The Secret Liaison (2 page)

The couple attempted to leave the ballroom without being spotted but Justin saw them and called out to them from the group that he was entertaining “Austin and Jessica I would like you to meet Monica.  Monica this is my brother Austin and his very lovely wife Jessica.”  Greetings were made all around as Justin said “Monica is thinking about becoming my personal aide, what do you think Austin.”  The smile coming from Monica could have radiated the entire ballroom. Austin wasn’t slow on this uptake so he played along with his twin.  “Well brother that depends on what Monica’s qualifications are.”

Shaking his head as if in deep thought Justin said just as he caught a glimpse at Jessica’s disapproval “I tell you what twin I am going to give her an interview and I will let you know if she got the job.” Justin patted Austin on the back and said “You guys have a good night and congratulations again.” Austin and Jessica made their way out ballroom and waited for their driver to pull up as Austin began to chuckle “That brother of mine is something else.  He has always been the ladies man. I can only imagine what type of interview he is going to give that girl.” Jessica saw absolutely nothing funny but decided to keep it to herself as they got into the black stretch limo and relaxed for the ride back to their Bethesda Maryland home.

A Forgotten Time

              Two days after the fundraiser Joshua Brent sat in his study in the Beverly Hills section of Alexandria Virginia in a somber mood.  Looking out the window he admired his neighborhood for the peaceful life that it afforded him and his wife.  However the tranquil feel of the neighborhood could not squash the utter disgust he felt at his son marrying that Dublin girl.  The Brent’s feud with the Dublin’s is over thirty years old and did not die with Dirk Dublin.  Joshua turned in his chair and stared at a painting of his wife the hung over the fireplace.  The painting was life like.  It was his wife in all of her glorious splendor.  Julia was smiling back at him from the picture almost mockingly in her beautiful cream Vera Wang gown that flowed like a wedding dress.  Joshua remembered the day the famous painter came to their home to create the masterpiece like it was yesterday.  He remembered marveling at his wife’s beauty and feeling like the luckiest man alive to have her in his corner.  Not only was she beautiful but she was a political asset to his family having come from a large Virginian political family.  Joshua stared at the painting and remembered what started the bad blood between the Brent’s and the Dublin’s.

             
The winter of 1980 was a brutal one in the Virginia countryside.  The Brent family was hunkered down trying to ride it out like everyone else.  Joshua was Senator Brent back then and his father Jordan was ‘Speaker of The House’, second in line for Presidential succession.

Joshua remembered the amount of pressure that he felt being the son of the great Jordan Brent.  He strived extra hard to follow in his father’s footsteps, unlike his brother Barnacle who chose to work in the family business rather than follow his father into politics.  He snuggled with Julia on the fluffy rug and realized he was thankful for all of his blessings.  It wasn’t until he felt something wet hit his arm that he realized that Julia was crying.  His heart instantly ached, he pulled away and asked “why are you crying dear?” nothing hurt him more than to see her sad.  The look on her face was one of pure anguish, she tried to speak but it only made her break down into tears.  Julia leaned into Joshua’s shoulder and cried herself to sleep and he held her all night wondering what could be bothering his wife.

              The next morning bright and early Joshua reached for his wife and she was not in bed.  He was immediately concerned after her behavior last night.  The sunlight was peeking through the curtains but he could see that the snow was still falling hard.  Shaking his head at the weather he grabbed his robe and put on his slippers.  A mixture of crying and coughing could be heard coming from the direction of his bathroom. Rushing in that direction he found his wife hugging the toilet with her head almost at the bottom of it. He immediately ran water in the sink and wet a towel for her “here you go love. What’s wrong with you? Do you want me to call Dr. Rich?” 

When Julia came up for air her eyes were blood shot red as if she had never stopped crying from the night before. Her normally tamed blond hair was disheveled and she was shaking her head furiously “no Jo I don’t want a doctor.  I don’t know what I want anymore.”  That last statement was perplexing to Joshua; he knelt next to his wife and wiped her face with the cool rag.  His patience and sweet demeanor seemed to have a negative effect on his wife and she became uncharacteristically abusive screaming “leave. Just leave me alone Jo. Let me think.  Let me breath please!” Joshua had never seen his wife like this and he was scared for her, but he did as she asked and gave her room to breathe. 

              Joshua tried to get some work done, but politics were the last thing on his mind.  He was worried sick about his wife along with having cabin fever caused by the weather.  He sat in his study behind his vintage oak desk.  This desk had been passed down through generations of Brent men and was one of his most prized possessions.  It made him feel connected to the past and hopeful for the future.  He hoped to one day pass it down to his own son.  Joshua ran his hand across the desk and thought about all of the decisions that were made around the desk not only by his father, but his grandfather.  The door to his study opened suddenly and in walked Julia.  She looked refreshed; her hair was done and she was dressed as if she was going to a luncheon in her smart hounds tooth skirt and red top.  The sign that things were still not right with her were the redness of her grey eyes. 

She walked towards Joshua never losing eye contact with him as she took a seat as if she was there for a scheduled meeting.  The thickness in the air was too much for Joshua.  He continued to rub on the desk as he stared in his wife eyes and said “Are you ready to tell me what is going on with you Julia.” She cleared her throat already making up her mind that she was strong enough to get through this.  She was a Custis and Custis women could face any challenge; even this.  Holding her head up nice and strong and sticking her chest out to encourage her speech she said “I am pregnant.” Joshua stopped rubbing the desk as a smile broke out from his heart to his eyes and he shouted “That’s wonderful Julia! I am so excited oh my God why are you crying and sad this is wonderful news!”  He jumped up from his seat to make his way over to his wife; he couldn’t remember when he had been so happy.  Before he could make it all the way around the desk she yelled “It’s not yours Jo… The baby is not yours!”

The ringing of the phone brought him back from his nightmare.  Thinking about that time in his life was more painful than he wanted to admit to anyone.  Picking up the phone he said more forcefully than he planned “Hello!” The caller was a reporter with the Ledger and wanted to know if he wanted to comment on his son’s marriage to Dirk Dublin’s daughter.  Before Joshua could hang up on him the reporter went on to comment that the rumor mill was saying that Dublin was his archenemy and now Dublin’s daughter was half owner of his family’s business.  Once the reporter came up for breath Joshua took his frustration out on him “Your rumor mill knows nothing about my family and I would suggest you get your facts straight before I sue the Ledger and you personally.” He slammed the phone down so hard that it cracked in two places.  He was beyond pissed and could feel his pressure rising.  He was sixty years old and stress was wrecking havoc on his system causing him to have heart palpitations.  Joshua looked back out the window of his study and took some slow smooth breathes of air.  He could feel his heart regulating just as Julia walked into the room and said “Jo what are you up too?  You have been closed up in here all day.”  She had her arms folded across her ample chest with a look of annoyance grazing her beautiful features as she continued  “You can’t control your children’s lives Jo! Let the past go! And as for Austin, what is done is done!” With that Julia turned and stormed right back out of the door. He could hear the pleading in her voice and he had promised her years ago that he would let it go but sitting there thirty three years later he just wasn’t sure if he could anymore.

Round Three

              The sun peeking through the blinds didn’t stop Justin from indulging in his favorite morning snack as he slowly snaked down through his Merino Egyptian thousand count cotton sheets.  Justin loved to show women his twenty two carat gold sheets and brag that they were handmade.  He didn’t need any help in the bedroom but he loved the look on their face as they contemplated how fast they could remove their clothes to feel those sheets on their body. Most people assumed that he was a square because he was rich and well educated; it was quite the opposite.  Out of the two, Justin was the one who was more laid back and fun to be around.  He enjoyed a good joke, loved to hang out with his friends and the ladies, well that was another story.  Some consider him the quintessential ladies man; with his model looks and sexy physique he never has problems with the ladies.  Managing all of this with a professional life in the lime light is a nightmare for his campaign manager.  He has been called everything from the gigolo politician to the next sex scandal waiting to happen.  All of that could be furthest from the truth; Justin was nothing if not responsible.  He was single and he liked women.  Things could be much worse.  And speaking of women, he nibbled gently on the sweet nectar that he had before him as his conquest moaned loudly.  Justin loved when they spoke the sounds of ecstasy in his direction. 

Unfolding the juicy present that lay before him gave him a feeling of joy like kids feel when they open presents; they are both excited and hopeful.  Justin was excited to be traveling the canals of sexual ecstasy with one of the most beautiful women he had ever seen.  He was hopeful that he could survive another round with the feisty Monica.  She has held him captive for the last three days giving him a run for his money.  Justin continued to please her beyond measure enjoying every moment of the way she was pulling in his curly locks and screaming his name “Right there Justin…don’t stop. Yes! YEs! YES!”   He liked to swim in her ocean but before she could reach her peak he climbed her body and entered her palace once again.  In this moment Justin turned from gentle giant to ravenous beast pounding into Monica with abandon.  Her walls collapsed around his girth holding him captive as he dug deeper and deeper “That’s it baby take this dick.”  He flipped her on her stomach and entered her from the back as Monica threw the roundest ass he had ever seen back at him panting and still screaming his name.  She was about to explode, especially when Justin declared “I’m cumming baby….urrgghhh ohh shit yeah!!” They both reached their peak at the same time collapsing on the bed together.  Monica’s body continued to enjoy silent aftershocks as she relished having “Thee Justin Brent” still nestled inside of her body.  The ringing of the phone shattered the euphoric moment. 

Reluctantly Justin reached for the phone “Yeah.” His tone let the caller know he was not happy being disturbed.  It was Devlin, his campaign manager and best friend, he was snicker a little as he said “Put it back in your pants playboy.  Your little sexual hiatus with the bimbo of the week is over.  I need you on deck pronto.”  Devlin hung up the phone before Justin was able to protest.  Shaking his head and smiling at his friends antics Justin hung up the phone and stood to his full 6’3 stretching himself to another foot and a half as he said “I got to go Monica.  It has definitely been a fun couple of days though.”  He looked over at the beauty in his bed and thought to himself too bad the brains didn’t come with the beauty because she was killer in the sack.  Monica was wearing a look of disappointment on her face as she said “Can I come with you?”  Justin didn’t even answer that ridiculous question as he headed for the power jets of his shower hoping she would be gone when he came out.  

The Confrontation

There was plenty of excitement in the days following the announcement of the merger between Brent Electronics and Dublin Engineering.  The media was relentless with their pursuit of a story.  They continued to try and link the announcement to Justin’s run for the Senate.  Austin was anxious to separate his family’s company business from his family’s political life.  Sitting behind his high end oak desk he was going over figures for the first project that would be headed under the newly merged company of Brent & Dublin Electrical Engineering. Lately he had been feeling bad;
loss of appetite, nausea, and vomitingwere threatening to ruin his day
.
 
Of the twins Austin was the more laid back; the one most likely to have a plan designed for everything he did.  The timing of the announcement of the merger at his brother’s fundraiser was not by accident.  He wanted to publically put the bad blood between the Brent’s and the Dublin’s to bed.  Austin and Justin could never get to the source of the conflict between the families and Jessica didn’t seem to know either; however she did confide in Austin that her father was dead set against her associating with the “Brent Bastard’s.”  Coughing and shaking and his head Austin said “I can’t believe that’s how he referred to us.  He didn’t even know us!” He was jarred from his reflective thought by a slight commotion outside his office door. 

His office door opened and in walked Joshua Brent in all of his self importance with the office assistance Mildred hot on his heals looking exasperated saying “Mr. Brent I tried to stop him.”  Austin slowly raised his hand “Don’t worry about it Mildred.”  As he shot daggers at his father and said “And what brings you to the building dad? You haven’t stepped foot into this building since uncle Barnacle died of cancer five years ago.”  Austin coughed and came from around his desk and attempted to give his father a hug but Joshua had other plans “I don’t plan on staying and might I say you look horrible.  I just needed to come and talk some sense into you.” He said as he moved away from the intended embrace.  Joshua never noticed the hurt look on Austin’s face as he moved to the conference table in the corner and took a seat and continued to talk with a nervous look on his face “Austin, son, I really want you to reconsider your marriage to that girl.  It’s not too late to have it annulled! You don’t know these people.  They will suck you dry and spit you out.  Once a Dublin always a Dublin.”  He appeared to be out of breath as he completed his plea.  The look on Austin’s face was indifferent as he said “Dad, why do you hate the Dublin’s so much?  If you would just give Jessica a chance you would find her to be a beautiful soul with the brain of a genius.  She is good for me and even better for the company.  Why can’t you just be happy for us; for me?” Austin had moved closer to his father, really wanting to know what was causing his father so much distress. 

He looked close to tears and this was something that Austin had never witnessed before.  He could tell that this meant a lot to his father, but he refused to allow him to run his personal and business life.  Austin cleared his throat and said “How does mother feel about this?”  Joshua shot up from his chair quicker than his sixty years should have allowed and giving his son a hard look he said “You will regret this.” With that he turned and moved quickly from the office leaving a confused Austin in his wake.