Diamonds in the Rough

1.

Ryan straightened his tie for the fifth time. She knew because she was counting. She liked the way he did it too, pausing to shift it to one side, then seemingly changing his mind and switching to the other. She looked ahead abruptly before he caught her watching him. "What exactly is the plan here?" he said, deciding to keep it to the left this time. She smiled, "it will be easy, you just have to seduce them." She felt his footsteps stop behind her, "you're kidding right, I'm about as seductive as a cabbage."

She stifled a laugh, "that's unfair, a cabbage could get a lot of people hungry"

"Ha ha" he said, halfheartedly, "this is a great time for jokes"

She turned around, "you'll be fine, relax"

"The whole mission depends on whether I can procure the device, safecracking I can do, charming my way through the guards, not so much."

"Procure? They teach you that in prep school?"

"Sara" he caught her arm and she tried to ignore how good it felt "this is serious"

"Okay" she pushed her hair behind her ear, "you don't have to get through the guards alright, just make her take you there"

"Who?"

"The hostess, the one who organized this party"

"And how will I do that?"

She thought about it for a moment, "spill your drink on her."

He looked startled, "that's how you seduce people?"

She fought back a smile at the genuinely confused expression on his face, "no, that's how you get her attention."

"You think she'll take me down there after I ruin a probably very expensive dress?"

She gestured to the mansion, "do you know how much this cost? Trust me, money's not an issue for her."

"Then what?"

"Then apologize for ruining a Ralph Lauren original and tell her how great it looks on her"

He brightened up, "I read her file, she's a fashion designer, right?"

"Yeah, it's her career and passion, aside from you know, murder and money laundering"

He laughed, a genuine happy laugh and she had to remind herself to focus on the mission and what came after. It wouldn't be easy, but it had to be done.

He straightened his tie again, checking for the invitation in his back pocket, "I hope this works."

"It will" she reassured him, "worst comes to the worst, just stand there and look pretty."

He gave her a mock salute and disappeared into the mansion.

After 20 minutes, she was starting to get antsy. Had something gone wrong? Had he gotten caught? She felt the gun in her back pocket. Another ten minutes and she would have to find a way to get in.

Almost immediately, she saw him walk out. He caught her eye and gave her a huge smile. She relaxed. He had it. The mission was a success.

The instructions had been clear 'obtain the device, get rid of the courier and get it to headquarters' but as she watched him do a victory dance and almost trip over the sidewalk, she wondered if there was another way, a different way.

A/N : Let me know your thoughts in the comments? Please?

Prompt retrieved from Pinterest (marismckay.com)