“It is too bad that her mother is so petite,” Vera said. “She would not fit into any of Claire’s clothes.”

“We must take her on a shopping expedition,” Coco said. “This very morning. It will be fun. Come on. Let’s find Claire and go into town.”

“But what about my visit to Sir Toby?” I asked, torn between wanting to do my duty and the thought of Coco Chanel buying me clothes.

“I think we all agree that you cannot visit him dressed in such unsuitable clothing. Besides, he is probably still snoring, like all good Englishmen.” Coco dismissed this with a wave of her hand. “Just a quick jaunt to Galeries Lafayette for the basics of survival. Later I can take you under my wing properly and get you set up for society.”

Galeries Lafayette turned out to be a department store in Massena Square—a huge area of red colonnaded buildings with fountains and statues. It was peopled with the most incredibly elegant women and I was horribly conscious of that cotton frock. The assistants almost fell over each other in their haste to reach Chanel. The basics of survival turned out to be a pair of wide-legged white linen trousers, a little navy linen jacket and a striped matelot shirt. “When on the French coast, what else but the look of a French sailor,” Chanel said. “Chic and fun.” She even managed to find me a jaunty French sailor’s hat. When I put them on I had to agree that I did look amazingly chic. Maybe there was hope for me after all.

As I stepped from the store into the blinding sunlight I almost collided with two women looking at the window display. I went to apologize but before I could utter a word Fig’s sharp voice said, “Georgie, it’s you. What are you wearing? I hardly recognized you.”

“Thanks,” I said with a satisfied smile. “Coco Chanel just bought the outfit for me at this store.”

I could positively see their jaws drop. “Coco Chanel? At Galeries Lafayette? What on earth for?” Fig demanded.

“She’s taken me under her wing.” I tried the Gallic shrug. “It’s good to see you, Fig. I hope all is well at the Villa Gloriosa.”

Fig frowned. “We’ve been so worried about you. We’ve just heard that you were involved in some kind of scandal last night—a stolen necklace? I did warn you about staying with your mother, didn’t I, Ducky?” Her sister nodded, both of them staring at me as if I was a fallen woman now. “Binky’s quite upset. He thinks you should come back and stay with us immediately.”