Page 30 of Presidential Bargain
Georgie kicked off her navy blue flats and then walked toward me, her hips swaying seductively beneath the fabric of her dress. When she got near, she twirled until her back faced me. “Will you unzip me?” shepurred.
My fingers immediately grasped the tiny zipper and I tugged it down, letting the dress fall open to reveal the scarlet bra she hid beneath. The little vixen. The zipper stopped just at the small of her back and I caught a glimpse of matching scarlet red panties. I placed a light kiss on the back of her neck and then stepped away. The red bra and panties were a delicious temptation, but I had worktodo.
“I still have a few more hours of work to catchupon.”
Georgie turned and I could tell she wasn’t happy. Her lips formed into a delicious pout that I wanted to devour. “Don’t be too late,” sheadmonishedme.
For weeks, we shared the same bed and I had grown used to having her next to me every night. For the past few nights, I took pleasure in being able to reach out and take what was mine whenever I wanted. But I felt myself getting too affected. I needed to regain some of my drive and focus. My poll numbers were steady; I felt comfortable but that was usually when mistakes happened and I wasn’t about to let a mistake slip through myfingers.
The next morning, I sentGeorgie off in one of the SUVs to a spa. She was still unhappy with me for ditching her. I promised her a few hours’ worth of work, but it turned into an all-nighter, which resulted in falling asleep on the couch. I wasn’t too happy either because after a lousy night of sleep, I was getting ready to face my enemy. I should be well-rested and at the top of my game, and instead I was a miserable fucking mess. As soon as the SUV left the curb with Georgie tucked safely inside, I headed to the hotel gym where I pounded the treadmill to the rhythm of “Born on theBayou.”
My run invigorated me and a hot, scalding shower relaxed my muscles. As I dressed in a classic navy suit, I began to mentally prepare myself for this meeting. It was unusual for two candidates to meet privately like this, but this was a delicate situation. I suspected that the good governor wanted to make sure his campaign was notimplicated.
I paced the length of the suite, nursing a glass of scotch, waiting for Lamar Huntley. A knock on the door alerted me to his impending arrival. I downed the scotch in one swallow and hissed at the sting as it went down, filling me with awarmburn.
When the governor entered a room, everyone knew it. The air of my suite suddenly filled with an uncomfortable tension. He was from the Deep South, and he was still young by presidential standards, only in his mid-fifties. Everything about him oozed career politician, from the fake white smile and deep tan of his skin to the slick-backed dark brown hair and cobalt blue eyes that were alwaysseeing.
“Governor, thank you for coming,” I said, walking toward him with my hand extended. He reciprocated with a firm handshake and a hearty slap ontheback.
“My pleasure, Senator.” He looked around the suite, assessing it and me. Maybe he thought Georgie would bethere?
“Would you like a drink? My fiancée is just as partial to bourbon as you, so we’ve got quite thestock.”
We walked toward the small bar and he perused the selection, picking out a bottle of Blanton’s. I took the bottle and poured him a healthy shot. He picked up the glass, tipping it toward me in a silent toast before takingasip.
“How is your family doing?” I wanted to get banal pleasantries like family and weather out of the way before addressing the real reason for our meeting. Governor Huntley had quite the family; he and his wife had several adopted children of different races and ethnicities. This was something they were extremely proud of to the point that seeing pictures of his family made menauseous.
“The kids are great. We’re almost empty-nesters. Two more to go before they’ll all be out of the house. How are your parentsdoing?”
“They are doing well, thank you for asking. My mom is completely beside herself with both the campaign and my engagement.” I opened the door to the reason for this meeting. Myfiancée.
“I’m sure. What mother wouldn’t be excited about her only son getting married?” He winked at me, acknowledging the fact that he glossed right over the campaign, before continuing, “And your lovely fiancée? Where is she this afternoon? I had hoped to finally make heracquaintance.”
“We have a big day tomorrow and she’s been through quite a bit, so I sent her off for somepampering.”
“Good man. Louise and I were absolutely heartbroken over what happened. Ugly business.” He shook his head to illustrate hishorror.
“I appreciate that, Governor. It’s been a tough few weeks, but Georgie is feisty. After it happened, she had a good cry and then went right back to work. She hated that someone tried tomanipulateher.”
“It’s good to have a strong woman behind you, Senator. But let’s get down to business, shall we?” He narrowed his eyes at me and I nodded inagreement.
I gestured at the dining table and we both sat, our game faces firmly in place now that the pleasantrieswereover.
“Governor, I want you to know that no one in my campaign, including myself, presumes that your campaign was involved in Georgie’sassault.”
“I appreciate that,Senator.”
“But my campaign has uncovered that Russell Atlee might be associated with a super PAC that has donated generously to yourcampaign.”
“I have heard thataswell.”
I sat back in my chair, unbuttoned my blazer, and crossed one leg over the other. The governor was playing a game with me. He wanted to know what I knew before revealing any information his campaign might haveuncovered.
“Russell Atlee is clearly a pseudonym. We’re currently looking into his realidentity.”
He nodded and tapped his fingers on the glossy wooden table. I was growingimpatient.
“Governor, I take what happened to Georgie personally because it happened right under my nose. If you know something about Russell Atlee, then I hope you’ll share it with me. Otherwise, I think our meeting might be shorter thanexpected.”
