Danilo raised an ironic eyebrow.

‘I mean I never screwed anyone in our social set,’ Claudia retorted. ‘What more can you ask?’

Danilo didn’t seem inclined to ask, or to say, anything. But he didn’t leave either. Another little anomaly. They were piling up this afternoon.

‘Would you like a pastry?’ Claudia asked him pointedly. ‘Some more coffee?’

Danilo put the cards down and turned to face her. He seemed about to say something, then gave one of his trademark boyish guffaws which always charmed Claudia, even though she knew he could produce them on demand as and when it suited him.

‘Why do you laugh?’ she asked.

‘Oh, I just remembered what Gaetano used to say about cards. You know that our pack is different from the one used in every other country? Not just the suits of swords and cups, but the fact that there are only forty cards, because the ten, nine and eight are missing. Gaetano claimed that this symbolized everything that was wrong with the Italian military. Almost a third of the total force consisted of senior officers while the rest were cannon fodder. The former weren’t always stupid and the latter were often brave, but what was missing was a solid, dependable corps of sottufficiali to pull the whole unit together and get things done on the ground. That’s what kept the Germans in the war, even after Stalingrad and Normandy. Their NCOs were the best in the world.’

‘Yes, Gaetano could be quite boring on military matters,’ Claudia replied languidly. ‘But I had to put up with it from him. He was my husband. I don’t have to put up with it from you.’

Danilo’s glance seemed to be trying to spare her something. An uneasy silence fell.

‘Well, I think I’ll have a bath,’ Claudia announced briskly, heading for the inner hallway of the apartment. ‘Feel free to let yourself out when you’re ready.’

Danilo strode across, gripping her wrist and pulling her back into the room. Astounded, almost excited, Claudia let herself be drawn. Danilo was her casual companion and card partner, an endless source of scurrilous gossip, a creature of varied charms and indeterminate sexuality. The one thing he never had been was physical.