Page 57 of Tour Wars
After dinner, the guests assembled in the hotel bar. Everyone showed up except Luca, who’d informed them earlier that he had no interest in attending “amateur hour.” Just as well. The less TJ saw of him, the better.
Emilia handed out the booklets, and TJ took his place at the piano. The white baby grand was fancier than he was used to, but the sound was marvelous. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d had this much fun playing. All through college and grad school, music had helped him cope, but he’d rarely performed for anyone but himself. As he launched into “Ob-La-Di” by the Beatles, he could understand why his dad had formed a band with his friends.
The choices he and Emilia had made seemed to resonate with the group, who sang along with gusto. When he played “She’s Always a Woman”—another Billy Joel classic—he couldn’t help thinking of Emilia. He peeked over at her, only to catch her with a dreamy expression on her face. Did she realize he was serenadingher? Maybe it was better that she had no idea.
Before his last song, he paused to take a water break. Beside him, Alice was talking softly to Emilia. “I used to play the piano,” she said. “Six years of lessons, but it was a lifetime ago. It’s one of those things that fell by the wayside as I got older.”
“You could always take it up again,” Emilia said. “Just for fun. I only had two years of piano when I was a kid, but hearing TJ makes me wish I’d kept at it.”
Wait.Why hadn’t she disclosed this earlier? “Em?” he said. “You didn’t tell me you played.”
She shook her head. “I don’t. Not like you. I can’t even read music anymore.”
“I think our next number should be a duet.” He peered around the group. “Don’t you?”
When everyone nodded, Emilia groaned and put her head in her hands. “It’ll never work. I don’t remember anything except ‘Jingle Bells’ and the theme fromStar Wars.”
“I’ll bet you know ‘Heart and Soul.’ Everyone knows that one.” TJ patted the piano bench. “Come on—you can do the left hand. It’s the easy part.”
“How generous of you,” she muttered. But she didn’t back down. Instead, she sat beside him, so close that her thigh brushed against his. He was suddenly aware of her physical presence, the scent of her shampoo, and the tantalizing heat of her body. The last time they’d sat together on a piano bench, they’d gone up to her room, and she’d almost…
As if she knew what he was thinking, she gave him a hard nudge. “Don’t get distracted. Our guests are counting on us.”
Right. He started off with the melody, keeping it simple before adding a few flourishes. She joined in without missing a beat. It was a deceptively easy song, but it sounded so good when both parts came together. For once, he and Emilia were in complete harmony. Partners in the truest sense of the word.
When they were done, the group applauded. Emilia flushed with pleasure, then got off the bench.
“Why don’t you finish up?” she said to him. “After that, we’ll call it a night. Tomorrow, we have another big travel day: Metaponto, the archaeological museum at Taranto, and Lecce.”
For the last song, he’d chosen “Sweet Caroline,” which everyone knew, even the group of Australians who’d been drinking at the bar for the past hour. When he was done, the applause made his heart soar. Best of all was the way Emilia beamed at him. Like she was so proud of him. Not because of his Harvard PhD or his dig experiences but because he’d given their group a night to remember.
In the past, he’d always believed the best way to make people like him was to impress them. To show them what he’d accomplished and how much he knew. But he was starting to realize that bringing people joy could be more rewarding than trying to be the smartest person in the room. All because he’d joined this tour to help Emilia.
When in reality, she’d been the one helpinghim.
CHAPTERTWENTY-THREE
As Emilia boarded the bus, she was gripped with a rush of exhilaration. She and TJ had almost made it through the entire tour.
Two nights ago, they’d enjoyed a memorable evening in Bari, thanks to his prowess on the piano. Then, last night, they’d had dinner at an agrotourism restaurant in Lecce, where they’d experienced a wonderful farm-to-table meal. Everyone had enjoyed it, even Luca, who’d turned on the charm with the group sitting at his table. Though his presence still made Emilia uneasy, he hadn’t bothered her again.
For their final day of the tour, they were driving from Lecce to Rome. Since the trip took almost seven hours, they hadn’t planned any stops. The only big event left on the schedule was their farewell dinner at seven. Tomorrow morning, everyone would disperse, most of them heading for the airport to fly home. By noon, the Buon Viaggio “Archaeological Treasures of Southern Italy” tour would be officially over.
Emilia was glad she and TJ didn’t have to rush back to Pompeii. Instead, Angelo was comping them another night in Rome, with the assumption they’d spend the entire time writing their full report on the tour. Given that Mateo had often submitted reports twenty pages long, Angelo had high expectations. Rather than wait until the end of the trip to begin writing, TJ had suggested starting it when they were in Naples. Since then, they’d kept up with it so diligently that they’d almost finished the whole thing. If they could polish it off after the guests left tomorrow afternoon, they’d have all night to indulge in a few rounds of sneaky hotel sex.
Hotel sex.Had there ever been a more enticing phrase?
Emilia had expected TJ to be at his most exuberant, thrilled that they’d pulled off the tour so successfully. Instead, he’d been painfully subdued at breakfast. A few times, she’d caught him staring off into space, his expression troubled.
Was he depressed their tour was almost over? That they’d no longer get to work together as a team? While she was sad their partnership was coming to an end, she was eager to take the next step with him. To give in to their desires and see where they led.
For the first few hours of the bus ride, most of the guests napped or chatted among themselves. To make up for TJ’s listlessness, Emilia took charge, pointing out sights along the way. At three, Nico stopped the bus in Teano at an Autogrill—an Italian highway rest stop chain that functioned as a combination gas station, coffee bar, deli, buffet, and liquor store. What Emilia liked most about the chain was the bizarre array of products for sale—giant stuffed animals, three-foot-long sleeves of cookies, huge chocolate bars, weird off-brand toys, and enormous bottles of booze.
She was about to address the group, but TJ beat her to it. As at breakfast, his voice lacked its usual positive energy. “We’ll be taking a twenty-minute break. Now’s the time to use the restroom, grab a drink, and pick up a few snacks, but please don’t lose track of time. We still have a way to go before we reach Rome.”
He waited until everyone had exited the bus before turning to Emilia. “Are you coming? I’m going to grab a soda.”
“That’s all you’re getting?” she said. “You won’t be tempted to buy a giant bar of Toblerone or a cheap bottle of limoncello? Or a stuffed turtle that looks suspiciously like a non-licensed Pokémon character?”
