Page 69 of The Secrets We Keep

“Yep.” When she said nothing else, he finally dragged his eyes up to see her staring at him, one hand on her hip, a smile tugging at the corner of her mouth.

“Whoever she is, you don’t have to avoid me because of her.” She frowned. “Unless she asked you to.”

“Unless who asked me to what?”

“The woman you’re seeing.” Maeve dismissed his raised eyebrow with a wave of her hand. “I didn’t come to Italy to be a saint during my year of freedom. You flirted with me, and I flirted with you, and it was fun.”

“I don’t want you to think I was leading you on.”

“I can’t say I’m not a little disappointed. If you’re built anything like your brother…” She whistled, then laughed at his stunned expression.

“So you did sleep with Matteo,” Luca said, pushing back from his desk and crossing the room.

“What? No. He spent some time in Dublin with my family and our organization. They like to box. Boxing is better for everyone involved if there aren’t any shirts. Don’t look at me like that,” she said, stepping out of the way and opening the door. “I’m allowed to appreciate the art right in front of me.”

Luca shook his head. “So we’re okay?”

“We’re fine. Besides, I’m only here a few more months anyway. Then I have to go home and face the music of my own impending nuptials.”

Her teasing smile turned sad, and Luca reached up to squeeze her shoulder before dropping his hand.

Dom rounded the corner, stopping in front of them though his eyes didn’t break contact with his phone. After a few moments of furious typing, he looked up and glanced at them both.

“Are we doing this or what?”

“We’re doing it,” Matteo said from behind them. “Carina and Alexei are in the elevator as we speak.”

They turned toward the glass-encased conference room just as the soft ding of the elevator arriving drifted across the empty office. Alexei trailed Carina through the maze, his shirt on backward.

“If you’re going to be late because you stopped for a quickie, you could at least put your clothes back on the right way,” Matteo said, and Luca chuckled.

“Who said anything about stopping?” Carina replied, poking her tongue into her cheek as Alexei righted his shirt. “The driver’s seen worse.”

“You two are disgusting,” Dom said, pushing into the conference room and dropping into one of the leather rolling chairs.

“Oh, please,” Carina replied, waving a dismissive hand. “You’re one to talk. Emilia told me about that time on the beach. And in your car. And at the res—”

“I never should have introduced you two,” Dom grumbled, setting his phone on the table in front of him. “Let’s get this over with. I’d like to be home before dinner.”

“What a family man you’re turning out to be, Domenico.”

Dom glared at the teasing note in Matteo’s tone, his hand curling into a fist on the table. “Get on with it, brother.”

“I have it on good authority Gallo is about to lose not one but two government contracts in the new year. Turns out Rome is no longer confident in his ability to safely and securely handle their needs. The votes will happen just after they reconvene after the holidays.”

“So you want to skip the train derailment?”

Matteo shook his head at Alexei. “No. I want to put the final nail into the coffin for Gallo. With whispers of losing these contracts and a blow like that, no one would be surprised if he committed suicide.”

“And how do you plan on doing that exactly?” Luca asked.

“I’m still running through options. Maeve has been trying to find a way into his home security system. It’s the place that makes the most sense if we’re going to go suicide.”

“No luck?” Dom wondered.

“Not so far. His office might be an easier option.”

“Not necessarily,” Luca replied.

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