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“No, but this summer.”

“Ooh, yes! I do,” Sammy calls out from the backseat.

I shrug. “Yeah may as well. Maybe I’ll get eaten by a shark and won’t have to marry your brother.”

“Or find a sexy surfy bit on the side,” he winks. “But seriously, I want to learn and Bluey said he’d teach us.”

“Of course Bluey surfs!” Even dressed in his mafia man suits, his red hair has a beachy tussle to it.

How exactly Bluey ended up working for the Marinos I am not sure. I remember him from before I was sent away. He had been young then. I’d guess he is about 30 now, maybe Matty’s age. He has always been like this little (huge) Aussie stray that was taken in by the Marinos.

“Yeah, he might come say hi later if he can get away from Giovanna.”

I eye Massi suspiciously over the top of my sunglasses. “What is this? Are you getting a new best friend, Marino?”

Massimo snorts and denies the charge, but a little slither of emotion flashes in his eyes for a moment and my ever-burgeoning self-confidence crisis has me experiencing a bout of jealousy.

That’s all I bloody need.

My self-esteem is already under attack thanks to his older brother and my poor wee heart is already pathetically pining after his older sister. May as well add some jealousy and paranoia that Massimo will ditch me for Bluey. All I need now is to spend more time with Matty so he can pick an emotion to play with.

“Don’t worry, girl,” Sammy interjects. “You still have me!”

We manage to find a spot on the beach and lay out our towels. As suspected, it is packed with bodies already. Glistening, tanned bodies. After being in England for so long it is jarring to remember how blase Aussies are about getting our kit off. There are no teeny weenie bikinis in Battersea Park or in Trafalgar Square.

“How has it been working in the family business?” I ask Massi as we lay on our tummies people-watching.

“I’ve worked for the family since I left high school,” he looks confused and a little uneasy about talking about theFamigliain front of Sammy.

“Oh, I meanbackin the family business,” I don’t think I realised he was working for the family before he came to London. I mean, he was at university and I just assumed that was it. I was far away, but I still feel like it is something I should know about him. Weird.

“It’s better with Dad stepping back,” he shrugs.

“Is Elio a good boss? He seems to spend a lot of time at Peacocks.” I know I sound snarky, but I do genuinely wonder when he has time to run their massive freighting and logistics empire, all the Family businesses, and the not-so-above-board parts of the Family enterprise.

Massimo lifts his head slowly from where it rested on his forearms and taps his sunglasses down his nose to peer over the top of them. “Francesca,” his voice is low and almost like a growl. “Insinuations like that could get you in a lot of trouble. You might be a mafia princess and you can trust me with your life, but babe you can never forget that our families are sharks and they’ll rip us limb-for-limb for so much as disrespecting them.”

Sammy’s eyes widen and I gulp, knowing he is right. I have been given a lot of leeway because my tantrums have just been in front of the Marino siblings, but they now run a feared organised crime family and will no doubt employ violence just as their ancestors have always done in Australia and back in Italy.

“Would he actually hurt her? Like, I know he is an arrogant prick and a total slimy scumfuck, but being violent towards her? That’s fucked up,” Sammy is horrified. I forget that the amount of violence we are used to is not normal.

“No. But if Cheska goes around questioning his leadership it puts him in a fucking tough situation,’ Massi responds.

There is something cagey about the way he talks about this stuff. Like I am only getting a fraction of the picture. It’s not just him, it’s all of the siblings and their parents, and my parents. It’s like everyone is in on some wider plan and I’m being collectively managed. I am expected to be quiet and do as I’m told.

“Speaking of Elio,” Sammy grins cheekily, clearly wanting to lighten the mood. “Does he live up to the hype? I don’t get how he has women just falling at his feet.”

“Are you asking what my brother is like in the sack?” Massi pretends to gag.

Sammy laughs, holding her sides. “Sex gossip is like my favourite thing. Just pretend that we’re not talking about your brother.”

“I don’t know why women go so wild for him. He’s a dickhead,” Massi shrugs.

“You are like his twin, just younger, with longer hair, and light eyes.” I look over the top of my sunglasses at him.

He clears his throat. “And more handsome. Obviously.”

“Obvs. Yeah, Elio was pretty great in bed as much as I hate to admit it. We only shagged that one time though. Well, one night. Multiple times.”