‘Wow!’ Georgie said. ‘It’s a proper mystery. How exciting.’ And then turning to Tom she asked, ‘Would your Nonna Maria be able to help? Maybe she knew Grace and Ellis’s friend, or might remember something to help them find a relative.’

‘I’m sure she will if she can. But she’s very old and her memory is affected by the dementia,’ Tom told them, and then explained, ‘Maria is my grandmother, on my mother’s side. I’m happy to ask her. Let’s swap numbers and I can call you later,’ and he put a hand in his jeans pocket to presumably pull out a mobile to type the number into, but it wasn’t there. ‘Do you have your phone with you, Georgie?’ he asked, patting his back pockets to be sure.

‘No, I’ve left it by the pool – it was all such a rush,’ she said, giving Gypsy a kiss on the top of her head.

‘And mine is flat!’ Ellis said, sighing as he inspected the screen of his phone.

‘I have mine,’ Grace said, starting to rummage in her bag. ‘Or we could come back another time if that’s easier for you,’ Grace offered, desperate to get in the shade now, figuring it must be at least 40 degrees and the fair, freckly skin on her arms was starting to burn, and she really wished she hadn’t worn jeans and trainers for the hike up here. Georgie had the right idea in sparkly flip-flops, a swimsuit and kaftan, and Grace made a mental note to see if she could find something similar when they went to the shops in Portofino tomorrow.

‘Look, instead of trying to do all this out here when it’s absolutely roasting,’ Georgie started, grinning at Grace, who smiled in agreement, ‘why don’t you come in with us now and we can exchange numbers in the shade of the terrace? And you’re welcome to join us for a cold glass of homemade lemonade, if you have time?’ She grinned kindly at Grace who could have given her a massive hug and a kiss right there, such was her relief at the thought of escaping the scorching sun.

‘Are you sure?’ Ellis asked, sheepishly, ‘I mean, we were trespassing …’

‘Err, you were,’ Georgie teased, laughing, ‘but technically, Grace wasn’t. And so come along, darling, let’s get out of this heat.’ And she gently tucked Gypsy under one arm and looped her other through Grace’s arm and led her towards a side gate as if they were best friends who had known each other for ever.