One line of the ledger
Thirties and beyond: the four least hurried on the board
The shortest age band here and, by a distance, the calmest. Four women between thirty and thirty two: Nancy, Violetta, Margo and Sonya. Between them they take the longest bookings on this site, which is not a coincidence. Nobody in this column is interested in an evening that has to be finished by ten.
One blonde, one black haired and two brunettes, standing at 170, 178, 166 and 162 centimetres in that order. All four begin at £250 for an hour, exactly as every other page of the ledger does, on rates.
Thirties and beyond, as the ledger has it
Nancy, thirty
170 cm, curvy, golden blonde with blue eyes, and entirely finished with pretending to be in a hurry. Nancy paints in watercolour, likes rivers and is comfortable with a silence that most people would rush to fill. Three hours at £700 covers the painted hall and a table by the water in Greenwich; four at £900 gives the walk afterwards room to run. Afternoon starts work with her, since the ceiling down there is not lit after hours.
Violetta, thirty
178 cm, slender, long black hair worn sleek and straight, brown eyed, and still the tallest person in the room in flat shoes. History, Victorian engineering and other people's letters out of hours. The arcade, the river wall and a table with no rush in it come to three hours at £700, and £900 across four suits a slower night. She works SE1 and E14, and the table is always within a few minutes of wherever you are staying.
Margo, thirty one
166 cm, slim, dark brown hair worn straight, and always five minutes early. Fountain pens, newspapers and long dinners out of hours, which tells you most of what you need. Dinner is the format that fits her: four hours at £900, with the conversation given proper room rather than squeezed between courses. She works EC3 and E14, which makes her the obvious name for a City table. She is out of London for three weeks and the desk is taking evenings after that.
Sonya, thirty two
162 cm, athletic, dark brown worn straight, hazel eyed, with a dancer's posture and thirty two years of opinions she is happy to share. She watches dance, belongs to a film club and drinks her coffee black. A performance and supper together want £700 across three hours; the show with a single drink after it is £500. She is off the diary for a fortnight and Maude is taking dates from the week she returns.
Why this column gets the long bookings
Because none of the four is in a hurry and all four are good at the part of an evening that happens after the food. Three of them ask for the four hour rung by name. If the evening is a client table, a long dinner or a night that is supposed to unwind rather than accelerate, start here.
Elsewhere in the ledger, Nancy is in blondes and curvaceous, Violetta in raven haired, statuesque and slim and slender, Margo in brunettes and slim and slender, and Sonya in brunettes, petite and toned. Availability is on the desk and the formats are on after hours.
Send the room and the hour
Write the district, the time and the length of the booking. The desk answers with a name and an arrival window, and the evening is set.