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“Just shout if you change your mind.” Peter sat down across from Riss. He glanced at his watch. “Is everyone already gone? It’s only just after nine.”
“I don’t think they’ve been down yet. I think Dominick delivered breakfast to a couple rooms earlier.”
“Ah, well, Vanessa, no doubt. She strikes me as the type of woman to lounge in bed. A waste really.”
Riss almost spit out her coffee. What was she supposed to say to that? Did she tell Peter that Vanessa was dead? Her cup clattered when she set it on the table.
Peter continued unperturbed. “Glad to see you up and about. Didn’t have you pegged as a lazy one. Good to see I was right.”
“Well, thanks.” I think? This was truly a bizarre conversation. She needed a topic change. “So, Peter what is it you do, exactly?”
“Me?” he asked as he took a big bite of scrambled egg. After swallowing he said, “I’m in oil.”
That was clear as mud. “What kind of oil? As in oil and gas or as in olive oil?” They were in Italy after all, anything was possible.
Peter glanced at her as he shoved a huge bite of toast into his mouth. “Oh, ha ha ha, funny. Olive. Yes, Italy.” Toast crumbs flew from his mouth as he chuckled. “No, my dear, oil and gas. I’m a geologist.”
“What brings you to Venice, if you don’t mind me asking? Seems a strange place for someone in oil and gas.”
“He won’t tell you,” Poppy said as she breezed into the room. “He likes to be mysterious.” She warbled the last word.
Peter guffawed, spewing bits of bacon on the white tablecloth. Lord, he was a messy eater. “Just business, Poppy. Must be discreet.”
“How are you this morning?” Poppy asked as she too loaded up her plate. “Not eating?” She glanced at the table in front of Riss.
“I ate earlier.” Which was good because with all the chatting while he ate, she’d seen enough of Peter’s half-chewed food to make her lose her appetite.
Two more men walked into the dining room. Riss was surprised. She didn’t realize there were any other guests. She recognized one immediately. Senator Austin Davis. A wackadoodle from the south… Texas she thought. That wasn’t a fair assessment. She supposed he was smart, but he was a frequent guest on those weird conspiracy theory radio shows. Riss honestly didn’t really follow politics and she didn’t much care if someone was a Republican or a Democrat, but she did care that they had common sense. Austin Davis did not strike her as a man with a sensible bone in his body. At least that wasn’t what he projected on air. Maybe that was all a show. Nothing would surprise her these days.
“Peter, it’s been a while.” Davis came forward and shook the other man’s hand.
“Davis, I didn’t realize you were here. Good to see you. Poppy, Riss, this is Senator Austin Davis.”
Poppy nodded. “Lovely to meet you,” she said but did not offer her hand.
“Senator Davis,” Riss said, but she too remained seated and didn’t offer a hand.
The other man came to the table, his plate already full. “I’m Eli Fisher.” He and Peter shook hands but again Poppy and Riss merely nodded and murmured a greeting. The two men sat farther down the table across from one another and started a conversation that seemed to be a continuation of something from earlier. It was evident they had no interest in including Riss, Poppy, or Peter.
Poppy leaned forward and said, “I suppose Vanessa hasn’t come down yet. I have no idea what that woman was thinking yesterday. Embarrassing herself like that with Davenport. Probably why she’s not down yet.”
“Poppy, you know exactly what she was thinking,” Peter said with a grin as he ate more toast.
“Morning all,” Daniel Dimon said as he strode into the room. He passed the food, headed to the coffee station, and poured himself a cup.
“Morning, Daniel,” Fisher said.
Dimon looked up. “Eli. Austin. I didn’t know you two were here.”
“Arrived late last night,” Fisher said. “Join us for breakfast?”
“I ate in my room. Just came down for some coffee on a quick break. More calls to make. Has anyone seen Davenport this morning? I heard a vicious rumor that he’s in trouble financially and I wanted to ask him about it.”
Davis snorted. “Davenport is sitting on a gold mine with his AI thing. I wouldn’t believe any rumors I heard to the contrary.”
Dimon made a non-committal noise in his throat. “Peter, I think I interrupted you when I came in. You were saying?”
“Yes, I was saying Vanessa broke into Davenport’s room to try and seduce him last night. Too bad Riss here already beat her to the punch. And you watch, she’ll waltz right in here not a care in the world this morning. She won’t be embarrassed.”
