Pursuit of Happiness

by Carsen Taite

  A knock on the door roused her from her musings. She checked the door viewer before answering and yanked the door open the minute she saw it was Meredith on the other side.

  “Did someone call for room service?” Meredith said.

  Stevie tugged her into the room and shut the door. Meredith had changed into jeans, loafers, and a sweater. She liked this version of her. “I would’ve called a lot sooner had I known the wait staff was so cute.”

  “Cute, huh?”

  “Pretty, gorgeous, beautiful—any one of those works.”

  “You want to know what I’d like better than a compliment?”

  “I have a decent idea.” Stevie pulled Meredith closer and framed her face with her hands. “I don’t think I realized how much I’ve missed you until this very moment.” Without waiting for a reply, she leaned in and took Meredith’s lips between her own, slowly savoring their reconnection. “You are the best kisser,” she murmured as they broke for breath.

  “Sure it’s not just a matter of absence makes the heart grow fonder?”

  The look in Meredith’s eyes betrayed a hint of insecurity that Stevie was anxious to dispel. “Not even.” She took Meredith’s hand and led her into the suite, bypassing the entrance to the bedroom and settling on the couch. For now. She pointed at the bag in Meredith’s hand. “If there’s a sandwich in here, I’ll be indebted to you for always. I didn’t get a chance to eat before I caught the plane, and a miniature bag of pretzels is all that’s between me and taking down a pizza joint.”

  “That would be very bad. I have a vested interest in keeping your energy up.” Meredith pulled out her phone and sent a quick text. “There will be food in a few minutes. I promise. In the meantime, I brought other provisions.” She handed over the bag.

  Stevie filed away the comment about keeping her energy up and rummaged through the bag. She found a pair of plaid pajama pants, a Jefferson Law School sweatshirt, socks, and a toothbrush and toothpaste. And a bottle of champagne. “You’re quite the welcome wagon.”

  “You said you didn’t have time to pack anything, and I wanted you to be comfortable.”

  Touched by the gesture, Stevie kissed Meredith again. “You’re so thoughtful, especially considering you had some other things on your mind tonight.”

  “I did have a few.” Meredith reached for the bottle of champagne. “And there’s no one I’d rather celebrate with. I have to be up before the crack of dawn, but I want to raise a glass. Are you in?”

  The question was so broad. Stevie knew Meredith was referring to the champagne, but there was an electricity in the air buzzing with promise. She was absolutely in for a glass, but what happened after, and was she up for that? To cover her hesitation, she rose and walked to the wet bar to retrieve a couple of glasses. When she returned, she set them down in front of Meredith and watched while she poured. This intelligent, successful, beautiful woman had left an adoring crowd to come to her hotel room and hang out with her. Why was she even hesitating to go all in?

  Because this wasn’t real life. It was a night in a hotel on the road. And Meredith was riding a high. Stevie sighed. They both had to be up in a few hours and be on—her for her client and court, and Meredith for the crowds and camera. If they slept together tonight and went their separate ways in the dark before dawn, what was the next step? Would there even be a next step?

  A knock on the door interrupted her internal rambling. She glanced at Meredith, who nodded her okay. Stevie eased the door open, and a guy who looked like he was still in high school smiled and handed her a white paper bag. He asked if she needed anything else.

  “No, thank you,” she said, thinking she should probably give him a tip, but he was gone before she could act on her impulse. She shut the door and carried the bag back to where Meredith was sitting on the couch. Meredith reached in the bag and pulled out two cheeseburgers.

  “Sean always knows where to find food. Anytime day or night.” She handed one of the burgers to Stevie.

  “Does he work for the campaign, because he looks like he’s all of sixteen.”

  Meredith motioned for her to go ahead and eat. “He’s barely eighteen. Just started college and he’s part of the Mitchell for President group on campus. He interned for us at the local office. If it wasn’t for volunteers like him, I don’t know how we would make this work. Gordon has opened offices all over the country in preparation for the primaries. I thought a Senate campaign was complicated, but this is an enormous machine.”

  “Can he be counted on to be discreet?”

  “Who, Gordon?”

  “No, Sean.” She raised her burger. “Who, by the way, gets an A for late night food gathering. But earlier, when your sister escorted me to this room she said she didn’t trust any of the volunteers to be discreet.”

  “Ugh.” Meredith frowned but didn’t say more.

  Stevie finished the last bite of her food and reached for Meredith’s hand. “Everything okay?”

  “You didn’t come all this way to talk shop with me.”

  “Maybe this is a good time to talk about why I am here.”

  “I’d hoped it was because you want to see me.”

  “I do.” Stevie scooted closer and kissed Meredith lightly on the neck. “Very much. And this room…It’s very nice. Inviting.”

  “I hear a ‘but’ coming.”

  Stevie paused before answering, not wanting to kill the mood, but certain if she didn’t say what was on her mind, she’d regret it later. “It’s not like that. I just can’t help but feel a bit like this is a campaign trail booty call.” Meredith started to protest, but Stevie raised a hand to stop her. “Let me finish. And under other circumstances there would be nothing wrong with that.”

  “Under other circumstances?”

  “Circumstances like I didn’t want to get to know you better. Not just naked in bed you, but you—the woman behind the candidate. Don’t get me wrong, I want to know the other one, but I don’t want to fall in bed and wake up in a few hours feeling like we shared something very intimate, but weren’t very intimate, if that makes any sense at all.”

  “Actually, it does. You’d like a little time with the unofficial version of Meredith Mitchell. But fully clothed.”

  Stevie smiled. “Maybe not fully clothed.”

  Meredith mock pushed her away. “Don’t even start down the road, because I can’t promise to turn back. I mean, have you seen yourself?”

  Stevie hadn’t looked in a mirror since she’d arrived, but she imagined if she did she’d see a very tired, mussed from travel version of the put together lawyer who’d started her day very early that morning, and she was amazed that Meredith could be attracted to her right now. “Are you disappointed?”

  Meredith scrunched her brow. “When I looked up to see you framed in the doorway, I was so excited to see you. Did I want to jump your bones? Absolutely. But I also wanted to get you alone and talk and cuddle and share a meal, and all the other things that two people do when they’re dating. Two regular people that aren’t in separate cities or beholden to insanely busy schedules.” She pulled Stevie closer until their foreheads were touching. “So, no, I’m not disappointed. I’m just happy you’re here.”

  A warm flush coursed through Stevie. “Thank you.”

  Meredith motioned to the bag she’d brought. “Now go change out of that skirt and into the very unsexy pajamas I brought you.”

  Stevie walked into the bedroom and pulled the door almost shut. As she peeled off her suit, she experienced a bit of a thrill knowing Meredith was in the next room, and for a moment she considered abandoning her resolve and calling out to Meredith to join her.

  “I’m glad we’ll have a chance to talk,” Meredith called out.

  “Me too.” Stevie shook her head, part relieved the decision had been made for her and part disappointed in the missed opportunity. She changed and took a moment to shake out and brush her hair and splash some water on her face. She did look tired, but there was a glo
w there too. No matter what happened tonight, this trip had been a good idea, and she was glad she’d let Hannah talk her into it. There would be other opportunities to be alone with Meredith. She had to believe it.

  * * *

  When Stevie emerged from the bedroom, Meredith let out a low whistle. “You look good in my college colors.”

  “You’re sweet to say so. I’ve been going since early this morning, but I have a feeling you have me beat in the how much I had to do today department.”

  Meredith used the back of her hand to stifle a yawn. “It was a long day, but worth it apparently.”

  “Apparently.” Stevie reached for the still half full champagne glasses, and handed one to her. “Too much of this will put me to sleep after such a long day, but we should toast your victory. How does it feel to be another step closer?”

  “Ask me in a month.” Meredith’s mind started darting in a million directions as she mentally scrolled through her calendar. “Make that less than a month. The first Super Tuesday is right around the corner.”

  “You tensed up just now.”

  Stevie shifted so she was sitting behind her on the couch and started rubbing her shoulders. Slow, lingering circles of amazing relief. “Your hands are magic.” Meredith groaned. “That feels amazing.” She turned to look back over her shoulder. “Magic.” She wished she could see Stevie’s face to tell if she’d gone too far with the innuendo.

  “I’ll put that on my résumé. It’ll go good with zealous advocacy and vigorous defense.”

  “Definitely. You could massage the jurors and all the not guiltys would be yours.”

  “Filing that idea away for future use. If that fails, I could take this talent on the road and soothe weary presidential candidates.”

  “Candidates plural? Think again.” Meredith reached a hand up and pressed it into Stevie’s. “I’m not sharing this with anyone.” There she went again with the innuendo, but she didn’t care. She was determined to enjoy this moment, this night, and not let thoughts about what would happen tomorrow or next week or next month get in her head and spoil the little time she had to share with Stevie.

  “So, how is the campaign going?” Stevie asked. “Earlier it looked like you wanted to say something. If you want to talk, I’m happy to be a sounding board, and I’m known to be very good at keeping secrets.”

  Meredith tussled with how to respond, not wanting to talk shop, but figuring it might be safer than other topics. Besides, she really could use a sounding board. “Okay, here goes. I’m sure you know this already, but my family believes that public office is a calling and many are called, but not everyone gets chosen.”

  She watched Stevie nod, clearly interested in what she had to say, but sharing her feelings this way was a big step. When it came to family business, the Mitchells had an unspoken omertà, and if what she was about to say got out, it would be fodder for the media, and could drive a wedge in her relationship with her family.

  “I meant what I said about keeping secrets,” Stevie said. “I’m not fishing here. You don’t have to tell me what’s going on, but you should find someone you can talk to. Outside the bubble of Team Meredith.”

  “Are you telling me you’re not on Team Meredith?”

  “Oh, I’m head cheerleader, but I’m not working for you and that’s a big difference.” Stevie’s fingers stroked hers as she spoke. “I’m sure you have people you can talk to.”

  Meredith ran through the list. The only other person she could think of that she trusted to vent to was Addison, but Addison wasn’t here, sitting next to her, giving her a glorious massage. Stevie was, and if she was going to take their relationship to the next level, she needed to be able to trust her. Right? She took the plunge.

  “Jen is four years older than me. She’s run for public office a couple of times. Nothing big, just some local races in New York.” She scanned Stevie’s face for signs she already knew this information, and was pleasantly surprised to see no sign that she was sharing old news. It was a casualty of being born into a famous family—never quite being sure if everyone you met already knew everything about you.

  “I assume she either didn’t win her campaigns or she decided elected office wasn’t for her.”

  “She won a seat on a town council, but when she launched her bid for statewide office, it came out that she’d been having an affair with the husband of one of her fellow Junior Leaguers—a very influential member—and her career was instantly tanked. No amount of Mitchell political magic could resurrect her aspirations after that, and she settled for a support role in little sister’s political future.”

  “That’s rough. Did you always want to be involved in politics?”

  Meredith noted that Stevie always turned the conversation back to her, which had a way of making her feel special. “That’s a good question. For a long time, I’m not sure I knew there was anything else to be involved in. When we were kids, we’d ride around with my parents, canvassing neighborhoods and attending town meetings. I’m sure some of that was for show, but Dad also wanted us to see how important community involvement was. James Jr. and I took to it right away, but Jen always felt like she was being forced to join in, and that she was missing out on all the fun stuff in the process.”

  “What about your brother Michael?”

  “Dad was smart enough to realize from early on that Michael’s talents were better used in the background. He’s a brilliant statistician, but not so great with hiding how he really feels. He’ll tell a supporter to their face that he thinks their ideas are stupid. I love him dearly, and he’s helped me tremendously, but he has no filter, which is why he’s not on the road with me, although I talk to him daily.”

  “How did Jen come to work for you?”

  “It was a mutual decision, but it was her idea. I never would’ve asked her after her very public dust-up. Not that I didn’t believe she was capable or worthy, but I figured she’d be done with politics for good. Yet, she came to me and offered to work my Senate campaign. At first in a background support role, but increasingly I came to rely on her more and more. She’s managed to overcome her past and garners a lot of respect in political circles. At this point, I don’t know what I would do without her, which is why it’s been somewhat tense on the road. She and Gordon tend to clash.”

  “Legitimate clashes or power struggles?”

  Meredith smiled, pleased at the way Stevie could get to the crux of the matter. “Probably some of both, but likely more power struggle than anything else. Jen’s not alone. You got a glimpse of it at Christmas. The rest of my family doesn’t understand why I felt the need to hire an ‘outsider’ to run the campaign, but as successful as most of them are, none of them have national experience, and I need someone completely objective to keep me balanced.”

  “Makes sense.”

  Stevie nodded but looked off in the distance like she was thinking things through. “What are you thinking?” Meredith asked.

  “It’s really not my place.”

  Meredith leaned back into Stevie’s arms. “We’re snuggled on the couch, and you just gave me the best massage I’ve ever had. In a minute, I plan to kiss you silly. There’s no such thing as ‘place’ here. Just you and me, and I welcome any advice or insights you care to share.”

  Stevie shifted slightly so they were face-to-face. “Here’s my question. Have you made it clear who’s in charge? Because maybe it’s a matter of the roles not being clearly defined. If Jen is used to running the show, it had to be awkward having Gordon and his team step in and take over while she’s still involved. Where does his responsibility begin and hers end?”

  As Stevie spoke, Meredith realized she’d once again drilled down to the core issue. She’d never set a clear demarcation of Jen’s and Gordon’s roles, but only assumed that they would work together to get things done. She could see how her failure had caused the rifts that had occurred so far. First thing tomorrow, she was going to set things straight.

  That
was tomorrow. Now all she wanted to do was engage in some of the silly kissing she’d mentioned earlier.

  * * *

  Stevie swiped at her ear, wishing whatever was disturbing her smoking hot dream would go away and leave her alone.

  “Hey, babe. I know it’s early, but I’ve got to leave in about fifteen minutes, and you’ve got a flight to catch.”

  The words floated on the edges of her conscious, and Stevie tried so hard to integrate them into the action scene that was tugging her in the other direction. The one where Meredith stood over her, naked, arching her body over hers in an achingly slow caress. But now someone was shaking her, gently sure, but if they didn’t stop, Meredith was going to be scared away because they couldn’t get caught together. “Go away,” she mumbled, pushing her hands out to ward off the distraction.

  “That must be one hell of a dream.”

  Stevie shot upright in bed, suddenly very aware of whose voice she was hearing. “Morning,” she mumbled. “I didn’t mean to push you. I was—”

  “Busy. Clearly,” Meredith said with a sly smile. “I can only hope I was a virtual part of that little action sequence.”

  “Now I’m kind of mortified.” Stevie rubbed her eyes, wondering exactly how much of her dream she’d vocalized. “You’re all dressed up.” Meredith was standing in front her dressed in a crisp navy suit, complete with a flag pin on the lapel. Even through her haze, Stevie could tell she was looking very presidential, but also very ready to leave. “Holy shit, I overslept.”

  “A little.”

  Stevie patted the covers, and Meredith sat next to her. “I had this image of us sharing coffee and, I don’t know, pancakes together before we each flew off in different directions.”