Page 40 of Operation Heartbeat

Her stomach did a little somersault at the brush of his rough fingers, and then he was drawing her out of the car to her feet.

She looped the thin strap of her bag around her wrist and glanced at her surroundings. A white limousine pulled up behind them, and the chauffeur got out to open the door for his passengers.

Leaning toward Con, she whispered, “You didn’t give me any directions for when we get inside.”

He dipped his head to catch her words, his nose hovering inches from her ear. Was he smelling her?

She’d grabbed the perfume bottle but stopped short of spritzing herself with it. She didn’t need her partner distracted again. Besides, what happened in the pool had been a huge hit to her ego. She didn’t want a repeat.

They entered through a set of grand doors carved in intricate geometric patterns. Music carried through the space, loud enough to make it a party but not intrusive enough that they couldn’t hold a conversation.

Everywhere Sophie looked, well-dressed men and women mingled with each other. What was shedoinghere? She was just a professor. She didn’t have anything in common with these people—or even Con.

A tall fountain spilled golden champagne into tiers that emptied into glasses at the bottom. She started toward thedisplay, but Con grabbed her arm and led her into an open area where couples swirled to the music.

When Con drew her into his arms and positioned his hand perfectly on her waist to guide her in the dance, she couldn’t be more shocked.

“Is this part of your training?”

“No.” He looked down at her, making her aware that she was being recorded by his glasses.

“How did you learn how to dance?”

“Navy balls,” he said in a low voice meant only for ears. He shifted his gaze to the other couples surrounding them.

“Who are we searching for?”

“One of those smaller photos is of a businessman. The head of a shipping company.”

She glanced around too, but since she’d never seen that particular photo, she didn’t know what the man looked like. “Do you have a picture of him on your phone?”

His gaze flicked back to her. Then he reached into his pocket and withdrew his phone. Holding it between them, he flashed the photo up for a split second for her to see.

She nodded.

He pocketed the device again and continued spinning her around the floor with precision and ease and even a good amount of skill.

“You’re actually a good dancer. I don’t know why I’m surprised—you seem to be a ‘Jeremy’ of all trades.”

He gave a soft snort. “Nice one,Sydney.”

All of a sudden, this seemed fun. She got into the music, swaying her body with Con’s as they navigated the entire dance floor. She had to admit, it was a great way to move quickly through the crowd to search for this businessman.

The music trilled on a long note. Con whipped her over his arm, dipping her low enough to the ground that she felt the ends of her hair brush the floor.

She cast a look at the crowd from this new, foreign angle.

Her stomach dipped right along with her body, but for another reason.

There he was—the businessman, standing at the edge of the floor, not ten feet away.

* * * * *

“Oh my god. She’s so hot.”

Con withheld a deep growl at the Henner’s comment projecting into his ear. Whose bad idea was it for him to stay connected via comms? The tiny device was imperceptible to anyone who looked at him. But Con wished he could get away from his team for a few hours.

“Dip her again, Con. I think her boob was about to fall out of the side of her dress.”

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