‘Sure, I know that, even if I do spend most of my time in the auction house peering through a magnifying glass authenticating valuable artwork,’ he laughed along, making his shoulders bob up and down and his hair flop into his toffee-coloured eyes. ‘But we are near enough to Rome; it’s the same land mass at least.’ And as he tilted his head and gently tapped her arm with the piece of card, Grace couldn’t help seeing and thinking how attractive he was, and it made her stomach do a little flip. Do I fancy him? But then she quickly pushed the thought away for she wasn’t one of those women. The Perky Yoga One had been one of those women. Matthew had told Grace that he had ‘been honest’ with the Perky Yoga One right from the start, telling her that he was in a relationship and engaged to be married, but it ‘hadn’t put her off’. For crying out loud. And Ellis has a girlfriend, a very confident, trusting one, as I’m not sure how I would feel knowing he was having a holiday with another woman in Italy, aka quite possibly the most romantic place in the world. And as if to confirm this, a man strumming a ukulele strolled up to them and started singing.

‘Per gli amanti’ and then translating in English, ‘for the lovers’, at which point Grace felt her whole body flush, right from the tips of her toes up to the top of her head, even making her scalp tingle. Especially when Ellis played up to the man’s assumption by swiftly taking her in his arms and tilting her backwards into a classic embrace, making her left leg pop up like they do in the old movies she loved so much. And for one breathtaking moment, Grace indulged herself in a teasing role-play by smiling and laughing to the clapping crowd, who clearly thought they were a properly loved-up couple.

‘Come on, you,’ Ellis grinned, his face mere millimetres from her as he eventually let her go. Then, after hoisting her suitcase onto a nearby trolley, the moment vanished, leaving Grace feeling discombobulated … Ellis might be out of bounds, but there was no harm in a little flirtatious fantasy inside her head, was there? ‘Let’s find the speed boat.’

‘Speed boat?’ Grace gasped, feeling another frisson of excitement. She’d never been on a speed boat. The ferry from Holyhead to Ireland as a child one cold Christmas was the extent of her sailing experience, and so there really was no comparison.

‘Yep, that’s right. The water taxi will take us from here to Venice. The dock is at the end of that covered walkway over there.’ And he indicated with his head in the direction they needed to take.

‘Well, fancy that!’ Grace beamed, popping on her sunglasses and falling into step alongside Ellis as he led the way through the crowds.

Chapter 13