Page 36 of The Senator's Secret
Maybe Jake should have let that car hit me this morning. But I digress…
• • •
“GRACE! GRACE! OVER HERE!”
I had needed a bit of fresh air to get my head on straight again after another round with the partners of what their six-degrees-of-separation connection to the man of the hour could do for them. They were not impressed when the answer out of my mouth was absolutely nothing.
I get the feeling Jake is a man who everyone uses for their own purposes. He hasn’t come right out and said so, but I get the impression his popularity is not all it’s cracked up to be. And no matter what this thing between us is, I won’t use him. I won’t be like everyone else. Even if it costs me my job at this firm.
Every day since the announcement of our fake relationship, the partners have tried to slip me more than shady clients, assign me details to people I would never, ever associate with, and forge connections between them and their cronies and Jake. And I have thrown up every roadblock in my arsenal and flat out said “no” on more than one occasion.
And every single time, they’ve let me know that my position there hangs in the balance. They could be bluffing. It’s abundantly clear they need me more than I need them. But they also might not be. I’m young—not that young but young enough that I’m not a partner. I also don’t currently carry a surname that dates back to Kennedy connections, so I could be done. Fortunately for me, I’ve saved a nice little nest egg for my own startup.
Still, I needed to clear my thoughts.
If I had been thinking with a clear head, I never would have stepped outside the building on my own, midday like I did.
Me: I’m going to grab a cup of coffee and I’ll be right back.
Carter: oooohhh! bring me back something good!
Me: LOL. Ok!
He always makes me smile. I was looking down at my phone when I pushed through the front doors to the building. The camera flashes took me by surprise instantly and I stumbled. But I didn’t want them to see me sweat as they called out my name. So I kept going, right across the street.
Too bad I didn’t see the car that was barreling down on me.
“Grace!” someone shouted. I don’t know who it was, I was too stunned. My feet encased in ridiculously high heels were cemented to the pavement. My heart thundered and there was a roaring in my ears so loud the horn honking was drowned out. This was it. I was going to die.
And then I was hit from behind by a linebacker, only he didn’t knock me down. He grabbed me around the waist and hauled me out of the way just in time for the car to whoosh past with a honk as if it didn’t almost mow me down.
“What the fuck were you thinking?” Jake roared, and it was so harsh, so mean, that tears welled in my eyes. I didn’t do it on purpose. I just needed some fresh air and a walk around the corner to cool my temper. I looked up at him and opened my mouth to apologize, even though he didn’t deserve it, when he took one look at me and hauled me into his arms, crushing his mouth down on mine. It was not a nice kiss; it was need and fear and frustration. It was punishing as it was praising. And I grabbed onto it with both hands.
“Get back,” Gus ordered, and like a bucket of cold water poured over our heads, we broke apart. I tried to push out of Jake’s arms, but he only held me tighter while the shutterbugs clicked all around me.
“Let me go,” I whispered. I kept my eyes downcast. I wasn’t ready to meet his steady gaze.
“Never,” he whispered harshly. “Where were you going?”
“To get a cup of coffee,” I answered. “There’s a spot around the corner I like to go when I need to get away from the office every now and then.”
“Then lead the way.”
Jake held my hand while he walked around the corner with me to grab the coffee. I was shaking so badly I never bothered to ask what he was doing there midday.
• • •
“ARE YOU SURE IT’Snot hot in here?” I ask again as I pull at the collar of my blouse. Jake just shakes his head once in the negative.
After mom and dad lead us into my childhood home, they sit us on the sofa to begin our interrogation. Jake seems totally unaffected, and my dad gives it his best effort.
“So what are your intentions with our daughter?” he asks as he sits across the coffee table from us.
“I plan to take care of your daughter, sir,” Jake answers calmly.
“And you feel like you can do that by living with her?”
“Yes, sir.”