Page 71 of Between Love and Honor

“Oh, cake would be lovely,” Marilyn helped her out by saying. “Especially if Chef Marin made it.”

Dorothy hesitated a long moment. Quinn held her breath.

“Cake it is,” she finally said. She gave Quinn a pointed look. “We’ll see you in the rose garden.”

Quinn waved a jaunty salute then waited patiently until the other woman’s footsteps faded. She quickly turned to the florist. “Marilyn,” she whispered. “Wouldn’t it be keen if we could get some El Nino flowers for the rose garden? It would make the wedding feel a lot more like the Serengeti. And the colors would complement the roses perfectly.”

“That would be lovely,” the florist agreed. “But how could we get some here in time?”

“The florist at the botanic gardens is a friend of mine,” she lied. “I spoke to him earlier and he’s willing to let you borrow theirs.”

Marilyn’s smile lit up the room. “That’s so kind of you.”

“Anything for Josslyn. But I need your help pulling it off. I need to pick them out before they deliver them. Can you stall them in the rose garden while I dash out? I won’t be more than thirty minutes.”

“Well. . .” Marilyn looked a bit skittish now.

“Imagine how thrilled Josslyn will be? And you’ll be the heroine of the wedding. Everyone will be talking about your arrangements.”

“She will be so happy,” the florist agreed. “Okay, I’ll do my best.”

“Remember, if anyone asks, you don’t know where I’ve gone. It will ruin the surprise.”

Marilyn pantomimed zipping her lips shut and throwing away the key. With a quick hug, Quinn shooed her out the door. She didn’t bother mentioning she was going to commandeer the woman’s car to do her dirty work.

Instead, she simply grabbed the keys and raced out into the courtyard. Once inside the car, she pulled on the big sunglasses Marilyn left in the console. She tucked her hair inside a baseball cap she found in the back seat. All she had to do was remember to drive on the right side of the road and she just might pull this off.

She breathed a sigh of relief when an alarm didn’t sound as she approached the gate. Recognizing Marilyn’s car, the guard gave her a quick wave and, just like that, she was home free. Until it was time to return. But she’d worry about that after she met with her contact.

CHAPTER 15

QUINN HASTILY WIPED her sweaty palms on the cool metal of the bench she was sitting on. The sound of the water trickling through the fountain should have calmed her racing heart. It didn’t. Her contact was late.

Gazing at the tourists milling about the lush greenery housed in the stone and glass conservatory of the US Botanic Gardens, she wrestled with guilt consuming her from sneaking out. Ben had given his word. He loved her.

Of course he’d make sure her parents weren’t harmed. Of course he could handle confronting Alexi. But if she could find a way to give Ben an advantage, she had to do so.

She’d been absent from the White House for nearly thirty minutes. It was only a matter of time before Marilyn spilled the beans and revealed where she’d gone. Ben would be angry. And hurt. Her heart ached at the thought. She silently willed her handler to hurry.

“What a pleasant surprise it is to find you alive, my dear.”

The familiar voice startled her. He had come, after all.

They were sitting facing opposite directions on the backless bench. She chose to meet in one of the less populated rooms within the conservatory, a stone’s throw from the Capitol building in the heart of Washington, DC. Fortunately, the tourists were more interested in watching the staff harvest the pods of chocolate from the giant cocoa trees in the main gallery. No one was paying attention to the two supposed strangers in the orchid room.

“Trust me, it’s even more pleasant to be alive. But no one must know,” she murmured.

“The director must be notified.”

“No!”

Her vehement objection caused more than one head to turn in their direction.

“You texted that Alexi doesn’t have the list. You are sure of this?”

“Yes. The Americans have the list.”

A soft whistle escaped his lips. “This is good news.”

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