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“You’re welcome, Agent Harper. And thank you.”
“For what?”
“For taking care of this for me.”
Dani huffs, but there’s no denying her smile. “At the end of the day, I get to put away the bad guys and you might walk away with your life. It’s a win-win.”
“I’m glad we’re on the same page.”
The backdoor swings open. Gomez walks in. Dani lets go of my hand like I’ve somehow burned her.
I hate it.
“All clear,” Agent Gomez announces. “All the sensors are still up and running, but I’m pretty sure one of the neighbors is having some sort of barbecue this afternoon. I don’t suspect we’ll run into any problems as long as Antonov stays away from the windows.”
Dani nods. “Got it. You hear that, Mr. Antonov?”
“Yes, ma’am,” I answer dryly.
“Come on,” Gomez says. “Let’s try to get ahead of traffic.”
“Start the car. I’ll be right behind you.” Dani glances my way, lingering for a moment too long.
I want her to stay longer, too, but we both know that’s an impossibility. God, I wish I had just a little more time with her. Just a couple of seconds to bask in her warmth. The moment Gomez is out of sight, I make my move, stepping forward quickly to close the space between us. I kiss her hard, but quick. It’s not enough, but it’ll have to do. For a few brief seconds, I feel whole.
I’m the one to pull away, but I despise it all the same. Fuck, what I wouldn’t give to hold her for a little while longer. “Be careful out there.”
Dani licks her lips, the surprised glimmer in her eyes quickly transforming into something delighted and bashful. How can this woman—this sexy, gorgeous, feisty woman—be so damn cute it makes me want to put my head through a fucking wall?
“I’ll see you soon, Mr. Antonov.”
“I’ll hold you to it, Agent Harper.”
Chapter 20
Dani
Working for the FBI is nowhere near as cool and glamorous as the movies and TV shows make it out to be. In reality, it’s a lot of paperwork. Mountains and mountains of it. My desk in the bullpen is practically buried in important documents to be signed and filed. Evidence logs, dossiers on persons of interest, warrant drafts, equipment request forms… It’s never ending.
People scoff at the idea of the bureaucratic slog, but there’s a method to all this madness. Everything has to be above board, which means following protocol to a T. The paperwork is there to protect us. The rigid rules and structures we have to follow keep us from devolving into pure chaos. Things take twice, sometimes triple the time to process, but at least nobody can sue me for cutting corners.
That’s why I’m over the moon when I arrive at the office to discover a uniformed NYPD officer waiting for me. Jacobson, according to the nametag stitched into the front of his shirt.
“Agent Harper, I presume?”
I shake his head. “Yes, that’s me.”
“I’m Officer Jacobson. We spoke on the phone yesterday about the hospital surveillance footage. It’s my understanding you’re the one in charge of safe housing the supposed target.”
“That’s right. Has there been an update?”
Jacobson nods. “Warrant came through. My partner picked up the video a couple hours ago. I wanted to reach out to you as a professional courtesy. Thought it would be of great interest to your case.”
I hold my breath. After a week of keeping on my toes, could the ball finally be rolling. My voice doesn’t reveal my excitement when I say, “That’d be incredibly helpful, thank you.”
“I’ve already forwarded you the video.”
I quickly plop down into my rickety office chair and boot up my computer. My fingers are a blur over my keyboard as I pull everything up. It’s strange, watching everything unfold from this new angle. Four gunmen, all of them clad in black, storm through the emergency entrance of the hospital, their weapons raised in the air. And to think Luka and I were only a couple rooms away… Talk about a close call.
