moment before answering.
“Paperwork. A little bit of this. A little bit of that. Can I see you for a minute?” He motioned toward the hallway with his head.
She thought about telling him she was busy. But, with his arms crossed over his chest and his feet planted apart, he wasn't a man who was going to go away. And looking at him standing there, looking back at her, she wasn't sure she wanted him to. She wasn't about to go running into his arms. But she could do with a little bit of the calm he'd brought her when they were out on the ledge the night before.
She inclined her head and he followed her out.
When they were alone, he spoke. “I'd like to get a better idea of how you think the drugs are going to be coming in. Not the physical way they'll be arriving, but who the players are. You've mentioned a couple of names and I want to get a better sense of who they are, maybe see if we've seen them up here before.”
Dani found it a bit ironic that, as she looked to him to satisfy a personal need, he was all business. A hundred thoughts tumbled through her head as her eyes searched his. Like her, he had a job to do and, like her, he was going to do it. He took his responsibilities and position seriously and, despite any awkwardness between them, he wasn't going to let things slip. He wasn't going to back away to make things easier.
The same sense of calm from the night before washed over her. Ty was the man he portrayed himself to be. And to Dani, a woman used to living lies and half-truths, there was a measure of comfort in that—a measure she found herself taking. Again.
She recognized her own desire to trust him, as a man and a teammate. She wasn't going to spill her heart out to him in the hallway—if she was even capable of that—but she did want to treat him as a colleague, as a partner. Because he was who he was and he wasn't going to change on her, or for her.
Accepting more than his request for information, she spoke. “Of course. Come with me, I'll show you what we have.”
They grabbed a couple of boxes and extra files from the study and headed to the front sitting room.
“There's not much of a table in here.” She flicked on the lights and surveyed the room. “We weren't intending on using this room, but I think it's the best place for us spread out for a few hours.”
Ty placed his box on the coffee table and went to the windows. “Mind if I open things up a bit?”
Dani shook her head and, as she began to sort through her box, Ty pulled the drapes and opened some windows. The cool, May air flowed into the room, bringing with it the smell of the ocean and fresh cut grass. Dani inhaled. Those scents reminded her of her childhood—the good parts.
“It's beautiful here,” Ty said
“We used to spend our summers in the Hamptons. This place is a lot like it but more relaxed and less, well, Hampton-y.”
Ty turned from his position at the window even as she wondered why she had shared that bit of information. Only certain kinds of families spent their summers in the Hamptons. She was one of those families, as were the Carmichaels, but it wasn't anything either she or Drew talked about. It was helpful in that their official CIA covers were that they both ran family businesses and their wealth wasn't exactly a secret. Still, it felt awkward at times like this. She sank to the floor beside the coffee table that held the boxes and began laying files out.
“So tell me what we have.” Ty left the window and came to sit across from her.
She handed him a couple of files. “Sonny Carlyle and Joe Savendra are our primary leads for the drugs. These files will give you some good background.”
“How did they show up on your radar to begin with?” He opened the top file and began to scan the contents.
“Like I said in the briefing, Getz's name started to crop up here and there. We had a warrant to monitor his communications, but not tap them. Pretty easy work since he doesn't get many calls. But, about a month ago, he made four phone calls to this number.” She handed him another