Kat returned to the couch and opened the briefing folder for the meeting. The new arrivals were senior management at a defense contracting firm. Both were well into their sixties. One man was tall with a comb-over, while the other looked like his hair plugs were falling apart. They spent the first few minutes talking about mundane things. As with every other meeting, the men eyed Kat with obvious interest but were polite enough not to engage her further when Alex introduced her “observer” role. Kat watched Alex enthusiastically banter with them as if they were the only people he was meeting with all day. She’d watched him do this all morning, and she was exhausted just from watching.
Then they got down to business.
“Alex, m’boy, if the senator wants to continue with the IED bill, we’ve got to support the other guy. You know we manufacture the EAGLE. You’ll put us out of business.” Comb-over shifted, the chair creaking under his weight.
From the reports she’d read, Kat knew the EAGLE was a robotic IED detector that a soldier could operate from a thousand meters away. The problem was how easily its sensors jammed with sand and malfunctioned in the heat. According to the reports, the Egyptians had improved the EAGLE technology, testing it extensively in desert climates.
Alex stood and opened a cabinet that Kat now saw contained a bar.
“Gentlemen, let me pour you some bourbon.”
Kat stared as he fished out three crystal glasses and a decanter. He held up a glass for her and she shook her head. Was this an episode of Mad Men?
He poured the dark liquid then added ice from a bucket that had also been hidden in the cabinet. How had that gotten there? Did he have elves to stock his bar?
The men, clearly accustomed to this treatment, sat back in their chairs. Unlike the morning meetings, which had been scheduled in fifteen-and thirty-minute increments, this one was penciled in for a full hour.
“You know as well as I do that the senator needs your support, now more than ever,” Alex said. “But the bill is his legacy, his last big endeavor before he runs for president. Tell me how we can make this work for you.”
Hair plugs leaned forward. “A contract committing to buying the EAGLE at current levels for the next ten years.”
Kat took a sharp breath. Alex gave her a warning look. The visitors didn’t seem to notice. The EAGLE would be redundant if they bought the Egyptian technology, and no one wanted such a long-term engagement in Iraq.
“That’s a tall order,” Alex said calmly, as if they were discussing a few hundred dollars’ worth of product rather than a commitment of hundreds of millions.
“You know the Egyptians have already bettered whatever they’re selling the senator right now. Give us ten years and we’ll get you the best technology there is.” Hair plugs took a noisy sip of his drink.
“We don’t want to be engaged overseas in ten years.”
“But you know very well we will be,” Comb-over said arrogantly.
Alex sipped his drink, contemplating the decision. “What would your commitment to the senator be?”
The men looked at each other then slid an envelope across Alex’s desk. He opened it and pulled out what appeared to be a check.
“This is generous, but not enough.”
He slid it back toward the men.
Kat felt like she was on the highway watching a bad accident unfolding but unable to stop it. Barely five feet away from her, these men were playing with taxpayer money, making a deal that affected the lives of thousands of soldiers. They were doing it while drinking bourbon and talking cavalierly about millions of dollars.
The hour felt like ten. When the men stood to leave, they smiled and wished her luck, winking salaciously at Alex, who smiled back serenely.
The second they were gone, Mellie entered, carrying a tray with an ice bucket and new glasses. Alex helped her load the used glasses and store the new ones. Kat had seen him take several sips of his drink but now noticed his glass was mostly full.
The nauseating trend continued through two more meetings, each one worse than before in terms of the “ask” and the money they were willing to pay in campaign contributions to get what they wanted. By comparison, the morning meetings were amateur hour. None of the constituent organizations had offered money, and they’d all come armed with educational materials. For the afternoon meetings, various old men and one gray-haired woman had strolled in with checks and a sense of entitlement.
When the last meeting was done, Kat turned to Alex. “Tell me you don’t actually deposit those checks.”
He rolled his eyes. “I didn’t want you in here this afternoon. It was your father’s idea. He wanted you to see how politics actually works. After reading your academic papers, he thinks it’s time you opened your eyes about the real world.”
“To see what? That politicians really are crooked? That the biggest check determines the fate of the American people? You’d let babies die in Guam but give those EAGLE manufacturers millions of dollars for obsolete technology?”
“Did you see me take a single check this morning? Those organizations can’t afford to buy their access, but I give them time.”
“I also didn’t see you give them a full hour or pour them drinks.”
“That’s because those were the real meetings of the day, the ones where we learn about the issues. They don’t need drinks because they come armed with information and want nothing more than for us to listen. The meetings you just witnessed are what we use to make sure we have the staff and resources to get the senator reelected.”
“And what about the promises you made?”
“We try to keep them, but it’s not always possible. The senator is a senior member of the Appropriations Committee, but he can’t guarantee we’ll purchase the EAGLEs. All they want to see is that we put it in the budget proposal. It won’t go in the House budget, and when we go to the conference committee for a final budget to send to the president, the EAGLE funding will disappear.”
Her eyes widened. “That’s so dishonest.”
He laughed. “This is how the real world of politics works. And before you feel too bad for them—you think they’d give me a check for a hundred thousand dollars without knowing the score? They do it for access. They’ll go to the House members next and ask them to put it in the budget. We call these types of things the pork in the budget, and some of it gets through. We’re not the only ones playing this game.”
“But why not take the high ground?” she whispered.
“Because the senator will never get reelected without money, and the next guy may never take the morning meetings. The next guy may never pass on the briefing paper about the babies in Guam to the senator and suggest he call the governor.”
“So you’re the lesser of two evils.”
He shrugged.
She closed her eyes. She wasn’t naive enough not to know about campaign contributions and the “chit” system in Congress, where favors were traded. She often analyzed what potential chits had passed through which hands when congressional members suddenly changed their votes on an issue. But witnessing it firsthand made it seem seedier. For some reason, she expected more from Alex, more from the senator with whom she shared her DNA.
Alex was staring at her. “You’re disappointed in the senator for playing these games.”
She sighed. “I don’t know the man. I’m not sure what to expect from him.”
“Then why is this upsetting to you?”
“I’m okay,” she said defensively. She didn’t want to come across all Pollyanna.
“Your father wants to get to know you.”
“He has a funny way of showing it.”
He quirked a brow then gestured to the couch. Opening the cabinet door, he pulled out a bottle of wine. She shook her head. “I need to drive back.”
“Okay. The
n how about I tell you a story.”
She looked at him wearily, but he pointed firmly to the couch, so she sat down. It would take three hours to get home and she could barely keep her eyes open now.
“I’ve known the senator for five years—he hired me right after his last campaign manager quit. You ask anyone in Washington and they’ll call me a winner. A small-time one, but a winner nonetheless. I was working for Senator Graham at the time.”
“Senator Graham,” she repeated. “The Republican nominee for president?”
He nodded. “It was my ticket to the big time, but I made a bad call.”
He turned toward the window and stared at a partial view of the Capitol building outside. It was currently encased in wired scaffolding—repair work to restore the outer part of the rotunda.
“I told the senator that his wife was having an affair.”
Kat sat back. That was certainly not public knowledge and would be a blow to the now presidential candidate. Why was Alex trusting her with this information?
“I suspected something and decided independently to have the senator’s wife followed so I could give him concrete proof. Turns out, he knew about it already and took offense at my initiative.”
“That’s a hard call to make.”
He nodded. “I’ve replayed it a thousand times and realized that you don’t mess with your boss’s family. No matter how close I was to him, family lines should not have been crossed.”
She found herself drawn to his eyes, to the smoky darkness burning inside them.
“Senator Graham could have blacklisted me in Washington. My career would’ve been over if he had. But I heard this position was open and I took a chance. I came here and told Senator Roberts the truth about everything and begged him to take me in.”
“And he did,” she said softly.
Alex nodded. “Not only that—he put pressure on Senator Graham to keep quiet about me. People assumed I got a promotion. Aside from the two senators, you’re the only person I’ve told.”
“Why did you tell me?”
“Because your father is a good man at heart. My job is to do his dirty work. Don’t let what I do affect your opinion of him.”
Warmth bloomed in her heart. She wondered what it would be like if he pulled her into his arms. All day she’d looked at him as a reminder of what she didn’t want in a man. But here he was, showing her how wrong she was. He was protecting her father, just like the little boy inside who longed to protect his mother.
“Senator Roberts offered me money.”
She hadn’t planned on telling him or anyone else. It was all too embarrassing. In fact, she’d been up all night wondering whether she should quit the campaign. Finally, she’d settled on staying until the senator returned so she would have enough material to write some papers to appease Dean Gladstone. In what she’d witnessed today alone, she could write several fascinating commentaries on the trade-offs that occurred all the time in politics.
This morning she’d been convinced the IED bill was the wrong approach, but after listening to some of the constituent meetings, it became clear things were bad in Iraq and bound to get worse if they withdrew the troops. Now that they were in, could they really leave? What if the country was worse off than it had been?
Besides, she needed to meet her father in person. She’d waited too long to give up that opportunity.
Alex was staring at her.
“He wanted to buy me,” she clarified.
“Excuse me?”
She shifted on the couch. “Yesterday on the call, after he grilled me like I was on trial for fraud, he offered me money. I didn’t fully understand what it was for, but I politely declined.”
“Are you sure you didn’t misinterpret? It’s not like he’s denying that you’re his daughter. What does he have to gain by paying you off?”
“There’s not a lot of analysis required when a man says, ‘You know, if you’re hard up, I can give you some money. I don’t want people thinking my child is living in poverty.’ It was like he was just waiting for his chance to say that, like he hadn’t been paying any attention for the twenty minutes I’d been telling him about my life.”
Alex flinched. “I’m sure he didn’t mean anything by it. He was probably as nervous as you were and just meant to ask if he could do anything to help.”
She sighed. “I appreciate you sharing that story, but I really should get going.”
“Why don’t you stay the night? We rent a town house on Capitol Hill for staffers who have to go back and forth. It’s cheaper than paying for hotel rooms. I have some meetings tomorrow that’ll be more uplifting. Less...mafia-ish.”
She smiled at the last part. He did get it. She shook her head. “I need to go home.”
“I can ask one of the interns to go check on your mother.”
She looked up, touched by his consideration but also perturbed by the intrusion of privacy. Again.
She stood. “This has been an educational day, but I’d better get on the road if I want to avoid rush-hour traffic.”
He got up slowly. “Kat, we’re a family around here. We take care of each other. It’s not an imposition. You can call to tell her who it will be so it doesn’t feel like a random stranger.”
Tears stung her eyes. It would be nice to take the night off. She was already exhausted, and the prospect of a three-hour drive didn’t sound as appealing as spending a night in DC. She wondered whether Alex used the town house, too, or if he had his own place. They might have just shared a moment, but she’d seen so many sides of him. Which one could she trust?
“Yesterday you were lecturing me on pulling my own weight and today we’re a kumbaya family?”
She sounded testier than she intended. Maybe it was the stress of the past two days. Or maybe it was the mixed signals Alex kept throwing her way that had her confused about where she stood with him.
“What’s gotten into you?”
She stepped up to him. “You’re what’s gotten into me. Yesterday you went from being a white knight to a bear, then sent me flirty emails. Today you start out caring, then morph into a sleazy deal maker then switch to Mr. Understanding and Compassion. Can you pick a man so I can know who I’m dealing with?”
A slow smile spread across his lips. “What’s your favorite kind?”
She took a step back, her stomach fluttering. “Excuse me?”
“Which Alex do you like best?” He was standing so close she could feel his chest rise and fall with every breath. “The Alex who saved a damsel in distress...”
She opened her mouth to protest that characterization of her, but all that came out was a squeak as he closed the meager distance between them. Run, Kat, run. He wasn’t touching her, yet she could smell the whiskey on his breath, its spicy scent making her head light. She felt the steady rise and fall of his chest, could almost hear the heavy drum of his heart. Perhaps that was the pounding in her own chest.
“Do you like the Alex who bosses you around? Or do you like the one who couldn’t stop staring at you yesterday? The one who had to physically leave his office so he’d stop finding excuses to come talk to you.”
She gasped. He stepped closer but didn’t make a move to touch her. She stood as still as she could, afraid to move a muscle.
Bending his head, he touched his lips to her hair. “Tell me, Kat, which Alex is it that you like?”
The vibrations from his voice sent pulses through her entire body. Which Alex, indeed? There was the Alex who warmed her heart, the one who frustrated her and the one who made her want to run away from him as fast as she could.
“Are there more Alexes that I haven’t seen?” Her voice sounded foreign to her. She heard him take a breath, the air tickling the sensitive skin on her neck.
He moved his lips and touched he
r ear. Every nerve in her body was on alert, telling her to get out of here, yet she stood rooted to the spot, waiting for whatever was coming.
He softly kissed the top of her ear. His gentleness was surprising. Every inch of him screamed of a man used to taking what he wanted. Except the Alex before her seemed to be tentative, asking permission at every step.
This was a mistake on so many levels. She couldn’t get involved with a man who represented everything she hated. Lying, deceit, manipulation—he was a master at it. Not to mention the drama that would ensue at campaign headquarters. Her father already believed she was out to get something from him; what would he think of her if she started seeing his campaign manager two days after she came on board? And if this became another media thing, her job at the university was as good as gone. There were so many reasons not to be with him. She lifted her arms to push him away, but once her hands were on his chest, she savored the feel of hard muscle beneath his shirt. Instead of pushing, she closed the remaining gap between them.
He made a sound deep in his throat and she lifted her head.
“Kat.”
He whispered her name with so much softness that the chains around her heart broke. She touched her lips to his, eager to feel the strength of the powerful man before her.
Her lips slid across his. She expected him—no, wanted him—to claim her mouth, needed him to pull her closer. He cupped her face in his hands. He kissed her so tenderly, it left her trembling. She was sure her legs would give way any second. As if sensing that, he placed a firm hand on her waist, holding her without forcing her close. It was unlike any kiss she’d ever experienced. It left her breathless, and it ended too soon. He rested his head on top of hers, holding her loosely, as if it was the most natural thing to do.
“This Alex I can love.”
The words were out of her mouth before she could stop them.
He tensed. “Kat, I can’t.”
The words cut through her.
She turned away, but he placed a hand on her shoulder. “I owe a lot to the senator, and he’s asked that I look after you. I can’t lie—I am attracted to you, but I don’t do relationships. And you don’t seem like the type of girl who dates someone just for fun.”
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