After a long climb, they reached the Gardens of Augustus. It was very small and quaint, filled with statues and bright flowers. Again, there were so few tourists Keira felt like she was completely out of the general hustle and bustle of Capri.

“The view here is astounding,” Keira said.

Cristiano pointed at a protrusion of three rocks in the ocean. “The Faraglioni,” he explained.

Keira felt awed looking at the natural wonders.

The next stop on Cristiano’s whistle-stop tour of the less well-known parts of Capri was San Michele, an eighteenth-century church. On their walk there they passed vineyards and lemon groves where lizards sunbathed lazily, and took in the views of Capri’s coastal lighthouses. With every step they took, Keira felt herself falling more and more in love with Capri.

Cristiano removed a sweater from his backpack. “You should put this on to cover your shoulders.”

From the outside, San Michele looked like a small church, pretty but nothing particularly astounding. But then Keira stepped inside.

The entire church floor was made up of hundreds of tiles covered in artwork that depicted Eden.

Keira gasped. “It’s fantastic.”

“Here,” Cristiano said, leading her to a small staircase. “The view is even better from above.”

They climbed the rickety steps together. Keira looked down in wonder at the workmanship that gone into such a beautiful design.

“Thank you for showing me this,” she said to Cristiano. “I would never have found this place without a guide.”

He smiled. “You are welcome, Keira. But I am afraid we must head back down into the busy town now, then take the funicular to the docks.”

Keira tensed at the thought. “Can’t we stay here?” she asked. “It’s so peaceful. So…” She stopped herself. The word she’d been about to say was “romantic.”

Cristiano shook his head. “You must trust me, Keira. It will be worth it.”

The highest heat of the sun had now passed as they headed downhill, giving them a slightly more comfortable journey down. Even the funicular wasn’t quite as terrifying the second time around.

Once they reached the coastline, Cristiano steered Keira by her elbow to the docks.

“You have not seen Capri until it has also been explored from the water,” he explained, gesturing to a small gondola.

“In that?” Keira asked, balking. “But it’s tiny.”

What she really meant was that it was so small they would inevitably have to touch one another. She wondered if that was Cristiano’s intention. A way of getting the wheels finally turning between them.

He chuckled. “It is the best way to travel. You don’t want to share with them, do you?” He pointed at the hordes of tourists as they poured onto one of the small touring boats. “This way we can go at our own pace. And we do not have to listen to their chatter.”

Keira couldn’t really argue with that. “Well, okay, but promise me it’s safe?”

“Of course, it is safe!” Cristiano said, gesturing for her to step aboard.