“A guy pulled out a gun and tried to shoot me while I was going to the bathroom,” Quint said, making it seem like he was trying to catch his breath. “It’s your ‘associate’ from the other morning.”
Charley’s eyes widened.
“I’m sorry. This is a business deal that’s gone bad. I’ll take care of it,” he promised, waving his arms in the air.
“Take care of it?” Ree asked. She had one question. Was it possible their cover wasn’t blown? “I called the sheriff. This guy needs to be arrested. He’s dangerous and just tried to shoot my husband for no reason.”
She turned her mouth sideways to Quint when she whispered, “He came in with Ruddy Complexion.”
“I can handle this, Ree,” Charley warned. “Get back in the kitchen.”
Those words sliced through Ree with the efficiency of a blade. She stalked toward Charley. As soon as she came within reach, she poked her index finger in his chest.
“Don’t you dare ever tell me to, ‘get back in the kitchen’ again,” she practically growled.
“Stop,” came the small voice. Zoey’s voice.
She came around the corner.
“All this noise and yelling has run off all our customers,” she said, her cheeks red with anger.
In the next moment, Ruddy Complexion grabbed her and started dragging her backward toward the front door. She screamed and flailed.
Ree stood there, helpless, flinching at the gun pointed at Zoey’s temple.
“No, Willie,” she screamed.
“Stop,” Ree said.
“I told you not to look at me or say my real name in public,” Willie admonished. “And I’ll slit your throat before I go back to jail.”
“Stop,” Ree commanded in unison with Quint.
Charley took a step to the side, looking bewildered and like he couldn’t begin to process things as they were happening so fast.
Quint bolted out the side door, setting off the fire alarm. Ree ran toward Zoey, realizing that she needed to create a diversion if Quint was going to succeed in surprising Willie.
QUINT KNEW EXACTLY where Willie was headed, the SUV. So Quint kept a low profile and beat Willie to it. Zoey was struggling, which was a distraction. Ultimately, Quint didn’t believe Willie would physically hurt Zoey but he seemed to have no qualms about using her to get away.
But get away where?
The guy’s days were numbered because his identity was now known. Then again, if he was involved with the money laundering scheme, he could be connected to a bigger organization that would send him underground for a while until everything cooled off.
Quint could not let Willie, aka Ruddy Complexion, get away with Zoey. Period.
Sirens sounded in the distance. The cavalry was on its way. And yet, if Willie got Zoey in that vehicle, there would be little to celebrate. Quint couldn’t allow that to happen. He kept a low profile behind the SUV as Willie forced Zoey around to the driver’s side.
“Don’t do this, Willie,” Ree demanded. Good, she was keeping Willie’s attention on her. It would give Quint the element of surprise he needed.
Wait a few more seconds. Let Willie get a little closer.
Willie moved to the back seat, opened the door and started to stuff Zoey inside. Quint made his move. He dove toward the man, tackling him at his knees. Quint heard a snap, and seriously hoped the broken bone was on Willie’s body and not Quint’s.
He took a hard elbow to the back of the neck as he wrestled Willie to the ground. The glint of metal being raised in the air sent a jolt of adrenaline rocketing through Quint. All he could think was hell, no.
Quint spun like an alligator with prey in its jaws. Willie grunted as his extended hand met the gravel pavement. He managed to keep his fingers clasped around the weapon but he took some damage with the move.
Before Willie could get his bearings, Quint pressed his powerful thighs around the man’s midsection, squeezing the air from his lungs.
Willie coughed and grunted, trying to shift the balance of power by gouging Quint in the back with his free hand. Quint squeezed harder. He threw a punch that landed with a head snap, and then went for the knife.
It was a mistake to be too eager. Willie managed to free his arm, and jabbed the knife toward Quint’s midsection. Quint shifted his weight in time to miss the blade, catching Willie by the wrist.
Squeezing his thighs with every ounce of strength he had left, he wrestled the knife out of Willie’s hand as the sheriff’s SUV came roaring up. Willie’s face was beet red. He made one final attempt to punch Quint, who caught Willie’s other wrist and pushed his hands up over his head, easing up on the pressure to the man’s midsection.
“Hands high where I can see ’em,” the sheriff said.
“No can do, sir,” Quint replied. “This man is a danger. You can come take him from me, but I will not release my grip until I know it’s safe to do so.”
The sheriff didn’t lower his weapon as he moved toward the pair of men. He got close enough to cuff Willie despite the fact he struggled the entire time.
“You got him?” Quint asked the sheriff.
“That’s affirmative,” came the response.
Quint rolled over and let the sheriff take over. He forced Willie to his feet as Quint heaved for air. The back-to-back fights had left him winded. Ree came over to him, and dropped down beside him.
“There’s a man in the restroom who tried to shoot me,” Quint informed the sheriff. “He probably needs an ambulance.”
Charley’s cousin secured Willie in the back of his vehicle. Next, he radioed for an ambulance before disappearing into the building.
Zoey sat on the bench seat of the SUV, looking lost and alone. Quint caught Ree’s attention. “You can go to her.”
“But you’re hurt,” she said. “I don’t want to leave you.”
Quint tried to scoot over to lean his back on the SUV. Two of the fingers on his right hand were jacked up at odd angles. His pointer and middle finger would be getting real close to each other in the coming weeks. And he planned to take some time off work after this case.
“Go on. I’m not going anywhere,” he assured her.
Ree went to Zoey, who crumpled into Ree’s arms. Ree glanced over at Quint as she patted Zoey’s back and held her.
He made the call to let his boss know what had gone down. She in turn made the call to the sheriff personally. Ten minutes later, Charley came outside in handcuffs as a deputy arrived.
This operation was busted.
“LOOKS LIKE IT’S moving day,” Quint said to Ree as he loaded the last of his suitcases with his good hand.
“Are you sure you don’t want to go to the ER to have that thing checked out properly?” she asked.
He lifted his right hand.
“What? This? The EMTs did a bang-up job,” he said with a smile.
“Even he said you should go to the hospital,” she countered.
“Don’t worry about it,” he said. “I have a guy back home. He’ll fix me right up.”
Ree moved to the fridge and opened a Coke.
“Is it weird that I’m sad to leave? We’ve only been here a few days,” she said. “Why do I feel an attachment to this place?”
“I don’t know. Cricket Creek has its good side,” he offered.
A piece of him wished he was the reason, but that was just silly. They had separate lives to go back to, and despite the feeling they’d become closer than two people should who weren’t wearing matching rings, they barely knew each other.
“Zoey agreed to go to Austin,” Ree said. “She’s on a bus now.”
“That’s good,” he said.
“I’m thinking about doing a little research when I get home,” she said.
“What kind?” he asked.
“Puppy adoption,” she said. “It’s probably crazy. Right?”
“I’ve heard of worse things,” he said. “Just give yourself a day or two before you make any decisions.”
“Heat of the moment?”
“It could be,” he said. “Somehow, I doubt it with you but a decision as big as that one should breathe for a few days before you make any commitments.”
She nodded.
“I thought I’d take it to Zoey when she got her own place. I’d like to stay in touch with her at the very least,” she said.
“Good for you, and her,” he said. “Having a mentor turned my life around.”
“Your story gave me the inspiration,” she admitted and his heart took a hit.
His cell buzzed as he closed up the suitcase. He fished it out and checked the screen.
“Grappell,” he said to her before answering. “I’m putting you on speaker.”
“Hi, Ree,” Grappell said.
“Hey, yourself,” Ree called out.
“I’m sure you’ll have your wrap-up interviews soon but I thought you might want to know what I found out about the case,” Grappell said.
“Fire away,” Quint said.
“Turns out that Charley is already rolling over. Phillip Mancuso was the one forcing Charley to run weapons through the restaurant but he’s been teeing up for greater things at Greenlight. He was getting pushback from Charley.”
Quint perked up. “Any chance this guy is—”
“He is. I thought you’d want to know the name that came up and where this investigation is headed once things cool off,” Grappell said.
“Can’t be,” Quint said as Ree’s forehead creased with confusion.
“The name that is coming up as being linked in all this is Dumitru,” Grappell supplied. “Phillip has ties to A-12.”
Hearing that name sucked all the air out of the room. Quint’s lips compressed into a frown.
“Is he...?” Ree seemed to catch on.
“Get me on the assignment when this thing happens,” Quint demanded.
“It’ll never happen,” Grappell said. “We both know it.”
“Nothing is set in stone,” Quint stated. He needed to be the one to investigate the man who caused his best friend to die.
“This will be,” Grappell said. “I just thought you should know.”
Quint thanked him before ending the call. His mind was already working, figuring a way to get himself on the assignment.
“Can I give you a ride home?” Ree asked as she closed up her suitcase. She finished her Coke and then tossed the empty bottle in the trash.
“I have the motorcycle,” he said.
“You can have it towed,” she stated. “You can’t ride like that.” She motioned toward his hand. “Besides, you have a suitcase.”
“I can strap it on the back of my motorcycle like I did on the way here,” he said. “Plus, the open air will clear my head.”
Ree picked up her suitcase and walked to the door. She stopped, set it down and turned around. Her green eyes sparkled with a mix of need and determination as she made a beeline toward him and into his arms. Against all better judgment, he dipped his head down and claimed those full lips of hers one more time. She parted her lips enough to give him better access before teasing his tongue inside her mouth. Quint’s heart fisted as need welled inside him with the force of a rogue wave, intense and all-consuming. He brought his hands up to cup her face as she dug her fingernails into his shoulders. Their breathing quickened and an ache formed in his chest. The need to feel her skin-to-skin crashed into him.
A reminder she wasn’t his to explore nailed his gut. He pulled back midkiss before his heart passed the point of no return, and leaned his forehead against hers for a long moment. Trying to slow his pulse to something within reasonably normal range took all the energy he had left.
“I know you’re going after him,” she finally said before pressing those sweet lips of hers against his one more time. “Watch out for your blind spots.”
Walking away from a successful assignment had never hollowed out his chest before. He did his level best to ignore the pain but the ache was taking hold.
“Give me a call if you ever want to go out for a beer sometime,” she said, lingering at the door. Her tongue slicked across her bottom lip, leaving a silky trail—a trail he wanted to spend more time exploring.
“I plan to take you up on that.” Quint took in a sharp breath and smiled, needing for her to leave before he changed his mind, got all soft and asked her to stick around.
She stood there for a long moment, staring down at her bag. Then she lifted her head up, bit down on her bottom lip and walked away.
USA TODAY bestselling author Barb Han’s series, A Ree and Quint Novel, continues next month with
Newlywed Assignment.
You’ll find it wherever
Harlequin Intrigue books are sold!
Keep reading for an excerpt from Dodging Bullets in Blue Valley by Nicole Helm.