‘Stephanie,’ she beamed, reluctantly pulling away from the girl’s father. ‘So lucky to have you too!’ She ran her eyes over the leggy young woman who stood before her and momentarily entertained the idea of bringing her and Luca together. With long, glossy hair the colour of a chestnut pony’s and her father’s brown skin and eyes, she was a beauty. ‘How old are you now, Stephanie?’
‘Twenty-one.’
Romina struggled to hide her disappointment. ‘So young,’ she sighed. Too young, she thought. ‘Che peccato ! ’
She led them through the palazzo to the terrace, showing off the inner courtyard with its trickling fountain and lemon trees on the way. Stephanie admired the pretty pastel colours and elegant decoration. ‘I’d love to live in a place like this, it’s so serene.’
‘You have to find your prince first, Stephanoula,’ replied her father.
‘There are plenty of handsome Italian boys in Incantellaria,’ volunteered Romina.
‘And if they so much as look at my daughter I will grind their bones to powder!’
Caradoc and Nanni were on the terrace, waiting for lunch and discussing the merits of the ancient philosophers; Ma was drinking lemonade in the shade, eavesdropping; Bill was in the garden working out where he wanted to create a grotto: while Sammy and the children were in their rooms changing out of their swimsuits.
Bill hurried up the garden to greet Dennis. ‘My dear fellow, how good it is to see you!’ he said, shaking him firmly by the hand.
‘You have a beautiful home,’ said Dennis admiringly. ‘You’re a very talented man, Bill.’
‘I couldn’t have done it without my wife.’
‘It was a labour of love,’ said Romina. ‘Now, who do you know?’ She proceeded to make the introductions, taking pleasure in assembling such an eclectic group of people.
‘Dennis is an old friend,’ she explained to her brother and the professor. ‘He makes his own aeroplanes.’
‘That is a little exaggeration, my love,’ Dennis corrected. ‘I’m an aeronautical engineer.’
‘But he has flown helicopters and aeroplanes since he was a little boy. You’re too modest, darling!’
‘You’re Greek,’ observed the professor, narrowing his eyes like an iguana. ‘With a little something else.’
‘Born in Sudan.’
‘From Kelbrook, Yorkshire’ added Stephanie.
‘A delicious mixture,’ Romina gushed.
‘Don’t look too closely.’ Dennis grinned mischievously. ‘It’s not good to look at a donkey when it’s giving you a present.’
‘Or as we’d say,’ said Stephanie, ‘don’t look a gift-horse in the mouth.’
Nanni roared with laughter. ‘I like you, Dennis.’
‘Come, Stephanie.’ The professor, took her by the arm. ‘Come and tell me a little bit about yourself. You’re a very beautiful girl. I’m too old to enter the arena, but I’m not too old to admire from afar. You, my dear, have my total admiration.’
Luca arrived late for lunch, grinning at his good fortune. ‘It’s a beautiful day!’ he exclaimed as he walked out on the terrace. Coco and Juno sprang down from the table like monkeys and threw their arms around his waist.
‘Where have you been?’ his mother asked.
‘Up to no good, I suspect,’ said Ma. ‘He looks much too pleased with himself this morning.’
‘I’ve been reading the papers in town,’ Luca replied coolly.
‘Why do you have to go into town all the time, when the best coffee is served here with the newspapers your father buys especially?’
‘There’s little to be had here in the way of adventure. Let the boy enjoy himself,’ said Nanni, wriggling his toes as Porci took the liberty of lying across them.
‘You know Dennis and Stephanie,’ said Bill.
Dennis extended his hand. ‘We haven’t seen each other for a long time.’
‘Just don’t tell me I’ve grown,’ laughed Luca.
‘Nor me,’ Stephanie added.
‘But you have!’ he retorted, walking around the table to kiss the young woman he had known as a teenager.
‘Wait until she stands up,’ Romina added. ‘She has the longest legs I’ve ever seen.’ It’s worth a try, she thought.
After a while their conversation turned to the intruder and Bill took pleasure in telling Dennis how he had been accused by his wife of taking secret naps in the afternoons. ‘I wish I had the time,’ he lamented.
‘Everyone has time if they want it,’ Romina replied.
‘Have you been down to the folly today?’ Nanni asked his nephew.