MasukFor the next five minutes, the only sound was that of Luca vigorously striking keys. Then he muttered a quick, "Yes!" and smiled. He turned the screen so that Massimo could better see it."We're in," Luca reported. "Only temporarily, of course—we've got fifteen minutes maximum."Massimo scanned the
"You know what," Massimo said into his cell phone, forcing his tone to stay casual. "You should clean up your place before you go anywhere.""I suppose I could be more thorough," Luca replied. "I don't like how much dust gets caught on the window's curtains.""Better to take care of that before alle
Massimo heard a car approach. He rushed to the windows, hoping that Elena had called a cab.But he didn't see a cab. Instead, he saw a nondescript black van pull up next to a nearby telephone pole. Massimo frowned.It didn't have any of the usual signage, but Massimo could recognize a repurposed FBI
Elena was so frustrated. Because this was the problem, wasn't it? How was she supposed to trust Massimo when he had been lying and sneaking around behind her back?Wasn't that just what her parents used to do? Wasn't Tyler using similarly ridiculous schemes—albeit with more force—to get her at his s
Elena tried to change directions but found herself at a dead end. Worst of all, the aisles were too cramped for her to slip by her step-mother. There was no way to avoid the woman."Are you ready to leave?"Elena hadn't been ready to hear that deep, steady voice again, but between Massimo and her st
Massimo stared at the fuel gauge, as if that would change the fact that the motorcycle didn't have much gas left. At least the damn thing beeped before it was completely empty—getting stranded on a deserted street with no easy way home truly would be the worst way to end this evening-into-morning ad
As the party got underway, Elena paid close attention to the members of the Abano family. While the Abano estate wasn't anywhere near as grand as the Ferraro estate, they did have a beautiful ballroom. There was even a second floor that had a cut away in the center of its floor—making it great for s
Less than an hour later, Elena finished recounting all this information to Massimo in his office. She made sure she stayed professional and only told her boss Matteo's exact words. But inside her heart, Elena was furious.The more Elena thought about what Matteo told her, the more she was sure her s
Elena looked up at Massimo. "This settles it," she said. "This subordinate was definitely involved."Massimo was no longer smiling. His frown was so deep that Elena was concerned it would never leave Massimo's face again."He was," Massimo replied. "It looks like he was in charge of faking an emerge
Elena was surprised, but Lucilla just kept talking. She told Elena to go home and get cleaned up—promising that she'd hold a better party to make up for everything.Elena could tell Lucilla was being honest. She was pretty sure the woman wasn't lying.But it was still so odd. Why would Tyler employe







