7 Degrees of Alpha (a collection of seven new BWWM, Alpha Male Romances) (12 page)

CHAPTER 3

The governor's mansion was buzzing with activity, but Victor couldn't be more bored. He knew going in that he was going to see much of the same faces of the same people that normally frequented politically fueled social events.

He stood in the corner, watching everyone move about the ballroom and listening to Kenyatta and her assistant brutally pick apart the wardrobe of the other guests. At times, Victor couldn't stop the chuckle that escaped. Kenyatta and Lisa were hilarious; his evening's saving grace.

"Girl, look at Councilwoman Harris in that tight ass dress," Lisa whispered, a bit too loudly. "I need her to invest in some spanks."

Victor had no idea what spanks were, so he kept quiet.

"Lisa, you know she wasn't raised right," Kenyatta countered. "My soul won't let me pass my threshold without something to suck in all this ass."

Victor laughed out loud, knowing that he shouldn't have. Truth be told, the congresswoman had a nice round ass. It was her nasty disposition that was a deterrence.

Victor leaned closer to Kenyatta. "That's enough. Let's go and sit. Maybe they'll start dinner so that we can get the hell out of here."

"Governor Creed, you're a party pooper. Dinner won't be served for another thirty minutes. Besides, you're about to be busy."

Kenyatta jabbed her thumb to the right of Victor; annoyance was evident in her expression. Victor turned to see Kara's approach. She looked beautiful in a navy blue form-fitting gown. She had her auburn hair in a sculpted updo, and her hazel eyes sparkled with a hint of anger.

"Governor Creed," she greeted tersely, totally ignoring Kenyatta and Lisa.

"Miss Edwards, you're certainly a vision."

If Victor was hoping to ease the tension with a compliment, he realized that he had failed when she responded with, "Apparently, that's of no consequence to you."

"No, it isn't. But you look beautiful nonetheless. Enjoy your evening."

Before she could respond, Victor walked away, gesturing for Lisa and Kenyatta to follow.

"What was that all about?" Kenyatta asked, as soon as they reached Victor's table.

"Time for a new starting player," was all Victor said.

"Thank God," Kenyatta huffed. "It's about time, because Kara Edwards got the devil in her. Oh and by the way... you're a whore."

Victor glared at her, never ceasing to be amazed by the things that came out of her mouth.

"That's Governor Whore to you," he rebutted.

"Forget Governor Whore," Lisa chimed. "Look at that fine specimen that just walked in."

Kenyatta turned and Victor followed her line of sight. The ladies were looking at Jeffrey Morgan, the Chicago Water Commissioner. And although Jeffrey's good looks had done nothing for Victor, one of the women that accompanied him was paralyzing. It was the cop that he'd seen the day before. That day she was wearing a uniform that he was sure she hadn't realized was hugging her every curve. Surely, she hadn't noticed the buttons of her shirt holding on for dear life, barely containing her large tits. And she had the most beautiful skin, the color of pecans. Her lips were full and kissable, and her hair was stuffed under her police cap, with a big bushy ponytail hanging down her back. And though he thought she was gorgeous when he observed her directing traffic, her cute tomboy look had nothing on the bombshell walking into the ballroom. Her bushy ponytail had been converted to a wild, curly, lioness' mane, and her curvy body was wrapped in red satin. The color was striking against her bronze skin. The lady cop walked with the grace and femininity of a confident woman, even though her body language indicated that she had wanted to be anywhere but the State Dinner; a consensus that made them comrades.

Before he realized that his feet had moved, Victor was nearing her. Without a slight glance away from the beauty before him, he acknowledged Jeffrey.

"Governor Creed, may I introduce my fiancée, Nicole, and her sister, Taylor Montgomery."

"How lucky you are, Commissioner Morgan, to be accompanied by two of the most beautiful women in the room."

"I'm a very lucky man indeed, Sir," Jeffrey chuckled, standing a bit taller.

Victor nodded toward Jeffrey's fiancée.

"It's so nice to meet you, Governor Creed,” she greeted.

"The pleasure is truly mine."

She was a beauty in her own right. Clearly there was some good DNA flowing through the sisters’ veins. Victor smiled at her, before devoting his attention to her sister, Taylor. She was a vision. Her natural curls were wild and free, and she looked downright feral, like a beast that could tame him. In nanoseconds, Victor had perused her entire body, before focusing on her beautiful, dark brown, feline-like eyes. He licked his lips before he could stop himself.

Clearing his throat, Victor decided to speak before he did something to really offend the woman.

"It's nice to meet you, Miss Montgomery," he said, as he took her left hand, placing it to his lips. His action was more so to check for a wedding ring. "Welcome to the Executive Mansion."

She smiled as she tugged her hand away. "Thank you, Governor Creed."

"Please call me Victor."

"I couldn't," she said with a chuckle.

"Of course you can," Victor insisted.

She looked around, seemingly taking in the environment. "Everything is so beautiful, Sir."

"Victor," he reiterated. "Maybe I can show you around after dinner?'

"No, Sir," her sister interjected. "We couldn't put you out like that. But thank you."

We? I didn't say shit about we.

Before she'd interrupted, Victor had almost forgotten that the little cockblocker was in the room.

"Hey, I found our table," a male voice said from behind.

Victor turned to find Brent Trainer, the most irritating reporter that he’d ever come across in a press conference. When Brent walked up to Taylor Montgomery and possessively placed his hand in the small of her back, Victor actually stiffened. He stuffed his hands into his pant pockets. He could feel a surge of anger as Brent so freely touched the object of his desire. And the fact that Taylor didn't seem all that comfortable with Brent's gesture didn't exactly give him calm.

"Good evening, Governor," he greeted with an arrogant smirk.

"Trainer," Victor grunted, quickly returning his attention to Taylor.

His eyes narrowed on her as he was mentally warning her to get the reporter's hands off of her. And when she took the subtlest step away from Brent, Victor nodded with a smile as if to say, “Good job.”

"Please enjoy your evening," he said, a bit happier, as he walked away.

"I noticed that you can't keep your eyes off of our handsome, single governor," Nicole whispered. "And, apparently, he can't seem to keep his eyes off of you."

Taylor turned to her sister and tried to play dumb. "What are you talking about?"

Nicole pursed her lips and stared pointedly at Taylor. "Girl, stop playing dumb before I slap you."

"I believe you know, you know better than to do that, dear sister," Taylor responded in a sugary tone.

"Whatever. You look so pretty tonight. Although, I wish that you would have worn your hair up."

Taylor stopped herself from rolling her eyes. Nicole could be so overbearing. It wasn't enough that she'd worn the dress and shoes that she'd picked out for her, as if Taylor wasn't capable of putting together her own outfit, but evidently she didn't believe Taylor could manage her own hair.

Clearly, Nicole was conducting a "find Taylor a man" mission. When Nicole insisted that she tag along with her and her fiancé, Taylor should have known that she was up to something. When she stepped out of her house to find Brent standing by the limo waiting for her, she had to admit that she was a bit surprised by her sister's nerve. Not that Brent wasn't a good looking man; he was quite handsome in a "beach boy" kind of way. He just didn't seem to be her type. With bouncy blonde hair and striking blue eyes, he'd be considered movie star beautiful. Although very tall, he was a little too lean for Taylor. After all, she wasn't a tiny woman. She was 5'9", which was taller than most women, and nowhere near thin. She knew that she had the kind of curves that she couldn't even begin to hide, even in the bulky uniform that she wore every day. Her mother and her sister were also built as solid as a brick wall. No gust of wind was gonna blow either of them away.

"Seriously, Tay, your hair is so... wild"

"Damn, you're still talking?" Taylor huffed. "I like my hair this way. No, I'm not getting a relaxer. No, I don't need to wear weave. Yours, by the way, is gorgeous, but it's not for me. Why don't you style your hair as you wish, and I'll do the same with mine? And I'll thank you for letting it go."

As exasperating as Nicole was, she was right about one thing; Taylor couldn't keep her eyes off of the good governor of Illinois. He was definitely something to look at. He had a thick mane of silky dark hair framing a gorgeous face and a pair of sultry moss green eyes that seemed to hold promises of erotic nights. And damn if he couldn't fill out a tux. He was a tall, thick piece of eye candy that Taylor would love to unwrap. She knew that he was young and handsome, but television did Governor Creed absolutely no justice. She actually had to hide a shiver when he was standing in front of her. And to make matters worse, Taylor was sure that he was flirting with her. Well, he
was,
until Brent walked up. The governor's entire attitude had changed then. He went from friendly and flirty to almost brooding. Admittedly, the change in his demeanor had stirred something from within Taylor. It was as if she had read his mind. He smiled when she eased from Brent's side. He was visibly pleased, and something about pleasing him made her tingle inside.

"For you," Brent said, handing her a glass of champagne, diverting her attention.

"Thank you."

Taylor smiled and took a less than lady-like gulp, earning her a look of disapproval from Nicole. Taylor shrugged and placed the glass on the table in front of her.

"So, Jeffrey tells me that you're a cop. I'll bet you got some great stories."

"Well, I have stories, but I don't know how great they are."

Brent smiled, showing straight white teeth. "I'm sure that depends on who's listening to them."

Taylor retrieved the glass from the table and took a more refined sip before asking, "So, you're a reporter, huh?"

That was her first mistake of the evening, because Brent talked about himself and his “oh so fascinating” stories all through dinner. Even as they danced, Taylor could hear nothing but the incessant ramblings of a man that
really
loved his job. She coped by staring across the ballroom, discreetly eyeing the handsome governor. And when she found the perfect excuse, she politely excused herself.

"Brent, will you excuse me? I think I see an old friend."

"Of course," he responded as he stepped back.

Taylor smiled and took off to the other side of the ballroom. She stopped behind the woman that had caught her attention.

"Victoria Price," Taylor said, prompting the woman to turn around.

"Victoria
Storm
," she corrected with a smile.

"Oh, that's right. I'm still waiting for your tell-all to drop; 'From Streetwalker to Billionaire'.”

"Well, keep waiting. I can't teach you tramps all my tricks."

The ladies embraced and laughed together.

"Vic, it's really good to see you. How have you been?"

"Life's good. I got no complaints. You? You still on the job?"

"Yeah, until I meet a millionaire that is," Taylor scoffed.

"Looks like your wait is over," Victoria whispered.

Taylor turned and looked over her shoulder. Victoria's husband, Jack Storm, and Governor Creed were standing behind her. They were exceeding the hot guy quota that Taylor thought was in place at stuffy events for the rich. Jack Storm had to be the only man that could pry her eyes away from Victor Creed. And although Jack's unbelievable good looks, charisma, and sex appeal were suffocating, Victor Creed was a god among men.  Maybe they were both sons of Zeus.

As Taylor stood before two of the most beautiful men that she'd ever seen, she feared that she'd break out into a sweat at any moment.

"Who's your friend, Sweetheart?" Jack asked.

Damn, his voice is sexy.

"Baby, this is Taylor Montgomery. We were on the department together. Taylor, my husband, Jack, and I trust you know our esteemed governor."

"We've met."

The sexy bass in the governor's voice sent chills down Taylor's spine. She smiled at him, praying that her smile would prompt him to speak again. Jack spoke instead. "Once my wife left the police department, I foolishly thought that they were fresh out of beautiful women. I was terribly wrong."

Jack then gently grabbed Taylor’s hand and placed it to his lips.

"You’re just gonna stand there and watch your husband flirt shamelessly with that beautiful woman?" Victor scolded.

"Leave him be, Governor. He's just having a little fun," Victoria teased.

"Fun my ass," he responded before pulling Taylor’s hand from Jack's face.

Victoria giggled at Jack's mischievous smirk, but his smirk immediately disappeared when Brent joined them.

"Mr. Storm, I-" Brent began to say before Jack cut him off.

"There's no story here, Trainer. Get lost."

"Sir, I know that you didn't like the way I reported on your cousin's story, but I was just doing my job."

"Is that so? I guess when a woman is sexually harassed in the workplace, it's your job to attack the character of the victim. Oh, yeah, and I guess you didn't write your story in favor of the police department in order to stay in the good graces of Media Affairs. Trainer, you're an overly ambitious little toad. Go away."

"Actually, Mr. Storm, I'm here to retrieve my lovely date," Brent responded smugly.

Everyone looked at Taylor, causing her to be a bit self-conscious.

"Trust me, Gorgeous, you can do better," Jack declared, before walking away.

Hell, Taylor already knew that, and she was thoroughly embarrassed. She'd read the article that Jack had referred to, but had no idea that Brent had written it. It had infuriated her. She knew Natasha Walker from the police academy. She was really shy and she kept to herself, but the department had tried to destroy her credibility by attacking her character. It was a disgusting turn of events, but that article that described Natasha as a whore was the most disgusting of it all.

"I'm gonna go catch up with Jack," Victoria said, pressing a kiss to her cheek. "I'll catch you later."

"Okay, later," Taylor mumbled.

She turned and nodded toward the governor and walked away, without a word to Brent. But somehow, she knew that he was on her tail.

*************************************

For most of the evening, Taylor had managed to avoid conversing with Brent. She thought it best not to embarrass Nicole and her fiancé by telling Brent just how much of an asshole he was. Ultimately, avoiding a conversation with him was easy, because more than anything, he loved to hear his own voice. So, Taylor happily sat back and let him talk Jeffrey's ear off.  As a matter of fact, it was Brent's overblown pride in his accomplishments that had allowed her to sneak away from the table again. After a visit to the ladies’ room, Taylor found herself roaming the halls, looking at paintings that she was sure were much older than she was. One caught her eye. It was of a lone, nude woman sitting in a dark forest. It was painted in black and white, with the exception of a throw that was spread over a rock where the woman sat. The throw was painted in a vivid red. Taylor cautiously looked around before lightly touching the canvas.

"It was painted in the late eighteen hundreds by an artistically talented lumberjack that came across a beautiful woman alone in the forest."

The voiced caused Taylor to startle. She jumped, removing her hand from the painting.

Damn, it was Brent. Twenty minutes later, he'd finally noticed her absence.

"I finally got you alone."

Taylor looked around the quiet hall. "I guess you do."

He all but groaned. "Whatever will I do with you?"

"Nothing. Look, Brent, I'm really not interested in getting involved right now. I didn't know that my sister was going to try and set me up."

"Not interested, huh?" he asked as she stalked toward her. "You seemed very interested when you were creaming your panties for the governor and that asshole, Jack Storm."

"Excuse me?"

Taylor was losing her patience, but he was close enough for her to smell the alcohol on his breath.

"Okay, you're drunk. Let's get you out of here," she said, placing her hand on his arm.

"Are you fucking serious?" he hissed, pulling away. "No, I want you to throw yourself at me, just like you did with those motherfuckers."

With that, he Kung-Fu gripped her ass and pushed his groin against her stomach. Before she knew it, Taylor had performed an armbar that resulted in Brent ending up face down on the floor.

She stepped back, smoothing out the fabric of her dress.

"That's not how you treat a lady." The governor's deep baritone rang out in the quiet hall. "I would kick your ass, but it looks like the lady beat me to it. Get up and get your slimy ass out of my house."

Brent pulled himself off the floor and fixed his clothes. Just as instructed, he slinked down the hall. Taylor looked over at the governor. He was leaning against a wall with his muscular arms crossed over his chest. His stance was tall and powerful. And when he flashed her a beautiful smile, for the first time, she noticed his dimples.

How can a man that exudes boatloads of power have dimples?

"Governor Creed..."

"Victor."

"Um, okay. Well, Victor, I had it under control."

"I could see that. Truthfully, I could have stood here and watched you kick his ass all night, but I wanted to be alone with you."

"Is that so?"

"Yes, Taylor Montgomery. I've been waiting for the chance all night."

"And now that we're alone?”

Victor flashed a lopsided grin, showing off one adorable dimple. His eyes gleamed with mischief.

"I'd like to invite you to dinner."

His deep, masculine voice washed over her like a warm bath.

"Like a date? You can do that?" she asked with a quiver in her voice.

"I’m a man. I like women. Why wouldn't I be able to go on a date?"

"Well, dating a high profile man could be a bit of a challenge. Let me think about it."

He shook his head. "No, I'm not giving you a chance to talk yourself out of spending time with me. What are your plans for tomorrow?"

"I'm going fishing."

The governor narrowed his eyes and studied Taylor as if to see if she wasn’t being truthful. "Fishing? You fish?"

"Yes, sir, I do."

"Where do you fish in Chicago?"

"I don't," Taylor chuckled. "I fish at Fox Lake."

"I see. So, when are you free?"

"Governor, let me check my work schedule. I'll get back to you. I mean... you're the governor, it's not like I don't know where to find you."

The governor seemed to silently contemplate her request. "Ok, get back to me," he relented. He then offered his hand. "Come. I'll escort you back to the party."

Taylor placed her hand in his. An instant electric, sexual current flowed between them as he led her back to the ballroom.