Rendezvous with Danger (Reunited Series) (2 page)

According to Malik, Quinn had been in and out of consciousness at a hospital in Germany for three weeks after that mission in Tzbekystan. When he finally woke up, and asked about Alandra, Malik said he hadn’t seen an American woman near the site where he’d found Quinn. It didn’t make sense. The last thing Quinn remembered was Alandra in his arms, blood spilling from her chest from a gunshot wound. A jolt of rage that always accompanied the memory shot up his spine. He leaned forward, his elbows on his knees, and his face in his hands. This research into Alandra’s death brought up memories he wanted to keep buried.

When the doorbell rang, Quinn welcomed the intrusion. He released a weighted breath and shook off the thoughts of that horrific night.

“Be right back,” he told Wiz. “That’s probably Malik here to check out my security system.”

Quinn took a few deep breaths as he strolled down the hall to the front of the house. He’d moved into his four bedroom, four bathroom mini-mansion over a year ago appreciating the peace he usually felt the moment he stepped across the threshold. He glanced at the alarm’s keypad to the left of the door just before letting Malik in.

“What’s up my brother?” Quinn said when he swung the door open. “I thought you were going to be here hours ago.” 

“Man, this has been a crazy-ass day. Nothing has gone as planned. You’re lucky I made it.” Malik shrugged out of his jacket and left his tools near the front door.

“Well, I’m glad you did.” Quinn pointed to the keypad. “When I first asked you to check the system, it was because something tripped the house alarm last week and it took almost fifteen minutes to reset it. Now, I just noticed that one of the sensor lights is blinking.”

“Hmm, that’s weird.” Malik followed Quinn to the back of the house. “Let me get my computer out and I’ll figure out what’s going on.”

“What’s up, Wiz?” Malik asked when he walked into the office, placing his laptop on the table in front of the love seat.

“Not much, dude. I see Q is still pulling rank and has us out in the middle of the night doing his dirty work.”

Quinn hunched his shoulders. “You guys could’ve said no. Malik, you want a beer?”

He shook his head. “Maybe once I finish.”

The tallest of the three, Malik, also known as Tree, stood at six-foot-seven and was as solid as an oak tree. His bulk alone intimidated the most dangerous adversary and as a securities specialist, clients felt they got their money’s worth.

 “Well, there’s beer in the fridge and chips on the counter. Help yourself.”

Malik powered up his laptop. “I hope you plan to feed a brotha more than just beer and chips.”

“Once you check out my alarm system, then I’ll feed you. Until then, that’s it.”

“So, have you guys found anything?” Malik asked.

“Not much,” Quinn said and sat across from him. “We followed a trail from when she left Virginia five days before I saw her in Tzbekystan. She flew from Virginia to Miami, stayed in a hotel for a night, but that’s where the trail goes cold. Now, Wiz is trying to get into the CIA mainframe to see what he can find.”

Quinn wanted them to find something – anything that could give him peace of mind. If there was a chance Alandra was alive, he wanted to know.

“I’m sure you guys will figure it out. And while you’re doing that, I’ll get the alarm system working.” Malik typed something into his computer but stopped when it beeped several times. “Q, it looks like the sensor on the right side of your house is out as well as one of the cameras, which is odd.” He stood and grabbed his keys. Let me go check the keypad and then look around outside.”

Quinn had updated the alarm system a few months ago and hadn’t had any problems until recently. Whatever the problem, he knew Malik would figure it out.

“It’s been years since I’ve had to hack into any of the government’s mainframes,” Wiz said. “They have definitely…” His voice trailed off when they heard a lot of racket at the front of the house - Malik cursing and slamming doors.

What the hell?
Quinn rushed out of his office, followed by Wiz. They stopped short when they got to the end of the hall. Malik stood against the wall huffing and puffing with blood oozing from his bottom lip, the sleeve of his jacket ripped, and broken glasses in his hands.

“What the hell happened to you?” Wiz asked.

“
She
is what happened to me,” he growled and pointed to the family room.

She?
Quinn took a few steps forward and glanced in the direction Malik pointed to see a woman sprawled on the sofa.

“I dropped her over there and you can decide what you want to do with her. She’s probably the reason why the alarm sensor is not working. I think she short circuited the damn thing.” Malik slouched and held his side. “Don’t get too close. She’s a wild one. I think she might’ve bruised my ribs.”

Quinn moved closer to the sofa, unable to see the woman’s face. “What did you do to her?”

“I punched her.”

“WHAT? You hit a woman?” Quinn glared at his long time friend.

“What was I supposed to do?” Malik tossed up his hands. “She attacked me with some judo - karate shit.”

“Man, you can be such a jerk sometime. I can’t believe all you could think to do was punch her. She’s half your size.” Wiz shoved past him. “I’ll get some ice.”

 Quinn sat on the edge of the sofa and leaned over her. With a finger under her chin, he turned her head slightly not missing the tinted area across her jaw where Malik must’ve hit her.
Oh shit.
He jerked his hand away.

“Don’t let her size fool you,” Malik said from across the room. “That girl landed some good blows, and she’s quick.”

Quinn couldn’t stop staring at her. It was the woman from the hospital. She looked so much like Alandra that if he didn’t know any better he’d say it was her. He must have shifted just enough to wake her and before he had a chance to react, her hands and arms started moving faster than the speed of light. He dodged an uppercut to his chin and moved just in time of being kneed in the side. “Hey!” Quinn halted her with a death grip on her wrists, his body draped over hers. And then their eyes met. He leaped to his feet and backed away from the sofa.

Holy Mother of…There is no way she can be alive
. When the woman rose from the sofa, Quinn took a slow perusal of her body from the top of her head down to the red ballerina-like shoes covering her feet. Behind the long straight reddish hair, green contact lenses, and a thinner body than he remembered, stood the woman he’d vowed to love until the end of time.
Alandra -
dark olive skin, the flattened nose inherited from her Hispanic father, full lips, and a curvaceous body all from her African American mother. Her mixed race was more apparent than he remembered.

He moved in closer. Despite the minor changes to her appearance he was almost sure it was her, but how was it possible? He had held her bloodied body in his arms. No way could she have survived a bullet to the chest. Never had he been at a loss for words when it came to a beautiful woman, but when the woman was supposed to be dead, words escaped him.

“Q, don’t tell me you know this woman,” Malik roared.

“Keep him away from me,” Alandra said of Malik.

Quinn shook his head in disbelief when she spoke. Her deep velvety voice could have easily belonged to a 1-900 phone sex operator.

“You attacked me!” Malik yelled. “I think you busted up one of my ribs with that judo shit. Who the hell are you anyway?”

 The question jolted Quinn out of his coma-like shock. He looked from Malik to Wiz, who had just returned with the ice. “I need you guys to give us a minute.”

Malik shook his head. “No way, man. Not before you tell us who she is.”

Quinn narrowed his eyes at Malik, wishing he’d back off, but in all fairness, Quinn couldn’t be mad at them for wanting some answers. Hell, he wanted some too. He looked over his shoulder at Alandra.

“Why don’t you tell my friends who you really are Ms. Aguilar?”

 Alandra tilted her head. “
Porque no puedes decirles? Ellos son tus amigos
.”

He stiffened as though she had struck him. Yeah, these guys were his friends and sure he could tell them who she was, but he was still trying to process her actually being alive, and in his house! The last thing he wanted to do was play games. Feeling his patience wane, he said as calmly as he could. “I want you to tell them.”

Her hands slammed on her hips and she huffed, “My name is Velvet Aguilar.”

With one-step, Quinn was in her face. “Tell them who the hell you really are!”

She jumped at his tone, and Quinn felt Wiz and Malik jolt to attention.

“Come on, Q,” Wiz stepped closer, his hand on Quinn’s shoulder. “Don’t you think you’re being a little harsh?”

Quinn ignored the question, his eyes trained on Alandra. A few seconds passed with them staring at each other.

“Fine. My name is Alandra Pargas-Hamilton … Quinn’s wife.”

Chapter Two

“What?” Malik and Wiz yelled.

“You’re married?”

“How?”

“When?”

Quinn pursed his lips and scowled while they bombarded him with question after question.

Alandra recognized the look of frustration on Quinn’s handsome face. She should, considering she’d seen it plenty of times when they use to argue about her work. He thought her job as a CIA counter-intelligence agent was too dangerous, and at times, she thought so too. Being kidnapped in Guerrero Mexico immediately came to mind, her most dangerous assignment. It was during that time that she truly knew how much Quinn loved her.

“I can’t believe you’re married!” Alandra heard one of his friends say.

She stepped out of the way and closer to the sofa, taking the opportunity to get a better look at her husband. Except for the night they ran into each other at the hospital, she hadn’t seen Quinn in three long, painful years. How many times had she cried from loneliness, unable to seek him out? How many nights did treasured memories of him keep her from falling asleep? She missed Quinn like crazy, and she had a feeling that seeing him up close again would make walking away almost impossible.

At well over six feet tall, with mahogany skin, perfect facial features, and a chiseled body that made him look like a Nubian god, any woman within five feet of him would call on the Almighty for strength. Though she had always lived her life on the edge, fulfilling her need right now to reach out and run her hands down his muscular chest and her fingers through his beautiful dread locks probably wouldn’t be a good idea.

Quinn held his hands out in front of him. “Listen, I’ll tell you as much as I can later, but right now I need to speak with Alandra…alone.” When Malik and Wiz left the room, he turned to her.

 Alandra’s eyes met his, and she felt the smoldering heat from his gaze to the depth of her soul.
Okay, so
c
oming here might not have been a good idea.
Unwilling to maintain eye contact for fear of doing something stupid like jumping into his arms, she glanced around the spacious room. Quinn always did have expensive taste. The open floor plan gave her a good view of the kitchen, informal eating area, and the great room where they were currently standing. She took in the dark brown leather pit set that was clearly the focal point of the space, heavy glass tables with white marble legs were positioned in front of the sofa, and a taller version behind the sofa. The plush taupe carpet with walls the same color, adorned with afrocentric art, and white crown molding helped contrast the heaviness of the furnishings. The expensive looking décor was so him - a mixture of strength and calm.

She looked up to find him still staring at her. “Quinn, please don’t look at me like that.”

“Like what?” He shrugged. “Like I haven’t seen you in years? Like I’m in shock? Like I’m seeing a ghost? The last time I saw you, Alandra, you were covered in blood with a hole in your chest.”

She dropped her gaze trying to find the right words. Suddenly her reason for not letting him know she was alive didn’t seem like a very good reason. When she looked up, he still wore the same wary scowl. “I’m sorry. I should have found a way to tell you.”

“And why were you lurking around outside, sabotaging my alarm system?” he asked, as if she hadn’t just apologized.

“I wanted to see you, to talk. As for the alarm system, it wasn’t intentional. I didn’t realize I did anything to it. Before I could ring the doorbell, your friend showed up and I decided to wait on the side of the house until he left.”

Quinn continued to stare. The intensity in his midnight dark eyes scrutinized every inch of her.

“I don’t even know what to say to you,” he finally spoke just above a whisper, his voice laced with anguish. Alandra looked at him, unsure of how to respond, but didn’t have to say anything when he continued. “A part of me wants to wrap you in my arms and love on you so fierce that you’ll never want to leave me again, but then there’s the other part of me. The part that is mad as hell that my
wife
has been alive all this time, working in the city that I live in, and has never tried to contact me. That part of me wants nothing more than for you to get your ass out of my house and stay the hell out of my life…for good.”

Alandra reared back, stunned by the bitterness of his words. But what had she expected - to be welcomed with opened arms? Maybe not, but she had hoped they could at least talk. Yet, if she was honest with herself, she knew his unforgiving heart would rear its wicked head. He was the most committed, determined and trusted man to those he loved, but merciless toward his enemies. And right now she wasn’t sure how Quinn saw her.

Quinn released a long ragged sigh and leaned against a nearby wall, his muscular arms folded across his chest. “Do you have any idea what I’ve been through these last few years, thinking you were dead? Thinking I’d never be able to touch you, hold you, or make love to you? Hell, I watched you die, Alandra, in my arms! You have any idea what that feels like? To watch the one woman you loved more than life get gunned down.”