The exclusive hotel was everything she’d dreamt it would be, and as a personal guest of the owner – the legendary Gracie Fields, who lived here in Capri and whose home was nearby – she had been afforded every luxury, including her own personal butler. Taking a sip of the refreshing peach wine cocktail the butler had mixed for her, she dropped her shades over her eyes and surveyed the sumptuous scene beyond the veranda. To her left she could see the Faraglioni rock stacks rising majestically from the sea, the rays from the hot, Mediterranean sun dazzling on the crystalline azure and emerald waves, creating a trillion tiny diamond flecks, floating and twinkling as if to welcome her to this magical island paradise of Capri. Lush green trees and pink bougainvillea mingling amidst the white stucco architecture meandered her gaze down the cliff and out to sea, where something caught her eye. She wandered closer towards the wrought-iron balustrade at the edge of the veranda and, after leaning forward for a better look, keen to ensure her eyes weren’t deceiving her, she allowed herself a momentary gasp of pleasure on seeing him standing there on the deck of a yacht. He was wearing a white linen shirt and trousers, showcasing his tall, suntanned physique, his aquiline nose and distinctive strong jaw. Glossy black hair swept back from a high forehead framed his famous movie star looks. There was no doubt! Suddenly afraid she would be spotted looking out for him, she dipped back behind the curtain out of view. Always cautious. Yet with so much to lose the stakes were high … and she simply couldn’t take the risk.

They had first met on the set of her last film in Los Angeles and the attraction as he had smiled and graciously introduced himself, even though everyone knew who he was, had been instant, a sizzling bolt of electricity, quite unlike anything that she had ever experienced before. His affable charm and deep-set smouldering black eyes had been irresistible – and strictly off limits. The studio had her tied into a five-year contract with pages and pages of draconian rules – no dating, no marriage and definitely no babies. Yet here he was, in a Riva speedboat travelling across the white froth-capped waves of the mesmerising, sapphire sea towards the hotel’s private jetty …

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Tindledale, rural England, present day