Except when he stared into her luminous eyes, the words seemed to get trapped in his throat. Taming Quinn was going to take some compromise. On both their parts. She smiled up at him serenely before snaking a hand between their bodies and caressing his cheek with her warm palm.
“I’m here,” she whispered, seemingly reading his mind. “And I’m not going anywhere. I’m done disappearing. There’s nowhere else I’d rather be than with you.”
Her lips found his and he was instantly lost. He kissed her back trying his best to convey all the things he wanted to say. Needed to say. At the same time, she was communicating with her body all the things he needed to hear.
Someone cleared their throat behind them.
Pulling out of the kiss, Ben rested his forehead on the wall behind her.
“What is it now?” he demanded.
“Ronoff has sent another message,” Dorothy replied. “The secretary wants you both in the Sit Room immediately.”
Quinn patted his chest with her palms. “Let’s go take down the black hats. Then I want to go on a long sail on that fabulous boat of yours.”
He grinned foolishly. “It’s a date.”
Hand in hand, they followed Dorothy back to the West Wing.
“You’re not going to like this,” Adam said when they entered the Situation Room to find another video of Ronoff frozen on the screen.
“Let me guess,” Ben responded. “He picked a public place.”
Adam nodded. “With only one way in or out.”
The secretary nodded and the video began to roll. This time, Ronoff was sitting aboard a yacht, a drink in hand and the Jefferson Memorial in the background.
“Hello, my friend. It is a beautiful day for a sail, no?” the Russian asked. “I find I am very impatient to retrieve what is mine. You will meet me tonight at ten p.m. in the VIP gondola of the Ferris wheel in the National Harbor. Come alone. Bring my list and I will return your numbers to you.”
The video ended abruptly.
Ben swore violently.
“My thoughts exactly,” Adam said. “The damn thing sits at the end of a pier crowded with tourists. The wheel is a hundred and eighty feet at the highest point. There won’t be a place for me to get a clear shot. Not only that, but I don’t like the idea of you spending twelve minutes trapped alone in a gondola with that douchebag.”
Neither did Ben. But not because he didn’t trust Ronoff. The Russian was the one who needed to worry. After what he had done to Quinn, Ben wasn’t sure if he’d be able to keep from strangling the man before he retrieved his AI.
“Alexi doesn’t like to get his hands dirty. If he’s suggesting a face-to-face meeting, he himself won’t do anything to harm Ben,” Quinn chimed in. “His only interest is that list. By now, he must be getting desperate. Earning his father’s respect is vital to him. Since his release from prison, the older Ronoff has been restructuring his criminal corporation. Alexi wants a seat at that table. He’ll do anything to get it.” She turned to Ben. “If Alexi believed you weren’t the black hat you purport to be, he’d never risk even two minutes alone with you. Congratulations. Your alias is airtight.”
They shared a smile and he couldn’t help the burst of pride he felt at her compliment. He’d never be able to share all the details of how he’d been serving his country these past few years with anyone else, but at least Quinn knew. And that was all that mattered.
“So how are we to proceed?” the secretary asked.
“There is another way in,” Ben said. “He just showed it to us. That’s probably the same yacht he used in Watertown. He’ll anchor it upriver and come into the harbor on Jet Skis like they rode in on the other night.”
“It’s an ostentatious yacht complete with a heliport, registered in the US Virgin Islands,” Quinn supplied. “Her name is Darina, after Alexi’s mother. He had her berthed in New York the last time I checked.”
The door behind them opened and Griffin slipped in.
“Nice of you to join us Agent Keller,” the secretary said. “I believe Alexi Ronoff is a person of interest with the Department of Treasury.”
“A person of great interest,” Griff replied.
“Good. Then I’m handing his arrest off to your team. Once he’s returned Agent Segar’s AI, I want that yacht of his commandeered and him locked up for the attempted murder of Agent Darby, espionage, and whatever else you’ve got on him. That ought to hold him for starters.” She punched a message into her Blackberry. “I’ve coordinated with the coast guard. They will await your orders, Agent Keller.”
Griff nodded before giving Quinn’s shoulder a gentle squeeze.
“It’s all going to work out,” he told her.
She smiled up at him before turning to Ben. “I know.”
He and Griff exchanged fist pumps and then his friend headed out to prepare for his role in the op.
“Ben will need cover when he exits the gondola,” Quinn said.
All eyes turned to look at her.
She shrugged. “I said Alexi doesn’t like to get his hands dirty. That doesn’t mean he won’t have one of his men try something once he’s left.”
The secretary nodded. “That’s where we come in, Agent Darby.”
Ben shot from his chair. “Like hell!”
“Stand down, Agent Segar,” the secretary commanded. “She’s a highly trained asset with the element of surprise in her favor. Ronoff won’t be looking for her. Neither will his men. But she’ll be able to identify them.”
He didn’t like it. Not one bit. Quinn, on the other hand, was smiling like a woman who’d just been given free rein in a shoe store.
“I agree,” she said. “Adam won’t be able to cover you with his sniper’s rifle because of the crowd and the distance. But I know these men. I can handle them discreetly before they try to lay a finger on you.”
He tried another tact. “Madame Secretary, I don’t think it’s appropriate for you to be involved in this.”
She rose from her chair. “Why not? The president ordered me to handle this tonight. And I am. Unless you don’t think we women are capable of taking down the black hats.”
Adam made a choking sound behind him. Quinn arched a curious eyebrow. Damn it. How had this become the battle of the sexes? Quinn had already demonstrated how capable she was with a gun, but this was about keeping her safe. His boss, on the other hand, he was happy to throw to the wolves.
“Besides.” The secretary’s voice had a hard edge to it. “Agent Darby and I each have a score to settle with this traitor. And I, for one, would prefer to do it face-to-face.” She turned to Adam. “Agent Lockett, have the CAT team secure the marina as best you can. We’ll reconvene here at nineteen hundred hours. We can coordinate our efforts with Treasury before heading over to the marina. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going home to change into something a bit more touristy.”
“I’ll go and get my team ready,” Adam said before leaving them alone in the Situation Room.
“I don’t like you involved in this,” he said.
“I know.” She stood and laced her fingers through his. “And you have no idea how wonderful it makes me feel to have someone worrying about me. About what happens to me.”