‘I was going to take you to the famous blue grotto, but it’s on the exposed side of the island, and I don’t like the look of those clouds.’ He pointed at the curious flat-topped cloud arrangement. ‘Cumulonimbus incus, named after the anvil in Latin; you can see how much it is shaped like a blacksmith’s anvil? Not a good sign. We will keep our eyes on it carefully. Instead we are going to a sheltered bay with my favourite beach on the whole island.’

‘Aye, aye, Cap’n. What would you like me to do?’

‘I want you to hold the tiller while I make some adjustments.’

‘Fine.’ Penny sat down and took over steering, not confessing that on dry land Colin told her she couldn’t tell her right from her left. Colin wasn’t here. It suddenly struck her that it had been such a short time since she’d arrived here, but already she seemed like a completely different person. The truth was, she wasn’t missing Colin at all, and with every moment that passed she felt less guilty about her choice in staying here. She missed Wendy and the children, of course she did; but Tom never kept in touch anyway. Like father, like son. Oh dear, she did hope not.

She felt the wind whip her hair across her face and realized she must have changed the angle they were sailing at. Without being told, she corrected their course to the original direction, feeling proud of herself as she did. She was beginning to see that by his continual chipping away at her self-confidence, Colin had kept her dependent. He had made her think that without him she would be even more hopeless. But perhaps it wasn’t true. She had become more confident and competent after only a few days here, two thousand miles away from him.

The thought struck her, scaring her suddenly, that though Colin hadn’t been in touch, he wouldn’t just give her up – or worse, let her give him up. There would be a fight at some point, and she would need all her new-found confidence and competence to survive it.

They were now mid-channel and the waves were higher, not protected any longer by the shoreline. The boat dived and righted itself, almost like a rollercoaster. She’d always hated rollercoasters, but she was enjoying this. It made her feel alive.

‘Well done,’ congratulated Nikos. ‘It isn’t easy to keep the course in this swell. You’re a natural sailor. What other talents do you have? Can you weave wool, by any chance?’ He laughed down at her. She could see herself reflected in his blue sunglasses, happy and laughing and actually quite pretty.

‘Why on earth?’