“I thought you looked jolly pretty when I saw you before,” he went on.

“Really?” Was it possible he’d actually noticed me doling out soup? “At Victoria Station, you mean?”

“No, here in Nice the other day,” he said. “Remember you passed me on your bicycle and I called out to you and you smiled?”

“That wasn’t me,” I said.

“Must have been. Looked the spitting image of you. Even the smile was the same.”

“But I don’t own a bicycle.”

“Are you sure? It was on the road from our villa. I was walking my aunt’s dog, remember.”

“No, it really wasn’t me,” I said. “I’ve only been here a couple of days. I walked along the seafront once, but that was it.”

“Well, I’m dashed,” he said. “I could have sworn it was you. I don’t usually forget pretty girls, you know. Well, no matter. We’ve met now. Come and have a drink.”

I allowed him to steer me back toward the bar. Two young men had shown interest in me in the space of a few minutes. Perhaps things were looking up after all. As I looked around while Neville ordered drinks, I saw a face I knew well. Belinda had just come into the room, wearing emerald silk pajamas with a halter top that only just managed to cover the important parts. Her face broke into a smile, she gave a delighted scream and she rushed toward me, arms open.

“Darling, it is you! You came after all. I thought I saw you yesterday and I called out your name but you couldn’t have heard me because you didn’t stop. But now you’re here. How splendid. Where are you staying?”

“At my mother’s villa. It’s lovely—right on the cliffs overlooking the Med. And where are you? I asked at the Negresco but they said you hadn’t been there.”

Belinda made a face. “No, it was a little too pricey for me, given my current situation, so I had to opt for somewhere more humble. I’m at a little pension a couple of streets back from the Promenade.”

“So nobody’s invited you to stay yet? You haven’t tried the famous breaking-down routine?”

She frowned. “I tried it once and the gentleman in question was kind enough to send his man out to fix my car. It only worked in Transylvania because we were miles from the nearest habitation.”

“I’d invite you to stay with me, but Mummy has other guests.”

“It’s all right. I have my eye on a certain man. So far it’s been slow going but I’m quite determined he’s going to notice me.”

I moved closer to her. “Who is he? Do tell.”