Secrets on the Italian Island

by T A Williams

  She told Charlie what had happened at Marco’s house. ‘You’ll be relieved to hear that nothing’s going to happen between me and Marco. It turns out the guy with the heart attack was in mining and Marco referred to him as “the enemy”, so that means I fall into the same category. And, as if that wasn’t enough, there’s what Felice said.’ She went on to relate the conversation she had had with the receptionist. ‘No, I’m afraid nothing worthwhile’s going to happen between me and Marco.’

  ‘I’m sorry to hear that, Anna. You deserve a break.’ She couldn’t agree more. ‘You never know, maybe he’ll fall madly in love with you, give up all other women, become a changed man and accept you warts and all.’

  ‘That’s a charming image of me you paint, Charlie, but even if he did do something as radical as that, I’d probably only think less of him for abandoning his principles about the environment. No, warts or no warts, I’ve just got to grin and bear it. It’s not going to happen.’

  He gave her a sympathetic smile. ‘This guy’s really got to you, hasn’t he?’

  ‘I know he shouldn’t, but he has. It’s the weirdest thing. It’s like he has a supernatural power that bewitches me, turning me from a logical, sensible person into a helpless tool in his hands.’

  At the end of the meal Anna took George for a final walk while Charlie went upstairs to Skype with his wife. After a gentle stroll through the pine trees, fascinated by the yellow pinpricks of light from the fireflies, Anna went up to her room with George. She was pleased to see the dog settle down on the floor beside her bed and drift off to sleep without any fuss, and after the excitement of the day, she soon followed suit.

  All was well until around three o’clock in the morning when she woke up bathed in sweat. It was a warm night, but not excessively so. She hadn’t turned on the air conditioning and had left the window wide open. However, as she lay there she quickly realised that the heat wasn’t coming from outside. A large, heavy body was lying tightly against her, one big paw draped across her chest and his far from fragrant hairy head wedged up against her neck.

  She slid carefully away from the slumbering dog until she was able to climb out of bed and wander across to the bathroom to towel herself dry. When she came back, the moonlight illuminated a visibly happy and contented Labrador lying on his back on the very spot where she had been lying, all four paws in the air, grunting to himself. As he saw her emerge from the bathroom, his tail began to wag from side to side and she had to steel herself to tell him off.

  ‘Look, George… I know yesterday was a bit stressful for you, but dogs aren’t meant to sleep on beds. Beds are for people, right? Got that?’

  All that this achieved was to make his tail wag harder. She stood there for a few moments and then hardened her heart. ‘Come here, George. Who’s a good boy?’ She crouched down and patted the floor at her feet. ‘Come to Anna.’

  To her relief he obligingly got to his feet, stretched, and jumped down onto the floor. As she stroked him he leant against her and gradually slid down so that he was lying on the floor where he had started the night. She waited until she was sure he had fallen asleep once more before very quietly slipping back into bed, pulling the single sheet over her and closing her eyes, doing her best to ignore the lingering aroma of Labrador. It took her some time to get back to sleep, her mind full of the events of the day and inevitably of thoughts of the handsome windsurfer.

  Here he was, a single and very appealing man, living in a gorgeous part of Tuscany, and yet she knew deep down that nothing could come of this encounter. She, in his eyes, would not only be ‘the enemy’, but also demonstrably unworthy of trust after deliberately lying to him about her real reason for being here. It was also looking very much as though he was, in Charlie’s words, a player. Much as she liked him, she had no desire to end up as just another notch on his bedpost – or at least that was the view of Sensible Anna. Naughty Anna wasn’t so sure. Maybe, as Charlie had said, it was just as well she would be leaving in a week or two.

  No sooner did thoughts of Marco come to mind than she started thinking of the other good-looking man she had met recently and she wondered where Toby was now. Had he already started his cruise? Would he come to see her? She certainly hoped so. A sudden image flashed across her mind of him sitting alongside Marco with her facing the two of them across a table, looking and feeling embarrassed. What was that old saying about no buses coming along for ages and then two turning up at the same time? None of these thoughts made getting back to sleep easy.

  She was woken at half past six by a cold wet nose repeatedly nudging her bare leg. At some point in the night she must have thrown off the covers and all she was wearing was the old T-shirt she was using as a nightie. She rolled towards the nose and found herself staring into two big brown eyes, that same adoring look all too visible in them as the dog gazed, spellbound, upon her. Was this what real love felt like, she asked herself? Although she had woken up alongside a few – not that many – men in her life, she had never read such utter, complete, unquestioning love until now. She reached out and stroked the dog’s head.

  ‘Good morning, George, I suppose you want a walk.’

  With hindsight, it would probably have been better if she had dressed first, as the dog began to do a happy bouncing dance around the room, uttering little yelps of delight. She jumped out of bed and did her best to calm him down so he didn’t wake her neighbours while she struggled into shorts and sandals. If the night porter was surprised to see a dishevelled woman without a bra come running down the stairs accompanied by a big black dog, he was polite enough not to show it. He just gave her a little nod of the head.

  ‘Buongiorno, Signora.’

  She threw him a greeting and followed the dog out of the door into the pleasantly cool fresh morning air. Outside on the lawn the sprinklers were watering the immaculately trimmed grass and Anna hurried George past them in case he might decide he wanted a shower. The idea of bringing a wet, smelly dog back into the hotel was not one she wanted to consider. For the same reason she avoided going down to the beach and led him off through the pine trees again, heading for the low headland above Marco and Mr Dante’s houses. Instead of dropping down over the other side into their little valley, she carried on along the promontory until she was standing directly above the sea. Looking down from up here she could see deep into the crystal-clear water and it looked very appealing. Beside her, the Labrador rolled about happily in the dust before jumping back to his feet and shaking himself. The dust particles glittered pink in the early morning sunlight. It really was a delightful place.

  Her phone bleeped and as she saw it was a text from Toby.

  Hi Anna. Hope you arrived safely. I’ve been thinking about you a lot and I’m doing my best to organise things so I can come and meet up with you again some time next week. I’ll give you a call tomorrow or the next day as soon as I know something definite. Toby x

  She liked the look of that little x and she definitely liked the fact that he had been thinking about her. Not for the first time she wondered what the logic was in her bothering with an alleged womaniser like Marco when she had a wonderful man like Toby interested in her – and this message definitely appeared to show that he was. The answer to that question, of course, had little to do with logic.

  She sent Toby back a message in which she did her best to convey the way she was feeling.

  Great to hear from you. I’ve been thinking about you too, lots. All well here and the weather’s fab. Wonderful news if we can meet up again. Call me any time, it’ll be lovely to talk. xx

  The least she could do was to send him two kisses at the end.

  By the time she got down to breakfast back at the hotel – now showered and wearing underwear – it was still barely seven thirty, but she found Charlie already in the dining room, working his way through a plateful of scrambled eggs and ham. He had news for her.

  ‘Listen, Anna, I’ve been talking to Mary and she sounds a bit panicky. Although her
due date’s a week tomorrow, the midwife thinks the baby might make an appearance earlier than that, so I think the time’s come for me to head home to be with her. I’ve been checking and there’s space on a flight from Pisa to London this afternoon.’

  ‘Of course, just go. Do you want me to give you a lift up to Pisa?’

  He shook his head. ‘Only as far as Portoferraio, thanks. I’ll get the ferry across to the mainland and there are fairly regular trains from Piombino to Pisa so I should be fine. Are you sure you’re going to be okay on your own?’

  She smiled and pointed to the dog at her feet. ‘I’m not alone. Besides, I’m looking forward to seeing George’s owner when he comes out of hospital. I’ll be fine.’

  ‘Well, you make sure you don’t take any risks until my replacement comes. I wouldn’t want anything to happen to you. And what about your new four-legged friend?’ By this time George was sitting attentively at Charlie’s side, looking remarkably intelligent and obedient, his nose unerringly trained towards the ham and eggs on the table above him. ‘What’ll you do with him?’ Charlie handed him down a piece of ham from his plate and it disappeared in an instant.

  ‘His master’s supposedly coming back home today, but if he doesn’t, George can stay with me, and he’ll have to come with me on my surveying trips.’

  Charlie grimaced. ‘There’s just one thing: when I was talking to the guy at reception, I said you might like to stay on here for another week and he told me they’re fully booked from Sunday. So that only gives you three more nights here before you’re going to need a new hotel.’

  ‘Bugger!’ Anna had been counting on staying here where she was comfortable and everything was familiar. Still, there was no point crying over spilt milk. ‘If this place is booked up then I imagine most of the other decent hotels will be too, so I might see if there’s a tourist information office in Portoferraio who might know of any last-minute availability. Otherwise I’m sure I’ll be able to sort something out online, but I’d better get onto that today. I must admit I thought the really busy season would be over by now.’

  ‘I’ll go and send an email to Douglas now and ask him to inform Sir Graham that I’m leaving. I imagine they’ll send you somebody else to help out as soon as possible.’

  ‘Tell him not to worry too much. I’ll be fine on my own.’

  Charlie shook his head. ‘Health and Safety, Anna. They’ll send someone.’

  Half an hour later Anna opened the rear door of the car and the dog jumped readily onto the back seat. She couldn’t put him in the baggage compartment as that was full of their prospecting equipment but he perched happily on the back seat and behaved himself impeccably on the journey to the ferry terminal at Portoferraio – apart from occasionally trying to lick her ears as she drove along. As she dropped Charlie off, she gave him a big hug and sent lots of love for Mary and he wished her luck with her search for the elusive rare metals and good wishes tempered by further words of caution.

  ‘And just remember what I said about Windsurfer Guy. You deserve better than him and this is good old Uncle Charlie talking.’

  ‘Thanks, Charlie but I promise I’ll be sensible.’

  As he walked off towards the ferry, her phone rang and she answered it, not recognising the number. The voice on the other end was immediately familiar and she felt herself tense.

  ‘Anna? Graham Moreton-Cummings here.’

  Anna was amazed and instantly intimidated. She had never been called directly by him before. ‘Sir Graham, it’s good to hear from you. I hope all’s well.’ She was pleased to hear she was sounding steady in spite of the nerves the sound of his voice always provoked in her.

  He didn’t bother replying to her query about his health. ‘We’ve had an email from your partner. I gather he’s had to head home to be with his wife, which leaves you alone.’

  ‘Don’t worry, I can cope, Sir Graham.’

  ‘I’m sure you could, but I’m afraid it’s company policy for you to have somebody there with you, just in case. So I’ve decided I’m going to send you Ruby, my daughter.’

  Anna felt her jaw drop. ‘Your daughter?’ She had heard of his daughter who occupied some unspecified role in the company in the US or Canada, but had never met her.

  ‘She’s been working in the New York office for some years now and I’ve decided she needs to get more experience of what life at the sharp end’s like. She can’t spend all her time sitting at a desk.’

  Anna growled under her breath. This meant she was going to be saddled with the boss’s daughter, quite possibly the future head of the company when – or if – Sir Graham eventually retired, but all she could really say was, ‘Oh, good.’

  Sir Graham was no fool and he must have been aware of Anna’s hesitation. ‘Now, listen. As far as Ruby’s concerned, over there you’re the boss. She’s there to learn. Besides, she’s only a few years younger than you, so the two of you should get along fine.’

  Anna wasn’t so sure. She seemed to remember a rumour going round that Ruby was pretty scatty. Clearly her father shared that view considering his next comment.

  ‘And I’m counting on you to keep an eye on her. You’re responsible, Anna. I don’t want her getting into any more trouble. Got it?’

  ‘Yes, Sir Graham.’ Why, she asked herself, had he talked about ‘more trouble’? What sort of trouble had Ruby been in? She almost dared to ask but then decided it was best to let sleeping dogs lie and find out from the girl herself. Suppressing a sigh, she accepted that all she could do was to make the best of it. ‘When’s she coming? Would she like me to pick her up from somewhere?’

  ‘She’ll be coming back from the US at the weekend and should be with you on Monday, or Tuesday at the latest. I’ll get her to give you a call over the weekend to firm up the details but I imagine she’ll make her own arrangements. Besides, it’ll be good for her to have to do something for herself for a change.’

  This was sounding ever more ominous. ‘Shall I book accommodation for her?’

  He hesitated. ‘Wait until you speak to her. I’ll give her your number. If she hasn’t called you by first thing on Monday, let me know and I’ll read her the riot act.’

  When the called ended Anna dropped the phone into her bag and turned to look at the dog sprawled across the rear seat. She caught his eye and shook her head sadly.

  ‘Bugger! That’s all I need.’

  For a moment it looked almost as though he winked.

  She found a parking space close to the tourist office where they gave her a brochure and a printed sheet with late availability hotels marked on it. She resolved to spend an hour on the internet later today choosing the most suitable replacement for the Hotel Panorama, but decided not to book anywhere until she had heard from Ruby. Emerging into the sunshine again, she thought she would treat George to another walk, so she set off on a tour of Portoferraio on foot. They strolled around the massive fortifications on the hillside and went up to Napoleon’s villa – or, rather, one of his villas. This fine-looking yellow and cream building occupied a wonderful position high on the hill above the port and she could almost imagine the little general, smarting from his defeats and his forced abdication, plotting his escape and return to France.

  From there they went back into town and she was just sitting down for a coffee at a quayside cafe when she had another call. To her delight it was Mr Dante and his voice was noticeably stronger than before.

  ‘Is that Anna Porter? It’s Jack Dante here. I’ve just seen the doctors and they’ve told me I’m okay to come home. I’m waiting for them to organise transport and hopefully I should be back by lunchtime so I can take George off your hands.’

  Anna did a bit of quick thinking. ‘You’re in the hospital in Portoferraio, right? Well, as it happens, I’m actually here in Portoferraio as well at the moment. I’m just sitting in the sun having a coffee with George at my feet. Why don’t I come and pick you up?’

  ‘Would you do that? That would be very kind, but
only if it doesn’t put you out.’

  ‘Not in the slightest. Hang on a sec.’ At that moment the waiter came past and Anna asked him the way to the hospital which turned out to be barely a couple of blocks away. She returned to the phone. ‘Give me five or ten minutes and I’ll be there. I’ll wait for you outside the main entrance. You probably won’t recognise me but you’ll certainly recognise your dog.’

  She and George hurried back to the car and she drove up to the hospital through the busy streets. The hospital itself was a sprawling modern building with a futuristic-looking helipad on the roof. It came as a pleasant surprise to find there were several empty parking spaces directly in front of the main entrance and as she and the dog – secured to the improvised rope lead just in case – walked up the steps to the large glass sliding doors, she saw Mr Dante sitting in a wheelchair chatting to a male nurse who had presumably just wheeled him outside. As the Canadian caught sight of them his face broke into a broad smile and simultaneously Anna felt her arm almost being tugged out of its socket as the Labrador realised that he had been reunited with his master. She was literally dragged across to the wheelchair where George did his best to climb onto his master’s lap, his tail wagging furiously as he uttered a series of squeaky little whines of delight.

  Mr Dante made a fuss of his dog, then persuaded him to return all four paws to the ground and transferred his attention to Anna. He grabbed the arms of the wheelchair and with an effort pushed himself up until he was standing. The nurse gently placed a Zimmer frame alongside him and indicated he should use it to steady himself, but the Canadian had other ideas. He held out his arms, wide open, towards Anna and called to her.

  ‘My dear, if you would just come a bit closer, I need to say thank you properly.’

  She took a couple of steps towards him and he enveloped her in a bear hug. After squeezing her in a surprisingly strong grip, he released her again.