Whiskey and Orange Slices

by Michelle Edwards

  “Senator, will we see you tonight in town for dinner?” Alexis asked before she left for the evening.

  “No, I think I’m going to go grab something and go home. It’s been a long couple of months.”

  She nodded. “Okay, well I’ll see you tomorrow for the festival.”

  I nodded. “Tomorrow.”

  The elevator dinged and I heard the doors shut as Alexis left for the night.

  I let my eyes change as I sat back in my chair and popped in an orange slice candy into my mouth.

  “You like those don’t you?” Bethany’s voice came from the doorway. I refused to open my eyes because I knew if I did, they wouldn’t be what she was used to seeing.

  My chair spun around and I nearly choked the candy piece down.

  “Yes, I do” I coughed. “What are you still doing here?”

  “Oh I had a few things to go over. I’m actually about to head out and grab dinner.”

  “Okay, have a good night,” I said with my back to her.

  She sighed, “Goodnight.”

  I spun back around in my chair as I heard her footsteps go down the hall. How could I have been so stupid? I’ve never been caught, and I’ve never come close.

  I stared at the glass jar on my desk that held more orange slices.

  I shook my head, grabbed my jacket, another couple of orange slices and was out the door in seconds.

  Ever since I was young I’ve loved LA. I’ve seen it go through so much change over the centuries that I can’t help but love it. It’s the same with California, I’ve lived here my entire life and never plan to leave. Most people like myself go to another country for years or centuries and then end up back home. Me? I stay put. I figure it out and never leave my home.

  I walked down the street to the restaurant and bar.

  I breathed in deep as I entered the restaurant and scanned the place.

  “Sir, do you have--Oh I’m sorry Senator. I didn’t realize you would be coming in tonight.”

  I waved my hand at the hostess, “It’s okay, Becky. I didn’t either.”

  I spotted her. Sitting at the end of the bar with a drink in front of her. Her finger ran along the rim of the glass as she stared into it.

  “I’m going to sit at the bar tonight,” I told Becky as I never took my eyes off of Bethany. It’s almost like I was seeing her for the first time all over again.

  “Fancy seeing you here.” I chuckled, leaning against the bar next to her.

  “Senator…” she whispered, sitting up straight, her finger stopped and she sat still.

  “Good evening.”

  “Did you follow me here?” she snapped.

  I laughed, “Well your self-esteem is definitely still good. No. This is actually one of my favorite places. I come here at least once a week. Ask the staff.”

  She shook her head. “I believe you.”

  “So, drinking alone?”

  “How do you know I’m not waiting for a date?”

  “Because it’s eight o’clock on a Friday. If you had a date, he’d be here by now.”

  She shrugged and went back to staring at her glass.

  “Come on. Come sit down with me and have dinner.”

  She shook her head. “No I couldn’t impose, and I should probably head home anyways.”

  “It’s one meal.”

  “Alright one meal. We can discuss your schedule for next week.”

  “You want to turn this into a working dinner?”

  She nodded.

  I waved Becky over and asked her to grab us a table.

  We followed her to a table in the back where she handed us two menus and left.

  “She seems very smitten with you,” Bethany muttered from behind her menu.

  “She knows me. Plus I’m a U.S. Senator. It’s very daunting for some people to be around me.”

  She put her menu down onto the table.

  “Guess I never realized how popular our famous Senators are. Where I come from, they aren’t even a thought most of the time.”

  “Why did you come to LA?” I blurted out.

  “I needed a fresh start.”

  “From a troubling past?”

  She sighed, “It’s complicated. And I know that sounds like a line, but it’s not. It’s really complicated for me.”

  The waitress came over before she or I could say another word and took our orders.

  Bethany looked at me. “My mom doesn’t know who I am. I grew up almost best friends with her, and one car accident and she can’t remember me. It’s almost as if I was never born.”

  My heart nearly broke into pieces. I would be devastated if my mom didn’t know who I was. Granted, my parents were both dead at this point, but it would be heartbreaking to be around my mother if she didn’t know me.

  “I’m sorry…” I whispered.

  “We’ve tried. My father and I, to remind her who I am. We showed her home movies, pictures and everything. Nothing worked. After this last troubling spell, I decided to leave. I needed to get away. So I packed, rented out my apartment and moved across the country to a new city.”

  “Alone.”

  She nodded.

  “And your father didn’t try to stop you?”

  “He didn’t know until after I moved. Look, as much as I love my parents, I can’t keep thinking about it. It just makes my head hurt.”

  I nodded, “Understood. Let’s talk about something else. Boyfriend? Hobbies?”

  “No and photography.”

  “And standing up for people in the grocery store.”

  She laughed, her laugh was contagious. “Yes that too.”

  Dinner was without a doubt, perfect. I wanted so badly to tell her the truth. To tell her what I was and bring her with me tomorrow. But I couldn’t. I couldn’t risk it. In a couple of weeks was our annual weekend gathering and I needed to be prepared for it.

  “Thank you for a great evening, Senator.”

  “You know you can call me Matthew outside of the office.” I smiled as we walked toward the door.

  “Okay, Matthew.”

  I pulled the door open and we were both greeted with camera flashes and questions.

  “Senator, are you on a date?” one guy questioned sticking a mic in my face.

  “Senator, isn’t this a staff member?” another person asked from farther back in the crowd.

  I sucked in a deep breath and put my hand on Bethany’s back leading her toward the car that waited for me.

  She jumped in without hesitation.

  “Senator!” I heard them say as the door shut.

  I looked over at Bethany.

  “What’s your address?” I questioned.

  She muttered the address for an apartment complex near Pasadena.

  My driver nodded as he pulled away from the curb.

  “So I know the press follows you places, but I didn’t see any press the night I met you at the grocery store. Why and how did they find you here?” she questioned.

  I shrugged, “Going grocery shopping doesn’t hold much excitement for people. Seeing me having dinner with a beautiful woman who also happens to be on my staff.” I sighed. “Well that triggers interest in people. I assume someone in the restaurant saw us and tipped off some press.”

  “You can drop me at the bus stop. I can take the bus back home.”

  “No way. You are already here and we’ll drive you. Plus it’s on the way to my house.”

  Her eyebrows rose as she cocked her head to the side. The desire to grab her and kiss her was almost more powerful than the blood hunger that stirred inside of me.

  I popped an orange slice into my mouth.

  “I live in Pasadena.”

  She nodded. “Of course, I knew that.”

  Chapter Seven

  Bethany

  I watched as the SUV pulled away from my building before I turned and went inside.

  My phone rang before I could even get inside the door.

  “Hello?” I aske
d into the phone without even paying attention to who was on the other end.

  “LA? Really? And you are dating a senator?” my brother screamed from the other end.

  I sighed and cursed under my breath.

  “Hey John. I’m doing good, how are you?”

  “Cut the shit. Dad told me that you left months ago.”

  “Then what do you want?” I questioned as I kicked my shoes off by the door and tossed my keys onto the table. The lights illuminated the apartment.

  “You know, when dad told me my first thought was to call you and bitch you out. But then I realized that you wouldn’t care. But now I see this picture pop up on a news article and I just have to tell you how selfish you are being.”

  “Selfish? I’m the furthest thing from that!” I said through gritted teeth.

  “You left mom when she needed us.”

  I shook my head even though he couldn’t see.

  “I left because she doesn’t remember me. She remembers you and thinks you are the most amazing child in the world, but me? The one who was there for her for YEARS, she doesn’t remember. I couldn’t stay and keep setting her back. Every time she saw me it was like her memory reset. It wasn’t fair to dad or her.”

  “So instead of just staying out of sight, you moved across the country. Good plan.”

  “You don’t know how hard it was for me to stay away from her being in the same city. Even trying to stay with friends who lived hours away, I couldn’t stay away. So this was the only option I had.” Then it hit me. He saw my photo online.

  I hooked the phone between my ear and shoulder and moved over to my desk.

  I pulled open my laptop and typed in Senator Matthew Crawford.

  There we were. Tons of different articles came up with photos.

  “I can’t believe this…” I whispered.

  “Can’t believe what?” he growled.

  “John, look I moved away and mom is getting better. That’s all that matters. When dad and I feel it’s okay to come back, I will.”

  “Whatever, don’t come back. We don’t need you,” he snapped as the line went dead.

  I set the phone down next to me and clicked through some of the articles.

  They all kept calling me his new girlfriend. Some even went as far to say that I only started working for him because we were dating.

  I rubbed my temples.

  “Great,” I muttered. This is just what he didn’t need. On top of that, I didn’t want to draw attention to myself being here and now that John knew it would only be a matter of time before more people knew. People that I didn’t want to know where I was.

  I shut the laptop, grabbed my phone and shuffled into my bedroom. My book that I was reading sat on the nightstand and right now I needed the escape from reality.

  ***

  The weekend was quiet, I didn’t hear from the senator at all, but the articles online piled up. Once more sources got wind, they all put their own spin on the situation.

  My dad called me to ask me if it was true. I explained what actually happened and that he was my boss. I knew I couldn’t date him.

  I wanted to though. Ever since the first night when I met him, I just felt this connection that I couldn’t explain. Maybe that’s why I wanted so badly to know what he’s hiding. I needed something to talk me out of wanting him so badly.

  It was Monday morning and the press seemed quiet. No one waited outside of the building which was a relief.

  When I stepped off the elevator I was greeted with stares and silence.

  “What?” I asked, taking a folder from one of the staffers.

  “Nothing,” she replied.

  “Okay, well then might I suggest everyone stop staring at me and get back to whatever you were doing thirty seconds ago.”

  She nodded and everyone started talking again and moving around.

  I shook my head and didn’t even bother going to my office. I walked down toward the senator’s office and heard Alexis inside.

  “Matt, you can’t be serious!” she yelled.

  I stood back a few more feet so they didn’t see me.

  “It’s not like I planned it Lexi. It just happened. It was just dinner. This is all a bunch of rubbish. And why didn’t you say anything this weekend?”

  “Because this weekend I was busy with the other council. Plus, I didn’t want to bring it up during the festival.”

  “Look, I’ll figure this all out. Just don’t stress.”

  “Don’t stress? I just don’t want you to get hurt, nor do I want to put more people in danger.”

  “No one will be in danger.”

  “Alright.”

  I moved back around the corner and stood against the wall with the stack of papers in my arms. She whipped past without even noticing me there.

  I sighed and rounded the corner again right into his office, shutting the door behind me.

  “Good morning.” He smiled.

  “We are in the news. Everywhere,” I said through gritted teeth.

  “Yeah...I’m sorry. That doesn’t usually happen.”

  “I got an earful from my family because of it. They think I moved out here to date you.”

  He nodded, “I received an earful as well. It will blow over.”

  “And the staff?”

  “Well they know we aren’t dating.” He chuckled.

  “Didn’t feel like that when I walked in. Point is, I spent months trying to make it so people here understood that I didn’t get my job because we were dating. This kind of puts me back to the beginning.”

  “I doubt that. They’ve seen how good you are at this job. Which you are by the way. You’ve done a fantastic job at keeping things moving and private stuff, well private. So thank you.”

  I nodded, “Alright well we should get ready for the staff meeting.”

  “Right.”

  I walked back down to my office. The only thing running through my head was what Alexis said about putting people in danger. Who would be in danger? Me? And why? What was he involved in? Clearly Alexis knew.

  My phone buzzed as I sat at my desk going through a pile of speeches for next week.

  Nice picture. You look like you are feeling pretty alive.

  I stared at the message. Nope. I can’t do this again. I wouldn’t do this again. I clicked off of the message and put my phone back down.

  My heart started racing and I was already getting nervous. I knew this would happen.

  I looked at my phone again. Maybe it was just one message.

  I let my shoulders relax a little as I flipped through more speeches.

  “Do you have a thing for Matthew?” Alexis asked, standing in the doorway to my office.

  “What?” I questioned looking up.

  She walked in and shut the door behind her, taking a seat in front of me.

  “Do you like Matthew?”

  “As a boss, yes.”

  She leaned back in the chair.

  “He has a connection to you,” she muttered.

  My body froze and it felt like my heart stopped for a brief second.

  “That’s crazy…”

  “Is it? You two have a lot in common. But listen, there are things about him you don’t understand and you may never understand. I know, I was in that spot. So just keep that in mind if you ever did decide to pursue a relationship with him.”

  “How do you know so much about him?”

  “I’ve gotten to know him. It was a delicate situation. Actually it still kind of is.”

  I nodded. “Well thanks for the tip.”

  She stood from her chair and walked to the door, she turned back to face me just as she opened it.

  “Oh and I think you two would be great together.” She smirked as she walked out of my office.

  I shook my head, staring after her.

  ***

  The week dragged on, but between the events and staff I was keeping busy. Fridays always seemed to lift the staff’s moods.

&nb
sp; “Hey Ethan.” Allison smiled and looked around me.

  I stopped mid sentence and spun around.

  A man stood fresh out of the elevator by the receptionist's desk.

  “Who’s that?” I asked just loud enough for Allison to hear.

  “That’s Ethan Buckley. He’s engaged to Alexis.”

  “And his family owns Stanford University.”

  “Yep.”

  I handed her the papers and walked up to him. Thank goodness I knew Alexis was out for a few hours.

  “Hello there. I don’t believe we’ve met. I’m Bethany.”

  “I’ve heard a lot about you. I’m Ethan.”

  “Alexis isn’t here, but I was wondering, could I pick your brain about a few things?”

  “Sure.”

  I motioned for him to follow me to my office.

  “What’s up?”

  “I hear your family owns Stanford, how is that, you know, being one of the owners of your own university?”

  He shrugged, “Normal for me. I’m used to it.”

  I nodded, “And the senator donates quite a bit of money to the university too. Can you tell me what the funds are usually used for?”

  “Teachers, projects, upgrades. Gotta stay with the times.” He stood from the chair.

  “I have just one more question! Anything strange that generally happens at the university that differs from others?”

  He shook his head. “Is this for an article?”

  “No, I’m just making sure that the place where the senator donates a significant amount of money to is safe and on the up and up. Trying to keep him looking great for the state of California.” I smiled.

  Ethan nodded, “Well no. Nothing strange usually happens. Everything is pretty normal. I better go. I have to meet with Mat-- the senator in a minute.”

  “Of course. I’ll walk you down to his office. I need to drop something off anyways.” I grabbed the folder for the senator and walked with Ethan down the hall.