Chapter 19

Tuesday night, at home, I find Reese's note in my messenger bag, but I don't open it right away. First, I change out of the Kylo Ren costume, shower, and pull on a pair of sweatpants and a clean white T-shirt.

But even after I'm showered and changed, I don't read the note. Instead, I take it with me to the couch where I sit, flipping the folded sheet of paper between my fingers.

Today went well, I think. I was Kylo Ren, and she was Rey… K-2P's spying was spot on. And she seemed to like my costume, but then she spent the rest of the day pointedly avoiding me. What is it with her? I know she likes me. Her notes prove it, or she wouldn't bother responding to them. And the way she looks at me sometimes, like she wants to pounce on me. Her eyes tracing over my body, admiring every inch of me.

But then she goes all rigid and pulls away, keeping her distance like she fears what could happen if we got too close.

Why?

I understand that me possibly becoming her boss is less than ideal, but not unsolvable—even with that darn anti-fraternization policy in place. I've been at Mercer Robotics only a few weeks and no official announcement has been made about me taking over as CEO. Only the board knows—I could still switch departments. Another CEO is going to retire from one of our other divisions eventually. Or better even, I could start at a lower level, shadowing the current CEO of another division for a few years before they retire. That would allow me to learn the ropes in less of a pressure cooker environment. Shadowing the man I'll have to replace for years seems a better approach than this "throw you into the fray" method my dad has forced on me.

But if I tell Reese all this, would she just laugh in my face? Am I deluded for thinking the only obstacles to a potential relationship between us are our jobs?

From what K-2P told me, I'm not smart enough to be her type, but I'm not sure genius scumbags are what's really best for her. Plus, even if I don't have an engineering degree and can't debate impedance control—see? I'm already picking up the jargon—with her, it's not like I'm an idiot.

Could she ever be interested in exploring something with me? I honestly don't know. She's giving me mixed signals. Maybe I should come out and ask her outright.

I stare at the note in my hands; she's responding to the message where I called her mean for not telling me about the Halloween costume tradition. Like every new message she sends, this could help me decipher the mystery that she is.

I unfold the note and read.

Glad K-2P was there to save the day, and you could've always claimed you were dressed as Christian Gray or something, so I don't feel sorry.

That makes me chuckle. Christian Gray, huh? Someone's been fantasizing about naughty billionaires. See? She's flirting. But the note is not over. I read the rest.

Since we won't see each other until Monday, I'm going to leave you with a Star Wars pun to carry you through the rest of the week.

What kind of car does a Jedi drive?

A ToYoda.

Wait, what? Why won't we see each other until Monday? I'm not going anywhere. So where is she going?

If K-2P were here, I could ask him. But during the week, he still sleeps in the lab.

So?

I stand up and start pacing the living room. I grab my phone from the coffee table and call my executive assistant.

She picks up on the fourth ring. "Boss?"

"Ellen, good evening, I need you to find out where Reese Campbell will be this week."

A beat of silence. "Now?"

"Yes, now."

"It's nine at night."

"Ellen, you're the only executive assistant I know who didn't have to work a minute of overtime in her entire career. Please help me out."

She sighs. "Fair enough, boss. I'll call you back as soon as I know something."

"Thanks."

We hang up, and I keep pacing the living room and forget about eating dinner altogether until Ellen calls me back an hour later.

"Yeah?" I pick up before the first ring is even done.

"Whoa." Ellen sounds startled at my immediate response. "Someone's been waiting by the phone."

"Did you find out where she's going?"

"Yes, boss, she's attending an international conference on computational intelligence and virtual environments in Rome. The conference is from Thursday through Saturday, but she's flying out to Rome early tomorrow morning. And on Friday, she's giving a presentation on human-computer interaction technologies for measurement systems and related applications."

"Just to be clear, we're talking Rome, Italy, and not Rome, Georgia, or some other place in the United States?"

"Yep, boss, Roma, Italia."

A break in a beautiful European city could be the detached-from-the-office breather we so desperately need to figure out if there could ever be an us. I know, technically, it'd still be a work trip, but attending a conference won't be the same as being in the office with a thousand eyes on us. And it's Rome, for goodness' sake. I will never get a better opportunity to get Reese to lower her walls. If the pasta, wine, and gelato don't do it, nothing will.

"Ellen, please get me the details of her itinerary and book me on the same trip. Do I need an invitation to attend the conference?"

"I'm pretty confident I can get you a badge, boss."

"Great, Ellen, and you can take the rest of the week off since I'll be gone."

As soon as I hang up, I rush into the bedroom and start packing a bag. Nothing says "That's Amore" like a surprise trip to Rome.