The three exchanged man hugs before Adam and Griffin climbed off the boat. Their reluctant footsteps echoed on the dock until they were swallowed up by the sounds of laughter and music being carried from the various hotels and restaurants within the harbor. Ben quickly spun her around toward the cabin.
“Ben—”
“Not here,” he murmured. “Let’s get inside.”
She stepped down into the galley, but he didn’t stop there. With his chest pressed to her back, he propelled her toward the forward cabin. Her shins bumped up against the bed just as his mouth found the tender skin on her neck.
“What are you doing?”
He released her and took a step back. She twirled around just in time to see him shuck his shirt. The sight of his naked chest brought goose bumps to her skin.
“We’re going to do what I’ve dreamt of doing every time I crawled into this bunk. Take your clothes off.”
The boat swayed slightly with the tide. She wanted to defy him. To discuss whatever had happened in the gondola. But apparently her fingers were on a different wavelength because they were already unfastening her shorts. He stepped out of his shoes and shoved his jeans and briefs down his legs. All it took was one glance for her to realize he was not in the mood for discussion.
He reached for the buttons of her shirt and began to undo them. At the same time, he tugged her body flush with his. She let out a soft moan at the contact. Forgetting the buttons, he pushed her shorts and her panties past her hips. This time her moan sounded a bit more impatient. His chuckle held a ruthless edge when he eased her down onto the mattress.
She struggled to free herself from her clothes, but Ben was no help. Instead, he rained kisses on her with an urgency that had her stomach fluttering with multiple emotions.
“It’s okay,” she breathed. “I’m not going anywhere. I’m here.”
But her attempts at soothing him only spurred his fervor higher. He tore at her blouse, pushing the sides of her bra away to expose her breasts. Growling something obscene, he took her nipple into his mouth. She arched into him, the heat of his body searing her skin.
“Oh,” she cried trying desperately to shimmy out of her shorts.
He finally took pity on her and shoved the denim and silk down to her ankles where she kicked them off. She twisted out of her bra while he rolled on a condom. He entered her with a single thrust before he stilled, hovering above her in a plank position. She gazed up into his stormy eyes. It was costing him to rein in his lust. But he was a gentleman at heart.
“Wrap your legs around me,” he ordered.
Caught up in the moment, she did as she was told. He began to move within her, all the while whispering naughty, erotic things in her ear. The sway of the boat and the feel of his teeth grazing her skin added to the sensual bombardment. It wasn’t long before she was soaring toward the edge.
“I—”
“Let go,” he growled.
And she did. A thousand pinpricks of light danced before her eyes while her body convulsed around him. It was as if all the pent-up emotion of the day had formed a vapor that now drifted out of the cabin. A moment later, he threw his head back with a grunt before collapsing on top of her. The beat of his heart pounded against her ribs. Noise from the nightspots in the harbor wafted through the windows. The bed continued to rock gently beneath them lulling her into a semiconscious state. She ran her fingers over his back, surprised to feel the tension still bunched there.
“What is it?” she asked softly.
He didn’t bother lifting his head, leaving his cheek resting against the fevered skin of her breast. “We have to disappear.”
His words made her heart stutter. “You can’t be serious?”
This time he did turn to face her. His expression was resigned. “I’ll do whatever it takes to keep you safe. And if that means going dark until we find this traitor, then that’s what we’ll do. I have enough provisions and bona fides at the Think Tank to sail away for a couple of years.”
“You keep false identity papers?”
“I had to be prepared for something like this to happen. No doubt you have multiple sets of your own.”
She did. But then going dark was a common practice for her. She was adapted to it. No, born to it. Used to the isolation and loneliness that went along with weeks or months living in the shadows.
Ben, however, was not.
“I don’t think you’ve thought this entirely through,” she cautioned him. “If we did that, you wouldn’t be able to see or communicate with your family. Rebecca, Rich, and the kids would miss you. So would your mum. Even your crazy aunt Marnie. Adam and Josslyn are getting married in a week’s time. You have to be there for that.”
He had much more to lose than she ever did. And he was so cavalier about leaving it all behind. Except she now knew the value of all the things Ben would be giving up. She wasn’t sure if her heartache was for him or for all the things she’d missed over the years by not having a large family and a circle of friends. Either way, she was determined he would not walk away from his happy life.
Not even for her.
“My family and friends will understand. The only important thing is that we’re together.” He rolled off her and went to dispose of the condom. A moment later, he wandered back with a box of Teddy Grahams.
“I hate to break it to you, but those things are only found in America,” she teased, trying to lighten the mood when he slipped back into the bed.
“Then I better enjoy them while I can.”
“Ben—”
He shook his head then draped an arm around her shoulder pulling her close. “This isn’t up for debate. I won’t lose you again.”
She swallowed painfully. He was choosing her over everyone else in his life. The very idea was overwhelming. Tears formed at the back of her eyes. As much as she treasured the gesture, they’d never be able to fully appreciate their love for one another as long as the traitor threatened. There had to be an answer.
Two hours later, Ben was face down on the mattress in a deep slumber following another bout of zealous lovemaking. Sleep evaded Quinn, however. She was still trying to figure a way out of their dilemma. There was something she was missing. A vital clue she couldn’t quite put her finger on. The musky scent of sex permeated the cabin as she kept replaying the evening over and over again in her mind.
That’s it!
Her handler had been on the pier this evening. She was sure of it. With all the hullaballoo surrounding Alexi’s death, she’d forgotten completely about catching a whiff of his distinctive cologne. What had he wanted? How had he found her? She needed to contact him. Especially if she and Ben were going dark as he planned.
After carefully untangling her limbs from his, she edged out of the bed and gathered up her scattered clothing. Her blouse was a goner so she nicked a T-shirt from one of the drawers instead. She quietly slipped into the loo and got dressed. There had been a burner phone near the boat’s navigation station earlier. She said a silent hallelujah when it was still right where she’d seen it. So as not to chance waking Ben, she decided to sneak out to the aft deck to make her call. Her senses must have been teasing her, because as she opened the cabin door, she swore she smelled the cologne yet again.
Quinn stopped dead in her tracks at the sight that greeted her. A man with a trench coat and an umbrella was seated on one of the benches, his posture so relaxed it was as if he owned the boat. But it was the gun in his hand that had her drawing in a shocked breath. Particularly since it was pointed at the Secretary of Homeland.