Timing was everything.
I made a show of typing furiously while I walked, my body angled just enough for our paths to intersect. Three steps… two… one…
Her shoulder bumped into mine, and my phone flew from my hand in a carefully calculated arc that sent it skittering under her desk. The papers she’d collected exploded into the air, fluttering down around us.
“Désolé! I wasn’t looking where I was going.” I dropped to one knee, gathering papers. “I’m so sorry! Let me help.”
“It’s nothing,” she said in lightly accented English. Her shoulders dropped, and she knelt with me to collect the scattered documents.
“No, it’s completely my fault.” I flashed her an apologetic smile, the kind that usually softened even the hardest expressions. “I was reading an email from my boss. He’s very… demanding.”
Her expression warmed slightly. “I know the feeling.”
I handed her a stack of papers I’d collected, making brief eye contact. “Are you busy with the festival this week?”
She laughed, a gentle sound that made her eyes crinkle at the corners. “I’ve only had four hours of sleep a night.”
“You don’t look it.” I stood and offered her a hand up.
“Grazie.” She took my hand, glancing at the floor instead of meeting my eyes. “Your phone went under my desk.”
“I’m glad you saw it.” I shook my head ruefully. “I just hope it’s not broken.”
She stood back and gestured into her cubicle, inviting me to retrieve my phone. “Are you here with the couple in the conference room?”
“Yes,” I sighed dramatically. “They’re looking at venues for an anniversary celebration.”
“There are many beautiful locations in Napoli,” she said.
I smiled again, giving her a quick once-over. “Many beautiful things, yes.”
She smiled in response, and Brooke’s face flashed in my mind—the intelligent eyes and the smile I’d glimpsed while we fell into planning mode over the amphitheater diagrams.
Focus, man. This is important. Flirt with her if it helps.
I placed one hand solidly on her desk as I leaned down to locate my phone. When I spotted it, I crouched, letting my hand on the desk move toward the stack of passes. As I reached underneath, I kept my hand on top for apparent balance, then knocked into the stack of VIP passes, toppling them across her desk and onto the floor.
“Cazzo!” she exclaimed.
“Tabarnak!” I shielded my head from the flurry of invitations with one hand. Meanwhile, I snuck one of Brie’s devices out of my pocket and attached it to the underside of her desk. With that done, I slid three of the passes that had fallen underneath me into my inner breast pocket. No one could see me half under her desk, which was the ideal cover. I craned my neck around and intentionally bumped my head on the desk. Clutching it and feigning pain, I said, “I’m having no luck today!”
She clamped a hand over her mouth to hide her laughter. “No, you are not.”
I twisted around and sat on the floor, grabbing my phone and the scattered passes. I paused before handing them up to her. “Are these for the Pompeii concert this weekend?”
“They are. There’s VIP seating close to the stage, plus backstage access.”
After I stood, I set the passes on her desk and slipped my phone into my pants pocket. “How much are they?”
“They’re already assigned.” She gestured to a printout on her desk. “Dignitaries. Contest winners. Friends of the band.”
That had been Brie’s guess, thus her device. The event planners had a confirmed guest list, and the VIP tickets would no doubt be cross-referenced against the list. Either Brie would have to hack into their systems and add more people, change the list, or we’d have to ensure the people whose tickets we had didn’t go.
“Are you going?” she asked with a hopeful tilt to her brows.
“Probably. My boss is considering the amphitheater as the location for his event.”
“Gabriella’s one of the best in the city. If that’s what your boss wants, that’s what he’ll get.” A light blush touched her cheeks. “Perhaps I’ll see you there.”
