Deception of the Heart (11 page)

They both burst out laughing, their eyes locked as the camera clicked
. Bernard’s voice brought them back to reality.

‘T
hat should be a nice one, I’d say.’ He handed her back the camera, his eyes apologetic. ‘I’d better get running now, or my wife will wake up and the surprise will be ruined. I’ll see you around, Jon. If you ever want to get together, this is our address here.’ He produced a small white square of paper and scribbled a few lines with a pen. ‘Call me anytime, my friend.’

He
nodded to Melanie, his gaze warm. ‘Thanks for the flowers, once again. I owe you one.’ He disappeared swiftly into the colorful stream of tourists, her eyes losing him altogether after mere seconds.

‘Y
ou’ve won him over with the flowers,’ Jon commented wryly, his dark eyes enigmatic as he followed her gaze into the street where Bernard disappeared. ‘Not exactly what I had in mind, but then again, flowers weren’t a very practical gift. Next time I’ll have to give you something a bit more resilient.’

So he thought there would be a next time? Suddenly
, Pete’s idea of her taking up Jon’s time didn’t seem so bad. In fact, she hoped Pete would be extremely busy with Spitieri for as long as possible.

She smiled at him, her brown eyes warm. ‘
You could lend me a penny for the fountain. It’s supposed to be a penny or some other little coin. Only then your wish will come true, according to my grandpa. He should know, because his came true.’

Jon searched his wallet and produced a perfect little coin, Abraham Lincoln
’s face staring at her from its coppery glory. ‘Let me guess, it had something to do with your grandmother, didn’t it?’

‘You’re clairvoyant just like your friend
.’ She grinned as she accepted it. ‘Are all of your friends so perceptive?’

H
e nodded, his mouth twitching in sudden amusement. ‘‘Most, but I am the best, believe me. I can even guess what your wish might be…’

‘O
h, really?’ He couldn’t, could he? She could only hope he was kidding. The idea of him knowing what she wanted was extremely embarrassing. Ever since they met last evening, she’d been fighting a losing battle against her attraction to a man she knew nothing about save the fact Pete wanted him as far from the Spitieris as possible, at least for the time being.

‘You want Pete to be extremely busy so you can spend some more time exploring Italy,’ he continued, his voice playful. ‘I could see the word “freedom” written all over your face when we
left the villa earlier today.’

‘O
kay, you win.’ He couldn’t see it all, but he got the big picture right. Suddenly she felt tired of the entire pretense. Her inborn honesty made it impossible to continue.

‘Look, Jon
,’ she started, her voice faltering slightly as he watched her face, his gaze intent and way too wise. ‘I need to tell you something. It’s kind of a confession.’ God, but being totally honest was hard. Still, she couldn’t imagine spending the whole day in his company carrying around the knowledge she was leading him on. Pete or no Pete, Jon deserved some truth.

‘I am ready for the worst
.’ He grinned, his smile taking her breath away temporarily. Nobody should have the right to be so good looking.

‘This sightseeing thing, it was
Pete’s idea.’ She was ready for his anger. ‘He wanted me to kind of get you out of the picture for a few hours.’

He looked a bit clueless
, so she continued, eager to get it off her chest.

‘S
ee, he’s been looking forward to his week with Daniel for quite a while now. When he found out about you staying over, he was very disappointed. He worried that you and Daniel might have your own plans that would cut into his schedule with him. I know it sounds silly, but it’s the truth.’

‘So he used his beautiful assistant to lure me away
.’ Jon didn’t seem angry. If anything, he looked rather amused, his jet black gaze warm as he glanced at her heated cheeks. ‘He is rather smart, I’ll give him that much. Who could complain about his treacherous ways with you as a prize?’

‘W
ell, that’s not exactly how it’s supposed to go.’ Did he really think she was ready for more in depth “distracting”? She had to set things straight and fast, before she actually enjoyed the idea. ‘I thought you were totally different, so I agreed…’

‘Different? How?’ H
e kept watching her with those eyes that seemed to look straight into her soul.

‘Well, older
, for one.’ She started to regret her honesty as his twitching mouth told her perfectly well that he found her confessions amusing. ‘Kind of a scholar type, like Daniel. I just imagined you as some old professor who might enjoy a walk or a cup of tea while they work. Pete asked me to keep you happy so you won’t disturb them.’

‘Now that’s a loaded offer
.’ Jon was openly grinning, his black eyes merry. ‘I am open to all possibilities, you know. I won’t apologize for my age, though. Does being a ripe thirty-four make me old enough to still be considered in your cunning plans?’

‘All right, laugh as much as you like
.’ She felt stupid, but she felt better too. Lighter and cleaner. The thought of lying to this man who so visibly trusted her had been unbearable.

‘No, I am sorry,’ he interrupted, his face more serious now. ‘I appreciate your honesty, more than you will ever know. I
’ll admit I wondered what kind of a boss would give away his assistant so easily and on such short notice. Now I know what it all meant. It doesn’t change the fact you should keep distracting me, if you want Pete happy. You do want him to be happy, don’t you?’ His shrew gaze rested on her face for a second. Something in his eyes left her breathless.

‘I
f you’re still interested, then yes, I’d gladly see some more of the city.’ She nodded, awkward in her sudden self-awareness. ‘Like the catacombs, for example. I’ve always wanted to see them.’

‘Then we should, definitely
.’ His smile warmed her like a ray of sunshine, pulling her into a private little universe that had only the two of them and left the rest of the world far away. ‘There is plenty to chose from, really. And what’s really good, there are no long lines. When I went to see the catacombs in Paris, people were camping for four hours just to get inside. Here it’s much more casual, I believe.’

‘Don’t think I forgot my offer
, though.’ She smiled at him and pointed at one of the many cafes. Little tables with cheerful tablecloths and white chairs lined most of the sidewalk. ‘The tartufo offer still stands, sir.’

‘Good
!’ He seemed to be in an even better mood than before. ‘I could do with a sugar boost for sure. Something tells me it will be a long day, and I am planning to make the best of it. Sometimes the unexpected is even better than the best laid plans, Melanie.’

‘It’s cold in here.’ She shivered as they looked around, her face illuminated by the yellow, flickering torchlight. Jon had to admit whoever ran this place knew how to impress the tourists, himself included. They were just finishing their tour in the
Catacombe di Priscilla
, the chilly, damp air sneaking under their light clothes and freezing them to the bone. Luckily, there was a shop at the beginning of the tour selling shawls. The pretty, colorful wraps made absolute sense. Melanie had purchased one featuring small blue, yellow, and white flowers woven into a sage green background. She tightened it around her shoulders, trying to get warmer.

The guide dron
ed on, pointing at yet another fresco on the low, darkened wall of the tunnel. The eyes of the rest of the group, including Melanie’s, followed him, obediently taking in the blurry image from the third century. Jon didn’t. He preferred to look at her, and the semi-darkness and her preoccupation made watching her without being noticed very easy. She shivered again, and suddenly he was at her side, his arm around her shoulders and pulling her closer, his lips on her ear.

‘What do you say we sneak ahead and leave this sorry place? We’ve seen enough graves for one day.’

He didn’t really want to see any of them to start with. Death took on a completely different meaning once one had to face it in real life. He remembered his friends and acquaintances both in Iraq and all the other places he’d worked over the years. Seeing real people suffer and die had taught him not to seek out the unavoidable. It would find him sooner or later anyway.

‘Good idea
.’ She nodded, her hair brushing his lips as her head moved. She smelled like spring. He inhaled deeper the intoxicating floral mixture. Fresh and promising. He thought back to her confession. There were only two options he could consider. Either she really meant everything she said or she was brilliantly skilled, which made her a serious opponent.

‘There is a park right out here,’ he spoke again, enjoying the sensation of having her close.
Too much so, to be honest. But he needed to hurry. He hasn’t forgotten the plan for today. Getting closer was essential if he was to achieve what Bernard expected from him.
Get her to invite you back to her hotel room, Jon
. He recalled the older man’s voice, the slightly rough undertone making his request even more sinister. Bernard had continued by describing how Jon was supposed to retrieve the bug they had put into Pete’s room. Melanie and Pete’s room adjoined, making the operation child’s play. The tiny device had recorded hours of material, its high tech efficiency giving them plenty of info about Pete’s exact plans. ‘I don’t need to tell you how to do it, do I?’ Bernard had asked, his dark eyes intent. ‘You can snatch it while she… rests, right? I think it’s very reasonable, Jon.’

He knew that
Bernard had been to the hotel just moments before they ‘accidentally ‘ bumped into each other in the Piazza Navona. The agency knew how to run things smoothly. The seemingly coincidental meeting had been perfectly orchestrated to make sure Jon knew things were in order, like Bernard and the other men entering Pete’s room and making sure the surveillance was working.

‘All is
okay,’ read the small piece of paper Bernard handed him during their meeting. No address or phone number, as he’d cheerfully promised while Melanie watched. ‘All is okay.’ Simple and to the point, making sure he knew what to do next.

Like hell it was. He was on an official mission to seduce this girl.
She was walking into the trap, oblivious to his calculating ways. Her god-awful lack of any sense of self-preservation made her an easy target. For a reason he couldn’t comprehend, she found him trustworthy. She’d said so herself, more than once so far. She also seemed to find him attractive. He knew enough about women to be able to read when a woman wasn’t indifferent to his masculinity. Not that she was good at covering them up, anyway. He read the invitation in her eyes and felt it in the tremble of her flesh every time they touched, for god’s sake. Maybe it was one of her reasons for coming to Italy? He knew about her miserable and failed love story with the long-term boyfriend. What if she treated her trip as some kind of an emotional purging, marking the end of an era and opening the door to a new one? He could relate to that. After Daphne’s betrayal he had tried to eradicate her from his mind and heart in every possible way, mindless sex included.

‘How about a picnic there
in the parc’ he asked, pushing aside any doubts. If she was into forget-the-past sex, he would be only too happy to oblige. For all he knew, she might still be helping Pete. The whole confession thing could be nothing but a well-rehearsed performance to fool him. It wouldn’t be the first time someone used the trick of confessing something to divert attention from the real issue.

‘Sounds good, I am starving
.’ Melanie nodded, her eyes glistening in the half darkness. ‘Does it make me a bad person that I can think about food in here?’

‘Nope, I don’t think it does. And if it
did, there are two bad people in here right now. I’m hungry too. It must be this cool, damp air that makes you crave something warm and substantial.’

The
y were lucky enough to find a pizzeria just around the corner from the catacombs’ exit. The sign with sculls grinning down at them from the front of the restaurant did little to affect their appetites, and Jon ordered a small margherita pizza for them to take with them to the huge park on the other side of the street.

‘
Buono appetitto
.’ He smiled at Melanie as they sat down on one of the plentiful benches tucked away from the paths under the gnarly branches of the olive and orange trees. The air was warm and fragrant with the scent of the blooming citrus trees mingling with the masses of jasmine bushes growing around the path.

‘T
his is heaven.’ She sighed and closed her eyes, inhaling deeply. He watched her face, her long, curly eyelashes casting shadows on the pale, creamy skin of her cheeks. She was absolutely beautiful, her calm, quiet beauty much more appealing than Daphne’s loud, in your face type.

‘Come on, dig in
.’ He offered her a slice of pizza, eager to dispel the moment of weakness. Luckily for him, she obliged, her eyes opening and her cute straight nose crinkling as she sniffed the warm air coming from the cardboard box.

‘God, that smells good.’ She bit into her slice,
savoring the perfect blend of cheese, tomato sauce, and fresh herbs. ‘This alone is worth coming all the way to Italy, if you ask me.’