“Oh, Jake.” Maggie touched his face. His skin was warm, but the muscles were taut over his cheekbones.
Jake pulled her hand away and glanced around to be sure no one was watching. “Go back to your room, Maggie. Stay away from me until this is over.”
“No. I want to know what’s going on.”
“Dammit, Maggie.”
“I want to know, Jake.”
“All right. I’ll meet you tonight. There’s a little pub just north of here called Geoffrey’s. I’ll be there at ten o’clock. And for God’s sake be careful no one follows you.”
Maggie nodded. With a last glance at Jake, she stood up and headed for the door.
At nine thirty that night, Maggie left her room, hailed a cab, had the driver haul her around for fifteen minutes, then let her off four blocks from Geoffrey’s Tavern.
Inside the smoky, low-ceilinged pub, she spotted Jake sitting in the far corner, his back against the wall. A fan drifted in lazy circles above his head and smoke hung in dense blue patches over the nearby tables.
The patrons looked like locales. None wore the weary smile or the I-don’t-dare-miss-anything look of a tourist.
Jake glanced furtively around the tap room, then fixed his gaze on Maggie. A corner of his mouth curved up in what seemed an appreciative smile, and Maggie’s heart beat faster. She’d missed him so much these past few days. He looked so handsome and dear it was all she could do to keep from rushing into his arms.
Instead, she continued at a steady pace across the room until she reached his side. “Hello, Jake.”
Jake stood and pulled out her chair. “Hello, Maggie.”
She let him help her with her lightweight coat. “But then your real name is Janus, isn’t it?” The words sounded harsher than she had intended. He should have told her long ago. He should have trusted her.
“I haven’t been Janus Straka for twenty-eight years,” Jake said. “Not since the day I arrived in America.”
They both sat down. Jake took her hand, leaned forward and kissed her cheek. Maggie forced herself to ignore the warmth of his touch, determined Jake wouldn’t charm her out of the answers she deserved.
“What do they want with you, Jake?”
“Maggie, I agreed to meet you because I love you and because I owe it to you. But I don’t want you involved in this. Whatever it is—and I don’t really know myself—it’s something that’s dangerous to you and Sarah. Let’s enjoy our time together. Then you’ve got to go back to the hotel. You’ve got to stay out of this. If you won’t think of yourself, think of Sarah.”
“Sarah loves you as much as I do. She would want to help you and so do I. I won’t stand by and watch you get hurt. You’ve got to tell me what’s going on.”
Jake leaned back in his chair. He studied her face, taking in the tiny furrows at the corners of her eyes, the dark smudges that noted her worry. She wasn’t a woman who took no for an answer. It was one of the things he admired about her. She deserved to know the truth.
“As I said, they haven’t told me what they’re after, but whatever it is, they’ll do anything to get it. They’ve threatened my mother and sister, Maggie. If they find out about you, they’ll use you against me, too. Your life and Sarah’s could also be in danger.”
A waiter arrived, a youth about eighteen. “Take your order, sir?”
“We just want coffee,” Jake said. The boy brought it quickly, then busied himself with other patrons. A burst of raucous laughter rose in one corner and died away.
“Does anyone else know what’s going on?” Maggie asked.
“An old friend of mine in the CIA. A man named Daniel Gage. He helped me when I first came to America. He’s doing everything he can to find out.”
Maggie’s shoulders relaxed. “Thank God. I was afraid you hadn’t told anyone.”
“I haven’t told him everything. I haven’t told him about the attack on Ellie or the incident on the plane.”
“Why not?”
“Because the government has to be concerned about the safety of the team. They’ll step in. The Soviets will know I’ve told them, and my mother and sister will suffer the consequences.”
Jake reached over and caught her trembling hand. “Maggie, I’ve got to ride this out. I’ve got to find out what they want.”
