by Sienna Snow
I waited for the car to move before I let go of my emotions. First, a whimper escaped, then a loud sob.
I covered my face with my hands and cried as I hadn’t cried before. Even after my attack, I hadn’t felt this much pain.
Everything I ever wanted was within grasp, and the one thing I needed was completely out of reach.
What kind of idiot was I to let the love of my life go because of our party lines? If only I’d compromised some, there may have been a chance for us. Now if Ashur won, Veer and I would be separated by a huge political wall. He’d marry someone else, have children with someone else, live a life with someone else.
I covered my empty womb with my hand and cried even harder. I couldn’t imagine having a baby with anyone but Veer.
I rocked back and forth, lost in my grief and sorrow. Fifteen minutes later, when my car pulled through the gates of my estate, I had myself under some semblance of control.
Hiccupping, I stepped out of the car, and in a numb haze, I entered my big, empty house. I scanned the single place setting on the island designed to serve a large family and winced.
This pitiful existence was my life.
I reached for my cell phone, thinking a call to Sam would cheer me up, but pulled back. I couldn’t call her. She was already in the middle as it was. Veer was hers as much as I was. Plus, she was probably asleep by now anyway.
I moved toward the back hallway of the house and descended the stairs to the wine cellar. Picking out a bottle of my favorite Bordeaux, I poured myself an extra-large serving and drank down half the glass, letting the smooth liquid dull my senses.
I made my way to my bedroom, kicking off my heels and setting my drink on the bedside table. Stripping my clothes into a pile, I walked into the bathroom, turned on the shower to the hottest setting my body could handle, and then stepped into the scalding spray.
The water beat down on me, seeping into my tense muscles. I leaned my head against the shower wall, feeling defeated and alone.
My ambition came at a price, and now I had to live with it.
I’d set myself up for a perfect political future. A future I didn’t want without the one man who made my heart skip a beat with his not-quite-perfect smile.
I closed my eyes and let out a whimper, feeling another wave of sadness bear down on me. After a few more minutes of self-pity, I shook my head and smacked the tile of the shower.
“I’m such a goddammed idiot!” I shouted. “This is not how my story with Veer will end.”
I refused to believe there was not hope. I had to find him and tell… What the hell was I going to tell him?
My shoulders sagged for a second and then the idea came to me. He was due back at his house tonight. I’d go there and wait for him. Hopefully, he’d forgive me for my stupidity and would be willing to give us another chance. I’d tell him I’d wait as long as it took to make my dreams come true as long as he was with me.
Maybe then, he’d understand that he meant more to me than anything else.
“Time to go all in, Jacinta.” I released a deep breath and turned, coming to an abrupt stop.
Veer stood before me in all his naked glory.
I blinked the water from my eyes, trying to make sure I wasn’t imagining him in my shower.
I reached out and my fingers pressed against his hard chest.
“I’m really here, baby.” He covered my hand with his and stepped forward, but I held him back. Water glided down his golden muscled arms and chest.
“What are you doing here?”
“I heard your interview.”
“I wasn’t going to trash you.”
“I never thought you would.” He paused, and his gaze bored into mine. “I also heard about what you said to Candice McDavers after.”
Wincing, I released a sigh.
“That was off the record.” I knew it was going to get out but hadn’t expected it to be so fast.
His lips curved in the way that brought butterflies into my stomach. “You should know by now nothing is off the record, especially when you’re in a studio with high-definition microphones.”
“It doesn’t matter what my answer was. I’m not sure it will change anything.” I wiped the spray from my face and tried to push Veer back so I could move past him and not feel so exposed, so vulnerable.
Veer wouldn’t budge, and the heat of his hot skin burned through my fingertips.
“It changes everything. You want me.”
“I never said otherwise.”
“I want you, Jaci.”
“That was never our problem. Sex was the one place we never, ever had issues. But…”
“But?”
“I don’t just want sex. I want more.” My hand curled against the crisp hair on his chest, loving the feel of him under my fingertips.
“How much more?”
There was an intensity to his eyes that confirmed he wanted me, and the low hum that constantly pulsed inside me woke with a boom.
Fuck. Focus, Jacinta. Sex is not the answer.
I couldn’t get distracted. I had to get my words out before I lost my nerve. Although, naked was not how I planned to confess my feelings.
I guessed beggars couldn’t be choosers and began to speak. “Ever since I was little, all I ever dreamed about was a political career. The idea of being the first female president consumed me.”
“I know, Jaci,” Veer interjected, keeping the distance my arm provided. “Why do you think I ended it between us? I couldn’t stand between you and your dreams. You were born for this. You were raised to play the game and win.”
“What if I said I don’t want the dream or to win without you?” I tried to turn around so he couldn’t see my uncertainty. “None of it matters, if you’re not there with me.”
Veer stopped me by pressing his body to the front of mine and tilting my face up. His gaze penetrated mine.
“What to repeat that?”
I swallowed down that lump in my throat. “I…I don’t want to do this without you anymore. I know, I made you feel like you were second and I can’t make excuses for what I did. All I can do is ask you to forgive me.” My lips trembled and Veer’s thumb ran over them. “I’ll wait until you and Ash finish your terms. I’ll wait for the nomination. Hell, I’ll wait forever, if it means we are together. My ambition means nothing, if it means I’m half alive.”
“When did you come to this conclusion?” His voice was cool, almost emotionless, except his touch was so tender as he ran a hand down my side.
“I’ve thought about barely anything else for the last few weeks.”
“Our relationship could cost you more than you can imagine. Not only a future nomination but reelection to the Senate.”
I lifted my chin. “I’m willing to risk it.”
He remained quiet for what felt like hours, watching me, studying me. Then just as my shoulders sagged, and the tears I thought I’d spent reappeared, Veer said, “I want the dream with you too.”
I exhaled the breath I hadn’t realized I held.
“Really?” A tear slipped down my cheek as Veer cupped my face.
“I want you by my side, Jaci. I don’t want any of this without you either.” Before I could respond, he continued, “But know this, I won’t ever let you give up your dream. Even if it is twenty years from now. You will be up on that podium taking the highest office in the nation.”
I stared at him through water-misted lashes. My heart drummed in a deafening beat, and my lips trembled.
“A relationship with me could make you lose the election too. I represent a lot of what you and Ashur oppose. No matter what my personal stance may be, people will only see what the GOP has historically done.”
He moved forward, pressing me against the tile-covered wall of the giant shower. The crisp hair on his chest rubbed against my nipples. “It’s a risk I’m willing to take.”
“Have you talked to Ashur about this? It’s his ticket you’re running on.”
&
nbsp; “I wouldn’t worry about him.”
I frowned. “Of course I’m going to worry about him. He’s leading in the polls by over thirty points. I won’t be the cause of a rift between you two.”
Veer cupped my breast and rolled my nipple with his thumb, making me lose my concentration.
“He’s the one who sent me the recording of the interview and your off-the-record conversation.”
“What?” I grabbed his hand, but that only made him squeeze harder.
“You heard me. Ash wants us together. He knows you’re the one who helped Tara with the incident overseas. He wants to pay it forward, and he couldn’t care less if it costs him the election. It’s not as if the two of us don’t have jobs if we lose.”
Hope bloomed inside my body.
“What do you say, Jaci? Ready to turn the political circuit on its ass?”
For the first time in months, I felt the tug of happiness enter my body, and I leaned into Veer, smiling. “Yes.”
“Good.” There was a roughness to his voice that told me he was being filled with the same overload of emotions I was.
I stood on tiptoes and kissed his forehead. Veer gripped my nape with his other hand and tilted it up. Water dripped from his hair and down the side of his beautiful face.
“Just so you know, I came here with the intention of begging you to keep me, but you beat me to it.”
“Well, I guess you can’t win them all.”
“True, true.” His eyes lit up, and a wide grin touched his lips. “You know what this means?”
I couldn’t help but smile up at him. “What?”
“You’re going to have lots of politically hybrid babies with a liberal.”
“Is that right?”
“Yes. I may even convince you to come over to the dark side.”
“I love you, but it won’t make me change my views.”
“Say that again.” His tone grew soft and his gaze intensified.
I ran my thumb down the scar on his cheek, across his lips, and then leaned up to kiss him.
“I love you, Veer George. Let’s make some politically hybrid babies.”
“I suggest we start this very moment.”
Epilogue
Veer and I entered Ashur’s Houston campaign headquarters to cheers and shouts. Banners, American flags, and confetti filled the room, as did the incredible number of supporters. Tara and Ashur smiled when they saw us, waving at us to join them.
The two of them had grown into a level of tolerance for each other that never betrayed that the true nature of their relationship was a business deal. What they seemed oblivious to was the sexual tension that floated around them whenever they were in a room. The media loved to comment on the chemistry between them and how they couldn’t wait for their large wedding.
Veer loved to make sly comments about how Ashur watched his fiancée as a man ready to lick every inch of her, fuck her, or do both. Which would result in a “fuck off” or a scowl. Tara, on the other hand, could handle Ashur’s presence with cold indifference, something I knew was a complete front.
As we made our way down the walkway, various campaign staffers hugged us. There was a spirit of victory in the room, even though nothing was official. The last of the voting polls
were near closing with the Kumar-George ticket in the clear lead. Once California came in, there was no going back. Ashur would become the next President of the United States.
We stepped onto the stage to another round of cheers. Veer stepped in the direction of where Ashur stood, but then turned back to me.
“Wish me luck.” Veer tucked a lock of hair behind my ear and kissed my forehead.
“No luck needed, soon-to-be former Governor George. You have this in the bag.”
He snorted. “You’re too confident, Senator Camden-George.”
I smiled. Two months ago, we’d married in an intimate wedding on my parents’ estate in Louisiana. My heart seemed to skip a beat whenever I thought about marrying the man I loved and the possibility of still achieving the future I’d planned for since childhood. I knew nothing was guaranteed, but there was still a chance. Of course, there were grumblings about my rekindled relationship with Veer. However, I couldn’t give two shits what the old boys’ club thought.
“It’s not confidence, baby. It’s a sure thing.” I gripped the lapel of his suit.
Veer’s face grew concerned for a split second. “This means you’ll have to wait a little longer.”
“Maybe not. I could decide to run against Ashur and you in four years,” I teased.
He lifted a brow and then smiled. “That should keep our marriage interesting.”
“But then again, if Ashur is the kind of president I think he’ll be, it’ll be well worth the wait to get the endorsement of a popular president and my party.”
Samina had put that little idea in my head a few weeks earlier, and I couldn’t help but agree with her. Now it was all about patience and continuing in my role as senator from the great state of Texas.
Veer shook his head. “Don’t ever change, Jaci.”
“You never have to worry about that.” I stood on tiptoes and kissed him. “Now go join Ashur—he’s waiting. And then later tonight, the senator from Texas is going to screw the new vice-president’s brains out.”
A sexy gleam lit his eyes. “I look forward to it, Senator.”
THE END
Coming September 20, 2018
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I am Tara Zain.
Human rights attorney, the Commander to my colleagues in international affairs, and fiancé to the most powerful man in the country.
I've learned love is a useless distraction. Money and status are the true motivators, and powerful alliances are much more important than romantic entanglements. My passion is my work, and nothing, not even the promise of happily-ever-after, will keep me from accomplishing my mission.
This is why I've made a bargain with the one man who shattered my heart years ago. He's proposed that I stand by his side and foster the beginning of a new political dynasty.
But I have secrets.
Secrets that could destroy not only this man and the passion we've rekindled but the very laws of the nation he has sworn to uphold.
I am Tara Zain. Future First Lady of the United States of America and COMMANDER.