More Than Rivals (20 page)

Betty panted adoringly at him and leaned all of her 170 pounds against his leg, causing Jack to lose his balance. “Whoa, girl. Watch out there.”

“Hello, Jack!” His mother’s voice called from the kitchen. “What are you doing here?”

Jack patted Betty on the back and walked into the next room. He stopped when he almost stepped on his mother’s other canine child. Another mastiff lay across the doorway in deep slumber. Jack rolled his eyes and stepped over him. “Nice to see you, too, Abe.”
 

“Abe’s been tired lately,” said his mother as she filled an electric kettle. She smiled at Jack. “How are you? How do you feel about everything?”

 
Jack shook his head. “I’m … uh … I don’t know.”

“Natasha,” said his father with reproach. George Bengston leaned against the countertop, his long legs extended out. He gestured to the barstools. “Give him a minute to sit down.”

“George, I was just saying ‘hello.’” Natasha scowled, and then turned to Jack. “Take a seat, honey. Would you like some tea?”

“No, I’ll get myself some water,” Jack said. He turned to his father. “Hey, Dad. Have you talked with Charles? ”

“Just did.” He nodded grimly. “I feel awful for him. It’s wonderful what he’s done for you, but I’m sorry that he’s so sick.”

“It is sad he’s sick,” said Jack as he found a water glass.

“Is this why you’re here?” asked Natasha. “You wanted to talk before you release a statement?”

“Yup. That’s it,” said Jack, thinking he’d answered truthfully, but not fully.
 

George glanced at Jack as if he sensed something. “Let’s go in the living room and sit down.”

 
When they were all assembled on the spacious sofas of the refined living area, Natasha took a sip of tea and kicked off the conversation. “Jack, did Charles give you any details about his health?”
 

“Not really.” Jack shrugged. “He sounds bad.”

“I just feel awful for him. He’s been working for this for so long and now he can’t do it. Poor guy,” said his mother.

“It’s terrible. I wish it weren’t so, but …,” said George, turning to Jack. “But Jack, there is a silver lining. I think Charles has taken some comfort in being able to endorse you.”

Jack pressed his lips together in a hard line. It was time to come clean. “Yeah, I know, but I’ve got a problem.”

“A problem? What kind of problem?” asked Natasha innocently.

George’s brow knitted together in suspicion. “What’s going on?”

Clasping his hands together, Jack leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees. It was a comfortable pose when conveying uncomfortable information. “Well, I’ve started seeing Ursula Robles.”

Natasha flinched as if she’d heard something odd, and she was always a woman who got straight to the point. “You’re seeing Ursula Robles? What does that mean?”

 
His father was even more direct. “You’re having an affair with one of your opponents?”

Jack started to answer, “Yes, but no—”
 

“But what? Are you crazy?” asked Natasha. “Why would you do something like that?”

George rubbed his forehead and muttered, “Oh, Jack. What have you done?”

Not liking the pedantic tone of his parents, Jack straightened in his seat. “Mom. Dad. Calm down. Okay?”

“What’s going on then?” demanded Natasha.

“Over the last six months or so, Lily and I have become friends, and …” Jack stopped himself and held up a hand to stop their train of thought as well. “Wait. I need to start at the beginning. I never told you about something that happened to me back in the summer.”

“What happened?” asked George.

“One night back in August I was up in Petaluma. It was late, and I needed to prepare for a meeting the next day. I went out for coffee and met a really cool woman.” Jack chuckled. “I fell for her right there.”

“What does she have to do with Ursula?” asked George.

“She
is
Ursula,” Jack said, raising his eyebrows. “But I didn’t know it at the time. She introduced herself as Lily. That’s what her friends and family call her. I said my name was Jack.”

“So she didn’t know who you were when you met?” asked Natasha.

“Not at first,” replied Jack. “As soon as she figured it out she left. I didn’t know that was why she was leaving. I tried to get her number, but she wouldn’t give it to me. She just said I’d understand soon.” He shook his head and smiled. “The next day when it came out in the press she was running I understood.”

“So you two have been seeing each other since then?” asked his father.

“No. It’s actually been a bumpy road. We weren’t even speaking for a while, but eventually we became friends,” Jack replied.

“And then you became more than friends?” Natasha said with an edge of bitterness.
 

“It just happened,” answered Jack.

The room went quiet. George looked off to the side as if he was trying to piece together the mystery of how his supremely driven and rational son had done something so irrational. “Hmm. I suppose candidates spend a lot of time together. You get to know one another, and it’s generally been a positive race.”

Natasha shook her head in dismay. “But really, Jack, it didn’t just happen. You let this happen. How could you? I know she’s pretty and smart, but really…”

“Probably because it’s never felt wrong. We started going for runs together, and we hit it off. It could’ve turned out just the opposite, but it didn’t.”

“But an affair…” said Natasha under her breath.

“Mom, it’s not like we’ve been secretly getting rooms in skanky hotels off 101,” said Jack in annoyance. “In fact, we’ve spent a lot of time together in public places. We’ve just been discreet about it.”

“Really?” asked George.

“Yes, Lily was adamant from the beginning that she wasn’t going to sneak around.”

“So if someone was watching you, you could’ve gotten caught?” George asked.
 

“Sure. If someone followed us, they would’ve at least known we’d become friends. That’s not so strange. As you’ve said, with Charles leading the pack, it’s not like it’s been a negative campaign among the rest of us,” said Jack. He then summed everything up with a shrug. “We simply haven’t given a relationship status update to the rest of the world.”

Natasha crossed her arms and leaned back on the sofa. “But that’s just something you would say to the press if you were questioned. That’s not what’s really going on.”

“It’s not.” Jack’s face became sober and apologetic as it always did throughout his life whenever he fessed up to his parents. “I’m in love with her. Eventually I want to marry her.”
 

George took his eyes off his son and met the stare of his wife. Jack watched as they silently communicated their mutual surprise. He knew he’d dropped a bomb on them.

“So soon?” Natasha asked, turning back to Jack. “You were just dating Beverly.”

“So
that’s
why you finally ended it with Beverly.” His father snickered. “I was wondering what the impetus was.”

“It was pretty clear I wanted to be with Lily by that point,” said Jack with a sheepish smile.

George shook his head and sighed. “When you know, you know.”

“This is a stunning surprise,” his mother laughed, placing her hand on her heart. “But if you really believe you’re in love with her, I’m happy for you. She seems like a very nice person.”

“She is,” said Jack. “Her son is great, too.”

“Oh, that’s right. She has a son,” said Natasha, her eyes widening.
 

“What’s his name?” asked George.

“Luke Harris. He has his father’s last name,” said Jack.
 

“Would you adopt him?” asked Natasha.

“We haven’t gotten that far.” Jack smiled, hoping that would be the end to the marriage conversation. There were more immediate matters to discuss, and he didn’t want to tell them anything more about his love life than he had to.
 

“So you and Lily haven’t talked about it, but have
you
thought about it?” asked his father.
 

Jack felt his father had posed more of a gauntlet than a question. If he answered yes, then it was a sign he really was serious about Lily. He told his father the truth. “I
have
thought about it. Luke is a really good kid, and he’s a part of Lily.”

Natasha smiled sympathetically and looked first to Jack and then to her husband. George nodded in thought. “Well, no wonder you’re worried about what’s happened today.”

“There’s a lot more at stake for you, now,” said Natasha. “What does Lily say to all this?”

“We haven’t really talked yet.” Jack checked his watch. “This has all come down in less than two hours.”

“And you need to make a statement soon,” said George. “I’m sure the press is already calling you.”

“I know. I’ve told my staff that until further notice, I can’t be reached for comment,” said Jack. “I hope you don’t mind, but I asked Lily to come here. I figured it was the only place we could talk in private.”

“That’s fine,” said Natasha. “She must be coming soon though.”

Jack checked his watch. “Depending on traffic, she’ll be here in a half an hour or so.”

George slowly wrung his hands. A former judge, it was his personal tic when he was tackling a decision. After a moment, George said, “So if Charles endorses you, you immediately become the front-runner and everyone falls in line to attack you.”

“And Lily would be forced to do the same,” said Jack.

“Would she?” asked George. “Couldn’t she just stand down?”

Shaking his head, Jack said, “I doubt it. I think she’d drop out rather than be in that situation.”
 

Then Natasha showed her own political chops. “I hate to say this, but Jack won’t be as strong a front-runner as Charles.”

“True,” said George. “But Charles’s endorsement will go a long way.”

“With all due respect to Charles—and you know I love him dearly, I don’t think his endorsement is dispositive,” said Natasha in a worried tone. “Not all of Charles’s supporters will simply go to Jack. In fact, I think many will defect.”
 

“Why do you say that?” asked Jack.

“Because I hear things from friends and acquaintances who live in that district,” said his mother, reminding the men she had her own gauge on politics. “Many of those women are publicly supporting Charles, but … privately … they say they would love to vote for Ursula Robles. They like her a lot. With Charles out of the race, there’s a possibility this could be a two-person race between you and Lily, even Yancey would be pushed aside.”

Jack stared his mother down. Everything she said made perfect sense, so he added, “And a woman like her is a formidable opponent.” Tired of the dilemma that had to be solved in only a few hours, he rubbed his temple. “I won’t say anything negative about her. Period.”

“So we’ll have two leading candidates who refuse to attack each other in a vicious primary, while everyone else is lobbing bombs at them,” said George.

“That’s what Bill has been worried about,” Jack muttered.
 

“So Bill knows?” asked Natasha.

“Yes, he knows everything, including the news about Charles.”

“Tell me, Jack,” said George. “Truthfully, do you want to win this race?”

“I do,” replied Jack with no hesitation, though he had to then qualify his commitment. “But not like this. This feels … undeserved.”

“How so?” said Natasha.

“Because most likely, I wouldn’t win because I was the best candidate. I’d win because Charles picked me over everyone else.”

Peering over his bifocals, George reminded Jack, “The benefits you’ve derived from your privilege and family connections have never troubled you before.”

“Would you feel this way if Lily weren’t in the race?” probed Natasha.

“Probably not,” said Jack. “But she is.”

A short while later, Lily idled her car as the gate to Jack’s parent house opened. After only a few seconds, she pulled in, and the gate closed behind her. The garage was open, but that also closed after she crossed its threshold. She got out of her car, and Jack was waiting for her. He stood at the door to the inside with his arms crossed and a smile on his face. “Hey, Babe,” he said.
 

“Hi, Sweetie.” She looked behind her and laughed. “I’m feeling a little trapped.”

“In more than one way?” He took a few steps toward her and gave her a quick kiss.
 

“Yes, actually.” She giggled.

“Sorry about that.”

“How long do you think we have until the press comes here?”

“I’m guessing a few hours. You should leave before though.”
 

“Sure. I understand. What are you going to do?”
 

“I’ve got some clothes stashed here, and I’m going to stay the night.” He gestured to the door. “Let’s go inside. My parents are here, but they’ve made themselves scarce.”

Lily nodded silently, understanding their departure. As they walked inside, Jack quickly added, “But we have other family members to greet you. Meet Betty”

Betty trotted toward them, causing loud thuds against the hardwood floors. Lily grinned. “What a greeting! She’s beautiful.”

“She is. Sweet, too. Her older brother Abe can’t be bothered with us.”

After Lily petted Betty for a moment, they walked to the kitchen and stepped over Abe as he continued his slumber. Lily looked around the designer kitchen. “This house is stupendous.”

“Thanks. It’s all my mom’s doing.”

“Well, she does a great job.”
     

“Can I get you something to drink?”

“Sure. Water would be great.”

As Jack filled a glass with water for her, he said, “I told my parents about us.”

“How did that go?” Lily asked with an anxious smile.

“Good. They didn’t like the circumstances or the timing, but they’re happy for me.”

“Really?” She asked in a relieved tone. “That’s good to hear.”

He handed her the glass. “And they want to see you again.”

“I’d like to see them too.”

“Another time.”