Garrett and Haley climaxed with such force they nearly came up off the bed. He held her tightly as wave after wave of lightning fast pleasure rushed through his body.

He gasped, waiting for his breathing to return to normal. He leaned down, captured her lips, and tasted her sweetness. He wrapped her arms around his neck and deepened the kiss. Like him, she didn’t want the moment to end. Hope whispered that maybe if she never stopped caressing him this contentment would last forever.

Thirty minutes later he had her nestled up beside him, her breathing slow and peaceful. How many nights had he drifted off to sleep in the same position?

Hundreds.

With everything in him, he wished something as special as making love could mend their relationship. He didn’t think that was possible. Tomorrow would come all too soon and they’d be running for their lives.

Making love released all the tension that had built up over the last couple of weeks. Now he felt like he’d just had a full body massage and his eyelids wanted to close.

Careful not to disturb her, he slipped out of the bed and padded barefoot to the other bedroom. He double checked the locks on the door and windows, then went into his room to retrieve his weapon. With the situation so dangerous, he wouldn’t sleep without it. Not while up against Nagi. The man proved, over and over, he was far too dangerous a man to ever let down his guard. Garrett vowed he’d be ready for anything.

Grasping the heavy drape, Garrett carefully pulled it aside and saw Grey and Harrington in the parking lot, keeping watch. Parked in the back of the lot, another car had either an undercover cop in it or Harrington had called in another Falcon agent.

He felt safer knowing they were there. Tomorrow they’d be gone, replaced by other agents. Or not, they may very well be on their own. He’d call Frank first thing to find out where he wanted them to go from there.

Satisfied they were as safe as could be expected under the circumstances, he returned to Haley’s bed. When he crawled between the sheets, she immediately sought his warmth. Content for the moment, he wrapped her in his arms and immediately fell back asleep.

After El Hashem died and the men moved away to morn, Nagi searched his things, looking for hints regarding what he was to do next. He found a note with the phone number and address of a man named Jim Douglas written on it. Beside the name, El Hashem had scribbled the word, ‘guns’.

Nagi had immediately left to pay this Jim Douglas a visit. If they were to attack the United States, the most important item had to be the weapons El Hashem had ordered. Nagi had no idea how El Hashem planned to pay for the arsenal, he only knew he had to take possession of them as soon as possible.

This assault on America meant everything to him and would solidify his reputation as one of the most dangerous men in the world. Right now, he was no one in the eyes of the jihad. He had to do this. He must become a martyr for Allah. Finally, ISIS would recognize him, and his memory would never die.

Things had not gone as Nagi imagined. After confronting Jim Douglas, he’d panicked and run, fearing someone would call the police. They waited in the parking lot for gun dealer, but he got away. Nagi and Abdulla had driven around all night, checking cheap hotels and other places someone might go to hide. Now the morning sun rose to announce a new day.

And still they had nothing.

Both the arms dealer and doctor had slipped through his hands. He felt like a complete failure. He didn’t know where to turn. El Hashem had died before divulging his contacts in the United States. Nagi was at a loss and didn’t know what to do.

Just then, El Hashem’s phone rang. It had been silent until now. “Hello?”

“Who is this?” the man sounded suspicious.

Nagi knew the importance of the call. This had to be El Hashem’s contact, so he felt safe being honest. “I am Mehaza Nagi. I worked with Zareeb El Hashem. Sadly, he is now dead, but I’m prepared to face his destiny.”

The long silence that followed made Nagi nervous and he questioned his decision to be so forthright.

“You know about our plans?” The voice was now wary.

“No, unfortunately our beloved friend died unexpectedly, before having a chance to share his plans.”

“You’re sure he’s dead?”

“I was at his side when he breathed his last,” Nagi remained calm. “Perhaps you and I should meet and discuss how to proceed. I know the airport was not the true target.”

“Not on the phone,” the stranger whispered. “Are you here in Baltimore?”

“Yes.”

“Do you know where the Convention Center is downtown?”

“I can find it.”

“Meet me at nine o’ clock.”

“In the open?”

The husky chuckle came as a bit of a surprise. “We have nothing to hide...yet.”

They hung up, but Nagi felt uncomfortable with this person’s belief they could be so nonchalant. Of course he worried. They did not wear masks at the airport and there were pictures of him all over the city. For all he knew, his picture might be all over the internet as well.

He knew he had no choice. He’d been lucky El Hashem told them about the phone number on the bottom of his show. His old friend never had the chance to explain his plan or who to contact. He must go to discover Allah’s mission. Did he dare tell him about kidnapping and losing Dr. Kingston? And what about his confrontation with Jim? He decided to wait and see if the man on the phone could be trusted.

He glanced at Abdulla. “Head downtown. I have to meet the man El Hashem has been dealing with. He knows Allah’s target.”

“Why should he tell you?”

“Perhaps he won’t, but we must try. We cannot simply drive around hoping to find those who will only bring us trouble.”

“The man with the guns most likely has them at his place of business. We should just break in and take what we want”

“What if there’s surveillance? What if there are cameras surrounding the building? What then?”

Abdullah pursed his lips and nodded. None of these men had answers. They only wanted to complain and act like misbehaving children and point out his incompetence. If not for his desire to impress ISIS’s leader, Abdelkarim Rasham Mohammed, he’d return to Syria and fight with his people. Zareeb would see what the American had to say. If he didn’t like it, he’d leave. Then El Hashem’s men could do as they pleased.

Haley woke with a smile on her face to the glorious scent of freshly brewed coffee. Completely dressed, Garrett sat on the edge of the bed, holding out a steaming mug. She scooted up, propping the pillow behind her against the headboard.

Accepting his offer, she took the mug and cradled it in her hands before taking the first sip. “This is delicious.”

“It’s hotel room coffee. Nothing special.”

“It’s perfect because you fixed it and brought it to me.” She tilted her head. “Remember, you always did that for me?”

“That’s because you worked crazy shifts and never knew whether it was morning or night.”

“When you were home I worked my schedule around to make sure we spent time together.”

He smiled at the memory. “Yes, you did, and I always appreciated that. I know it wasn’t easy.”

“No, it wasn’t, but I wanted to spend as much time with you as I could.”

He lowered his gaze and she knew making love last night had not changed anything. Garrett didn’t work that way. He faced everything head on. No guessing and no fudging.

The world was black and white to him, with no room or place for gray areas.

“Finish that up and let’s get going. We need to go down to D.C. this morning. Frank is there and thinks the target, whatever or whoever it is, will be there.”

“Does he fear for the president?”

“I don’t know, and I didn’t ask.” He stood. “Get a move on, it’s already well past sunrise.”

“This from the man who wakes up every day at six, like clockwork.”

“Habit. I’ve done it all my life, since I was a kid.”

“Why? God, all I want to do is sleep.”

“I had to be up at dawn. My grandfather insisted on it. He’d bang on my door, or worse, saying, ‘Only a lazy bum sleeps past sunrise’.”

She wrinkled her brows, confused. “You were raised by your grandparents?”

He shrugged. “Sort of.”

“What does sort of mean?”

“It means I spent time with a lot of relatives.”

“Not your parents?”

He shook his head. “Not so much.”

She suddenly realized she’d never once heard him mention his family. Not his parents, siblings, or grandparents before. She wanted to hear more—much more—but she knew better than to ask. He didn’t like to be quizzed about his past, his work, or his feelings, and it was one of the main reasons she called things off.

Could he be reconsidering?

During the night, she’d slipped on her tee shirt and panties, so after gulping down half the coffee, she tossed the covers aside, maneuvered around him, and padded to the bathroom.

Inside, she closed the door, put her cup on the sink, and picked up the toothbrush. After brushing her teeth and quietly thanking him for remembering how important flossing was to her, she finished the coffee and stepped out of the room.

He waited for her with what little patience he had left. His features were cool and somber, but she could tell by the set of his shoulders she needed to get a move on. Something told her they were going to Washington so he could pawn her off on Frank and he wouldn’t be forced to look after her so his entire focus could be on stopping the terrorists.

A part of her understood but it still hurt. She lowered her gaze to hide her pain.

“I’m ready when you are,” she rushed to dress. “Sorry we’re probably going to be stuck in traffic most of the way.”

“It’s okay, we’ll go grab breakfast and wait for it to thin out some.”

She glanced at him. “Really? I thought you were in a hurry.”

“We’re not far from the Inner Harbor. Even with traffic, we should be in Washington in about an hour, give or take.”

“We could take Amtrak. That’s fast.”

“I have a car that I’ll probably need once we get to D.C. It’s best we drive. Besides, once we’re there we’ll just have to wait for Frank.”

She looked away. Dammit, I was right.

They exited the room after Garrett made sure the hall was empty and stepped out into the cool air. The day matched her mood—gray, with the threat of rain hanging heavily in the air.

She opened the door and sighed.

“What’s wrong?” he looked at her intently.

She had nothing more to lose since their relationship was already dead. “We made love last night and this morning I sure would’ve liked a kiss.” She fought back tears. “Or would that be asking too much?”

He turned to her and stilled, uncertainty flashing across his face. He didn’t know what to do. It surprised her when he reached out, hooked his hand on the back of her neck and pulled her close. Their lips met with the same intensity and need as last night.

His other arm came around her and he pressed her close against his body. He explored her mouth and her heart pounded in her chest.

When he finally released her mouth, their gazes clashed. “Anything else you need to start your day?” He went around and got in on the driver’s side.

She licked her lips and shyly looked away. “Maybe another cup of coffee.”

He grinned and started the engine. “Coming right up.”

Janice compiled the monthly reports for the pharmaceutical company that Preston’s lobbying firm represented in Washington. From the figures she’d seen, Preston’s company made a lot of money, but so did Strage-Mire Pharmaceutical. All thanks to Preston’s persuasive personality.

She knew about that first hand. Janice shamelessly flirted with him during her interview and knew that was the sole reason he’d hired her. Hell, he even created the position to justify her salary.

She was also confident he’d hired her because she said everything he’d wanted to hear, right down to his was not the first questionable lobbying group who’d hired her. When he learned the truth about the whole matter, he wouldn’t like it one bit. She wasn’t worried one bit. This was what she did best.

Lie.

She quickly stacked the papers neatly and put them on the corner of her desk. No doubt, her office would be his first stop when Preston arrived at work this morning. Even with twenty other employees, he chose her office as his favorite hangout.

He’d come in and talk about what was on his mind that particular day and she recorded every word. Never once had she been careless about the information she gathered. Too many people relied on her to find the truth.

Janice pressed her lips together, making sure her lipstick was even after taking a sip of coffee. At precisely seven ‘o clock, Preston walked off the elevator and into the main office. For the first time since she’d started working for him, he bypassed her office and went directly toward his own. He quickly unlocked the door and went in, only to promptly shut it behind him. She heard the lock click.

She wondered what had happened. Fear chilled her to the bone and she wondered if she’d been found out. Had someone caught on? If Preston had bothered to dig deep enough into her background, he’d figure out she wasn’t who she claimed to be.

As quickly as he entered his office, he left. His long strides ate up the distance to the door, his briefcase gripped tightly in one hand and his cell phone in his other. Again, he never even glanced her way. Instead, he left without a word to anyone.

Janice prayed she hadn’t screwed up.

Jim barely closed his eyes last night for fear the damned Dune coon, Jo-Jo, or the police would come knocking at his door. Relief washed over him when his phone rang and he recognized Clyde’s number.

“What took you so damn long,” Jim griped. “I’ve been half out of my mind.”

“What the fuck do I care? I’m not your personal whore and I’m sure as hell not the answer to all your problems.” Clyde’s mood didn’t appear to be any better than his. “What shit did you step in now?”

That made Jim madder. “Listen here, asshole, I’ve stuck my neck out for you a few times in the past. Or have you forgotten about that time in Houston? Huh? And don’t give me any of your crap today. I’m not in the mood.”

“Stop with the bullshit and just tell me what you want.”

“I need you to kill that damn Albanian. He’s threatening me and I don’t have his money.”

“Damn it, Jim. I can’t just kill him. Hell, I’d have to eliminate pretty much every Albanian in town. Men who are killers by trade. That ain’t no easy task.”

“You telling me you can’t do it?”

“No, I’m telling you I don’t want to. Not anytime soon. He’d just a soon kill me as you.”

“Well, he’s got to go. I bought some weapons from him and my buyer’s backed out on me.”

“So, sell them to someone else.”

“I don’t have time. Last night, Gashi said if I didn’t have his money today I was dead.” Jim hesitated for a minute. “And if I have to get a buyer too quick, I’ll look desperate and lose a lot of money.”

“You are desperate, and it’s better to lose a little of your profit than your life.”

“You kill the son of a bitch and I won’t be out a dime.”

“I probably can’t get to him today. You know he goes into hiding for days at a time.”

Jim looked at his watch. “Yeah, but in about an hour, him and his damn hitmen will be at my range to kill me.”

“Fine. I’ll meet you there.”

“Don’t let me down, Clyde. Not if you know what’s good for you.”

“Listen, you fat piece of shit. I should let that damn maniac kill you so you stop with the damn threats.”

“Just be at my range in forty-five minutes.” Jim disconnected the call and put the phone in his pocket.

Jim hadn’t bothered to undress last night. No need when he knew there would be no sleeping. He went to the grimy bathroom with the yellow stained sink and splashed water on his face.

He’d love a cup of coffee, but that would have to wait. He didn’t have time to dick around. If he wasn’t careful and the fucking Albanian had anything to say about it, he might be dead by nightfall.

Jim left the sleazy hotel and made it safely to his rusted out pick up. The door squeaked so loud when he opened it he wondered if he’d wake up half the residents. He didn’t care. People who stayed at Louie’s Motel didn’t tend to stick their noses into other people’s business.

He drove out of the lot and onto the busy street. Checking his mirrors to make sure he wasn’t being followed, he went straight to the range. He had to get this matter straightened out, once and for all. Enough was enough. Once Clyde offed the Albanian and his henchmen, Jim planned to stick to his idea of heading south for good. He’d find himself a little place by the ocean and never look back.

No more shady deals. He doubted he’d ever really walk the straight and narrow, but no more scary shit. He’d learned his lesson. And this time, unlike before, it would stick.