Jiselle's POV:

I was buried in work, staring at the same spreadsheet for what felt like the hundredth time, when movement outside the glass walls of my office caught my attention.

At first, I barely looked up.

Then I realized who it was.

Liam.

My concentration disappeared instantly.

He walked through the office like he had absolutely no business looking that good in the middle of my workday. He wore black pants and a burgundy shirt underneath a white long-sleeve button-up. The sleeves were pushed up carelessly around his elbows, leaving the tattoos along his arms completely exposed.

I leaned back in my chair, watching him approach.

Well, there went any chance of getting more work done.

The second Liam noticed me staring, the corner of his mouth lifted into that little smirk of his.

Caught.

I quickly stood from my chair, pretending I hadn't just been checking him out through the glass.

He opened my office door just as I reached it.

"Hi," I said, already smiling.

"Hi."

That was all I got before his hand found my cheek.

His touch was gentle, his thumb brushing lightly against my skin as he pulled me toward him. I didn't fight it. I tilted my face up, and his lips met mine in a soft, sweet kiss.

For a few seconds, my office, my deadlines, and everything waiting on my desk stopped existing.

When he pulled away, I kept my hands against his chest and smiled up at him.

"What are you doing here?"

"I thought I'd come see you at work," Liam admitted casually.

"Just because?"

"Maybe." His eyes traveled over me before returning to my face. "Besides, I have a surprise for you."

"A surprise?"

"Mm-hmm. But before I tell you, I have to say..." His eyes dropped over me again, much more deliberately this time. "You look mighty fine today."

I laughed and lightly shoved his chest.

"You're ridiculous."

"I'm being serious."

"Hold on."

I pulled away from him and hurried toward the glass wall.

Liam raised an eyebrow as I reached for the blinds.

I closed them one by one until the rest of the office disappeared from view.

"There," I said.

"Why'd you do that?"

Instead of answering, I jogged back toward him, wrapped my arms around his neck, and pressed my lips against his.

He laughed softly into the kiss before kissing me back.

His hands settled around my waist, pulling me closer while his lips gave me several soft, brief kisses. I smiled against his mouth, enjoying having him here far more than I should have during working hours.

Eventually, I forced myself to pull back.

"So, Mr. Payne..." I kept my arms wrapped around his neck. "Are you going to tell me what you're doing here, or did you come all this way just to distract me?"

"Technically, distracting you was part of the plan."

"Of course it was."

"But..." He paused.

I narrowed my eyes.

"But what?"

"We're going away."

I blinked. "Going away where?"

His smile grew.

"Positano."

I stared at him.

"What?"

"Positano," he repeated.

My brain still wasn't putting the pieces together.

"Positano... Italy?"

"No, the other Positano."

I smacked his shoulder.

"Liam!"

He laughed. "Yes, Italy."

My mouth dropped open.

For several seconds, I couldn't say anything.

Italy.

Italy.

The place I'd talked about visiting more times than I could count. The colorful buildings stacked along the cliffs, the Mediterranean, the little restaurants overlooking the water—I had spent years saving pictures and imagining what it would be like to actually stand there.

And now Liam was standing in the middle of my office telling me we were going.

"Are you serious?"

"Completely."

"We're going to Italy?"

"We're going to Italy."

"For what?"

"The weekend."

My eyes widened even more.

"The weekend?"

He nodded like taking a spontaneous weekend trip to another country was the most normal thing in the world.

I stared at him, searching his face for any sign that he was messing with me.

There wasn't one.

"Are you freaking kidding me?" I practically screamed. "We're going to Italy!"

Liam immediately put a finger to his lips.

"Your employees are outside."

"I don't care!"

I threw my arms around him.

He stumbled backward from the force of it, laughing as he caught me around the waist.

"I can't believe you did this!"

"So..." he said, looking pleased with himself. "I'm assuming you like the surprise?"

I pulled back just enough to look at him.

"Like it?" I stared at him as if he'd lost his mind. "Liam, I love it!"

His expression softened.

"Good."

I kissed him again.

This one was quick, mostly because I was suddenly too excited to stand still.

"When are we going?"

"Tonight."

My smile froze.

"Tonight?"

"Yep."

"Okay. Tonight when?"

"You have to be packed and ready before five."

I stared at him.

"What?"

"Our flight leaves at seven."

My arms slowly dropped from around his neck.

"Seven... tonight?"

"That's generally what 'our flight leaves at seven' means."

"Liam!"

"What?"

I looked at the clock on my computer and immediately felt my heart rate spike.

"You can't just walk into my office and tell me we're flying to Italy in a few hours!"

"I just did."

"I have work!"

"Not anymore."

I stopped.

"What do you mean, not anymore?"

"You're done for the day."

I stepped back and studied him suspiciously.

He looked far too confident.

"Okay, what did you do?"

"Nothing."

"Liam."

"Nothing bad."

"That is not the same thing."

He laughed.

I crossed my arms.

"Explain."

"I called your assistant."

My eyebrows shot up.

"You what?"

"I called your assistant," he repeated. "I wanted this to actually be a surprise, so I checked your schedule before I booked anything. She helped clear everything that needed to be moved, and apparently nothing here is going to collapse because you're gone for a few days."

I stared at him.

"You planned this with my assistant?"

"Yes."

"Behind my back?"

"That's usually how surprises work, Jiselle."

I tried to hold back my smile.

I failed miserably.

"You seriously took care of everything?"

"Everything I could."

"And we're really going to Positano?"

He nodded.

That was it.

A squeal escaped me before I could stop it.

"Oh my God!"

I started jumping up and down like a five-year-old.

Liam burst out laughing.

"Don't laugh at me!"

"I'm not laughing at you."

"You absolutely are!"

"I'm laughing because you're adorable."

"I am not adorable. I'm going to Italy!"

Apparently, that justified everything.

I didn't even care how ridiculous I probably looked. I'd wanted to go to Italy for as long as I could remember, and now I was actually going.

With Liam.

I looked at him and suddenly felt something warmer underneath all the excitement.

He remembered.

At some point, during one of my endless conversations about all the places I wanted to see, he'd actually listened. Not only had he listened, but he'd planned everything without me knowing.

My dream vacation.

With my dream guy.

The thought made my stomach flutter.

I walked back toward him and wrapped my arms tightly around his waist.

"Thank you," I said, quieter this time.

His arms came around me.

"You're welcome."

"No, seriously." I looked up at him. "This might be the best surprise anyone has ever given me."

"Wait until you see the hotel."

My jaw dropped.

"The hotel?"

His grin returned.

"Oh, you're going to lose your mind."

"Liam!"

"That's all you're getting."

"Tell me!"

"No."

"At least give me a hint."

"Nope."

"Ocean view?"

He remained silent.

My eyes widened.

"Oh my God. There's an ocean view!"

"I didn't say anything."

"You didn't have to!"

He laughed as I pulled away.

Then reality hit me.

"Oh my gosh, I have to get moving!"

I rushed toward my desk and grabbed my purse.

Phone.

Wallet.

Keys.

Laptop—

I stopped.

Did I need my laptop?

Probably.

I grabbed it anyway and shoved it into my bag.

Then I noticed the thick binder sitting beside my computer.

There were still a few things I wanted to review before Monday.

Perfect.

I grabbed it and walked toward Liam.

His eyes immediately dropped to the binder.

"No."

I stopped.

"What?"

"No."

"You don't even know what this is."

"It's a binder."

"Very observant."

"A binder full of work."

I held it closer to my chest.

"I thought I could get some work done while we're there."

Liam stared at me.

I stared back.

"No," he said.

"What do you mean, no?"

"I mean you're not bringing work to Positano."

"It's just a few things."

"No."

"I can look at it on the plane."

"No."

"Liam—"

"Jiselle." He pointed toward my desk. "Turn around."

I looked over my shoulder and then back at him.

"You're serious?"

"Completely."

"But—"

"This is a weekend getaway. No meetings. No emails. No spreadsheets. No binders."

"What about my laptop?"

His eyes narrowed.

I instinctively pulled my purse closer.

"Absolutely not."

"Okay, now you're getting carried away."

"Give me the laptop."

"No!"

He stepped toward me.

I stepped backward.

"Liam Payne, don't you dare."

He smiled.

"Put the binder down, and I'll let you keep the laptop."

I narrowed my eyes.

"You're negotiating with me?"

"I'm trying to save our vacation."

"Our vacation hasn't even started yet."

"Exactly, and you're already trying to bring work."

I looked down at the binder.

Then at Liam.

Then back at the binder.

"Fine."

I marched toward my desk and dramatically dropped it on top.

"There. Happy?"

"Very."

I pointed at him.

"The laptop stays."

"For emergencies only."

"Define emergency."

"Something involving fire, bankruptcy, or international catastrophe."

I rolled my eyes.

"You're impossible."

"And yet you're going to Italy with me."

That shut me up.

A huge smile spread across my face all over again.

Italy.

I grabbed my purse and hurried back toward him.

"Come on!"

"Where are we going?"

"Home! I have to pack!"

"You have almost three hours."

"Exactly!"

"That's plenty of time."

I stared at him like he'd just said the stupidest thing I'd ever heard.

"Liam, we're going to Positano. I have to figure out outfits."

"You need clothes."

"I need Italy clothes."

He laughed as I grabbed his hand and practically dragged him toward the door.

"There's a difference?"

"A huge difference."

I opened my office door, then suddenly stopped.

Liam nearly walked into me.

"What?"

I turned around.

"We're really doing this?"

His expression softened as he squeezed my hand.

"We're really doing this."

I couldn't stop smiling.

A few hours from now, we'd be on a plane.

A few hours after that, I'd wake up somewhere across the world, surrounded by blue water, colorful buildings, winding streets, and everything I'd spent years dreaming about seeing.

And Liam would be beside me.

I tightened my fingers around his.

"Okay," I whispered, mostly to myself.

Then my excitement took over again.

"Let's go to Italy!"