‘No, but it’s expected, isn’t it? My mother is the one who made the hotel a success. Without that special essence she brought to it, there’s no point.’

He smiled again, and shook his head. Elle was one of the smartest people he knew, but she could be so stupid sometimes. But his heart lightened. Despite her worries, it sounded like she was planning on sticking around.

‘Elle, your mother was an incredible person. But she wasn’t perfect,’ he reassured her. ‘Even she had days when she wanted to pack it all in. I know for sure that there were days when she felt just like you do, that she couldn’t paste on one more smile. But, that’s part of being in business. Sometimes you just have to pretend a bit. Anna told me that sometimes she would pretend so well that she would forget she was even doing it, and all of a sudden she would be enjoying herself.’

The dogs were walking beside them now and Rob tossed a stick into the water for them to argue over. Some low clouds had formed in the sky, looking almost as though they wanted to join with the sea.

He continued: ‘The hotel doesn’t need someone exactly like your mum for it to be a success. You’ve already proved that you can do it. You already won everyone in this town over. Della and Jim think I’m a fool for . . .’ He broke off and then began again. ‘The hotel needs you, Elle. You’re smart, you’re strong, and you know intuitively what a place like that needs. You held it back from the brink. And I know that you don’t believe it, but you’re also warm and funny and a thousand other wonderful things. Don’t you see that Anna would be so proud of you? You don’t need to be her. You can learn from your mother, but trust yourself, Elle. You’ve got everything the hotel needs.’

She thought for a while. ‘Well, whether what you say is true or not, I’ve got no choice really. I have to go back.’ She shrugged. ‘I didn’t bring any clothes with me.’

She might have sounded flippant, but the truth was that what Rob had said did make Elle feel better. It was silly, how her heart had begun to flip slowly in her chest when he started talking. Did he really think those things about her?

‘What were you doing?’ she said suddenly. ‘When I caught you on the coast road, where on earth were you going?’

He shrugged. ‘I was just heading to the hotel. To tell you that I love you.’

She stared at him for a second and then broke into a slow smile.