Then something popped into my mind – the story Tommy would tell the old ladies at the bus stop about treasure hunting in Peru… Was that actually true?
I shook my head, dislodging the notion. Tommy was an investigator, not Indiana Jones! But at least the picture of him dressed head to toe in khaki and wearing that famous fedora was enough to stave off the looming tears. I didn’t have the luxury of wallowing inwhat ifs. I needed to focus on thewhat the fuck do I do nows.
‘What the fuckdoI do now?’ I muttered.
Well, first there was the Instagram post. I could have missed an update while I was in the throes of passion, so I picked up my phone and checked.
Maya had emailed twenty minutes ago, CCing Claude. I opened it.
Hi Ally,
We’ve gone with the ‘lean into it’ approach. I’ve reposted the original to our feed and shared it to our stories, clarifying that there is nothing romantic between you and Julian and that exes can remain close friends, like you two have. We’ve already had some comments on the post – mostly supportive. I’ll keep an eye on engagement overnight and come back to you in the morning.
Best,
Maya
PS I think Niki was relieved she got off so lightly.
Niki wasn’t the only one who was relieved, and I sent a quick reply to Maya to thank her for her excellent work.
Now, what to do about Julian? He obviously didn’t know who Tommy and Elsa really were, but I wasn’t about to blow their cover. I was already out of my depth – who knew what mayhemthatmight unleash?
But I could still be there for him –somehow… Then it came to me.
The thing about hosting a VIP is that you go above and beyond to make their experience extraordinary. If I knew Julian – and I did – he planned to do exactly that for Ivan Kovalec.
And I wanted in.
But who could get me the information I needed? Tommy wasn’t going to share any more intel than he already had – he wanted me as far away from this mess as possible.
Then I thought of the one person who’d be in the knowandowed me. I picked up my phone and navigated to the itinerary Niki had sent, scrolling to the end where she’d included her phone number. Five minutes later, I had what I needed.
According to Niki, Julian was hosting a dinner for Kovalec aboardAlly’s Odysseytomorrow night. Trudy and Dale were invited, with Tommy and Elsa on board as crew. That didn’t add up from a staffing perspective – the yacht had its own crew and surely Niki would have been a better choice as guest services director? But perhaps Julian still had her on the naughty step for the Instagram debacle. I didn’t ask, not wanting to rub salt in her wounds. I also suspected that Tommy and Elsa had wangled themselves onto the yacht, which probably meant that something big was about to go down.
All signs pointed to this being no ordinary dinner.
So, first I needed an invitation. I was almost positive that Julian would sayyesif I invited myself – he might even be grateful for the moral support. And once on board, I’d just have to keep my wits about me then figure it out on the fly. I could do that – I was great at thinking on my feet.
Not the firmest plan, but what choice did I have? Fly back to London and pretend everything was tickety-boo?Hah!
I called Julian, and he answered right away.
‘Three times in one day. I’m starting to think you might have a thing for me, Ally.’
‘Jules, I know about Ivan Kovalec,’ I said, cutting to the chase.
‘Er… know what exactly?’ he asked, a wary edge to his voice.
Bugger – I hadn’t meant that to sound sinister. But to be fair, I was new to all this spy stuff.
‘That he’s coming here, silly – a little birdie told me,’ I replied, steering us back to our keep-it-light comfort zone. ‘How come you didn’t say anything? I mean,Ivan Kovalec– that’s a big deal, Jules.’
He laughed, a sign that I’d covered my tracks. ‘To be honest, I didn’t think you’d care. Ivan’s a crusty old man who only talks about work.’
‘So, you have a lot in common then?’ I teased.
‘Ooh, low blow.’
