DC Affairs

by Selene Chardou

  DC Affairs

  Book I

  Selene Chardou

  DC Affairs

  Book 1

  Copyright © 2014 Selene Chardou

  All Rights Reserved.

  Cover Artist: Melissa Gill (www.facebook.com/MGbookcovers)

  ISBN: 978-1-3113-0062-1

  Publisher: Midnight Engel Press, LLC

  License Notes:

  This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return it and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  Publisher’s Note:

  No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without express written permission from the publisher. The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or any other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punishable by law. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.

  Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, resold (as a “used” e-book), stored or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise), without prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

  This book is a work of fiction. People, places, events, and situations are the product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or historical events, is purely coincidental.

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  Table of Contents

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  Table of Contents

  Dedication

  DC Affairs Book 1 Playlist

  Chapter One: Sigourney

  Chapter Two: Peter

  Chapter Three: Sigourney

  Chapter Four: Peter

  Chapter Five: Sigourney

  Chapter Six: Peter

  Chapter Seven: Sigourney

  Chapter Eight: Peter

  Chapter Nine: Sigourney

  Chapter Ten: Peter

  Chapter Eleven: Sigourney

  Chapter Twelve: Russell

  Chapter Thirteen: Sigourney

  Chapter Fourteen: Peter

  Chapter Fifteen: Sigourney

  Excerpt from Covet (The Covet Duet)

  About The Author

  Contact the Author

  Novels and Novellas

  Dedication

  Everyone who I have ever consulted and sought help during this tumultuous time in publishing. You know who you are.

  My parents: Mom and dearly departed Dad, who nurtured me on politics, taught me both sides of every debate and helped me see through all of the posturing B.S. As a true-purple Independent, I can honestly say the political system is messed up beyond all recognition but I still love a good story—and scandal—as much as the next person so don’t take this series seriously, regardless what side you sit on the isle (or if you’re smack dead in the middle like me).

  All my girls in WDDR.

  Others who have definitely helped me along the way and deserve a shout out are Lisa W. at Rock Wat Designs, super blogger Debbie Diprima, Kathryn Perez, Chelsea Camaron, Kim Jones, Jo Wylde, Chantal Fernando, Madeline Sheehan, Christine Zolendz, Ashley Suzanne, Karina Halle, Nicole Jacquelyn, Lisa Paul, Melissa Collins, Syreeta Jennings, Carey Heywood and everyone else who has supported me.

  You all rock the Kasbah and don’t ever change.

  Bisous! xoxo

  DC Affairs Book 1 Playlist

  “American Idiot” – Green Day

  “Epic” – Faith No More

  “How” – The Neighbourhood

  “Jars” – Chevelle

  “Points of Authority/99 Problems” – Jay-Z/Linkin Park

  “Dani California” – Red Hot Chili Peppers

  “Holding On For Life” – Broken Bells

  “Falling Fast” – Avril Lavigne

  “A Sorta Fairytale” – Tori Amos

  “Gods & Monsters” – Lana Del Rey

  “Paradise Circus” – Massive Attack

  “I Go To Sleep” – Sia

  “Say It Ain’t So” – Weezer

  “Losing My Religion” – R.E.M.

  “Vitamin R (Leading Us Along)” – Chevelle

  “Addicted” – Saving Abel

  Listen to DC Affairs Book 1 Playlist on Spotify!

  Chapter One

  Sigourney

  I could think of many better ways to spend my Friday afternoon but at the moment, my time was taken up at the Coburn Presidential Headquarters. I needed a job in the worst way, and though I’d spent over two thousand dollars on my interview outfit alone, I had a feeling it would pay off. At least, I hoped it would.

  I showed up to an empty office in the heart of DC, wearing a designer royal blue shift dress, and matching suit coat. If there were others who worked there, they were conspicuously absent and this didn’t seem like an oversight on my interviewer’s part.

  The young woman interviewing me had to be at least thirty-five though she still possessed youth-infused looks, shiny auburn hair and captivating pale green eyes. Her body was athletic though she had rather large breasts carefully hidden under a midnight gray designer power suit and stylish Christian Louboutins’ adorned her feet.

  There was nothing about her that spelled cheap or tacky and I hoped to God I conveyed the same image to her.

  She smiled ingratiatingly at me though the only reason it wasn’t a full on smirk was due to her passion and less than cynical attitude towards her boss, Governor Peter Coburn.

  “Hello, I’m Kylie Miller, campaign manager for the Governor. Usually my assistant, Russell Berkeley, conducts the interviews for the Governor’s aides but since you will have a major job in the Presidential campaign, the Governor insisted I meet with you, personally.”

  I smiled back and tried to leave my own snarky feelings out of it. She was a bitch but that was hardly of consequence. As long as she did her job and took me seriously, that’s what mattered.

  “Sigourney Stewart,” I responded as we shook hands.

  Her palms were warm and dry, her handshake firm before she let go and proceeded to turn her back on me. “We’ll speak in my office and conduct the interview there.”

  “Is the Governor on site?” I inquired while I tried to keep up with her long stride. Clearly I wasn’t as practiced walking in four-inch designer heels as the campaign manager. I’d only recently graduated from university, and was much used to running from class to class in Nikes or one of my favorite pair of UGGs.

  Kylie stopped walking and I barely managed to stop myself before I ran into her as she whipped around to face me. “Why do you want to know where the Governor is? Are you getting ready to bat your eyelashes and fan-girl the man? For God’s sake, Governor Coburn is married, Miss Stewart.”

  “I know that, Ms. Miller.” My face flushed and I could feel a blush creep up from my neck as I tried to keep my temper in check. “I planned to do no such thing. I only wanted to meet the man. I was born and raised in Maryland, and meeting the Governor is not something that happens to me everyday. I’m sorry if I offended you, it wasn’t my intention.”

  She smirked this time before she turned away from me and continued to walk. “The Governor is in Annapolis at the moment but the campaign headquarters will remain here in Washi
ngton, D.C. I hope I don’t have to explain to you why. This is where all the top political figures are, including President Nyongo-Rice. She has been mum about who she would like to take over for her after she finishes her eight years in 2016 but it’s a given Elaine Riley sees herself as a natural successor, merely because her husband was also President of the United States. This campaign is about continuing with Nyongo-Rice’s policies and not changing a damn thing. Is that understood?”

  “Yes, Ms. Miller,” I managed to reply to her canned speech.

  “Good.” She opened the door to her office and I followed her inside. She closed the door behind me as I took a seat in front of her desk. There was a seventeen-inch MacBook Pro open and her workspace was generally uncluttered. The office was cold, impersonal, without even the basic necessities there like photos or personal memorabilia.

  As she took her seat, I noticed her glance at her laptop screen before she slammed it shut and faced me again with cold green eyes.

  I cleared my throat though my gaze never wavered from hers and she looked away first. “I’ve seen your résumé and know the basics about you. You’re impressive: you graduated from Harvard with a Political Science degree, Magna Cum Laude, and you recently graduated from law school at Georgetown, Summa Cum Laude. Tell me, do you plan to take the bar exam this summer?”

  “Only if I don’t get this job. There is a good chance I can be hired in my field if this doesn’t work out.”

  Kylie raised a perfectly manicured brow in my direction though she said nothing.

  “I mean, if there aren’t any jobs here in the political arena then I might as well continue with my backup plan of corporate law.”

  “Oh? Corporate law? It doesn’t seem very civic duty to me, Ms. Stewart.”

  “Well, actually it is. Most of the lobbyists have some form of higher education and personally, I would like to work for one of the pharmaceutical companies.”

  I cursed myself inwardly. What a stupid fucking answer!

  “A pharmaceutical company?” Kylie bit out. “Tell me, how does that help the average American? They hire you at a starting salary of say, one hundred thousand dollars per year, do you think Joe and Jane America are truly going to benefit under Nyongo-Rice Health Insurance? No, they aren’t because they’re going to raise the price of their already outlandish drugs to help pay for your salary, Miss Stewart.”

  I took a deep breath before I continued. I knew it no longer mattered what I said because this shark was going to jump on everything and make me out to be some money hungry extremist.

  “Actually, my father is a doctor at Johns Hopkins and he thinks they need more people like me in corporate law. He’s always been very supportive of my efforts. You should know my wish to work at a pharmaceutical company has nothing to do with money and everything to do with helping the average American who is paying through the nose for prescription coverage and out of pocket costs.”

  A total bullshit answer to this bitch before me but what was I supposed to say? I was part of the iPod Generation and damn right I wanted to make money, if only to pay back a year’s worth of school loans my excellent grades and scholarships didn’t cover entirely. Did this cunt think they would disappear by osmosis?

  Kylie smiled again. “Interesting. However, we aren’t here to talk about your backup plan, we’re here to speak about your wish to work for the Coburn Campaign. So, I have to ask you a question you might be strongly opinionated or ambivalent about. Why Peter Coburn? Why not Elaine Riley? She is a woman after all.”

  What kind of answer did she want to hear?

  I didn’t know exactly, and I was tired of guessing therefore I decided to tell her exactly how I felt.

  “To be honest, I wasn’t crazy about her husband, President George Riley. He was an egotistical megalomaniac who seemed to only care about keeping this country out of wars and playing under women’s skirts. That is not an admirable trait in any president—Democrat or Republican. I care even less for his politically ambitious wife or their stuck-up socialite daughter.”

  She smiled rather slowly while nodding her head. “My sentiments exactly. We already had eight years of the Riley fiasco, why would we want another eight again? I’m glad you feel open and honest enough to discuss this with me, Ms. Stewart. At least I know you’re trustworthy and forthright with your opinions. This campaign could use more people like you who aren’t afraid to speak their mind.”

  I smiled brightly and with genuine warmth for the first time since the interview began. “Thank you, Ms. Miller.”

  “Well, now that we have gotten that out of the way, do you have any questions for me about the Coburn Campaign?”

  “What exactly does my job consist of?” I felt stupid but campaigns were like politicians, purposefully complicated and obtuse. One was never told their responsibilities until you were thrown into the deep end.

  The scowl returned to Kylie’s face as she pursed her lips. “We’ll get to that if you get the job. Please sign this NDS and you can be on your way. Expect a call within the next few days whether you get the job or not.”

  Typical! An interview required a Non-Disclosure Agreement? Paranoid much?

  “Is this just to make sure I don’t spill any secrets?” I questioned sarcastically before I scribbled my signature.

  “Actually it protects both you and us. If you do decide to work for the Riley Presidential campaign, we will not leak this interview to her people. We record everything so we’re kind of like the National Security Agency.” Kylie stood after she snatched my NDA and filed it in a security-encoded file cabinet.

  I stood up and smoothed my dress down. “It was nice to meet you, Ms. Miller.”

  “And you as well, Ms. Stewart.” She held out her hand and I shook it ever so briefly again before I turned and left her office in record timing.

  My right shoulder felt heavy with the weight of my designer hobo bag while all I could think about was how I’d fucked up the interview. I would now have to make an appointment to meet with the Riley people as well and to be honest, although my father’s connections would get me an interview, it might turn out similar to this one.

  I still didn’t have a low-paid campaign job and no experience in real world politics. It looked like I’d be taking the bar examination this summer after all.

  A man grabbed my arm and rustled me out of the way in time for me to look up and realize the Peter Coburn stood mere feet from me.

  “Ease up, Eric. That’s not necessary.”

  The hypnotic timber of a sensual male voice with a deep east coast accent—cultured of course—tickled my ears. My face burned crimson with embarrassment as I met the eyes of the governor. His eyes were gorgeous and unusual, steel-gray, which easily expressed kindness, empathy and sexual attitude.

  Eric let go of my arm abruptly yet I still felt breathless as my heart thundered from excitement in my chest. “Thank you, Governor Coburn.”

  He looked me up and down though I couldn’t say I minded. I checked him out as well—how could I not? He was tall, an inch or so over six feet, and well built, good looking with chiseled features and not one bit smarmy. I’d met way too many politicians in my lifetime and the ones who weren’t unattractive man-whores were either alcoholics or the holy-roller types. Washington, D.C. had always been the Hollywood for the pseudo-intellectual, not-quite-intelligent and not-so-attractive but over the years, politicians had become younger, distinguished and sexier. Peter Coburn definitely fit this category with ease and expertise.

  “Sigourney Stewart I presume?” Governor Coburn questioned softly.

  “H-how do you know my name?”

  “I read your résumé and you’re extremely intelligent, having graduated from Georgetown and Harvard. That is quite the accomplishment if I may say so myself. How could I not know about you? I wanted Kylie to interview you personally.”

  Oh. My. God. The man was hot and although he had to be over thirty-five, he wasn’t talking down to me. Yeah, I had youth for
and against me in this case. Not even Generation X thought much of us—mostly because they were usually our parents or could have been. I had to be honest, we were part of the “No Child Left Behind” culture, which produced more dim bulbs than future Einsteins or Eisenhowers. Oh, well, it’s the way of the world I guess.

  “Really?” I smiled again. “Well, I hope Ms. Miller was impressed. I would love to be on your election campaign. I really do believe in you and I haven’t felt this strongly about a candidate since President Nyongo-Rice.”

  “Yes, two thousand eight was indeed a…miracle year. Our first woman President who happened to be black—”

  “Actually the President’s ethnically mixed,” I interrupted. “It’s important to me because my dad’s half white, a quarter Japanese and a quarter black…”

  Wait? Why was I telling a complete stranger my whole freakin’ biography?

  “Yes, you’re correct, actually.”

  I smiled back but I didn’t feel any better for correcting the Governor. For God’s sake, he held a position only fifty people in the country had at any given time, and now he was going for the position only forty-three men and one woman had ever held. The big picture put everything into perspective and I shouldn’t have said anything. I could be so stupid sometimes.

  “Listen, it wasn’t my place to interrupt you or…correct you. I’m sorry about that. I don’t know what I was thinking.”

  Governor Coburn’s smile grew again. “You didn’t do anything wrong. And your response is the kind of opinion we need. You’re bright, have a good head on your shoulders, and most importantly, you represent the growing demographic changes in this country. We need more people like you.”