The Gentlewoman

by Lisa Durkin

  Her phone rang again. “Damn it!” She dove for her bag to silence the aggravation. She saw it was Nicole. She hadn’t been expecting her to call and quickly answered to be sure nothing was wrong. “Hey, what’s up?” she said breathlessly as Jackson nipped his way down her back.

  “Turn on the TV, channel three, there’s something about you and Jackson coming on.”

  “What?” Rory immediately sprang up and Jackson caught her around the waist to steady her. She reached for her robe while Nicole continued.

  “It’s on Entertainment Tonight.”

  “What? Entertainment Tonight! What the fuck?” Jackson pulled his boxers on and followed her to the living room. She searched frantically for the remote before he approached the TV and clicked it on.

  “Channel three,” she repeated. He turned the volume up.

  “Thank you, Nancy. Yes, the new couple was seen at Saturday night’s gala at the White House in honor of the Australian first family. Congresswoman Morgan was stunning in her red Oscar de la Renta fishtail gown, and Congressman Dorn was handsome in Armani. It has been reported that all eyes were on the new couple from start to finish. As they enjoyed the evening, some wondered if they even noticed others in attendance; they only had eyes for each other.” Rory looked at Jackson before turning back to the screen. The images repeated of them at the state dinner, highlighting that bit of dirty dancing Jackson had performed.

  “This latest footage is courtesy of Boutique Fayon in Washington DC, where the couple shopped for the designer gown the congresswoman wore, courtesy of her handsome congressman.”Footage followed of the two of them at Boutique Fayon, sitting on the sofa, then of Rory modeling the dresses and Jackson’s reactions. They were both shocked as they had no idea they were being filmed. The reporter highlighted Jackson’s appreciative glances and Rory’s charming and almost shy demeanor.

  Jackson eyed Rory warily. He knew she would be pissed.

  A terrible thought occurred to Rory as she remembered Jackson sneaking into the dressing room. “Oh shit, you don’t think…”

  She watched the TV screen in horror as the footage of the two of them making out in the dressing room magically appeared, audio and all. Rory turned completely red and was only grateful that the video was taken from behind Jackson; so that his body blocked most of her state of undress, and both their roving hands. Still, it was clear she was in skivvies and they were horny. They blocked most of what was said; but to her astonishment, the gist of it was still clear as hell.

  The report continued with a summary of “Playboy Dorn’s” past newsworthy conquests, which seemed to only include the pop singer and the Kennedy cousin. Much speculation was offered on his intentions with Rory, as they were dubbed “the new couple to watch” and “a real-life Cinderella Story”.

  She paled, however, as there was a ten-second recap of her abduction, her father’s death, and her rescue three years ago. They showed a helicopter view of the farmhouse surrounded by emergency vehicles in the aftermath, and of Rory on the day she emerged from the hospital. And she was further shocked when a picture of Aidan was flashed across the screen. She stumbled backward, her mouth open, her arm clutching her stomach as if she would be sick.

  Jackson immediately embraced and stilled her. Holding her tight, he whispered in her ear. “It’s okay, it’s okay, I’m here with you.” Every muscle in her body was rigid and she breathed quickly.

  “I’m okay,” she whispered. She wasn’t going to panic. She had just been caught off guard by that footage. Jackson rubbed her back, his compassionate expression telling her how worried he was. She fought the tears welling in her eyes and concentrated on her breathing.

  She pulled back and offered a timid smile. “Really, I was just caught off guard. I’m fine.”

  Jackson looked down at her. “Does your wrist hurt, baby?”

  Rory looked and realized she was holding her left wrist against her abdomen, rubbing it back and forth. She shook her head and immediately released it.

  “You do that a lot. Is that the wrist he broke?”

  She was beginning to feel pitiful. “Do I?” she asked, taking a step back.

  “I’ve seen you do it often since I met you.”

  This was ridiculous. She pulled herself together and changed the subject.

  “So, Entertainment Tonight, that cutting-edge news outlet,” she said shakily as she went to the kitchen for water. Jackson followed and leaned over the bar.

  “Yep, bet you never imagined you’d become entertainment news,” Jackson joked carefully. He watched closely as she rubbed her forehead and breathed deeply.

  “No, I never saw myself as very entertaining,” she said tiredly. She put her cup in the sink and paused to regain her bearings. She wanted to salvage the situation. She turned and slowly leaned over the counter, face-to-face with Jackson. “I think it’s only newsworthy because of ‘Playboy Dorn’,” she said in a low voice, her nose almost touching his.

  He smiled and leaned forward, rubbing her nose with his. “Oh I don’t know; they seemed to be really interested in the ‘stunning’ congresswoman. I think you’re very entertaining.” He stole a quick peck on the lips. “Let me show you how entertaining you can be.” He kissed her full on the mouth and moved around the bar to embrace her.

  Rory welcomed his lips and roving tongue. It was the distraction she needed. He picked her up and laid her back on the counter. “You’re my favorite entertainment, Congresswoman,” he breathed as he opened her robe wide.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Rory dropped her bags and walked around her condo, closing every blind. The paparazzi had been following them since Tuesday morning and she was becoming seriously pissed off. Apparently the Entertainment Tonight footage had piqued the interest of every gossip outlet in the area and they were all looking to cash in. Currently there were ten people milling about the outside of the building and she’d had to work her way through. Questions had been shouted, cameras had flashed furiously, but she had kept her calm demeanor and ignored it all. It reminded her of the attack that led to the last time she was hounded by the media. One upside, she was a lot safer with so many witnesses around. She hadn’t heard back from the FBI and it weighed on her mind.

  She had taken the livery car home alone. Jackson had committee meetings. She headed for the refrigerator to grab water and leftover Chinese. They seemed to always have leftover Chinese. She smiled at the “they”. No matter how stressed, pissed, busy, or whatever emotion she was feeling at the time, she could always smile if she thought of Jackson. She was feeling very happy that she had taken her friends’ advice to go with this.

  Her cell phone rang. “Did you get home okay?” Jackson asked.

  “Yes, there’s a gathering outside, but I didn’t have any trouble.”

  “Damn, they really are persistent. What are you going to do tonight?”

  “Sounds like you won’t be here until late then?”

  “Yeah, it’s going to be a long one. I’ll probably be in around midnight or so.” He didn’t sound happy.

  “I’m just going to hang out. Maybe I’ll use your treadmill since our friendly neighborhood reporters are keeping me from running. Not that I care if they tag along, but I don’t want to be sued. Several of them don’t look too far from a coronary.” Jackson was silent. “Hey, are you okay?”

  He breathed out quickly. “My mom’s in the hospital. I got a call about an hour ago.”

  “Oh no. I’m so sorry, Jackson. Is there anything I can do?”

  “Yes. You can come with me to Maine in the morning.”

  Rory was silent.

  “I’ve already booked a flight into Portland. I need to make sure she’s okay and help with the decision making. My dad isn’t great at this and my brothers and sister don’t really man up.”

  Rory’s heart went out to him. “Jackson, I’m so sorry, but I can’t really leave right now. I have committee meetings I can’t miss.” He was quiet. “I’m sorry. If it were any oth
er time but right now, especially before the vote next Monday. I really don’t feel comfortable going.” She and Nicole were having lunch with several people and she wanted to triple check her votes for the shipyard. There was no way she could get away. Besides, she hadn’t met his family. It would be awkward with his mother in the hospital.

  He spoke after several tense moments. “I just thought I’d try. I know it’s not a good time to leave, for me either.” He sounded worried and depressed. His mother must not be doing very well at all, Rory thought.

  “Jackson, tell me what they’re saying about your mother’s condition.”

  His mother had been taken to the hospital after having sudden and severe memory lapses and loss of equilibrium. They had been worried she would fall. Once she was there, they admitted her to treat her for a relapse of her MS, which included drug therapy.

  “I’ve booked a flight for tomorrow morning and heading back here Saturday morning, so I shouldn’t be gone too long. I guess I would just feel better if you were with me rather than home alone with the magically unlocking door.”

  “I’m so sorry, baby,” Rory said gently.

  She could hear Jackson’s quick intake of breath. “That’s the first time you’ve called me baby.”

  “Really?” Maybe she could raise his spirits. “It’s better than a lot of names I’ve called people. What do I normally call you?”

  “Jackson. You always call me Jackson. Which I guess is better than Dorn, which is what you called me before we…”

  “I called you Dorn before we started fucking, right?” She laughed, trying to make him feel better.

  “Became involved is what I was going to say,” he said dryly.

  “Oh yes, I guess that sounds better.”

  He was quiet again. It concerned her, she hadn’t experienced him like this. “Did you like it that I called you baby?”

  “Oh yes,” he said. “It makes me very happy to be your baby.”

  “I’m glad,” she said, and her heart fluttered.

  “I have to go to my meeting now.”

  “Wake me when you get home.”

  “No, it’ll be late.”

  “I don’t care. Better yet, I’ll wait up for you,” she said in a low voice, trying to sound seductive.

  “You don’t have to.”

  “I want to. Tell you what, I’m going to wait up for you, but if you find that I’ve fallen asleep, I want you to wake me in the most creative way you can think of.”

  She could tell he smiled a little just by the lift in his voice. “Oh yeah? I can think of some very creative ways, Congresswoman.”

  “That’s what I’m counting on, baby.” She stressed the endearment.

  “Deal,” he said, sounding a tad better now. “I’ll see you tonight, Rory.”

  “See you then, Jackson.”

  Jackson hung up the phone and scrubbed his face with his hands. He leaned back in his chair and stared across the room. This fucking sucked. He had intended to spend Thursday through Sunday preparing Rory for the reality of what would go down at that committee vote on Monday. He was planning to ease her into what he had to do, only after spending some serious time cementing a more permanent arrangement concerning their relationship. He needed them to be rock solid before that vote came. Now he had to fly out early in the morning.

  His mom’s situation wasn’t good. The older she got, the harder it was for her to come back from these lapses. His mom was probably the most important woman in his life and he wasn’t ready to lose her. And now he had Rory, and she had become equally important. He sure as hell didn’t want to lose her either.

  Waiting to broach the vote topic with Rory hadn’t been his greatest move. He had just wanted to be with her and not worry about this shit. Now the walls were caving in. He was concerned about her safety, he was afraid she wouldn’t take kindly to his deal on the vote, and his mother’s health was failing. He hadn’t counted on this. He had planned to make sure she knew that vote had nothing to do with their relationship. But now he was fucked. Well, he’d get home Saturday and spend a day and a half convincing her of his love before he completely turned her life upside down.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Jackson had come and gone in the wee hours of the night and she wondered if it had really happened. If she didn’t have the handcuff marks and sore ass to prove it, she would swear she had just had the best dream ever. She sat at her desk, sipping her coffee and trying to clear her head. She leaned back in her chair and rolled her shoulders, remembering the look on his face as he had restrained her, so full of lust and awe, so dominant and hard. She smiled to herself; he sure wasn’t boring in the sack.

  She also remembered him leaving at four a.m. to catch his flight to Maine. He had woken her and lay down next to her, fully dressed, holding her tightly, kissing her and whispering in her ear how much he would miss her. He was so sweet. Rory could tell his mother’s condition had him very upset and her heart went out to him.

  Jill tapped timidly on her door. “Congresswoman, there’s a Special Agent Sutton here to see you.”

  Her mood deflated entirely. “Show him in,” she said, standing and mentally girding herself to come face-to-face with a part of her terrible past.

  Shane Sutton was a handsome man, in a cute, boyish sort of way. His smooth features were well rounded and he always looked fresh faced. Shane had been on the team Agent Tagg had headed against her husband and he was the one left behind to protect her after it had all gone down and Aidan’s family was rumored to be a threat.

  It’s too bad their paths had crossed when they did. Another time and place and it might have been different. He had never stood a chance with her, and he had wanted one. He had been upset when she cut him out of her life, as she had the rest of the FBI. It had been a major mistake for her to sleep with him. He had been nothing more than a knee-jerk reaction, a panicked attempt to feel like a normal person. She still felt pangs of guilt over using and dumping him as she had, but she hadn’t been in a fit state. And he had never really seemed to accept it. He hadn’t been happy when she told him they wouldn’t be continuing to have sex, and they weren’t going to be developing a relationship. Both Rory and Devon knew that was why he still hung around Devon and the kids from time to time.

  Three years hadn’t made a difference; he still looked exactly the same. And he still looked at her the same way, with a mix of longing and hunger.

  “Congresswoman, how are you?” He took her outstretched hand and smiled intently into her eyes. “It’s been a long time.”

  “It’s still Rory, please. It’s been awhile, Shane. How have you been?”

  They both sat down; Rory behind her desk, as if it were a shield. This was awkward. She could already tell that if she said go, he would be on her in a flash. His gaze was that intense. They exchanged pleasantries for a few minutes. Rory learned that Shane had just recently been transferred back to DC from the Cleveland office. Interesting timing.

  “So to what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?” As if she didn’t know. She didn’t want to be rude, but she didn’t want to linger here with him.

  She knew she wasn’t going to like it when he sat forward in his seat and his expression became more compassionate. “Rory, I’m going to give it to you straight. There’s been activity on a passport that we know is one of Roan Sullivan’s aliases.”

  Rory looked into his eyes thoughtfully while her heart plummeted to her knees. “What exactly does that mean?”

  “It means that if it’s Roan, he’s in the country. We’re continuing to investigate, but we wanted to let you know, especially considering the information you shared with Tagg.” Rory felt as if he was holding something back. She gave him her steely glare, waiting for him to offer more.

  “We’ve shared this information with the Secret Service. Now that you’re a member of Congress, this is a question of national security. Of course, Homeland Security is always involved, since the Sullivan rings stretch internationally.�
�

  Her head began to pound as her blood pressure surged. Just what she needed. Now she would be the Congress’s problem child. She continued to gaze at him. She had learned three years ago that you needed dental instruments to extract information from these FBI bastards.

  “Is that all?” she asked.

  “We’re also going to start doing drive-bys of your home. It’s just a precaution at this point, but we feel we should increase presence.”

  Rory blanched and sat back in her chair, her eyes traveling across the room before coming back to focus on Shane. “Son of a bitch,” she muttered. “Do you think Roan is seeking me out?”

  “We don’t know yet. Don’t jump to conclusions, Rory, it won’t help anything. At this point we are just being cautious.”

  “Yeah, like before.” She closed her eyes, shaking her head. This was too familiar, the FBI coming in and telling her she was in danger. It felt as though she was right back at the beginning, three years ago, in that office in the Federal Building with her father.

  “Hey, come on.” She opened her eyes and Shane was crouched beside her chair, taking her hand. Instinctually, she pulled back but he snaked an arm around her shoulders before she could pull away. “I’m here for you.”

  “Thanks, I’m fine.” She stood and held her palms up to ward him off. He straightened and leaned back on her desk, studying her. She backed up to the credenza.

  “Do you ever think about me, Rory? Do you ever think about it?” He searched her eyes.

  “I’m not going to do this, Shane. I’m not going there with you again. It wasn’t meant to be with us, and I’m sorry about that.”

  “But it is with him?”

  She blanched. “That’s none of your business.”

  Shane stepped into her space again. “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to upset you.” He placed his hand on her cheek. “I’ve really missed you.” He swayed into her body, trying to hold her. She could feel his hard, tense muscles as he tried to embrace her. His hips rubbed up against her, and she could feel his erection.