Her heart well and truly lifted, Colette walked back into the living room and held the invite out for her husband to read.

It had been a few years since Kim had announced her intentions to buy and restore the old villa, and the process had been less than easy.

From their (admittedly far too infrequent) phone catch-ups, she knew Kim had encountered obstacle after obstacle, from the Italian authorities to some of the locals, almost from the moment she let her grand plans be known.

However, as always, she hadn’t wavered in her intentions, and now the invite was proof of her success.

“Isn’t it wonderful? She really did it. I can’t wait to see how it looks now,” Colette prattled excitedly, as she waited for her husband’s reaction. “And Kim, too, of course. And I wonder if Annie will come? Oh, I hope so. I haven’t seen her in so long.”

Colette and Kim had always made a conscious effort to stay in touch after their time in Italy, Annie less so. But the trio’s was the kind of friendship that bucked time and place, and Colette knew that once they were together again, the preceding years would simply melt away and it would be as if they were never apart.

“Seriously?” Ed replied flatly. He looked up at her. “This is only a month away. I know you were looking forward to going back to Italy again, and it’s great Kim seems to have finally got it all up and running, but do we really have time for this just now? You have that new project coming up, for starters.”

Colette looked at him, puzzled. “We’d make time, of course,” she answered. “I don’t understand... We knew for ages that Kim’s launch would likely be happening this summer. Why would I want to miss a trip like this?”

“It’s just with everything we have going on, isn’t the timing a bit off for a last-minute jaunt to Italy? And it’s not as though you two are that close anymore.”

“What? Of course the timing’s not off,” she replied, confused by his reaction. She’d thought Ed would be as excited as she was to return to the Amalfi Coast, where, in truth, their own love story began. And perhaps while there, the location might just work its magic again? And yes, while their lives had diverged considerably since their time in Italy, Colette considered Kim and Annie friends for life.

“OK. I’ll see about making the necessary reservations,” Ed answered. His mood still seemed off, though, and Colette was completely baffled by it.

“No need. Kim’s already arranged everything,” she announced as she handed the envelope to him. “We fly out a couple of days before the party and stay in Sorrento over the weekend. All we have to do is show up. It’s really quite generous of her, actually.”