy for Connie’s solitary life and mentions that until Connie moved to the village, few people knew Gwen even had a daughter.

While cleaning Gwen’s house, Connie is surprised by Paul’s return. Gwen greets him enthusiastically. Paul tells Connie that Gwen has asked him to trim a large walnut tree, level the paving slabs, and clear out an old, overgrown pond. He claims the work is all voluntary. Paul flirts with Connie, who is simultaneously flustered and suspicious.

 Later, Connie sees Paul muttering to himself angrily and striking a branch with a hatchet. Soon after, she receives two letters: one confirming her Carer’s Allowance and a second addressed to Gwen confirming an Attendance Allowance, together totaling around £145 a week. She reflects that it will help her make ends meet, in addition to the dog-walking and ironing that she takes in.

Gwen has a severe episode of confusion and aggression. She fails to recognize Connie and, when shown her wedding photograph, identifies her younger self as a woman named Meredith. When Connie tries to reason with her, Gwen throws a cup of tea against the wall, shrieks at Connie to get out, and then slaps and scratches her face. Paul, who is working in the garden, hears the commotion and intervenes. He de-escalates the situation, leads Gwen outside, and soothes her. He tells a shaken Connie that such violent outbursts are a common part of the disease. He suggests he stay with Gwen for the afternoon so Connie can have a break, and then he asks her out on a date.

Connie and Paul go to an Italian restaurant for their date. Paul steers the conversation, asking numerous questions about Connie’s life, her work in Italy, and her role as Gwen’s carer. Connie finds herself opening up to him, but she realizes by the end of the evening that she has learned almost nothing about him. As he drives her home, she worries she has ruined her chances for a second date by talking too much. In the van, she misinterprets his leaning over to open her stiff door handle as a move to kiss her and awkwardly presses her lips to his nose. Mortified, she quickly exits the van.

Connie wakes up late and rushes to Gwen’s house to take her to a doctor’s appointment. She finds Paul already there, and he brought croissants for breakfast. Gwen is fully dressed and wearing makeup. Paul announces he will drive Gwen to her appointment, claiming there is no room for Connie in his van due to a broken middle seatbelt. He dismisses Connie’s need to be there, stating that he found the note she wrote about what to ask the doctor in Gwen’s bureau. This alarms Connie, and she wonders what he was doing searching there. 

Feeling excluded and angry, Connie leaves. She checks the van’s seatbelt and initially thinks he lied, but it then malfunctions. She also discovers that Paul has begun storing his tools in Gwen’s garage.

The narrative shifts to Reverend Eddie Edwards. Connie approaches him at the village post office to ask about the charity, Help for Homes, that sent Paul. While feigning a general interest, she probes for information about their vetting process, trying to determine if Paul can be trusted. The Reverend reassures her that the charity is reputable and thoroughly checks all its volunteers. Despite his assurances, he senses that Connie remains deeply unsettled and that he has failed to put her mind at ease.

Connie reflects on her deepening distrust of Paul. Since their awkward date, he has become cold and distant. She is convinced he has a hidden, likely financial, agenda. Although she regularly checks Gwen’s bank accounts, she has found no suspicious activity. She has taken the precaution of hiding Gwen’s bank cards inside a copy of the novel The Talented Mr. Ripley. Connie feels jealousy over the fact that Paul’s presence makes Gwen happier and more vivid. Her unease grows when Reverend Eddie visits to report that Help for Homes has assured him Paul is a trusted volunteer.

An unspoken competition has developed between Connie and Paul over who can arrive at Gwen’s house first each morning. Today, Paul arrives earlier. When Connie arrives, she finds him stripping wallpaper in the hallway; he explains that he entered because Gwen had fallen out of bed and needed help, and Gwen had asked him to redecorate. He adds that Gwen gave him a key to the garage so he could access his tools. Gwen, who seems excited about the redecorating, confirms she approved the work and will pay for it herself. Feeling completely sidelined, Connie can only watch as Paul further ingratiates himself into her mother’s life.

Connie begins staying overnight at Gwen’s house, and she tries to research Paul online but finds no definitive information. She finds the Help for Homes Facebook page, where she sees a photo of Paul and reads numerous comments praising his volunteer work. Her hope sinks until she finds one anonymous, critical post warning, “Don’t let Paul pull the wool over your eyes. He’s fooled you all. Beauty and the devil are the same thing” (50). She sends a message to the poster, whose profile name is “Ann On,” asking for more information, but receives no immediate reply.

This chapter shifts to the perspective of Walter Clark, Gwen’s elderly neighbor. Connie arrives to walk his dog, Oscar, and sensing her distress, Walter invites her in for tea. Connie confides her suspicions about Paul, explaining that she feels he is taking advantage of her mother. Walter reveals that Paul has done free odd jobs for him and other neighbors. He gently suggests that Connie might be envious of the attention Paul gives Gwen and that her mistrust stems from her own selfless nature; she cannot believe someone else would be kind without an ulterior motive. He advises her to try getting to know Paul better instead of assuming the worst.

Connie invites Paul to dinner at Gwen’s house, intending to probe for information and expose his true motives. The meal becomes a tense interrogation. Paul mentions Mongibello, the fictitious town from The Talented Mr. Ripley, which Connie reads as an indirect signal that he knows where she has hidden Gwen’s bank cards. 

Connie is dismayed to see Paul wearing her late father Bill’s watch, which Gwen explains she gave him. Paul gives Gwen wine against Connie’s medical advice. Later, when Connie returns from the kitchen with the desserts, she overhears Gwen and Paul whispering a secret, confirming they are now allied against her.

The chapter is told from the perspective of Joe Lawson, the local Neighborhood Watch coordinator. A panicked Connie arrives at his door to report that Gwen is missing. She found the house empty that morning and has been searching the village for hours. Annoyed that this will interfere with his afternoon golf game, Joe listens as Connie explains the situation. He calls the police and organizes a village search party, seeing an opportunity to bolster his image for his upcoming parish council chairman campaign.

A day and a half after Gwen’s disappearance, an extensive police search is underway. Connie is overwhelmed with guilt and fear, convinced something terrible has happened. She also found Gwen’s medication wrapped in tissue in the bin—including Connie’s prescription sleeping pills, which she had been secretly slipping to Gwen; she withholds this from the detectives. Paul has also vanished, which strengthens her suspicion that he is responsible. She tells the family liaison officer, Detective Sergeant Krisha Ahuja, everything she knows about him. As a local news crew sets up to film Connie making a public appeal for information, Gwen and Paul walk through the front door, both appearing unharmed.

Connie is simultaneously relieved and furious. Gwen and Paul explain they took a spontaneous two-day trip to Clacton-on-Sea. Paul claims he tried to inform Connie by leaving a note and sending an email that went to her junk folder. He also says that he bought Gwen a new phone, which came with a new number unknown to Connie, explaining why her calls went unanswered. 

Enraged, Connie accuses Paul of abducting her mother to get her money. DS Ahuja questions everyone separately. Paul tells the police that Connie made unwelcome romantic advances, making it difficult for him to communicate with her directly. With no evidence of a crime and Paul and Connie’s stories corroborating each other, the police close the case. After they leave, Gwen cryptically tells Connie to let someone named “Meredith” know that she now has “Tom.”