Page 91 of The Little Italian Hotel

That’s all for now.

Cheers,

Curtis x

The piece was illustrated with photos of him with Edna, Eric, Heather, Ginny, Nico and Loretta, playing bingo, nightclubbing, listening to gongs and touring Venice, accompanied by a video of him throwing rocks into the sea.

A passage had been added, posthumously.

We’re heartbroken to share that Curtis Dunne passed away in November. He was comfortable and listening to music. He lived his final weeks with his usual humor and zest for life, and he’ll be sorely missed. As per his request, any proceeds from the sale of his business will be donated to cancer charities.

A few weeks after his death, Curtis’s story and generous donation had featured in a local newspaper and had been adopted by the national press.

His description of Splendido asa haven for broken heartshad sparked interest and Nico started to receive calls and emails from people who wanted to stay at his hotel. His business began to flourish and his dining table became filled with tears and laughter again.

Splendido no longer had a fusty air and was brimming with positivity and life. Nico had consigned the photographs of his relatives to a small area in the dining room, freeing up space in the hallway. He’d framed Edna’s fabric blocks, the lid of Eric’s tin,The Power of Twobook and Heather’s tarot cards, adding small handwritten notes to tell their stories. He’d added a Polaroid, taken on Heather’s camera, of them all together in Venice.

The “strangers” had all remained in touch with Nico and each other, sending items to Splendido that Nico also added to his display.

A photograph of Eric showed him with Biscotti at his feet, proudly displaying wooden board games he’d started to make, inspired by Italian marquetry. Nico had helped with Biscotti’s adoption in the UK, and man and dog looked happy together.

Edna had sent a flyer for a fashion show she was hosting at Shady Pines. She’d introduced a sewing class for the residents and an accompanying photo showed her wearing a garment as spectacular as Joseph’s Amazing Technicolored Dreamcoat. Ginny managed to spot a few patches of pale gray fabric among the silk and cotton.

A card from Heather featured a rainbow drawn by one of her pupils and a long note inside it. She was still learning to embrace and love the new version of her mum instead of mourning the old one. She and Renee had enjoyed looking at the photos of Venice together.

Taking pride of place in the center of the wall, Nico dedicated a large picture frame to Curtis, featuring his final heartache form, a print-out of his last blog entry and a flattened baseball cap.

If Ginny ever felt pinpricked by life, she polished the glass and thought about Curtis. She’d only known him for a short while, but he’d made her rethink her life and be grateful for it, whatever shape it took from now on.

It was becoming a tradition for other guests at Splendido to also leave behind a token of their heartbreak, including a badly drawn Valentine’s Day card, a plastic tiger from a Christmas cracker, rosary beads and the cork from a champagne bottle. Nico had asked each guest to write a small story on a form to accompany their item, and he planned to add them to his display.

After Ginny had entered the latest hotel booking into the system, she dusted the dining room and made two cappuccinos. A rhythmic banging noise sounded from the courtyard and she carried the cups of coffee outside. Nico was making a new sign for his hotel.

Welcome to Hotel Splendido

Give your heart a holiday

Instead of featuring stars, as per the sign for Grand Hotel Castello Bella Vista, he’d added the outline of six hearts.

“If Tim Vincenzo’s trousers can attract tourists to Vigornuovo, my hotel has a good chance, too,” he said, standing up to survey his handiwork. “I think my mamma would be proud of this new direction.”

“I think Loretta will be, too,” Ginny said.

She and Nico stood side by side, sipping their coffees. They watched the sky lightening through the branches of the trees, promising a bright day ahead. A light breeze made the coral bedsheets on the washing line drift backward and forward.

Ginny felt a buzz of excitement in her stomach, passion for what the day might bring and what might happen beyond it. She might not have all the answers yet, but that was okay. She had a good feeling that everything was going to turn out just fine and any solutions would appear by themselves.