by King, Jayna
She gave me a sad little smile. “Thank you. I saw you and Reed going into the box. You both look very happy. Will you tell him I miss him?”
“I will.”
“I understand that he wants some space after the shit I pulled, but I hope he’ll let me back in at some point.”
Tina looked so earnest, so sad, that I actually, for the first time, felt sorry for her.
I reached out and gave her a hug. “I’m sure he will. He just needs a little time.”
She started to cry as she thanked me. “Go on,” she said, turning me around. “Enjoy the show. And tell your dad I’ll pay him back every penny I took. I shouldn’t have done it, and I’ll make it right.”
“I’ll tell him.”
I walked back to the box slowly, unsure if I should tell Reed about my encounter with his mom. I decided to wait until after the show. There was no sense bringing it up in front of Dad’s donors or Henry. I’d let the man I loved enjoy seeing his father finally step up and do something right for his son. I took my seat next to the brothers, and Reed turned to look at me.
“Everything okay? Where’d you go?”
I put a hand on his knee. “Everything’s just fine.”
The emcee of the show took the stage and called my dad out for a huge round of applause. I could see Stanford just off the edge of the stage, keeping a watchful eye on Dad. Dad started in on a long list of people he wanted to thank—Gordon chief among them, and when he finally mentioned all the big money contributors and the musicians who would be performing, he held a hand out to the side.
As the spotlight swept over the stage and illuminated the wing Dad gestured at, Stanford came into view—right in the middle of a kiss with Garrett. The two stumbled apart, and both Garrett and Stanford looked positively terrified … until the applause started, led by my father.
“Thank you to Stanford, my faithful campaign manager, who is certainly deserving of some happiness after the long hours he’s put in for me.”
Stanford gave an embarrassed little wave, reaching out and taking Garrett’s hand as they backed out of the spotlight.
“Well, that resolves one more issue,” I said, leaning over toward Reed. “Garrett’s phone will be ringing right about now, I suspect.”
“Will he be okay?” Reed asked, looking concerned.
“I’m sure he will. Sometimes you have to be stronger than you realize, but the payoff is always worth it,” I said, leaning forward to kiss him.
He put an arm around both me and his little brother, as Gordon took the stage, shaking hands with my dad and playing the first few notes of his best-known song. As the music took off, my dad started to dance at the edge of the stage.
“Jesus, Stanford should yank him off the stage. If people see him dancing like that, they’ll never vote for him,” I laughed quietly to Reed, making sure no one else in the box could hear.
Henry piped up. “I think your dad’s cool.”
“You know what,” I said, leaning over toward him. “You’re right, and your dad’s cool, too.”
The show started, and Reed reached over and took my hand, squeezing it as we watched Gordon perform. In my wildest dreams, I never would have believed I’d be smiling, waving, and even kissing for the camera, and I certainly wouldn’t have believed I’d be falling in love with a man who was—at least for a few more weeks—my stepbrother.
Coming April 2015...
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