by Lee Taylor
Forcing a smile to curve her lips, she pirouetted in a circle, showing off the flowing concoction she was wearing. She aimed for a nonchalance she was far from feeling and murmured, “You like?”
His smile widening, he nodded. “Ah yes, Gia. If you are asking me if I like what your astonishing body does to that lovely outfit, my response is a resounding hell yes!” Holding out his hands, he qualified, “But, princess, to truly test my reaction, I need you to come over here. I have to run my hands over that silky creation to confirm that all of those luscious curves are real and that you truly do have the most amazing body I’ve ever lusted over.”
Gia could only shake her head, blinking hard to keep the tears she felt filling her eyes from falling.
Logan’s voice was soft but commanding. “That wasn’t a request, princess.” His lips quirking up the corners, he pointed to a spot in front of him. “Here, princess. Now.”
When she hesitated, he narrowed his gaze and, nodding affirmatively, held out his hands. In seconds, she was in his arms, burying her face against his chest. Feeling his strong arms around her, she gave in to her upset. Her voice choked with tears, she pleaded with him. “What’s wrong with me, Logan? I should be thrilled with what happened today. If my candidate did what I did—spontaneously at that—I’d be ecstatic. I’d be congratulating her for an over-the-top performance. And I’d know that as her manager, I must be doing something right. That I was as hot damn a manager as I’d always known I was. Instead, I . . . I’m upset.”
Swiping at her tears, she appealed to him. “God, Logan, is this what it’s going to be like? I’m going to have to do everything outside of my comfort zone and turn over the things I’m expert at, the things I love to do, to Ben and the girls? Not to mention having to listen to your brain trust, Max, Jerry, Paul, and Elliott, butting in like the wise men of old? Thinking just because they agreed to fund the campaign they can tell me what to do?” Her voice took on an accusing edge. “And then there is you. I’ve always known you are Mr. Wonderful, but now I’m coming to find out that you are the master of the fucking universe! At least the universe that affects me.”
Startled at the rush of emotions and accusations that flowed unchecked from her lips, Gia stepped back, embarrassed. To her surprise and relief, Logan didn’t look angry. If anything, he looked as though he’d expected her outburst.
At least that’s how she felt when he held her more tightly and then said quietly, “I have a suggestion, sweetheart. As exhilarating as today was on so many levels, I’m not surprised that you feel overwhelmed.” When she tried to interrupt, tell him that it was more than that, he shook his head. “Uh-uh, Gia. You are raising important issues, issues that we need to deal with. And we will. But first, as usual, you haven’t had a damn thing to eat today since I forced you to eat breakfast this morning. Which was a minimum of twelve hours ago. Hell, honey, If I’m not mistaken, you were too energized to even drink at the HT&M.”
When he turned her toward the sofa, Gia realized that the platter of elegant seafood and an arrangement of fruit and vegetables, plus fresh bread on the table, was what she’d smelled from the bedroom. The beautiful food confirmed that, as usual, Logan was on-target. She hadn’t eaten since a hurried breakfast this morning and was ravenous. Allowing him to settle her on the sofa, she was grateful when he filled a plate with an array of delicacies and handed it to her.
Sinking down beside her, he reached for the bottle of wine in the ice bucket and poured each of them a glass of pinot grigio. Raising his glass to her, he said, “To you, Gia, the most courageous woman I know.”
Gia hesitated and nodded as she took a sip and then raised her glass to him. “To you, Logan, the man who is determined to take over my life.” She added with an aggrieved sigh, “And for some crazy reason, I’m letting you!”
He laughed. “Oh hell, baby, that’s what we masters of the universe are known for.”
For the next several moments, they ate and drank in silence. Little by little, Gia felt the bonds of anxiety that had become significantly tighter as the day progressed begin to loosen. When she decided she couldn’t eat another bite of the lavish food, she leaned against the back of the sofa with a contented sigh. Logan also put his plate down and then refilled both of their glasses. To her surprise, she saw that he looked somber. “What is it, Logan? You . . . you look serious.”
He smiled, then nodded. “I am serious, Gia. And I’m ready to begin the conversation that we need to have.”
Feeling a churning mass of anxiety creeping over her, Gia shook her head. “What . . . conversation? What more do we need to discuss?”
Holding her frowning gaze, he said with a shrug, “I’ll leave the sequence of the topics we discuss to you. To be specific, which of these three issues that have got your panties in a bunch would you like to hit me with first?” At her surprised frown, he put up his fingers and checked them off. “Shall we start with that troublesome elephant in the room? Specifically, what role your father will or will not play in the campaign. Or two, do you prefer tackling how I can convince you to back off and let Ben run the campaign, which will allow you to be the candidate? Or finally, shall we discuss how we are going to deal with our love affair? Specifically, when do we announce that I am more than your funder, and you are so much more than my client?”
Chapter 4
Gia did her best to shutter her shocked gasp, then swallowed hard. Seeing Logan’s intense gaze, it was clear that he wasn’t about to let her avoid any of the minefields he had listed. The thought alone had her gut roiling. “I . . . I’m sorry, Logan, but I’ve had all the discussions I plan to have tonight. Maybe some other time. Tonight, I prefer to drink a glass or three of your swanky booze, then blessedly fall into a dreamless sleep for at least the next ten hours.”
“Sorry, princess, that isn’t an option. This is a conversation that we need to have . . . and that we are going to have . . . now.” He waited a long moment until she looked up and met his gaze. “C’mon, sweetheart, tits up. When did you shy away from a challenging discussion, especially one that goes to the heart of everything that we are facing?” When she shook her head and started to stand, he reached for her arm and tugged her back down. “Uh-uh, Gia. We can have this conversation sitting next to each other, or if necessary, I will hold you on my lap. Which I might do just to ensure that you understand that there is no avoiding me.”
She jerked back and spat, “As if you haven’t made it abundantly clear, Logan, that in your view, you are in charge of the world, specifically my world! The problem with that authoritarian view is that it is misguided. No one is in charge of me but me. For God’s sake, even my disgusting father knew he couldn’t control me.”
Logan nodded thoughtfully. “We’ll deal with you and me later, but first, since you brought him up, let’s start with one of the most troubling issues we face, your father.”
Gia started, then glared at him. “Damn you, Logan, you know that’s not what I meant . . . I told you I do not want to talk about—”
He interrupted her. “I’m curious, Gia, until the Maxwell campaign, I understood that even when he was convicted of a barrage of federal and state corruption charges, you and your father were close. In fact, according to him, you went to the prison at least once a week to see him. What happened, sweetheart, to make you turn against him?”
Gia pulled back, determined to end this discussion before it started. Logan’s casual assertion that he’d talked with her father infuriated her. He had no right to do that. It was yet another example of his overbearing assumption that he was in charge of her life. Not! “Damn you, Logan, in the crush of everything that’s happened, I haven’t told you how angry I am that you went to see my father. How dare you do that? You had no right—”
He held up his hand, stopping the torrent of accusations sure to follow. “As I told you, Gia, I had every right to seek out your father. I needed to confirm that he didn’t have any more landmines out there that could bite you and me in the ass. He indicated
that he did not.”
When she glared at him and prepared to take him on, he shook his head. “Let’s put that aside for the moment, sweetheart. Suffice it to say that I wasn’t about to invest a significant amount of money in your campaign, and ask others to do the same, without taking the measure of that important man.” He added with a grin, “The man whose admirers and detractors insist can talk the green off a leaf.”
“And did you, Logan? Master of the universe that you are, were you able to suss out that unsussable man?” As another thought struck her, she demanded, “Speaking of unsussable, how the hell did you get in to see my father? The judge who sentenced him heavily restricted access to him. He was determined to keep my unrepentant father from carrying out his many nefarious businesses as usual.”
When Logan merely shrugged, Gia acknowledged how little she knew about this disquieting man who had invaded her life and her spirit. After all, how could a supposed high-tech entrepreneur waltz into a federal prison and casually meet with an inmate who had the restricted contact level her father did. A level he’d earned not because of violence but rather his inimitable ability to bamboozle anyone who came his way. Which included prison guards, correction officials, and certainly visitors. Before she could continue her rant, Logan asked a question that put her off guard.
“I’m curious, Gia. What did your father do that you turned on him as dramatically as you did? After all, you supported him throughout his nefarious career and visited him regularly in prison. Until you . . . didn’t.”
“I . . . he . . . betrayed me.”
“Hmm, that sounds personal. How did he betray you?”
Gia surprised herself by answering him. “He had information on Mike O’Brian, Aiden Maxwell’s opponent that would ensure Mike’s defeat. If Max hadn’t told me about it, I would never have known.”
“Why was that a deal breaker?”
Gia spit out, “Don’t you see? Big Bart wanted me to fail. He was angry when Aiden and I got engaged. He thought Aiden wasn’t worthy of me. When I insisted that Aiden was my candidate, my father warned me that Aiden wouldn’t, couldn’t, win. And then he kept the evidence that would take down his opponent to ensure that Aiden lost.”
“I understood that he gave you the information.”
“Yes, he ultimately sent it to me. But only after I declared that I would never speak to him again and prayed that he would die in prison.”
Logan frowned. “Hmm. So your father saw the things that I saw in Aiden?”
Gia whirled on him. “Oh sure, it’s easy now to see what a loser Aiden was. But after all the things I did to support my father, all those years, even when I knew he was wrong, the minute I tried to go out on my own, he undermined me. He couldn’t bear to see me succeed. He betrayed me.”
Seeing Logan’s thoughtful gaze, Gia’s frustration flared to anger. “Dammit, Logan, I don’t have to explain my actions to you. Just know my father will not be part of this campaign you have engineered. We can agree on that or we can end the campaign now.”
Logan put up his hands, a conciliatory gesture. “Okay, princess, let’s agree. We will do our damnedest to keep him out. But, sweetheart, you are too smart a politician not to know that Underwood’s campaign will do everything in their power to remind voters you are Big Bart Tremaine’s daughter and, equally as negative, that you were engaged to that despicable pedophile Aiden Maxwell.”
Gia leapt to her feet. Her voice was low, sheathed in anger. “Exactly. Which is why I ask you, why would I, should I subject myself to all of that ugly, unwarranted criticism? Help me out, Logan. Why the fuck should I run? Tell me! Why?”
Logan rose to his feet and reached for her. Lifting her chin, he forced her to meet his narrow-eyed gaze, then said quietly, his voice riddled with intent, “Because, Gia, you’re so much more than that. You are the most skilled young politician it’s been my privilege to know. You deserve to win this race, Gia. And the district deserves to have a candidate of your caliber represent them in the US Congress, rather than a misogynistic, corrupt asshole like Gus Underwood. And finally, Gia, you deserve to prove to others, and most especially to yourself, that you are so much more than Big Bart’s daughter and Aiden Maxwell’s former fiancée. You are Gia Tremaine, a formidable force to be reckoned with.”
Logan held her firmly in front of him, forcing her to hold his gaze until she finally nodded and closed her eyes in apparent acceptance. Or more likely, Logan acknowledged to himself, acquiescence for the moment. Easing her back onto the sofa, he reached for the bottle of wine and poured several inches of the expensive libation in each of their glasses. He raised his glass to her and pointed with his chin to her glass, indicating she should do the same.
“To us, sweetheart. Now that we have dealt successfully with one of the three troublesome issues we are facing, shall we turn to an easier one? That being your pathological need to control every scintilla of the campaign as an accomplished manager would.”
At her dismissive snort, which no doubt was her reaction to his purposefully overstated success on the issue of her father as well as the implication she was a control freak, she raised her glass to him. “I’ll drink to the fact that you agreed that my father will not be involved in this campaign and that I’m an accomplished campaign manager.”
Logan laughed as he clicked her glass. “And to your ability to frame any discussion, and conclusions, to fit your needs.”
Gia sniffed as she tapped his glass and took a significant swallow, then groused, “Look who’s talking about framing a discussion! God, Logan, it’s not a surprise that Emma and Kaila are gaga over you or that Ben and Syl are convinced that you are Tony Stark in the flesh. But watching you in action with all those powerful men, I’m impressed. It’s one thing that Paul and Elliott, your professional peers, are in awe of you. But to see two old-time political reprobates like Jerry and Max and, for God’s sake, the toughest old bird of them all, Granger, kissing your ass is more than I can handle.”
“You’re leaving out the most challenging, make that toughest, of my potential adversaries—you.”
“Right, like I have a chance to defeat you when you’ve already captured my entire cadre of supporters and team members.”
Logan shot her a narrow-eyed gaze, then let a grin confirm his agreement. “Yes, I confess, I’ve been pleasantly surprised that your formidable ‘cadre’ has come on board the campaign I admit I instigated. My only question is why you continue to think that you can ‘defeat’ me when you know that I’m correct. If anyone was cut out to be a formidable candidate, it is you. That is, after I convince you that you are not managing the campaign, Ben is.”
“Don’t you mean when I concede that you are the ultimate manager? Or to be more specific, that you are the master of the universe—my universe?”
He winked at her. “Ah yes, and there is that.” He leaned over, stroked her cheek with a calloused finger, and grinned at the tremor she couldn’t disguise. “How about we wrap up the ‘campaign manager versus candidate’ discussion before we move on to the arena in which I’m glad we agree I am the master . . . ”
When she rose up in aggrieved protest, he shook his head and pressed his finger against her lips. “Hang on, baby, we’ll get to you and me soon enough. First I need you to agree that Ben has more than proved his manager mettle. And why would he not be as accomplished as he is? Look at his role model . . . perhaps the single most intuitive politico I’ve seen. Ben has another critical asset. He adores you and admires you. He also knows how to calm you down when you get on one of your rampages.” He shook his head, stopping her objection. “My only concern is that he is accustomed to conceding the floor if you disagree with him. Which is where I come in.”
Gia guffawed. “Why don’t you admit it, Logan? You intend to run this entire campaign from the funding to the personnel management, to the message, to the issues and, finally, to the candidate.” She glared at him. “Unfortunately for you, I don’t think you understand the magnitude of
what you think you can control. I learned my skills at the knee of one of the most underhanded, degenerate, and accomplished reprobates that ever controlled a political landscape. If you think I’m going to roll over and let you manage my life, you are sadly mistaken.”
Logan’s eyes sparkled with what might have been amusement, but Gia saw the danger lurking behind the laughter. “Hmm, I don’t think you know me nearly as well as you should if you think for a moment that I’m not up to managing a scamp like you.” At her aggrieved snort, he chided her. “Come on, Gia, admit it. You’re as nuts about me as I am about you. And yes, I do intend to be the final word on any of the issues we run into in the campaign. Will I defer to your judgment when it is warranted? Hell yes. You are a brilliant manager, intuitive and gutsy. And with Ben’s help and me at the overall helm, you are going to be a consummate and wildly successful candidate.”
To her surprise, he rose to his feet and reached for her hands. Pulling her up beside him, he murmured, “Now that we have that settled, I think it’s time we move on to that other issue that has been bedeviling us both. The issue, to put it crudely, that has my cock straining against my trousers, determined to bury himself in your succulent pussy.” At her shocked gasp, he added, “That would be the fact that I’m crazy about you and that I want you in ways I didn’t know it was possible to want a woman. And although you are trying mightily to contain your passion, convinced that you can manage me the way you’ve managed all of the men in your life, you know it’s a lost cause. You can no more manage me than a toddler’s sandcastle can survive the roiling waves of a raging sea.”
Weaving his fingers into the mass of unruly curls flowing over her shoulders, he jerked her head back, forcing her to meet his hungry gaze. At her throaty moan, he groaned in response as he lifted her up into his arms. “Oh yeah, princess. I’m done deferring to you, holding back the passion I’m consumed with. I think it’s more than high time that I show you my masterful side. The one that you know is there, in fact, that you have been craving but are unwilling to ask for. Lucky for you, I don’t need or want your permission. The fact that you clearly want it and need it as much as I do is confirmation enough.”
