by Ally Decker
The knock on the door made him turn. “Come in.”
Shawn stuck his head in. “The daughter is here.”
Nate glanced at the clock. Six twenty five. The mayor still had time, but his daughter probably wasn’t going to like waiting.
“I’ve got it.”
When he caught sight of her in the lobby, Claire Dowson was facing away, but she had to hear him coming since she turned around before he could say anything.
She was tall, and her curly red hair was loose, falling to her shoulders, not pulled back like in the photo he’d seen of her. But it was her eyes that caught his attention once again. They were even more arresting in person, and Nate wondered if the challenge was always in there, or if she was preparing for a fight.
Whatever it was, he couldn’t look away.
“Hello, my name is Nathaniel Urban. Welcome to Foster, Young, and Urban.”
She offered him her hand to shake but didn’t respond to his smile with one of her own. Instead, she raised her eyebrows. “Claire Dowson. I have to say, I didn’t expect to ever visit your office.”
“Why is that?”
“I’m sure you’re aware you have a certain… reputation in the police department.” She tossed her hair back but kept her eyes on him, and Nate felt the flame of interest rising. She was a challenge he would gladly take on.
It was his turn to raise his eyebrows. “For efficiency?”
She snorted, but before she could say anything—and Nate would bet she wasn’t going to mince her words—the entrance door opened and in walked the mayor and his wife, flanked by their personal detail.
“Claire!” Barbara Dowson came up to her daughter and hugged her tightly. “So good to see you.”
Mother and daughter are close, Nate noted before looking at the mayor, who walked up to him and shook his hand. Then Shawn appeared at his side, and a minute later, they were all settling in the conference room. And if no one paid any attention, they would miss how Claire and her father barely looked at each other. Nate didn’t miss it, however, and from the look Shawn gave him, his partner didn’t, either.
Good thing they hadn’t been expecting the happy family reunion.
CHAPTER THREE
In less than ten minutes, it was clear that Claire was completely wasting her time here. She had no interest in listening about her father’s campaign plan, donors’ list, and the social media strategy, and even Nate Urban’s charming smile couldn’t keep her— Wait, what?
“Claire?”
The man looked straight at her, and even if he couldn’t possibly know what she was just thinking, she found herself darting her gaze towards his partner before she forced herself to look back at Nate.
“I’m sorry?”
“I was just saying that since most of what we’ll cover doesn’t include you, we should move on to the reason why you’re here, so we wouldn’t waste your time.”
“That would be nice.” She winced. “Sorry, I didn’t mean…” Well, she did mean it, but she hadn’t intended to just blurt it out like that.
Even if her father’s tightening jaw almost prompted her to keep going. God, he really brought out the worst in her.
“It’s fine,” Nate said, tapping his pen over the papers in front of him and dragging her attention back to him. “We know you don’t want to get involved. That’s why we asked to see you.”
“That’s…counterintuitive.” She shook her head. “I don’t know what you need me for.”
Nate and Shawn exchanged glances, and Nate nodded, turning back to her.
“I’ll be brutally honest with you. Whether you want to or not, there’s no way to completely erase you from this campaign. However,” he added quickly when she opened her mouth to protest, “one meeting now to figure out how to best minimize your part can save all of us, including you, time and stress down the line.”
“I don’t get why you can’t completely erase me.”
“Because we live in the world of 24-hour news cycle, and everything becomes a story at some point,” Nate told her. “Your father’s just a mayor now, and you tell me, does it have zero impact on your life?”
She snorted, shaking her head. “No, it doesn’t. That’s why I don’t want even more exposure.”
Her father sat back in his chair with a huff, but she decided to ignore him. She didn’t come here to fight. She was here as a courtesy to her mother, that was all.
“Just like a lot of exposure, minimal exposure also needs a proper plan,” Shawn spoke up. “If you say ‘no comment’, people are more likely to leave you alone than when you say ‘I don’t want to talk about it’, for example.”
Claire frowned. “What’s the difference?”
“’No comment’ is cut and dry but if you say you don’t want to do something, they’re more inclined to ask why. They’re more inclined to ask more questions, either by pestering you more or by speculating on the air.”
She ran a hand through her hair and tugged at the ends. “Fine, so I’ll answer with ‘no comment’ to everything.”
Nate nodded. “Is there any specific topic that may come up? Something the media keep pestering you about?”
“No, they leave me alone now.” Claire glanced at her parents. Her father was staring at the papers in front of him, and mom was offering her an encouraging smile. How fitting. “They were more persistent during the first run for mayor, but I was a rookie then, and luckily my training officer was good at scaring them off. There were a few photos of me in the uniform but that’s about it. I always got more heat inside the department than outside of it.”
Claire recognized her mistake when mom scrunched her face in her patented “oh, poor baby” grimace. Damn it. Another reason why this whole thing was a bad idea.
“But it’s fine,” she added quickly, turning to look at the fixers again. “I just don’t want more heat, okay? So if your plan was to talk me into—”
Nate shook his head. “No talking you into anything. We really just want to make it as painless as possible now. Let’s just go over a few more things, and then we will let you go, okay?”
With that face, he had to be used to people—especially women—doing whatever he asked them to, and part of Claire wanted to rebel just on principle. But she wasn’t a teenager anymore, and she really did want to get home at a reasonable hour. She nodded as she sagged into her seat.
“Sure, okay.”
True to his word, twenty minutes later they seemed to have covered everything they wanted from her, and Shawn announced she was free to go.
She got up from her chair with renewed energy. As she hugged her mom goodbye, Nate glanced at Shawn and stood up as well.
“I’ll walk you out.”
“It’s okay, I can find my way out,” she said, pulling back from her mom’s embrace, but he was already opening the door for her. She nodded to Shawn and her father and muttered a goodbye as she passed Nate.
They were close enough to almost touch, and Claire felt a faint rush under her skin.
Don’t be stupid, she told herself as they crossed the lobby. He works for your father, and besides, you’re never going to see him again.
She fidgeted in place as they were waiting for an elevator, and she couldn’t help glancing at him from the corner of her eye. He was watching her.
“What?”
“Nothing, just…” He shook his head, and before he could say anything else, the elevator arrived with a soft ping.
It was empty. Claire breathed out in relief. She could feel Nate’s eyes on her as she walked in, and as she turned to say goodbye, she wished she could somehow prolong their moment, but nothing came to mind.
Then he followed her in.
Claire raised her eyebrows, but before she could say anything, Nate tilted his head and looked at her with new intensity.
“Shawn will take over your father’s case after tonight,” he said out of the blue. “It doesn’t change anything regarding your participation in the campaign, I jus
t wanted you to know.”
“Okay?” She wasn’t sure why he was telling her this. Why would she be interested in who had a lead on the case?
“I wanted to clear the air before asking you. Would you go out to dinner with me?”
CHAPTER FOUR
Okay, so maybe that wasn’t the smoothest Nate had ever been. But there was something here, something that made it impossible for him to just let Claire walk out of his life without even trying to stop her.
Maybe it was the fire in her eyes, or the challenging attitude, or maybe something else he couldn’t quite define, but the pull was strong enough to make him walk out of the meeting with the mayor without a backwards glance.
Nate could hardly remember the mayor at this point.
“To dinner?” Claire’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Why?”
Nate smiled at that. That was an easy question to answer. “Because I would like to get to know you. I promise it has nothing to do with your father or the case, or anything that’s not about you.”
“It’s hard to imagine since you’re working for my father.” She looked away as the elevator door opened, and she stepped out into the lobby.
Nate followed her and she paused, turning to him. Luckily, there weren’t many people around, and nobody was paying them any attention.
“I told you, Shawn will take over the case, and then there won’t be any conflict of interest.”
“Yes, because I’m sure you’re not going to talk to your partner at all.” Her tone made her doubt clear, but Nate still hadn’t heard a ‘no’, so he kept trying.
“I’m not going to talk to him about you,” he said. “I’m asking you out on a date, not for an interview on a case I’m not even going to be working on.”
Claire crossed her arms against her chest and gave him a searching look. Nate tried to look as sincere as possible and stayed silent. The ball was in her court now, and if she said no… Well, then this would be it.
He tried to squash the sour taste of disappointment at the mere thought.
Finally, after what seemed like an hour, she gave him a sharp nod. “Okay. Dinner sounds good. But if you start asking me about my father—“
“I won’t.” Nate could feel his grin spreading on his face as the rush of adrenaline came over him. She said yes.
Her answering smile was more hesitant, and he could tell she hadn’t lost the suspicion completely, but it still felt like a victory. Given time, he was going to show her he was sincere. He just needed a chance.
“How about this Wednesday, then?” Nate would gladly go to that dinner right now, but he knew better than to suggest that. There was a line between being eager and being overenthusiastic and pushy. Besides, he was still at work, technically. There was a meeting happening upstairs that he should get back to.
Her smile turned softer. “Wednesday’s fine.”
Nate took out his phone and put in her number before waving a hand back at the elevator. “I have to go back to the office now.”
Claire dropped her arms to her sides and took a step back. “Of course. I have to go, too.”
“I’ll call you tomorrow about the dinner, okay?”
“Sure,” she said, taking another step back, and then she turned to the exit. “Bye!”
He responded in kind and watched her go, not ready to go back to his office just yet. She crossed the foyer quickly and confidently, only glancing back once she was at the door. And Nate… Nate couldn’t wait for Wednesday.
For now, he stepped into the elevator and pushed the button for the seventh floor. He glanced down at the phone still in his hand, with a new contact saved. He hit a text icon.
I’m looking forward to our dinner. Nate
He hesitated before hitting send, but the elevator pinged, and the door opened on his floor. He didn’t have time to second-guess right now. He sent the text and put his phone back in his pocket.
Time to get his head back in the game.
CHAPTER FIVE
“You said yes!” Lori sat back in her chair in the break room and stared at Claire in disbelief. “I can’t believe this.”
“Stop it or I’ll change my mind.” Claire had gone back and forth about it since last night. It wouldn’t take much to talk herself out of this completely.
Lori nudged her with her foot under the table. “Hey, it’s good. I’m happy for you, just surprised.”
Claire nodded at that. She surprised herself as well. She’d met many hot guys, ones with a killer smile, and numerous tall, dark, and handsome types. And almost every time they’d asked her out, she’d said no. Hell, she’d been ready to walk away from Nate, too.
She didn’t know what pushed her over the edge, but she had to admit—if only to herself—that the rush she’d felt being close to him, and the hot surge of want when he’d asked her out, was something that hadn’t happened to her in way too long. She hadn’t even realized she’d missed it until it happened. It had seemed stupid to say no after that, even if her brain resisted for a while longer.
Nate Urban wasn’t a smart choice, that was for sure. A fixer, too close to her father and his political campaign, too handsome and probably aware of it enough to be accustomed to getting his way… But still, she wanted to try.
“One date,” she told Lori, getting up from her seat to pour herself more coffee. “Then we’ll see.”
Her partner smirked and raised her cup. “Oh, I’m definitely looking forward to that.”
Claire shook her head, but before she could say anything, Portman and Chavez came in, heading straight for the coffee maker.
“How are things, Dowson?” Portman asked as he refilled his mug. “What are you planning to do once your daddy goes to D.C.?”
Claire narrowed her eyes. “I don’t know, Portman. Maybe I’ll come crying on your shoulder. You know, the way I always do whenever I break a fingernail.” She moved to leave and could hear Lori getting up and following her out.
Cursing both Portman and her father on her way back to the desk, Claire pulled out a folder she was keeping in her top drawer as soon as she sat down. She opened it and looked over the filled form, one that had been taunting her for days now to finally take the plunge.
She stared at the title.
Transfer Request Form.
Maybe now was the right time after all.
***
She spent the entire Wednesday hoping nothing would blow up during the day, since she needed to finish work on time to get home and change. When she’d talked with Nate on Tuesday, he was tight-lipped about where they were going, but he’d insisted on picking her up, so at least she would save some time there.
Still, she needed the day to pass without an incident. Nice, quiet day of filling the paperwork on the recently closed cases.
Luckily, she got her wish, and a few minutes before six, Lori almost shoved Claire out of her chair.
“Go already! I’ll finish the report. You go and have fun.”
Claire raised her eyebrows but then gathered up her things quickly. “I need to date more, if that’s an incentive for you to do the paperwork for me.”
“Ha, ha, don’t get used to it. I’m just offering because it seems almost like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
Claire snorted. “Exaggerate much?”
“Fine.” Lori shrugged. “Once-every-six-months. Better?”
“Closer to the truth, at least.” Claire waved. “Have fun.”
Lori gave her a pointed look and a lopsided smile. “You, too.”
Claire's journey home seemed endlessly long, as if between this morning and now her train changed the route to include a detour through half of Queens. She couldn't concentrate on the book she was reading or settle on one song on her phone. All she could think about was her dinner with Nate. Would they even have things to talk about? She'd sat through quite a few terrible first dates, and she did not want another one. She promised herself that if he even started on his money or influence, she was going to stand up a
nd leave on the spot. She wasn’t going to waste her time on being overly pleasant.
But even though a part of her expected a disaster, there was also a part of her that... didn't. A part that wanted it to work, wanted Nate to live up to the charm that was there in the corners of his lips as he smiled, in the crinkles by his eyes, and in the lines of his wide shoulders. The same part that said yes to the invitation was now anxiously hoping he was going to be the interesting, challenging man she thought he might be, not a pompous prick who wanted to use her for his—or her father’s—agenda.
You’ll just have to wait and see, she told herself for about the hundredth time as she finally got to her apartment and hopped in the shower that helped her relax a bit. When she got out, she realized she was smiling at her reflection in the mirror above the sink, which hadn't happened in quite a while. At least not this kind of smile.
"Get a grip,” she muttered as she toweled off quickly. She was not a fifteen-year-old waiting on her first date. She was a grown woman whose whole world definitely did not depend on a guy's approval.
She put on her favorite gray blouse and black skirt, and ran her hands over her hips as she paused before the big mirror next to her closet. It had been ages since her last date, that was true, but she couldn’t recall being so nervous back then. She’d thought she was too old for the butterflies in her stomach, but apparently she was wrong.
She glanced at the clock. She still had twenty minutes left, enough for some quick makeup.
And enough for her imagination to run away from her, as it turned out. She pictured everything from an elegant restaurant to a dinner on a yacht, something Lori had suggested earlier that made them both laugh.
Her phone rang just as Claire finished putting her lipstick on.
"No work emergency, no work emergency," she muttered as she went to grab it from the kitchenette counter, relaxing once she saw Nate’s name on the screen.