She wondered how much that the IMF spent on fuel for their private jets. She shouldn't really be complaining but it was just more interesting now that she didn't work for the government and just paid her taxes.

The truth was that she was nervous to bring Will there.

Their place in Italy.

It was her favorite place, a lot of first happened there, lot of good memories there. Having Will there with fresh memories of Vince in her head. It was quite surreal. How can her heart be pulled in three directions and be confused in each place

As they went through this case Neve was understanding why Will fired her. Maybe he was protecting her but he wasn't wrong when he said – she didn't know where to draw the line.

That's not good for an agent undercover.

They landed at Malpensa and she drove a town car to Stresa. They didn't say much to one another. They hadn't since yesterday.

Although him constantly changing the songs on her ipod had slowly started to drive her a little crazy

"Do you have musical bipolar?"

"Well, if you didn't listen to so much crap"

"Feel free to change it to Italian talk radio, if you really hate it"

"Ugh" he changed it again "You are such a girl"

"If I wasn't, you would like me"

He smiled over at her. He remembered this Neve. The cheeky Neve, who never thought about what she was saying, because she was comfortable.

Brandt had missed her

Finally he found something he liked. Seventies rock that he actually loved

"Didn't I introduce you to these guys?"

"No, I always loved them. We just listened to them a lot when we were" she stopped for second "together"

Something caught his eye out the window as he watched it zoom by

"Was that a monastery?" he asked before laughing "You live in a town with a monastery"

"Why is that funny?"

"Oh my god"

Neve could tempt a saint, let alone a man of the cloth. She never saw how beautiful she really was. That was always the agencies secret weapon. She didn't even have to bat an eyelid to have men drop to their knees.

"We're almost there"

"You guys here a lot?"

"Few times a year"

"You certainly lived a charmed life" he said bitterly under his breath, not soft enough for her not to hear

"Yes, with a psycho"

"Who you're still in love with"

She looked away from the road and stared at him

"I can't just switch it off, like some people that I know"

"That's not what I did, Neve"

"Could have fooled me"

She went back to the road and shook her head. Pissed at him, pissed at Jack, pissed at the world, pissed at the situation. Neve shook her head and took a deep breath.

"Is that what you think happened?"

"It doesn't really matter anymore, does it?"

"Neve"

"Listen, let's figure out what this whole thing is or who he is looking for or going after and let stop it"

"After that what? You go back to your old life"

"Can't see why not?"

"Stand at a reception desk and wait on people"

"What's so wrong with that?"

"You're capable of so much more"

"Well, who's fault is that"

"I was protecting you" he growled

She didn't say anything for the longest time. Neve wanted to be calm instead of biting each other heads off, like they always seemed to do.

"You always say that I walked over the line of personal and professional and seeing Vince again. I understand why. Maybe I wasn't in love with him but yes there was affection between Vince and I. There still is. I'm a big enough person to admit that. I care for him but you can't sit on your high horse either. You decommissioned me because I got hurt and you were no longer just my handler. We fell in love, or at least I did with you and I refuse to apologize for that, Will. I'm not the only one to blame about walking a tight rope of personal and professional. I also do not apologize for the way I put my life back together after it all blew up in my face. So yes, working in a hotel may seem mundane to someone like yourself who is used to living the way you do but it is still a life and after this is all done. I'm going back to London to live it"

"Why London?"

She could have given him the clinical answer. Duel citizenship makes everything easier but she decided not to lie.

Neve looked over at him and smirked playfully

"Carnaby Street"

"Sixties chick to the very end"

"Living the dream just in the wrong era"

There she was, the girl he remembered. The girl he kept in his memory. Brandt just caught a glimpse of her, yet again.

#

They turned the corner and drove down until he saw a two story terracotta coloured villa covered in Campsis a garden of lavender, Cypress and olive trees, of course.

She parked the car and he followed her to the front door before she let him in and opened all the windows. Neve excused herself and said something about seeing the neighbours. He was too busy taking in the place to actually listen.

Next time he saw her, Neve had arm full of random things but mostly a huge white box. He walked over and tried to take it all from her.

"I got it"

"You don't have to do everything by yourself, you know?"

"Easier that way" she moved past him and went into the living area before dropping everything on the coffee

"What's in the box?"

"Catalogues"

"That boxes if full of catalogues?"

"No, just a really big catalogue" she watched him move closer and slide the mail of the top of the box "Brandt!"

"Designs By Magdalena" he looked over at her quickly "Is this your wedding dress?"

She briefly thought about lying, evading or even yelling but Neve knew it wouldn't get her anywhere, not at this point.

"Yeah" she whispered "Not that it really matters"

"Show me"

"No" she chuckled sweetly

"Neve, come on"

She cleared her throat and stepped around him before turning around to face him again

"I think I am going to go upstairs and sleep for a little bit. The drive took it out of me. Wake me up and a couple of hours, if I'm not already, ok?"

He reached out and took her hand gently before she smiled at him again

"Angel?"

She walked over and kissed him on the cheek

"I'm ok, I promise"

He watched her walk upstairs. It seemed like he was always watching her walk away these days. Will hated just a little more each time.

Will walked around the house, got to know where everything was. The place was total peace and quiet, being set some fifty metres away from the road. The northern side of the house overlooking the lake with a huge, what looked like a brand new deck and the south side being shadowed by a mountain.

The place was paradise

He taking in the back porch, it was Neve. He knew it was. Right down to the twinkle light wrapped around the bannisters and the railing. She had always wanted something like this. Summer nights on the deck, watching the stars and taking a deep breath. This was Neve.

She deserved more then what she had right now. He was going to give it to her, if only for a moment.

#

Neve felt herself being lighten shaken before she opened her eyes and rolled on to her back, seeing him sitting on the edge of the bed. Her face was still a little red and puffy, she had been crying at some point.

"How long have I been out?"

"A little while" he said stroking her cheek. She closed her eyes briefly "You want get up and put that dress on"

"Will, I'm never wearing that dress"

"Do you trust me?" he asked quietly before she softly nodded her head "Put the dress on. I'll wait downstairs"

She sat up in the bed and looked at him confused before he disappeared into the hallway. She was confused but did what she was told.

Brandt wasn't sure how many times he paced the floor awaiting for her but judging on the limited wedding dress he had seen, he imagined that they were exactly easy to get into. What did he know, he was a guy.

He saw bare feet on the staircase she appeared in a skin tight cream lace and beaded dress. He stared at her, froze and tried to get his heart to start beating again. She stood on the last step and saw his face

"Ugh, this is ridiculous" she told him before turning around and moving back upstairs.

"Woah, hang on. Come here"

There wasn't a curve that dress wasn't hugging, that he wasn't appreciative of. She sighed and walked towards him. As she got closer he could see that she was barely holding it together. He reached out for her hand, she didn't hesitate to take it

"William"

"I thought you were trusting me"

He walked her over to the sliding doors that lead outside before reaching over switched on the lights. Neve looked around. The lights, the water of the lake, the stars. She looked over at him confused.

"What are you doing?"

"You deserve one dance in that dress, even if it's not with the man that you expected"

"To no music?"

"You always play music in your head anyhow"

"Yeah, I do"

"I know" he chuckled before holding her close.

She pressed her lips together the way she always did when she was nervous and looked over his shoulder to the water as they swayed

"You didn't have to do this, you know?"

"Just making up for being a jerk"

"So you owe me a couple of dances then?"

"One every day for the rest of your life"

"Don't worry, I give as good as I get"

They listened to the sound of the water lazily hitting the bank and the rustling of the layers of her dress.

They didn't say anything for the longest time but then again they didn't need too. She get lost in her own head, thinking over anything that had gone on of the past few days. Suddenly her grip around him got tighter

"I'm sorry" she whispered

Brandt looked down at her confused

"For what? You haven't done anything wrong"

"I let Niccolo manipulate me, back in London. I fell for it"

"Honey, no one blames you for that. He was using everything you have had between you, to get what he wants"

"And I let him"

"You're human. Never apologize for loving someone. Even if it is someone like him"

"Rookie mistake"

"Maybe but you are still a rookie. Our job takes time and slowly takes the trusting parts of us away. I'm glad you still have them" He stopped and spun her, just to get her to smile, it worked "But he did have eyes on us in London. He probably knows where we have been and he probably is still watching us, right now"

"Well, isn't he going to be pissed?"

"Yeah, his fiancé dancing with another man in the wedding dress meant for him. You said he was a jealous guy, right?"

"He likes the things that he see as his, to be his. Yes"

Brandt moved closer, she smiled as the noses danced playfully

"Mine first"

She knew it was coming but he did move fast and caught her off guard when he kissed her. She didn't think, she just kissed him back, like she always had. If Brandt was turning into a habit, he was a good one.

She gave over control, didn't think and had to remind herself to breath

#

Niccolo sat in his apartment in London and watched the live feed stream through from Stresa. He always had that place watched, he had used it from some business dealing, met some dubious people there. He had always been nervous taking her there but Neve loved it and what's a fiancé to do.

That said, Neve was trying his patience.

He knew she would eventually take a trip to see Mayrbek, but that didn't mean that he was happy about it.

Now she was in the arms of the man that hurt her beyond repair, in the dress meant for their wedding, getting intimate in their house

He couldn't tear his eyes away from the laptop even though he really wanted too. She pulled herself closer to him before this guy, this agent slowly and gently guided her towards the house. They never broke apart, not for a second, not until they were out of sight.

Niccolo knew where they were heading and he couldn't blame the guy. Even with no makeup and hair natural and plain. Neve looked stunning. Then again, she never did need any of that stuff. Niccolo used to tell her that all the time and Neve would just chuckle and keep putting it on anyway.

Gennadi rounded the corner and walked over to his desk, she perched on the edge and watched him.

"One slip up from you and look at all the damage"

"She was never going to work with us" she told him shaking her head " I told you to get rid of her once we found out what she truly was but you didn't"

"Look at them, Genn"

"That was always going to happen. She always loved him more than she loved you. Once he track her down, it was game over. Don't blame me because your fiancé isn't loyal"

"America is not her country"

"I wasn't talking about her country. I was talking about him. If you want her so much, get rid of him"

"I promised her I wouldn't touch him and I keep my word"

She didn't like that.

Gennadi didn't like this man in front of her. She wanted the real Niccolo, not this watered down man that Neve had turned him into. The real Niccolo was in there somewhere and she was going to find him.

Gennadi slowly hopped off the desk and lightly trailed her hand up his arm

"Do you know what he is doing to her right now?" she asked softly as she walked around his chair, her hand slowly trailing after her. Never leaving his body "His hands all over her"

"Genn" he warned

"Remembering things that he had long forgotten"

"Stop"

"How she reacts. How she sounds"

Suddenly Niccolo was up out of his chair and pinned her to the wall, with a tight grip around her jaw

"This isn't a game. Gennadi" he shook her "You understand me? Don't test me because she is more valuable, to not only me but your boyfriend Vince. Pray he never gets out of where he is and hope that I never get sick of your games because that will be the end of you"

He released her before she gasped for air

"What makes her so special?"

"Neve is very rare and worth the trouble to get her back"

He sat back down and closed his laptop and his mind started to tick over. Niccolo needed to get her back before it was too late.

#

When Brandt woke up and she wasn't still beside him, he low key started to freak out. He got dressed and thought he'd go downstairs but he saw the light down the hallway on and followed it.

She was sitting on the floor of a home office, wearing a satin robe, all legs and in deep thought with files and boxes all around her.

"Do you ever sleep?"

"No, I'm robot"

He sat behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist and kissed her shoulder before she smiled over at him.

"Just for the record. What just happened wasn't a part of the plan tonight"

"Darlin'" she said softly "That was always going to happen, even since you stalked me into an alleyway"

"You looking for clues, Inspector Gadget ?"

"Looking a sign, anything really" she chuckled "Everything seems legit and its really annoying"

"Everything here might be"

"I should have been something. I'm an idiot"

"You were the one person he didn't want to know. He would have gone to great lengths to cover the truth up. Stop beating yourself up"

"We haven't gotten anywhere"

"We have. Trust me, when we get back to London. There is going to be plenty of box of paper work and file and well, crap really sent over from MI6 and we are going to get him"

Suddenly the laptop on the desk started beeping. Neve and Brandt looked at each other, knowing what it was. Or more so, who it was.

She took a shaky breath before standing up. Brandt watched her walk over and sit in his chair before pressing the right button

There he was – the man in question. Expressionless but with fire in his eyes – she loved that she had pissed him off.

"Having fun?"

"Yes actually I am" she smiled wickedly at him "Thanks for asking"

"Can tell. You're positively glowing"

"I'm glad"

"Big trip down memory lane for you the past few days?"

"Yeah, its been fantastic actually. As it turns out, that little bitch of yours is quite the talker but you'd know all about her pillow talk, wouldn't you?"

"You're one to talk"

It took all Brandt's willpower to not walk over there but she was handling herself better then he thought she would have

"Hand yourself in Niccolo. We will figure out what the hell is going on. MI6 is now involved. We'll find out who you are after and we will protect them. You haven't gone to that place of no return yet"

They stared at each other for the longest time. The air became thick with tension, even though a computer scene

"I guess this is a no to my offer"

"To join you?" she clarified "No way in the world would I join you, now that I know who you are Not in this life or the next"

"Its not that easy"

"What? To walk away from you?"

"Many people have tried with a bad result"

"I'll take my chances. I have a good team"

He smiled and took his head almost kindly, as if he thought it was funny

"Its not that easy, Neve. You can try but you'll always come back"

"I imagine you can see the back deck, right?"

"Oh yeah, I've seen it all night long"

She looked over the top of the laptop at Brandt quickly before back at Niccolo

"I'm glad. Keep watching"

She ended the call and slammed the screen down before leaving the room.

She heard Brandt calling for her, asking her questions but she was so filled with rage that she couldn't stop. Pulling the slide door open and turning on the lights.

Neve calmly walked over to the edge near the railing before pulling her engagement ring off her finger and throwing it into the lake

"Try and give that back to me, you asshole"

She heard Brandt laughing standing in the doorway. She turned around and frowned

"It is funny when your rage isn't pointed at me"

"I just threw twenty thousand dollar into a lake"

"With an audience"

"Would it be too much if I flipped him the bird?"

"Yep"

"Well, I'm doing it mentally"

"I'm sure he knows that" he offered her his hand "Come on, you need sleep"

She took his hand and walked inside before Brandt locked the door behind them walked her back upstairs. He was sure that he was the one that wasn't sleeping this time around