DC Affairs (11 page)

“What are you trying to say?” Peter snapped suddenly. “You know politics better than anyone, Liz. You know it’s not really about getting anything done. There’s too damned much red tape!”

Elizabeth looked toward the heavens before her aquamarine eyes met his. “Yeah, I’m sure you’ll be still talking the same crap once you get into the White House. Nothing is your fault. Too much red tape and you’re too much of a coward to admit you don’t give a shit about the future or anything. You’re selfish and all you care about is the position itself and the power it carries. You lack the
responsibility
it takes to handle any top position.”

He stood and glanced at his wife with shock. “You’ve never truly supported me, Liz. I don’t know why I thought it would be different now. I was a fool to think you would ever be behind me. That’s okay, at least I know where you truly stand.”

“My stance has never changed,” she responded in disgust before she turned on him and strode back into his parents’ home.

Peter followed her reluctantly. It wouldn’t do anyone any good for her to be upset and he truly regretted she felt that way about his political career. If she didn’t believe in him then who would? Of course it was great to have the support of people he employed—how else were they supposed to feel?—but he needed his wife, now more than ever.

If he could successfully remove his head from his ass and stop thinking so much about a certain campaign aide who probably was being drilled by her new boyfriend, he would probably feel better.

“Darling, what’s the matter?”

Peter turned toward his mother who sat in her sun room with a large hat covering her head and a brim large enough to cover her face and shoulders.

“Nothing. Elizabeth and I had a little disagreement. We’ll be all right.”

She turned away with conflicted blue-gray eyes. “I know it’s not any of my business but this is not the time or the place for you two to talk about anything political. Doesn’t she know this is a family get together? I don’t want my oldest son walking around the house moping. It’s unbecoming of you.”

“Mother, Liz doesn’t give a crap about any of that. I truly thought we would be able to have a nice long holiday weekend but it doesn’t look like that is going to be the case. She’s angry with me, and ignoring it because we are on vacation won’t help.”

Peter’s mother stood and strode toward her son. “I admit it…I made a terrible mistake when I said she would make a good wife, didn’t I?”

“No, it’s not your fault. She’s a great woman and she’s a good wife but she’s not right for the kind of ambitions I have. What the hell, she doesn’t want to be the spouse of an international politician and she certainly doesn’t want to be First Lady. Maybe…it’s time I threw in the towel. Our relationship is more important than me running for President—”

“No!” His mother patted her perfect hair gently. “Let me talk to Elizabeth. She’s just upset. This is all my fault. I should have known something was wrong with her when she introduced herself to us all those years ago and exclaimed she was a Democrat. Those women aren’t right in the head you know. That kind of ideology is dangerous. People don’t know what to do with too much…personal freedom.”

“My God, Mother, you truly date yourself with a proclamation like that.” Peter looked away with a clenched jaw. “Let her stew for a bit and I’ll try to talk to her later, okay?”

He walked away from his mother as she said, “By the way, I spoke to Kylie and she told me about that new intern—sorry, campaign
aide
—you hired. This Sigourney Stewart isn’t going to be an issue, is she?”

“No, Mother, she isn’t.” He turned toward his mother. “She’s dating Russell Berkeley, Kylie’s half-brother.”

She smiled but it never reached her eyes. “I’m so glad, son. I don’t like taking care of your dirty laundry but there’s nothing more important than getting a Coburn in the White House, and unfortunately, you’re the only one we have a snow ball’s chance in hell with. Laine has permanently fucked himself as you know. We don’t hold out much hope for Brandon either since well, he’s always followed in your footsteps but this isn’t something he’ll ever be able to do. The poor thing would crack under the weight of all that pressure. You can’t let your father and me down, sweetheart.”

Peter returned his mother’s icy smile. “I don’t intend to.”

Chapter Eleven

Sigourney

E
very time I’d doubted Russell, he proved to me he was a much better person than I managed to give him credit for. In fact, I felt downright silly about doubting him in the first place. Once I realized we were going on a road trip but was unsure of the destination, I got a little thrill when we ended up in San Diego.

For a moment, I thought we would be going all the way to Mexico but then I remembered he’d told me not to pack my passport and we would need them for leaving the country.

The Grand Del Mar was everything a person could expect from a five star hotel, including first class dining options, luxuriously romantic suites and a setting fit for a movie. Although I packed light and nothing that would have been remotely acceptable in the dining establishments at our hotel, he took me shopping and bought a gorgeous cocktail dress and stiletto sandals perfect for the occasion.

I smiled at him as we sat across from one another at the Addison, a five star restaurant situated in our resort hotel.

“Well, I can never accuse you of not knowing how to woo a girl,” I responded while I sipped on a delicious Pinot Gris and enjoyed a variety of cheese paired with the light wine.

“Girl? You’re twenty-six years old, Sigourney. I would hope you’d want to experience this at your age. After all that college, I guessed you were tired of frat boys who have no ability to treat a woman as anything other than a sex object.” Russell sipped from his wine before he smiled at me with devilish aquamarine eyes.

It was true, he did fit into this world of wealth and privilege but there was something about him that also made me think of him as a closet rebel. For one, his hair, curling slightly at his collar, was longer than all the men in the restaurant. I’m sure he had a tattoo or three, after all, what guy around my age didn’t? There was also that dangerous hint of male sexuality that came off him in waves. If I didn’t believe he was a sexual being who found me attractive before, I knew for a fact he found me downright sexy now.

I laughed at his comment before I shook my head. “Oh you’re really good, aren’t you? And you always know exactly what to say. I really, really wish I would have met you before Peter and I laid eyes on one another.”

“Come on, darling, where would be the fun in all of that?” He picked up a slice of cheese and tossed it into his mouth. “Seriously, I’m glad you met him and now you know what he’s all about. He’s not some god you have to look up to because you understand he’s deeply flawed. Perhaps that’s why I think he would make a hell of a President. The current one is a little too polished and perfect plus she’s much too educated for the plebeian class of
this
country. She would look more in place in a nation like…Germany or perhaps Denmark. They could handle a female head of state. Countries like this, alas, cannot.”

“You’re funny. Why is it that both Democrats and Republicans treat the voting public like children? They’re grown men and women who should have all the facts but both groups feel like we’re special needs or something—”

“I resent that,” Russell replied though there wasn’t any conviction in his tone.

“Seriously, the Republicans feel like the poor, homosexual and women shouldn’t have rights just because and it’s their duty to stop some…immoral disease from infecting our country. The Democrats feel like people are too stupid to do anything so the government should have this overreaching fiscal control on everyone’s life. Where are the people who want fiscal responsibility yet want to stay out of people’s bedroom’s and women’s uteruses? American politics is truly exhausting and why…I thought I wanted this to be my life is beyond me. I must be a glutton for punishment or something.”

“Maybe you want to make a difference.”

I rolled my eyes as Russell grabbed my hand while the other held a glass of wine poised dangerously close to my lips.

“Listen, I mean it. You’re cynical—I’ll give you that—but maybe you’re one of those rare individuals who can see beyond all the bullshit and do care about what’s going on in people’s lives. Have you ever thought about that?”

“Yes, I have but I don’t think that’s it at all.” I sipped wine and set down my glass. “I don’t know, maybe it’s my father. He always said my brother, sister and I should think outside of the box. This, of course, goes completely against what my mother taught us but what can we expect? She has this attitude that it doesn’t pay to be a tall reed because they get cut down. Just try to go with the flow and try not to stand out too much. I realize I’ve been trying to live with both their philosophies and it has truly wrought havoc on my life, both personally and professionally.”

Russell shrugged. “Hey, I know how you feel. My dad’s from Scotland and he came here to get away from all that jacked up, socialist Euro thinking but the longer he’s lived here, the more he realizes he’s not too different from what he’s run away from. It happens to all of us with foreign parents. They think they are not like their fellow people until all that taken-for-granted comfort is removed and they realize they’re more alike than different from what they ran away from in the first place.”

“What if you really do feel different? I mean, both my siblings like it over there much more than they like it here. However, I’m sure they don’t feel entirely at home. I don’t know…I haven’t really talked to them about
why
they left in the first place.”

“Does it really matter?” He stared intensely at me and I couldn’t help it if my heart skipped a beat or two. “If you ask me, all that really matters is you’re still here. I’m so glad we got the chance to meet although the circumstances might not be entirely conventional. It’s true, we work together, but I knew you were special the first time I saw you. There’s something about you I needed to know and I’m glad you let me in.”

I sipped from my wine and tried not to smile openly but how could I not melt a little bit when he was so sweet to me? I knew it wasn’t love but lust had a way of feeling equally powerful and even more compelling. Here I was, willing to break all my own rules because I just knew Russell could be the one. We both felt something for one another other than mere attraction. He would be perfect to love if I ever let him in, and stopped thinking about Peter long enough to concentrate on him alone.

If I allowed myself to open up to him.

If I could get over my attraction with Peter.

Gah!

Life simply wasn’t fair at all and yet again, I found myself wishing I’d met him first.

“What’s going on in that pretty head of yours?” he asked in a calm tone.

My fingers traced the rim of the wine glass. “I want you to take me back to our hotel suite and I wish to have primal hot sex with you.”

“Primal hot sex, huh? Is that some sort of new craze that’s sweeping through the most popular romance novels?” Russell teased.

“I wouldn’t know. I haven’t finished a romance book in a hot minute. I’ve been too busy trying to create some sizzling sexual tension in my own life. Why don’t you let me know how much you enjoyed it after we’re through?”

“So, will I rest in peace at the end of the night like California?”

I laughed out loud. “The Red Hot Chili Peppers called and they informed me they aren’t giving anything away now.”

“Nice wordplay.”

I cocked my head to the side as I grinned brightly. “I learned from the master.”

“Okay, babe, since you’re not interested in finishing dinner, let’s go try out some primal hot sex. I’m interested in whether it’s going to be something to write home about.”

“I don’t know,” I said with unabashed honesty, and stood from the table. “Do you make it a habit of giving your father a blow by blow account on what’s happening in your love life?”

“Only a sorta fairytale version of it, why?”

“Oh. My. God. Berkeley, you are
such
a
huge
nerd.”

“Wait till you get me in the sack, Stewart. My nerd factor isn’t the only huge thing I have goin’ for me.”