See You at the Show
Page 17
“So, what do you want me to do? Stay with her just to win the Election?”
Angus looked directly at him. “Is that such a bad idea?”
Daniel couldn’t help laughing. “It’s a bloody ridiculous idea and it’s not going to happen.” He leaned farther forward. “And if you talk about Stevie in a derogatory manner one more time I will get up and walk out of here, leaving you with a hell of a lot more problems than you think you already have, believe me.” He reached inside his jacket and took out a photograph, throwing it at Angus. “That’s her.”
Angus picked it up and looked at it. Staring back at him was a woman who could only be described as stunning. She had on very little make-up, her short hair was tousled and messed up and all she was wearing was a shirt Angus assumed was one of Daniels, and very little else. She was laughing as she lay on the sofa in what looked like Daniel’s flat, staring directly into the camera with the most incredible blue eyes he’d ever seen. It was a very intimate photograph, one that Daniel had obviously taken himself. Angus handed it back to him. “She’s very beautiful.”
Daniel slipped the photo back inside his jacket pocket. “She’s Swedish.”
Angus said nothing. He let Daniel carry on, part of him intrigued to find out more about this girl who’d got so close to his Party Leader.
“She’s ten years younger than me, and she makes me feel twenty-five again, Angus. She’s covered in tattoos, she speaks her mind and doesn’t care who knows. She is everything that is wrong for me but I love her like I can’t explain.”
“I’m assuming, from the way you’re talking, that you’ve slept with her?”
Daniel looked at him but said nothing.
“I’ll take that as a yes then. Could that not be clouding your judgement, Daniel? She’s obviously very...different. And we all like a change now and again, of course we do, but couldn’t you just keep it discreet and pay for it like a few people around here I could mention? Get it out of your system and get back to normality?”
Daniel laughed again, sitting back in his chair. “It isn’t just about sex, Angus.”
“Isn’t it? She’s a stunning woman; I’m sure any man would give anything to...”
“Don’t, Angus.”
Angus sat back too, taking a drink of his wine. “Do you know what you’re putting at risk here, Daniel?”
“I’m well aware of the situation.”
“Ok,” Angus sighed. “Listen to me. This is all going to have to be handled extremely carefully...”
“This is my life we’re talking about here.”
Angus sat forward again. “Yes, and I’m trying to make sure you don’t wreck it completely. I’m trying to make sure that you don’t jeopardise everything you and everyone else around you has worked so hard for. So if you’re really serious about this girl, if you’re really going to leave Samantha then go ahead, do it.”
“I don’t need your permission.”
“You need me to keep this whole bloody mess under control, Daniel, so listen to me. You’ve given me no choice, and I don’t agree with this at all, but we can deal with it, if we have to.”
He looked at Daniel again, hoping in vain that this talented, ambitious and usually level-headed man would see some last minute sense and back down from this ridiculous situation. But Daniel said nothing, just fixed Angus with a look of steely resolve that said more than any words could and Angus gave another heavy sigh. A sigh of resignation.
“We can deal with you leaving your wife, even if the timing is worse than bad. But we can deal with it. What we can’t deal with straightaway is you going public with a new relationship - whoever she is - almost immediately after the split. It’s too close to the Election. Do you understand how damaging that could be?”
Daniel remained silent. Angus sat back again, refilling his glass with more wine. He indicated to Daniel’s glass but he shook his head. He needed to keep focused.
“We can deal with the fallout from a separation between you and Samantha, that can be done. But you and Stevie, that needs to be kept under wraps.”
“Until after the Election.”
“Yes. Until after the Election. You do still want to win this Election, don’t you, Daniel?”
“Of course I bloody do.”
“Then you can still do it. You’re going about it all in the most utterly and completely foolish way but I have every confidence you can still do it. If you let me take control.”
“Of my life?”
“Of what you do behind closed doors. And that’s where it’s going to have to stay, for the time being. We have no other choice.”
“We?”
Angus ignored him. He had a plan and it was the only one he could think of. He just hoped it was going to be enough, because Daniel Madison wasn’t the only one with ambition, and if this all went wrong then it wasn’t just going to be his career that went down the pan. Angus was one of the most talented spin-doctors around but even he had his work cut out here.
“We’ll make sure she is kept totally secret; you have my word on that. She’ll be safe, but she’ll be kept very much a secret, and that is going to involve a team of people that will need to know when you intend to see her, where you intend to see her...”
“This is crazy, Angus.”
“It’s necessary. If you want to become our next P.M. She cannot be made public, Daniel, not yet. Once you’re through the door of Number Ten we can take it from there but for now, she has to remain a secret or you can kiss goodbye to your political career. You know it’s the only way, think about it. Unless you really want to give everything up. Everything you’ve worked so hard for. Is that what you want?”
Daniel looked at him. Angus was right. There didn’t seem to be any other way. He was one step away from getting the job he’d always dreamed of. One step away, and Angus was giving him an option that he hadn’t even thought about. The only option left if he didn’t want to stay with Samantha. Which he didn’t. It was risky, and it was going to take some work to pull it off but it meant he could have everything he wanted – the political career of his dreams, and the woman he was falling in love with.
Daniel sighed, throwing his head back for a second before looking at Angus. “Ok. Ok, let’s go with that. It doesn’t appear I have much choice”
Angus looked at him. “It’s more than you deserve, Daniel. You’re not thinking straight in my opinion, and I really wish you’d give this more thought. Can’t you just think about staying with Samantha? At least until after the election…”
“And then what? Once we’re in Number Ten will I have to stay with her at least until the first budget, or until we’ve pushed a few bills through Parliament?”
“I just wish you’d give it a bit more thought. Try thinking rationally, try thinking about what this could all mean for your career.”
“You’ve just told me we can work through this, Angus.”
Angus sighed heavily. “Ok. Ok, I’ve tried. You’ve obviously made your mind up, although I still think you’re putting a lot at risk here, Daniel.”
“That’s my decision.”
Whoever this woman was she’d changed Daniel Madison and it didn’t make Angus feel comfortable. He had a lot of work to do now, that was for sure. A lot of work. And that’s what he was going to have to concentrate on for the foreseeable future, whether he liked it or not.
“You’ll need to speak to her, Daniel. You’ll need to make sure she completely understands what’s going on. It’s imperative she complies with everything or it’s all going to come crashing down around you.”
“I’ll talk to her.”
Angus looked at him. This was his friend, a strong and determined man, a man who he’d thought was rock solid and steady in every aspect of his life but he’d seen a vulnerable side to him here. Daniel Madison was in the throes of falling in love and that was leaving him exposed to some extent. Angus was going to have his work cut out for him, no doubt about that, but he could help him. He did
n’t agree with what was going on, he didn’t think that what Daniel was doing was right in any way but if he wasn’t going to change the way he was feeling then he had no choice but to take control. Until their ultimate goal was complete. After that, once Daniel was through the door of Number Ten maybe things would change, maybe then he’d see what was really important, stop this ridiculous affair and go back to Samantha. He certainly wasn’t making Angus’s life easy but he was his friend and he’d do all he could to sort this mess out. Until he came to his senses.
Angus started to gather his things together. “Right. I’d better get going. There’s a lot to sort out. Call me when you’ve spoken to Samantha, let me know how she’s taken it. Then we can get the ball rolling.” He stood up, picking up his briefcase and newspaper. “Daniel...you’re not going to tell Samantha about...?”
“Credit me with some intelligence, Angus, please.”
Angus nodded, looking at Daniel once more as he turned to go. “You are sure, aren’t you? About what you’re getting into here? You’re really sure it’s what you want?”
Daniel nodded. “I’m sure.”
“Then the fight begins now. And I hope to God you’re ready for it.”
***
“What’s up?” Mark asked, sitting down beside Stevie as she pulled another cigarette out of the packet and lit it. She must have chain smoked about half a dozen in a row and she felt a little sick, but at the same time they were calming her down.
She looked at Mark. Her handsome, rock star lover. Why couldn’t she just close her eyes and when she opened them everything would be back to the way it had been before? Back to that ridiculously complicated confusion of a life they’d had before because she’d known where she’d been with that. She could handle that. She didn’t know if she could handle this, this wanting to be with someone so bad it hurt. And she hadn’t even realised she’d felt like this until now. Or maybe she had and she just hadn’t wanted to admit it.
“Nothing’s up.”
“Liar.”
She smiled at him. “Ok. I’m a liar.”
He moved closer, his hand brushing against hers. “Do you fancy going out tonight? Something to eat, a few drinks...”
“Mark, shut up will you? Please.” She sighed, throwing her cigarette away, looking down at the ground. “We need to talk.”
He didn’t say anything. He knew what was coming and no matter how hard he tried to avoid it, it wasn’t going to go away. But the pain in his chest was unbearable. The fear of what she was going to say immense. Mark Cassidy had never had these feelings before and they hurt. Like hell.
She looked up at him. He didn’t deserve to be strung along anymore. It was pointless pretending he hadn’t said he loved her, even though they’d tried to carry on as if everything was normal. It wasn’t. She still had feelings for him, of course she did. She still cared about him, she still felt her skin break out in goosebumps when he touched her, she still thought he was one of the sexiest men alive. But she didn’t love him back. Not in the same way, she couldn’t give that back to him and it wasn’t fair on him to keep going with whatever it was they had. She loved Daniel. She loved another man. And she couldn’t change that.
“I’m in love with someone else, Mark.”
He looked away, not wanting to hear it. He’d known it was coming but he still didn’t want to hear it. He wanted her to love him, that’s what he wanted. Why couldn’t she love him?
“Who is he?” A pointless question because he already knew. She was in love with a powerful, important man. Mark had seen him, on TV that morning. He’d sat there and watched him, this surprisingly handsome man. He’d watched as he’d spoken in that perfect English accent about things that didn’t interest Mark because all he could think about was that this man was sleeping with his girl. This man had got under her skin, made her fall in love with him and it hurt too much to even think about it.
“He’s a very special man, Mark.”
“And I’m not?”
She looked at him, reaching out to touch his face, stroking that perfect jaw line, the ever-present stubble rough beneath her fingers. “Of course you are. And you know who he is. I’m not stupid, Mark. I know Johnny’s told you.”
“Why, Stevie? Why him and not me?”
“I don’t know. I really don’t. Maybe you were just too late, I can’t say, Mark. I don’t know.”
“What we had was so good though, baby.”
“But it was never anything set in stone, was it?”
“I thought that’s what you wanted?”
“It was. Baby, it was. But Daniel he...he got inside my head in a way that nobody else has ever done. I have to be with him, and I don’t know how that’s gonna work, everything’s so complicated because of who he is. But I have to try, Mark. I have to try.”
“So...what are you saying? What does that mean for us?”
“It means it’s over.”
“Jesus...”
“It has to be. I thought I could do it, I thought I could carry on seeing you and being with him but – he’s won, Mark. His world’s won.”
“You’re killing me, baby.”
“I know. And I’m sorry, I really am.” She was finding it hard to keep the tears at bay as she looked at him. What she still felt for this man, she couldn’t just switch it off. But it wasn’t love. It wasn’t the same as what she was feeling for Daniel. “I don’t want to hurt you, baby, but I can’t pretend to feel something I’m not. And I can’t love you like you love me, Mark, I can’t do that.”
“Can’t you try? I can change, Stevie, if that’s what you want.”
“No, baby, no. I don’t want you to change, you’re a beautiful man – a pain in the fucking arse most of the time but you’re a beautiful, incredible man I just...I just can’t love you the way you want me to.”
He took her hand as she stroked his cheek, his fingers tightening around hers because he didn’t want to let her go. He really didn’t think he could do it. “What’s gonna happen then? With you and him?”
She shrugged, making no attempt to let go of his hand as they sat together. “I have no idea. I guess we’ll just have to play it by ear. Look, you won’t say anything, will you? Please? I’m aware Dave and Johnny know about me and Daniel, but nobody else. And it needs to stay that way. He’s a very important man and I don’t want to be responsible for ending his career. Which could happen, if this got out.”
“Stevie Stone conforming to rules, who’d have thought?”
“They aren’t rules, Mark. Just common sense.”
He squeezed her hand. “It’s not something I really want to talk about anyway so, yeah, the secret’s safe with me.”
She leaned forward and kissed him gently. “Thank you.”
“We can still be friends, right?”
She wanted that more than anything, but whether or not that was possible was something they’d have to wait and see. But there was something about Mark Cassidy that meant he’d never be out of her life. Not ever. Not completely.
She moved closer to him, letting his arm slip around her shoulders as she snuggled against him. “Always.”
He tilted her face up so she looked straight at him. “One last time, Stevie. Me and you. Can you give me that?”
She stared at him, into those deep, dark eyes of his and thought about Daniel, how he was going home tonight, home to tell his wife he was leaving her, and what happened after that was still uncertain, she just knew that she wanted him back here, with her. She wanted him back so she knew they could move on. But tonight - tonight she needed a distraction, something to make her forget what was going on with Daniel and Samantha. And what better distraction than one last night with Mark? It probably wasn’t the best idea, for either of them, but they were going to do it anyway. They both knew that.
She smiled, leaning into him for another slow kiss. “One last time,” she whispered. One last time, before her life changed forever.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
“Daniel? Is that you?”
Samantha’s voice shouting through from the kitchen set another wave of nerves coursing through him and he took a deep breath, loosening his tie. This was it. In the next few minutes his life was set to change beyond anything he’d known before because of a woman he couldn’t bear to be without. Stevie Stone. Sent from heaven to mess with his head and all he wanted was to be back with her, lying beside her as she taught him things fantasies were made of. He just wanted to be with her. Which is why he had to do what he was about to do next. Even if it wasn’t the most sensible thing a man in his position should be doing.
He walked into the kitchen, waiting for her to turn round and look at him. Which she did, within seconds. His beautiful wife. But she wasn’t Stevie. She didn’t make him feel like a teenager on a first date, she didn’t make his stomach flip over with excitement when she looked at him or his skin break out in goosebumps when she touched him. They’d settled into a solid and reliable marriage which had worked for the both of them and that had been fine. Until now. But he couldn’t do it anymore. He didn’t want to settle. He wanted to live. He was on the brink of exciting changes in his life and he wanted Stevie there with him when they happened. He wanted Stevie.