I have a hotel room in Paris next week. Would you like to join me for dinner?
The Spaniard didn’t stop to examine the too-real elation that swept through him as he typed his response.
Gus Alias +44 Number
Name the day and I’ll be there.
Nikolett
Wednesday?
Gus Alias +44 Number
Perfect.
Nikolett
Are you sure it’s no trouble coming to Paris? I assume you don’t simply happen to be in France.
The Spaniard turned to look at the small paper calendar he had open on the desk. His schedule and notes were analogue, since he knew exactly how easy it was to access a digital calendar.
Flipping a page, he picked up a pen and drew a heart around the box for next Wednesday. He’d already doodled an Eiffel tower with a question mark in the Monday box. Now, he scribbled out the question mark and extended a line fromMonday through Friday. It appeared he would be going to France after all.
He turned back to his phone, not wanting to leave her question unanswered. That might cause doubt, and in turn give her a reason to cancel.
Gus Alias +44 Number
No, I wasn’t planning to be in France next Wednesday, but my schedule is flexible.
Seeing you again is worth a trip to Paris.
The Spaniard looked at the heart around Wednesday. He’d meant it to be mocking, but staring at it now, it seemed almost…hopeful.
Which was absurd. Nikolett wasn’t even his primary target.
So why was he genuinely looking forward to their date?
Nikolett stared down at her phone, a stupid smile on her lips and her cheeks pink.
Gus made her feel almost innocent. This felt soft and sweet like a first love, or at least the first love she’d seen in movies.
He was kind, attractive, smart, and successful.
He reminded her of Eric.
That thought wiped the smile off her face.
Slouching down in her chair, she stared at the ceiling. Maybe she was only attracted to Gus because his smile reminded her of Eric’s. If that was the case, she’d sleep with him in Paris, use thatto burn away her lingering feelings and ephemeral ties to Eric, then end it with Gus.
But what if it was more than that? What if she liked Gus for himself?
What if she could love Gus in a way she knew she wouldn’t have been able to love Laszlo? A text from Gus had her feeling more than the dinner with Laszlo had.
But Gus’ name couldn’t have been on Elena’s sparkly board because he wasn’t a member. Even if he was, he wouldn’t be part of her territory. He would have been recruited by England.
Nothing said she couldn’t recruit him now. He clearly had ties to Hungary. It wasn’t entirely unheard of for a person to be recruited to a territory they were living in rather than the one they were born in.
Heart beating too fast, she sent a message to Zoran before she could have second thoughts.
