I told her about my son then, and how I’d made the terrible decision to give him up. Ally looked genuinely shocked and I saw tears appear in her eyes.

‘Maia, how dreadful that you had to go through that all alone. Why on earth didn’t you tell me? I was your sister! I always thought we were close. I would have been there for you, I really would.’

‘I know, Ally, but you were only just sixteen at the time. And besides, I was ashamed.’

‘What a burden you’ve had to carry,’ she breathed. ‘By the way, if you don’t mind me asking, who was the father?’

‘Oh, no one you’d know. He was someone I met at university called Zed.’

‘Zed Eszu?’

‘Yes. You may have heard his name on the news. His father was the tycoon who committed suicide.’

‘And whose boat I saw close to Pa’s that terrible day when I heard he’d died, if you remember.’ Ally shuddered.

‘Of course,’ I acknowledged, having completely forgotten that detail in the maelstrom of the past three weeks. ‘Ironically, it was Zed who inadvertently forced me onto the plane to Rio when I was originally deciding whether to go or not. After fourteen years of silence, he left me a voicemail message out of the blue, saying he had to come to Switzerland and asking if we could meet up.’

Ally looked at me oddly. ‘He wanted to meet you?’

‘Yes. He said he’d heard about Pa’s death and suggested that perhaps we could cry on each other’s shoulders. If anything was going to send me scurrying away from Switzerland, that was it.’

‘Does Zed know that he was the father of your child?’

‘No. And if he did, I doubt he’d care.’

‘I think you are definitely best rid of him,’ Ally said darkly.

‘You know him then?’

‘Not personally, no. But I have a . . . friend who does. Anyway,’ she said, recovering somewhat, ‘it sounds as though getting on that plane was the best thing you’ve ever done. Now, you still haven’t told me about this gorgeous Brazilian you had in tow yesterday. I think Ma rather fell for him. When I arrived earlier, she could talk of nothing else. He’s a writer apparently?’

‘Yes. I translated his first novel for him. It was published in Paris last week to rave reviews.’

‘You were with him there?’

‘Yes.’

‘And?’

‘I . . . like him a lot.’

‘Marina says he liked you too. A lot,’ Ally emphasised. ‘So, where do the two of you go from here?’

‘I don’t know. We didn’t really make any future plans. He has a six-year-old daughter, you see, and he lives in Rio, and I’m here . . . Anyway, how about you, Ally?’ I said, not wishing to discuss Floriano any further.

‘The sailing’s going well, and I’ve been asked to join the crew of the Fastnet Race next month. Also, the coach of the Swiss national sailing team wants to put me through my final paces. If I’m in, it would mean training from autumn with the rest of the squad for next year’s Olympics in Beijing.’