A Covert Affair

by Susan Mann

  “Sure. That sounds like fun.” William & Mary wasn’t far from Camp Peary. Maybe she could get a weekend off if she was at the Farm training by then.

  “Great.” When they turned a corner and Quinn saw the back of a man with a medium build and brown hair, Patricia peeled off and said, “See you.”

  “Yeah, see you,” she replied slowly, distracted by the thirtyish-year-old man who spun around at Quinn’s approach. She’d never seen him before and had no idea how he came to ask for her by name.

  He extended his hand in greeting. “Hi, Quinn. Cooper Santos.”

  As she shook his hand, her gaze flicked to his badge. He worked in the Directorate of Science and Technology. “It’s nice to meet you, Cooper.” With her librarian smile firmly in place, she asked, “How can I help you?”

  He adjusted his wire-rimmed glasses and shifted from one foot to the other. “A team of us will be leaving on an assignment to Istanbul soon. I’m hoping you can do some research for me before we go.”

  “I’m happy to help in any way I can. I have to warn you, though, I’m only cleared to do unclassified work at the moment.”

  Cooper glanced down at the photo ID clipped to the waistband of Quinn’s slacks. The blue strip across the bottom informed everyone in the building of her “unsecure” status. “Not an issue. We’ll be doing some wining and dining while we’re there, so I was hoping you could pull together a list of five-star restaurants and hot nightclubs for me.”

  “I can do that,” Quinn answered. “For the nightclubs, are you interested in swanky and upscale, youthful desperation, or Caligula’s bachelor party?”

  Cooper laughed, flashing her a brilliant smile. “As tempting as Caligula’s bachelor party might be, let’s stick to swanky and upscale.”

  “Swanky and upscale it is. By when do you need this information?”

  “The day after tomorrow should be fine.”

  “I’ll get right on it.”

  Quinn expected him to turn and leave. Instead, he licked his lips and shoved his hands into his front pockets. “I was wondering if you’d like to have dinner with me sometime.”

  Her eyebrows shot up. She didn’t see that coming. “Oh. Um,” she stammered. She’d never been in a situation like this before. “That’s really nice of you to ask, but I can’t. I have a boyfriend.”

  Cooper’s shoulders sagged. “Oh. Okay. Lucky guy.” His head cocked to one side when he said, “I’m curious. If you don’t mind me asking, does he work here at the agency? Did I miss asking you out before him by much? I mean, I had to ask around to find out who you are, and it took some time.”

  Oh. Wow. “Yes, he works for the agency, but we were together before I started working here.”

  “Ah. Cool. That makes me feel a little better. Which office does he work for?”

  She clasped her hands in front of her. “It’s not my place to say. You’d have to ask him.”

  “And I have the feeling you wouldn’t tell me his name if I did.” She kept her features neutral as Cooper considered her for a moment. “Tell you what. If the boyfriend works for Clandestine Services, I’ll come by here every so often and see how things are going.”

  “Why would you do that?”

  “If he isn’t already stationed out of the country for some significant amount of time, he will be at some point. You’ll stay here in the US . . .” He shrugged. “Long-distance relationships like that never survive.”

  Indignation flared at his suggestion. Not wanting to give Cooper the satisfaction of knowing James really was with Clandestine Services, she answered with a curt, “Not a problem.” The rock lodged in the pit of her stomach belied her words.

  “Fair enough,” he said and dipped his head. “I guess I’ll leave you to your work.” His dark brown eyes looked directly into her blue ones. “And if things go south with the boyfriend, let me know.”

  “They won’t,” she said with more confidence than she felt. The conversation needed to be over. “I’ll get that list to you as soon as possible.”

  “Thanks.” He pulled open the door and walked out into the corridor.

  Quinn stared at the door as it shut, feeling more jumpy and unsettled than ever.

  Patricia came around the corner and stood next to Quinn. “Don’t listen to him,” said Patricia, who apparently had more than a little bit of spy in her. “I’m sure you and James will be fine.”

  “I’m sure we will.” Still, Quinn asked, “You’ve heard of long-distance relationships working, right?”

  There was a pregnant pause while Patricia’s thumb ran nervously over the cover of the book she held. “Well, no. But as Shakespeare says, ‘Love is not love which alters when it alteration finds, or bends with the remover to remove.’” She looked at Quinn with an encouraging smile. “Your circumstances might change, but love ‘is an ever-fixed mark, that looks on tempests and is never shaken.’”

  Quinn gave Patricia a grateful smile. “I love that. Thank you. Can I come talk to you when my morale needs boosting?”

  “Of course. I’ve got a million of them.”

  “Good, because I have the feeling I’m gonna need them all.”

  Chapter Four

  Rasputin sat on the bathroom counter of Quinn’s apartment and watched as Quinn tipped her head to one side and pushed the back of her faux sapphire earring onto the post. She repeated the action on the other side and then adjusted the eagle pendant around her neck.

  Jewelry deployed, she turned her back to the mirror and checked her dress. It was a simple but elegant sapphire blue that hugged her curves to her waist, then cascaded over her hips and ended just above the knee. She heaved a sigh in relief and said to the cat, “I don’t look too bad.” Rasputin meowed his agreement.

  She switched off the light and left the bathroom. Rasputin jumped off the counter and landed with a soft thump. As she put her belongings in her new silver purse, she tried to keep the encounter with Cooper Santos from getting to her. But he’d poked her with a pointy stick, and as often as she recited the words of the Shakespearean sonnet, she still felt rattled.

  A knock on her door interrupted her musings. Her breath caught when she opened it and found James standing there, looking diabolically handsome in a black tuxedo with shiny satin lapels, a crisp white shirt, and black bow tie. A lock of his wavy, dark blond hair fell across the center of his forehead.

  From the other side of the threshold, James stared at her, stunned and unblinking. After a moment, he shook himself from his stupor and said, “Wow. You look . . . beautiful. Incredible. Wow.”

  Quinn stepped back to let him in. “And you look unbelievably hand—” The word ended abruptly when he took her in his arms and crushed his mouth to hers. It felt like a thousand volts of electricity shot through her.

  “I guess I should wear dresses more often,” she said when the kiss broke.

  He waggled his eyebrows and kissed her again before releasing her and closing the door. “Only if you want to. I know you don’t like wearing them.” His gaze traveled over her from head to toe, an admiring smile on his face. “Kudos on picking that one out.”

  She breathed a quiet laugh. “I had help. This really nice salesclerk swooped in and helped me wade through the racks to find this one. You wouldn’t believe the number of dresses covered with sequins, giant bows, and rhinestones.” She shuddered. “I am not a rhinestone kind of girl.”

  “I think you would look awesome in some flashy bling. Either way, you look fantastic.”

  Quinn smiled her thanks and said, “So do you.”

  As if on cue, Rasputin chose that moment to greet James by rubbing his side against James’s shins. The cat walked away with his tail up, pleased with the layer of hair he deposited on the black trousers.

  Without a word, Quinn went to the counter, picked up the lint roller, and handed it to James. As she watched him lift his foot and roll the adhesive over the bottom of his pant leg, Quinn fought the emotions unexpectedly welling up.

 
James lowered his foot, and the second he looked at her, his expression morphed from amusement to concern. “Quinn, what is it?”

  She swallowed hard and forced a smile. “Nothing. I’m fine. We should get going.”

  His light blue eyes scrutinized her face. “No, you’re not fine. I’m not only trained to read body language, I know you well enough to know when something’s bothering you.”

  Crap. She was powerless to stop the tears prickling at her eyes. “It’s starting to hit me that we’ll only be together for another week.”

  He wrapped her in his arms and pulled her close. “I know it’ll be hard, but we’ll make it work.”

  “We will?” She searched his face. “You want to do the long-distance thing?”

  “Of course. Why wouldn’t we?” He frowned, clearly puzzled by her question.

  “I talked to someone in the library today who said long-distance relationships between officers stationed overseas and their significant others staying in the US always crash and burn.”

  James’s eyes flashed with pique. “Who said that?”

  “A guy from DS and T named Cooper Santos.”

  He broke their embrace and crossed the room. “I don’t know him. When did you talk to him?”

  “Today. He came into the library to ask me to do some research.”

  “And he just happened to mention long-distance relationships.”

  “Well, after he asked me out.”

  James tensed and growled, “He asked you out?”

  “Yeah. I turned him down, of course. I told him I have a boyfriend. He wanted to know if you worked for the agency. I said you did, but that’s all. He asked which office, but I didn’t say,” she said, her words tumbling out in a torrent. “He said, ‘Well, if he works for Clandestine Services’ and then volunteered the long-distance dating stuff.”

  “If he works for DS and T, he has no idea what the hell he’s talking about.”

  “He said he was just saying what he’s noticed.” She paused before asking, “Have you ever tried the long-distance thing, other than those few weeks when I was in LA and you were here?”

  “No.”

  She wafted her hands through the air. “Then you don’t know if it will work either.”

  “I do know, because I love you more than I’ve loved anyone.” Blue fire blazed in his eyes. “Ever.”

  The significance of his statement caused her to take a literal step back. She knew James loved her. He had told her many times before. But he had also been secretly in love with a previous partner, and her death two years before during an op gone wrong had left him devastated. Did he really mean to say he loved Quinn more than Claire?

  Quinn swallowed at the sudden thickness in her throat and croaked, “Ever?”

  He crossed the room in three strides, took her in his arms, and gave her a toe-curling kiss. Goose bumps prickled when his lips drifted down her neck. “Yeah. Ever,” he mumbled against her skin.

  Her head tipped to the side. “I’ve never loved anyone as much as I love you. It’s not even close.”

  She felt his smile against her throat. “I know the long-distance thing won’t be easy.” He lifted his head and looked into her eyes. His fingers laced at the small of her back ensured she wasn’t going anywhere. “But we can make it work. My going back to Moscow isn’t going to change the way I feel about you. And it’s not like I’ll be gone forever. It’s only for a year. And I’ve already gotten permission to come home in August so I can go with you to Nicole and Brian’s wedding. So really, I’ll only be gone for three months before we’ll see each other again.”

  “Whoa, slow down. Who said anything about you being my plus one?” She didn’t even try to stop the smirk.

  He pulled a face. “Are you kidding? How many obscenities—English and Korean—do you think Nicole would hurl at you if I wasn’t your date for her wedding?”

  “All of them,” Quinn deadpanned.

  “Are you willing to risk the wrath of a mildly unstable bride?”

  “Nope. Not even a little. You are now officially my plus one.”

  “Good.” He narrowed his eyes and asked, “So you’re on board?”

  She nodded. “Mm-hmm. I’ll be in love with you whether you’re in Virginia or Moscow or anywhere in between.”

  He lowered his head and kissed her. His hands seemed to burn through the back of her dress as she raked her fingers through his hair. He moaned and kissed her deeper. A thrill shuddered through her when he gently caught her lower lip between his teeth.

  A moment later, James raised his head and croaked, “I think we’d better get going to this shindig. It’s time to go show you off.”

  Her racing pulse began to slow. “In that case, I’d better go check my makeup.” She wiped at the lipstick smeared on his lips with her thumb. “It’s tempting to leave this here so everyone will know you’re with me.”

  “Marking me as your territory?”

  “Basically, yeah. You got a problem with that?”

  “Nope. Not even a little.”

  On his shoulder, she spied a hair of hers threaded through the fabric of his jacket like a long, blond ribbon. She went to pick it off but changed her mind. She’d leave her mark on him after all.

  Chapter Five

  James and Quinn sat in the line of cars waiting to turn right from Independence Avenue onto First Street. Over the tops of the trees ahead, Quinn could see the upper part of the illuminated Capitol Dome. She was still getting used to living near the nation’s capital. Every time she saw any of the iconic buildings and monuments, she suffered a serious case of goose bumps. And now she was about to attend a swanky party inside the Thomas Jefferson Building, the most famous of the three that contained the Library of Congress. She could hardly believe this was her life.

  James turned the Lotus onto First Street and stopped at the entrance to the carriage lane in front of the building. He put the window down and held up the invitation for the US Capitol Police officer to see.

  “Names?” the guard asked.

  “James Anderson and Quinn Ellington.”

  The officer tapped at the screen of his tablet and then bent over to peer into the car. “Quincy?”

  She leaned toward the open window so he could get a better look at her face. “That’s me.”

  He glanced down at the tablet and back at her. “Enjoy the party.” He stepped back and waved them through.

  James pulled forward a few yards and came to a stop again. “Three of your brothers share names with Library of Congress buildings. Do you, George, and Monroe feel left out?” Quinn and her five older brothers were named, in order, after the first six US presidents.

  “I do. Unfortunately, John Quincy Adams was a real slacker, library-wise, so he didn’t get anything named after him. George and Monroe probably don’t even know there’s more than one building.” She gazed out the window and up at the building’s impressive stone edifice. “John, Tom, and Madison wouldn’t know either, for that matter. They’re not library nerds like me.”

  After a couple more minutes of creeping along the lane, they reached the entrance to the building. James handed the Lotus off to the valet and then gave their names to an officer stationed at the door.

  They made it inside the building only to face the gauntlet of security. At least Quinn did. James flashed his ID and was waved through. While her bag was scanned as she passed through a metal detector, he waited for her on the other side with his hands in his pockets and a smug look on his face.

  Having successfully passed through the crucible, she snagged her purse and hooked her hand around James’s proffered elbow. “Show-off.” She smiled when he laughed, the sound echoing around them as they climbed a set of marble stairs.

  They reached the top of the steps and entered the Great Hall. Seeing it for a second time did not diminish her awe. Ornate white marble pillars and archways surrounded them. Two grand staircases led to the second floor. Looking straight up, she admired the colorful
images and geometric designs painted across the arches of the ceiling.

  The sea of black tuxedos was just a backdrop to the rich, vibrant colors of the women’s clothing. The dresses were beautiful, of course. But it was the saris, the yards of flowing silk in greens, purples, reds, blues, and oranges, that captured her attention.

  Quinn bumped her shoulder against James as they wound their way through the crowd. “Don’t get any ideas about ditching me for one of these completely gorgeous women.”

  “Don’t worry. I’ll be leaving with the completely gorgeous woman I came with.”

  She rose up on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek. “Flattery will get you everywhere, Mr. Anderson.”

  He smiled and covered her hand at his elbow with his. “With all these tuxes around, should I give you the same warning?”

  She made a noise at the back of her throat. “You couldn’t get rid of me if you tried.”

  James chuckled and snagged two flutes of champagne from a tray carried by a red-coated server. He handed one glass to her before lifting his to his lips. As he sipped, she noticed him scan the room. She knew he wasn’t appreciating its beauty. He was assessing for threats, locating exits, calculating risks, reading faces. It was something he did every time he entered a room.

  His gaze settled on something at one corner. From behind her champagne glass, she turned slightly to follow his line of sight.

  A soldier stood at attention under the archway next to the base of the staircase leading up. He wore a crisp, dark green uniform with a red, yellow, and pink striped sash encircling his waist. A red turban, white gloves, and black boots with white spats rounded out the ensemble. With his thick black beard and eyes that never stopped moving, he was both elegant and intimidating.

  Quinn spun in place and spotted three other men dressed the same way stationed in the other three corners of the Great Hall. “Indian Army?” she asked. She noted the impressive rows of medals on each of their chests.

  “Looks that way.” Threat assessment completed, he cocked his head and asked, “Would you like to schmooze amongst the glitterati or go find the exhibition and check out the manuscripts?”