Page 26 of The Secrets We Keep

Matteo was as agreeable as you can imagine. I’ll see you Friday.

“What’s so funny?” Ciro wondered, trying to read her text from his position on Jack’s other side.

“Nothing. But I definitely need that drink now. I have something to celebrate.”

“Oh? And what’s that?”

Ciro motioned for her to move off the elevator ahead of him, and she heard his low, appreciative whistle when she put a little extra wiggle into her hips as she stepped out. Waiting until he caught up to match her pace, she smiled.

“A man who was getting too close finally got the hint.”

Interest lit Ciro’s eyes, and he leaned closer, dropping his voice so only she could hear. “That is good news.”

Sienna bumped his shoulder with hers and turned to Jack and Isa. “Everyone’s invited.” She pinned Isa with a hopeful look. “My treat.”

Isa looked from Ciro to Sienna and back again. “Fine,” she finally agreed, trudging along behind them through the lobby.

“There’s a bar not far from here. Great for drinks after work.”

Ciro swiped his badge to exit, and Sienna did the same, eyeing where in his messenger bag he tucked it. The outer front pocket. Perfect. It wouldn’t take her long to copy the information from both the card and the fob he had attached to the lanyard, but she had to get it away from him first.

They walked back toward her apartment and then cut up a side street toward a little café and bar that was quickly filling up with people. Ciro shouldered his way to a table in the back corner and held out a chair for her. As soon as she sat down, she repositioned the chair so her back was to the wall. She felt too vulnerable otherwise, too exposed to what she couldn’t see coming.

A waitress eventually made her way over, informing them there’d be live music if they hung around long enough, before wandering off to get their drinks. Isa watched the people around them, mouth pinched into what Sienna suspected was a deep-seated disdain for humanity in general.

It was a risk to invite Isa along. If Isa became even a little suspicious, it could blow up everything she’d worked for. But Sienna could use Isa’s infatuation with Ciro to her advantage. Keep them both on their toes. Ciro might not be interested in Isa like that, but he liked the attention.

“How long have you worked at Gallo Industries?” Sienna asked Isa, drawing her gaze away from the couple flirting beside them.

“What do you care?”

“Isa,” Ciro scolded. “Why did you agree to come if you weren’t going to play nice?”

Isa huffed out a breath but relented. “About six years. I worked in the IT department before moving up to development.”

“It’s fifteen for me,” Ciro said proudly. “Over half of that in development. And Jack’s been with us, what? Two years now?”

“Three next month,” Jack replied, sipping his wine. “I should ask for some days at home when I negotiate my raise.”

Sienna grinned and sent him a wink. “Well, I hope it’s catching. The long-term job.”

“Didn’t seem to be for the last one.”

“Teresa got married and moved away,” Ciro said quickly, giving Isa’s shoulder a warning squeeze. “She wasn’t suited for the office anyway. Made to be a wife, that one.”

Isa rolled her eyes behind Ciro’s back, and Sienna could have sworn she saw Isa’s mouth lift slightly at one corner when they made eye contact, but it was pinched and frowning again so fast it was hard to say.

“You worked in IT before this, yes?”

“I did,” Sienna confirmed, nodding at Ciro. “For an engineering firm based in Berlin. It was good work, good pay. But I missed Italy.”

“You said you’re from Milan?” Jack asked, signaling the waitress for a menu.

“I was born there,” she lied easily. She’d spent months memorizing these details when she paid handsomely for her fake documents. “But we traveled so much when I was younger it was hard to call anywhere home, I guess. Still, Italy will always have my heart. The wine, the food, the men,” Sienna added, sliding a sly look to Ciro, who gave her a big grin. “Berlin can hardly compare.”

“Of course it can’t!” Ciro agreed, clinking his glass against hers. “Everything is better in Italy.”

Ciro scooted his chair around the table and closer to hers when someone tried to get past them. It brought him and his bag within easy reach, but Isa visibly tensed. Her obsession with Ciro, who couldn’t be less interested, was almost painful to watch.

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