by Shayla Black
A lot. Then again, his whole life had been fucked up. His parents had hollowed him out as a kid and refilled him with ambition. He’d married Joy to further his singular goal. Then someone had used that very drive against him.
What would Zack Hayes have been like if he’d been allowed to be his own man? Would he have been able to trust her? Would he ever truly be able to trust her if she stayed?
Was she willing to walk away from him and never even try? Or would she regret it for the rest of her life?
Liz dragged in a deep breath. She couldn’t believe she was doing this. “Zack, you have to pick me over Roman.”
Something like hope lit his eyes and he cupped her shoulders. “Absolutely. Roman is my brother. He always has been and he always will be. But…”
“But what?” She pushed him a little more. After what she’d been through, she needed reassurance. She deserved it. “What if I asked you to fire him?”
“Then you wouldn’t be my Elizabeth,” he shot back, a ghost of a smile on his face. “I was always good at tests, my love. You are the kindest, most forgiving woman I’ve ever met, and you would never ask that of me. Here is what you will ask—and you should. You need to be more important than any of my friendships. You have to be my first, best partner. You have to be the one I come to, the one I face everything with.”
Yes, he was very good at tests. He’d certainly managed to come up with the right answer. “I’ll never come between you and Roman or any of the others. Not willingly. I know the Perfect Gentlemen are only looking out for your best interests, but you have to believe that’s what I’ve always done, too.”
“You’re right. So right. Please forgive me. I don’t want to waste another moment. I want to start our lives. I’ve fucked everything up—first because I was trying to protect you and then because I was protecting myself. None of it worked. I should have done the most natural thing of all, simply love and trust you. Nothing in my life works without you, Elizabeth. Marry me.”
She smiled and cuddled against his chest. “All right.”
“Just like that?” He pulled away just enough to search her eyes.
Life was as easy or as hard as she chose to make it. That was something her mama had been fond of saying. Perhaps if they hadn’t been in such a perilous position recently, if someone hadn’t already tried to kill him today, she might have held on to her anger for a while longer. Maybe she would have even been able to cling to it long enough to choose her pride over love and walk away from him. But this man was half her soul, and denying that was futile. She couldn’t not love him.
Besides, if he’d truly never learned how to love, shouldn’t she be setting the example and teaching him so they could have an amazing life together?
“Just like that,” she replied, caressing the face she adored.
He was alive, hopefully the worst was behind them, and now they could get through anything together.
“But this mess isn’t completely over,” he warned. “I still might be Russian born, so if I have to step down…”
“Then I’ll be by your side.” She would never leave him.
“I’ll do everything I can to protect you—everything except give you up. That I can’t do, ever.” He kissed her, his arms winding around her, giving her the physical affirmation of his words.
Relief filled her. They still had things to work through, but Liz knew this was the moment she would look back on and think here was where her life had truly begun.
With a warm smile, Zack picked her up like she weighed nothing and carried her out of the room.
Roman hovered near the door, looking grim. His eyes widened as he saw Zack emerge with Liz in his arms. “Where are you going? We’re still rounding up people we need to question, and the press is going to need a statement about the assassination attempt. You can’t just carry Liz through the White House in the middle of a crisis.”
“I can,” Zack vowed. “I am the motherfucking president and she’s just agreed to be your First Lady, so we’re going to celebrate alone for a few minutes. Handle shit, Roman.”
“Congrats. What do you want me to do with the dead guy?”
“Get a shovel, buddy. Or better yet, call the police and tell them everything. Come hell or high water, we’re making every single one of those bastards pay.”
At Roman’s shocked expression, she cuddled closer to Zack and smiled. He was quickly learning to put her first.
Mad gave her a thumbs-up.
“Where are you taking me, Mr. President?” she asked, not really caring. As long as they were together, she was perfectly happy.
“Home,” he said.
It sounded like the perfect place to start their future.
* * * *
Smiling from ear to ear, Mad watched Zack walk off into the sunset. Well, he was really heading to the bedroom, since he couldn’t go anywhere right now. And in this version of Zack striding off into their happily ever after, they wouldn’t get much quality time before duty called. And Thomas and a second Secret Service agent trailed them while they ignored the mountain of reporters outside the gates of the White House.
Damn, Mad had never been happier not to wield Zack’s kind of power.
“I didn’t mean to hurt Liz,” Roman called to their retreating forms. “Sorry.”
Zack didn’t reply.
“He’ll forgive you eventually. So will Liz,” Mad promised. “Hell, if she could forgive him, then she’ll come around. Though you should expect a serious talking to from Gus.”
Roman grimaced. “Maybe Liz doesn’t have to mention this to her. It would make everything so much easier if my blushing bride-to-be never knew about the interrogation.”
“I don’t think Liz is that forgiving.” He was pretty sure Roman would be paying for a long time.
“What are we supposed to do about the body?” Roman nodded toward the second interrogation room that still held Paul Harding’s corpse.
“Can I have it?” Freddy asked, sounding far too excited.
Mad shook his damn head. “No, you cannot have it. The man’s corpse is not a toy.”
“Well, if I don’t take him the Agency will,” Freddy pointed out.
“What the hell would you do with a dead body?” Roman asked.
“Study it, of course.” Freddy shrugged like the answer was completely obvious. “He’s been exposed to a new type of poison. I know some people who would love to isolate it so we can start coming up with antidotes. Wouldn’t it be great if we had a way around this poison before the Russians really started unleashing it? I mean, we have to do it anyway. Public safety and all. You would be surprised how often someone mistakes their coffee creamer just lying around for a neurotoxin.”
“You live in a strange world, my friend.” A world Maddox Crawford was saying good-bye to. As soon as the rest of the conspirators had been dragged under an international spotlight, he was going home to New York with his wife and their baby and he was going to be the most boring dad in the world. He was already hoarding bad-dad jokes to use on his daughter. He wanted a normal, hum-drum, fabulous life where no one ever tried to murder him again. “I say we let Connor decide while Zack is…fixing things with the new First Lady.”
Roman pulled his cell phone out. “I’ll give him a call now.”
One of the remaining Secret Service agents stepped forward. “Mr. Calder, I’m afraid I’m going to have to ask you to not do that.”
Mad looked back and the agent had a gun pointed in their direction.
Shit. It looked like his nice safe life would have to wait.
Chapter Nineteen
Zack carried Liz all the way up to the residence. She’d joked about his back going out, but he’d utterly refused to set her down. He’d held her in the elevator, ignored the few people who’d seen them in the hall, and kept heading toward their bedroom, despite the fact that two Secret Service agents, Thomas and Glen, kept vigil behind them.
“You know we have to do a press conference
soon,” she said as he managed to open the door to the residence.
After the agents swept the interior of the residence, they fell into place on either side of the portal, standing stoic and patient.
With the door closed behind them, Zack finally set her on her feet. “I know, but I need a couple of minutes alone with you.”
And he needed to change his clothes. If he was going to start an all-out war with the enemy, he couldn’t do it in a torn T-shirt and sweat pants splattered with blood. He had to look the part of a powerful world leader.
She reached up and smoothed back his hair. “Are you really okay? You weren’t hit?”
“Fine. Thomas banged me up a bit when he covered me, but he also made sure I wasn’t hit. Mike wasn’t so lucky. Later, we’ll need to follow up and see how he’s recovering from the surgery on his arm.” Zack gripped her hips and pulled her closer. “But right now, I don’t want to deal with any of this. I want to take you to bed so we can forget the whole world.”
“I wish we could. I miss touching you. I was terrified for you.” She nuzzled closer to him, aching for the chance to spend hours connecting to him again. For now she shared him with a whole country, though. She had to be content with the fact that they would have time to themselves later. “But so are the American people. There was an attack on the president of the United States. We can put out a statement, but that’s not what the country needs. They need to see you, Zack. You have to show them you’re alive and well and utterly defiant.”
“I know. If I don’t get in front of some cameras soon, the financial markets could take a hit.” He kissed her, drugging her with arousal and intimacy. “I want you by my side.”
“Yes.” She would be with him as they faced whatever storm was coming their way. They needed to let these conspirators—and the rest of the world—know that nothing would tear them apart and that Zack would never compromise his scruples or his country. And damn it, no one would ever think she was his weak link again. From now on, she would be the woman who made him strong, the one he could always count on.
“If you’re sure…?”
He nodded. “Of course.”
“I’ve been thinking… Should we tell the public about everything? If we do, I’ll have to be honest about what we know…and what we don’t,” he said with a grim face. “Baby, I realize we both want to be married as soon as possible, but maybe we should wait until you know exactly who you’re marrying.”
Because he intended to find out one way or another if he was really Zachary Hayes, son of Frank and Constance Hayes. The trouble was, she didn’t care. “I know exactly who you are, Zack. I want to marry you as soon as I can, no matter what. For better or worse. I’m not in this to be the First Lady. I’m in this to be your wife, and that means I’m beside you come what may.”
He sighed, a sound of deep satisfaction. “If we choose to expose everything, it won’t be easy. We’ll be subjected to a ton of hearings. My political opponents and enemies will use this against me, try to make me step down, paint me as dangerous, call for my impeachment.”
“If it comes to that, we’ll handle them.” Of that, she had not a single doubt. Together she and Zack could do almost anything. “We can’t back down. We have to face every adversary and every threat and stand tall. They have to realize that they won’t break us.”
“They can’t break us.” He said the words like a mantra.
“Speaking of adversaries...you weren’t in the room with Roman, Mad, and me when we figured out that the mole in our press office is Vanessa Jones.” She was almost certain Roman would have already given the order to find Vanessa, but Zack needed to know. “She’s the only one I can think of who would have access to my computer. Over the years she’s worked her way up to a position of trust. She edits all of my work. Someone should be interrogating her by now.”
“Vanessa?” He looked surprised, then paused to consider. “I suppose that makes sense. These conspirators are very careful and very smart. Of course they knew how I felt about you. They’d put someone in place both to keep a handle on all our official communications and to watch us.”
“Exactly. I hear she hits on you a lot, too. I’m sure they would have loved to put one of their own in your bed.” As soon as the words were out of her mouth, she winced. “Okay, so I can understand why you had some reservations about me, but I still think you should have asked me before assuming the worst.”
His lips turned up into a jaunty grin. “I assure you Vanessa Jones never got close to my bed. You’re the only woman I want there. And I promise if I’m ever worried again that you’re a foreign operative, I’ll ask you the question.”
“Deal.” She rose to her tiptoes and pressed her lips to his, a sweet, slow joining of welcome and forever.
Zack sank into her, tasting her, clutching her as if he never wanted to let go. Then reluctantly he pulled away with a groan. “I’m going to step out and talk to Thomas, ask him to get me an update on Vanessa.” He pulled Liz in, holding her close. “We need to make sure they’ve brought her in for questioning. I want someone to have eyes on my father, too. I’m going to have him moved out of the White House.”
“But why? You don’t…” Liz didn’t finish her reply. Zack didn’t need an argument now, especially when neither of them knew if or how dangerous Frank might be. After all, they’d been surrounded by Judases for years. Removing anyone they suspected would be prudent until they’d separated the bad actors from the good ones. “We can move him to a hospital until we figure out where to put him and play it off as a health crisis. We’ll make it work.”
This was what she did well. She smoothed things over. She made everything run like clockwork.
“Perfect. I’ll be right back,” Zack promised. “As soon as I’ve asked Thomas to inquire about Vanessa and ensured that all of our friends are secure, I’ll come back and change. Then you and I need to prepare for this press conference. We’ll have to think about what I should say, how much to reveal about the assassination attempt. And we don’t have time to write a proper speech, merely jot a few notes. If you could stand to be around Roman…”
Because he needed to be deeply involved, too.
Liz rolled her eyes. Roman was basically her asshole brother-in-law who truly loved Zack and the sister of her heart, Augustine. Eventually, they would be okay because they all loved the same people. “He’s family and we’ve worked together for years. I’ll talk to him. We’ll create a rough draft, but I don’t want you too prepared. It will be more convincing if you look natural. You’re a man who’s faced death today and you’re still standing. After you give your statement, we’ll tell them that the police will answer questions about the shooter as they’re ready.”
He nodded. “As soon as I finish with Thomas, let’s do it.” He started to turn away but stopped himself and pulled her close again. “I love you. I can’t say that enough. I’m humbled and blessed to have you. Thank you for forgiving me.”
This was her Zack, and he was all she needed. “I love you, too.”
With a smile, she watched him leave the room before turning toward the bedroom and stepping into the massive closet. It made the sparse selection of her clothes here even more obvious. She would have to power through for now, find something presentable and get cleaned up. And she had to lay out a fresh suit for Zack, something solid with a strong tie.
As she identified a couple of possibilities and hung the garments on a nearby hook, she glanced in the mirror. Yikes, she needed to clean herself up before she faced the public. That was for sure. At the moment, all she could do was smooth her hair into place and refresh her lipstick because Zack had kissed off what little she’d had left.
Then again, Liz had a feeling Zack was going to kiss her a lot from now on and she doubted he would hide it. They were going to be a very lovey-dovey first couple.
As she set the tube aside, it hit her. She was marrying Zachary Hayes, the most amazing man she’d ever met. She was also marrying the pre
sident of the United States. Never in her wildest fantasies had she believed it could happen. Happy tears pooled in her eyes.
Liz took a moment because she couldn’t face Zack crying. He would be concerned about her, and he didn’t need that now. They had too many things to do. Later tonight she could break down and feel every bit of terror and joy the day had brought, but for now she had to be strong.
In her pocket, her cell vibrated and Liz pulled it free, glad to see it wasn’t one of the many members of the press she’d been ignoring.
She slid her finger across the screen to answer the call, putting the call on speaker as she strode back into the closet. “Hey, Gus. Is everything okay?”
“Everything is chaos,” Gus replied. “Where’s my fiancé? The Secret Service has locked down most of the press office and won’t let us go anywhere. But I can’t get hold of Roman. He’s not answering his phone.”
“He’s down in the basement, probably in the middle of an interrogation. It’s a long story but I saw him not five minutes ago and he was fine. So is Zack.”
Gus heaved a long sigh over the line. “Thank god. I was so worried.”
“Everything should be fine now. Why do they have the press office locked down?” Worry turned Liz’s smile into a frown. What if the point of the assassination attempt hadn’t been to kill Zack but to cause chaos so they could engage in other dirty work? “Where is Vanessa?”
“She’s why we’re in lockdown. Some suits came to take her in for questioning but no one can find her. So they wanted everyone tucked away safely until they do. Is she a Russian spy? I knew I never liked that bitch for a reason.”