Page 76 of Ricardo

He takes another slow sip of his drink.

“That doesn’t mean I surrender my afternoon every time someone sends a pretty girl with a file and a pen.”

My amusement flees.

“Careful, Alistair.”

The quiet in my voice carries more than volume would.

Valecourt’s gaze flicks to mine.

His smile changes. “No offense meant.”

“Then you will have no trouble correcting yourself.”

Julia’s head turns slightly toward me, but she says nothing.

Valecourt looks between us, reassessing too late. His fingers tighten around his glass, then relax. “Ms…?”

“O’Brien,” Julia says. “Julia O’Brien.”

Recognition enters his face. “Judge O’Brien’s daughter.”

The file remains steady in her hand. “Mario Conti’s executive office.”

“Ms. O’Brien,” he says, with a nod that I can tell costs him. “My apologies.”

Julia inclines her head once. “Thank you.”

No excess. No gratitude for the bare minimum. No performance.

She removes the document, places it on the table in front of him, and lays a pen beside the signature tab. “The signed consent authorizes the revised ownership allocation tied to the redevelopment parcel. Your counsel’s notes are included behind the execution copy. You keep the duplicate. We return the original.”

Valecourt looks at the document, then at me.

I simply wait.

He picks up the pen.

“Mario is impatient these days,” he says.

Julia does not move until the ink is fully on the page. Then she takes the document, checks the signature, checks the date, places the duplicate copy in front of him, and returns the original to her folder.

“Thank you, Mr. Valecourt.”

He leans back, trying to recover some ground. “Tell Mario I expect he’ll be satisfied.”

“I will relay your message,” she says.

I look at Valecourt. “Enjoy your lunch.”

His smile is thin. “Always.”

Julia turns first. I walk beside her, not behind, as we leave the terrace and reenter the clubhouse.

For several steps, neither of us speaks.

I can feel the tension in her. It is different now. She is angry. More than angry. She handled him perfectly, efficiently, with more restraint than I did.