Page 12 of The Press Secretary's Passion
“The Rumor Mill is on Fire with talk of the President’s Father Ready to Settle Down Again.”
Chapter 3
This one’s for you
Iwas literally bred, born, and raised for moments like this.
Where Grace had a normal childhood in the suburbs, I was born into one of the most prominent families in New York. When I was a tot, I studied classical ballet and piano. When I was old enough, I learned French, Spanish, German, and Japanese. I went to the best finishing school money could pay for. I earned top grades always, because anything less than a solid A was a failure and I would find myself grounded. I was accepted to NYU on my own merits and was recruited as a legacy into the sorority my mother and my grandmother were in.
I keep a fit figure through running and yoga. I do not overindulge in anything, because I was raised in a very strict regime in order to maintain a trim physique to best showcase haute couture. I actually love to run. It helps me clear my head on difficult days.
And I have done all of these things, lived this life, not because I wanted to, not because it filled some deep-seated need in me to be the best that I could be, but because it was expected of me. I was bred and raised by parents of the social elite, and my sole purpose was to make a match that would benefit the family business in some way.
I find it incredibly ironic that after over thirty years of being the best of the best, I’m seen as nothing but a failure and a disappointment to my parents.
“May I escort you in?”
I turn toward the voice that sets me on edge every single time. While there is a very specific protocol for entering this event, I do not need an escort in. I’m that important. I go to politely decline, but when I turn around, the president’s father is there. He’s standing entirely too close to me, and I take a startled step back. I lose my balance when I shift my weight too quickly on my incredibly tall and pencil-slim heels.
He wraps his arm around my waist and pulls me into his arms, his reflexes faster than I would have figured for someone his age. I hear a disgusted noise and turn my head to see Captain Black watching me. He must have seen the whole thing, and I feel heat hit my cheeks at my embarrassment.
“Thank you,” I say quietly before pushing away from the senior senator, but it’s too late. Ryan had already walked away.
“Always happy to help a beautiful woman in need,” he replies with a wink and an inappropriate look at my breasts. I send him a tight smile, hoping he understands I will not be conquered, but I don’t think he gets it. Especially when he continues. “And I’d be more than happy to help with your needs.”
I kind of want to throw up in my mouth. It’s not that he’s twice my age or my friend’s father-in-law. I could get past all those things if he was a good man, but I get the feeling that he’s not. There’s something about the way he looks at me that just makes me feel dirty. And I don’t like it.
“Thank you, but I think I’m all right now,” I say quietly and then turn on my toes and head off to find Cara. I know she thinks I’ve been assigned her babysitter for the evening, but in truth, she’s become one of my dear friends, and I need her to deflect the senior senator’s attention. I have a feeling he’s going to be a problem.
I link her arm through mine once we’re inside the ballroom, and we go off to find our table. Cara, obviously, is marked to sit next to Rick on one side and me on the other. There are several dignitaries and their wives and Captain Black around our table. I switch his place card with one a few seats down so that he’s not sitting right next to me. It was a stupid thing to do, and there is no excuse other than I really need to look after Cara and do my job, and I’m not sure I could do what I need to with him looking down his nose at me all night. I saw the way he looked at me when he thought I was flirting with the president’s father, and it didn’t make me feel good.
We take our seats, and I do my best to make small talk with everyone. I try to pull Cara into the conversation, but she’s clearly uncomfortable, and I don’t blame her. I can’t imagine what she’s going through. I feel Ryan’s eyes on me through the whole dinner, but I don’t give in to my urge to look at him.
After dinner, Rick takes Cara to introduce her to some people, and I make my way around the room for a bit. Unfortunately, the senator chooses that time to attack again.
“Can I buy you a drink?” he asks. His mouth is very close to my ear, his body presses close, and he places his hand at the small of my back just a little too low.
“I’m good. Thank you though,” I say as politely as I can. While I’m not interested in getting screwed by the president’s father, I still have to be courteous. This is a powerful man with powerful friends in this town. It wouldn’t do me any good to piss him off.
And wounded male pride can be a real bitch.
“You know,” he says, and I can feel his breath against my neck, “we would make a smart match.”
I’m not sure that “smart” has anything to do with it. In fact, I’m not even sure what he’s offering me right now. All I know is there’s no way in hell. I’ll relocate to Texas and teach civics at the high school my friend Angie and her husband work at. There’s a part of me that wants to run far and fast, because this man sets off my internal alarms.
“That’s quite… flattering,” I murmur for lack of anything more diplomatic. “But I’m not looking for anything right now.”
He stares at me, and I hold his gaze, and while I do, I get the impression he knows I’m lying and wants me to know that he knows. Weaving a tangled web of romantic partners is not something I should be engaging in when there are much darker games at foot.
“I won’t wait forever, Julia,” he says to me, his voice low and full of warning, so much so that it makes the hair stand up on the back of my neck.
“And I wouldn’t expect you to,” I reply with steel infused in my own voice. “Now, if you’ll excuse me.”
I step away from him and don’t look back as I wend my way through the crowd. I smile at people as I drift past them, but it does little to slow my racing heart. The senior senator is going to be a problem. I hoped I could evade his advances until he forgot about me, but that will clearly not be possible. Now more than ever, I remember that I made these choices. This is why I vowed to stay single. Men are nothing but trouble.
I keep moving through the crowd. I need to find someplace quiet to silence my thoughts before I can go back to Cara.
I step into the hall I know leads to the restrooms and keep moving. There are plenty of nooks and crannies and even a few secret tunnels here where I can find a moment to myself. The music is muted, and I can no longer hear the voices of the evening after I turn a corner.
