by Gow, Kailin
Shit!
“He insists I call him by his first name. You know how important it is to him to appear personable and approachable.”
The elevator stopped at the fifth floor and Heather positioned herself on the threshold to keep the doors from closing. “You have an answer for everything. It seems you’ve picked up the senator’s tricks quite quickly…. See you in thirty minutes, Larissa.”
She winked at me before she strode away down the corridor. I jumped as my phone vibrated against my breast. I fumbled around for it in the inner pocket of my blazer and nearly dropped it as it vibrated again in my hand.
“Senator Underwood’s office. How may I help you?”
“Larissa, it’s me.” Chase’s voice instantly relaxed me and I leaned against the wall of the elevator to collect myself.
“Sorry. I didn’t look at the caller ID.”
“I saw Heather follow you into the elevator. I just wanted to make sure everything was okay.”
“I told her you made George keep driving so we could finish discussing your appointments. She didn’t believe me.”
The silence on the other end of the line made me nervous.
“Don’t worry about her. I’ll call her right now.”
“I’m meeting her in thirty minutes to discuss the feature.”
“I’ll tell her you can’t make it because you’re going to lunch with Teddy and me.”
Great. I was ditching one hostile situation for another.
“We’re not really going to lunch with Teddy,” he continued, as he probably sensed my trepidation. “I’m taking you shopping.”
The elevator doors opened on the seventeenth floor and I walked briskly toward my room as if Heather were still trailing me.
“Shopping? But you just took me shopping two days ago. Shouldn’t you be meeting with Teddy to discuss tomorrow’s visit to the hospital?”
“This is a different kind of shopping,” he replied, and I could hear the smile in his voice. “Larissa, I’d like to take you ring shopping, if that’s all right with you.”
I nearly dropped the phone as I entered my room. “What—what kind of ring?”
“I know I’m not legally available to you right now, but it won’t always be that way. I want to take you shopping for an engagement ring. I want you to know I’m serious about keeping you, if you’ll have me.”
My limbs suddenly became very weak. I had to sit cross-legged on the carpet to keep from collapsing.
“Larissa? Are you there?”
“I’m here.”
“I know this isn’t really romantic, asking you over the phone, but I promise I’ll make that up to you soon if you promise to be my first real wife?”
“I… I have to give that some thought.”
“I understand.”
“I do love you,” I blurted. “I just have to make sure I know what I’m getting into.”
“Of course. Would you still like to go ring shopping, just to get a feel for what you’re getting yourself into?”
I smiled as I realized this could be the most difficult and important decision of my life and he was still able to successfully make light of it. “I’d love to.”
Part 3
Exposure
Chapter 1
“I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride.”
My sniveling broke the hush inside the chapel as I watched Isa kiss his new wife, Nina.
“Sorry,” I whispered to the older gentleman on my right as he cast a disapproving look in my direction. “I’m just really happy for them.”
I was happy for Isa and Nina. Just eight weeks after they were both hired to work on Chase’s campaign, they were tying the knot in a swanky chapel in Vegas four days before the election. They were so certain Chase Underwood was going to win the election, they decided to get the wedding over with so they could use their honeymoon as an excuse to celebrate his victory.
As I watched Chase in his dark gray suit embracing Isa and Nina in the aisle, my eyes were drawn to his right: Mrs. Katherine Underwood. She wore an elegant beige sheath dress with tan heels and her dark hair pulled into a neat twist. My gaze fell to my lap where my hands lay clasped over my pink clutch, my left hand still missing the engagement ring I’d picked out with Chase six weeks ago.
I kept going over that day in my mind. Chase had arrived at my hotel room in Baltimore with a jeweler and a suitcase full of rings that each cost more than I made in a year. I didn’t know where he had found a discreet and trustworthy jeweler in such a short amount of time; then again, he was a self-made billionaire who was four days away from being the next president of the United States of America. The countless ways he wielded his power never ceased to amaze me.
“Do you prefer round, oval, marquise, or princess cut?” the jeweler asked in a hushed tone, obviously intimidated by Chase and the circumstances of our meeting.
“Princess,” Chase replied for me, giving my hand a tiny squeeze. “Only the best for my princess,” he continued, as he planted a soft kiss on my cheekbone.
I should have known at that moment I had very little control over the terms of this engagement.
“Larissa, are you alright?”
How embarrassing. The bride was consoling me on her wedding day.
“I’m fine,” I said, popping out of my seat and throwing my arms around Nina. “I’m just so happy for you guys.”
I watched over Nina’s shoulder as the Secret Service agent held the door open for Chase and Katherine at the back of the chapel. They were leaving through the rear entrance, probably being whisked away to their suite or to a secret exit where a car would be waiting to carry them off to another private lunch meeting.
“Larissa?”
“Oh, I’m sorry,” I said, letting go of Nina as I tried to focus on her beautiful floral crown and flowing dress instead of the expression of pity on her round face. “Go. Go be with your husband. Enjoy the reception.”
“You’re not coming?”
“I think I’m just going to go back to my room. I hardly slept last night and I have to rest up for tomorrow night’s fundraiser.”
Her eyes lit up at the mention of the word husband and she quickly set off down the aisle. Isa gazed at me for a moment. He was the only campaign staffer who I was certain knew about Chase and I.
Isa glanced at his new wife as she approached the chapel doors then back at me. “He’s a good man,” he whispered. “You deserve a great one.”
I managed to make it back to my hotel room without another emotional breakdown. I slid the cardkey into the reader on the door and the lock clicked. When I pushed the door open, I couldn’t believe my eyes.
All the furniture in my hotel room was gone and a trail of rose petals and candles cut a path across the floor toward the balcony. The French doors stood open displaying a breathtaking view, but the lights of Las Vegas couldn’t match the radiance of Chase’s smile.
As my feet carried me forward, part of me hoped this was it. He was finally going to properly propose and give me the ring I’d been waiting to wear for six weeks. Another part of me thought this wasn’t right. In my hotel room, overlooking a city known for legal prostitution with his legal wife somewhere nearby.
But, as I approached the balcony and breathed in the scent of rose petals and fire, I knew there would be no resisting. I crossed the threshold onto the balcony and Chase held out his hand. I placed my hand in his and he softly pressed his lips to my ring finger. His eyes were locked on mine as he gauged my reaction then his lips curled into a smile.
“My mother once told me that where you find love is where you’ll find success,” he said, as he pulled me toward the waist-high wall enclosing the balcony. “I told her I had to find success before I could think of falling in love.”
Chase had never spoken to me about his mother, though from the daily phone calls I gathered they were still quite close.
“My dad told me I would find the man of my dreams the moment I st
opped looking,” I replied, as we gazed at the shimmering lights of the Vegas strip. “My mom was a little less romantic. She told me I’d find love when I found a guy who didn’t mind the way I looked sitting on the throne.”
Chase laughed out loud, a robust laugh that rattled my bones. “I’m sure you’re quite the vision sitting on the throne,” he said, casting me a sly sideways glance. “I like your mom.”
“Yeah, well, she doesn’t like me very much. I haven’t spoken to her since I left home two years ago.”
He turned to me and I expected to find pity in his eyes. What I found instead was concern. “Larissa, you have to speak to your mother. She has to know about your success.”
You call this success?
“What am I supposed to tell her? I’m working on the most expensive and feverish campaign in the history of the world, oh, and by the way, Mom, I’m having an affair with the soon to be President of the United States.”
He looked as if I had just told him he lost the election.
“I’m sorry. That came out wrong.”
He shook his head then turned back to the city lights. “No, you’re right. You can’t tell your mother about your new job. She’ll question you and that will just lead to more questions.”
Though Chase had kept his word and torn up the non-disclosure agreement he made me sign six weeks ago before I came to work on his campaign, the expectation of silence was more than implied.
I let out a derisive chuckle. “Of course. We have to protect Senator Underwood from the press.”
“Larissa, you knew what you were getting into when you came on the road with me.”
“Now you’re the one who’s right.”
I turned to leave and he grabbed my arm. “Don’t go.”
I gazed at the trail of rose petals and candles then at his fingers curled firmly around my forearm—the same fingers that were curled inside me last night—and my resolve ebbed.
He pulled me toward him and clasped my face in his hands. “The election is four days away. Can we please just enjoy tonight?”
The cool desert air swept up the tiny hairs on my neck and I shivered as his lips hovered over mine.
“The election maybe four days away, but you’re going to be president for four years. I don’t know if I can wait that long.”
“Maybe I can help you make up your mind.”
His lips crushed mine and I gripped his tie so I wouldn’t collapse at his feet. Every part of me throbbed with the need for his touch. He lifted my dress over my head and tossed it onto the floor of the balcony. My nipples hardened under the kiss of the frigid breeze. He gently leaned me back over the balcony wall, taking my nipple into his warm mouth, and I was immediately reminded of our rendezvous at his cliff-side restaurant.
His hands lightly caressed my back and cheeks as he licked and sucked my breasts. I gazed at the twinkling stars above us and, against all reason, I made a wish on the first star I saw: Please let me be strong enough for him.
His tongue traced a line over the hollow of my neck and he took my face in his hands again. “I love you, Larissa,” he whispered. “One day it will be you and me walking down that aisle. I promise.”
I reached down to loosen his belt and unzip his trousers. His belt clinked as his pants dropped and I hastily undid his tie and peeled off his blazer and shirt. I ran my fingers over his hard chest and down his abs until I reached his cock. I lightly rubbed my thumb over the slippery head and he moaned. I crouched down and took him into my mouth.
“Jesus Christ,” he groaned, as I wrapped one hand around the base of his cock and raked the nails of my other hand over his chest.
I bobbed slowly then swiftly, bringing him to the brink of ecstasy before he slipped his hand beneath my arms and pulled me up. I wrapped my legs around his waist as he lifted me. He fit so perfectly inside me I let out an eager gasp as I clung to him. His teeth dug deeper into my shoulder with every thrust.
I hooked my arm around his neck and clutched onto his rock hard bicep to balance myself. I didn’t know how he had the strength to hold me for so long when he was clearly on the verge of losing himself. We rocked rhythmically, grinding against each other, until his body quivered and he came inside me.
He slowly knelt on one knee and placed me down gently so I straddled his leg. He exhaled hot, ragged breaths into my mouth as he kissed me. I wanted to stay like this forever, but I knew that soon he would go up to his penthouse suite where he and his wife would sleep in separate bedrooms—at least, that’s what he told me.
He brushed my hair out of my face and kissed my forehead. “I can tell when you’re mind is elsewhere,” he said. “I have something to ask you.”
No, not here, on a balcony in Vegas, in the nude.
He smiled at the hint of panic on my face. “I want you to meet Katherine.”
Chapter 2
I blinked a few times, stunned by his words.
“She wants to meet you,” he continued. “And I think it’s a good idea to get that out of the way before the election happens and I’ll be… unavailable for a while.”
I had probably spoken a total of ten words to Katherine Underwood since I joined Chase’s campaign six weeks ago. Chase was a master at keeping us apart without raising the suspicions of the press corps that followed him everywhere he went. He even went so far as rescheduling a speaking event at a college so I could be there with him the day after Katherine and Teddy, Chase’s campaign manager, left town for a CNN interview. The event coordinator was not pleased when I called him to postpone, but Chase insisted the man would forget all about it once I graced him with my radiant beauty.
“What’s your answer, Larissa?” Chase interrupted my thoughts and I gazed at his face as it came back into focus. The chiseled cheekbones and model-perfect lips. And those eyes. A deep-brown that, in the dim lighting, appeared as black as the prospect of meeting Katherine.
“Of course, I’ll meet her,” I replied. “Will her lover be there?”
Chase wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me closer to him. He slid his fingers between my wet folds as he kissed my neck and muttered into my skin. “You’ve already met him.”
I let out a small gasp, a mixture of surprise and pleasure, as he gently stroked my clit. “What… oh, god… what do you mean? Who is he?”
He took my earlobe between his teeth and exhaled into my ear. The whoosh of air tickled and made the hairs on my arms stand on end. “Come on, Larissa,” he whispered in my ear, as he slid his finger inside me to release more of my wetness. “Don’t tell me you can’t see that Katherine and Teddy are together.”
My body convulsed as he caressed my hard nub in light circles. I let out an involuntary shriek as I climaxed then crumpled against his chest.
“I can’t believe it,” I said, out of breath and shocked that I had been so completely deceived by Katherine and Teddy’s friendship. “But… isn’t Teddy your best friend? And… what the hell? Why have you been letting me think we need to keep our relationship a secret from him?”
“I never told you you had to do that, I just assumed it would be best not to confuse things further.”
My jaw dropped. “I’ve been driving myself nuts trying to keep this from Teddy! I was more scared of Teddy reading that feature in the L.A. Times than anyone else.”
He stood up quickly and began to get dressed. “I don’t want to talk about the feature right now.”
“Why do you keep doing that? It’s coming whether you talk about it or not and there’s a good chance Heather Rodin is going to blow the lid on us.”
He handed me my dress without looking at me. “I’m going to order some room service. Is Chinese good for you?”
I snatched the dress out of his hand and stomped into the hotel room, kicking up rose petals as I made my way to the bathroom.
“Larissa, stop.”
“I want my furniture back!” I shouted, as I stepped over the fat candles.
“I said stop!”
“Get over here,” he demanded, his voice coarse with anger.
I wanted to tell him to go to hell. He didn’t own me. But that wasn’t true. Even without the non-disclosure agreement, Chase and I were bound to each other by this dangerous secret. We would be bound to each other by these lies for the rest of our lives—or, at least, until he was no longer President.
“I’ll tear up that stupid NDA. I’ll do whatever it takes to keep you here. But even if you decide to go back to L.A., I’m not giving up on you.”
Chase spoke those words to me six weeks ago and I was just now beginning to understand the gravity of their meaning. I would never escape this secret as long as I was a threat to his career. Even if I wanted to, I would never escape Chase. And now that Teddy and Katherine knew about us, there was no way they would allow me to leave. They had to keep me close. This relationship was a bomb strapped to my chest and Heather Rodin at the L.A. Times was holding the trigger.
I let my dress fall to the floor as I approached Chase. He entered the hotel room from the balcony, his eyes locked on mine until we met in the center of the room.
“I knew what I was getting into,” I said. “I just didn’t expect for it to blow up in my face.”
“It hasn’t blown up yet. Gideon’s been hounding the editor at the Times for weeks trying to figure out the angle on this piece. They’re not talking, but that doesn’t necessarily mean we have to panic,” he said, as he draped his blazer around my shoulders. “But you’re right. I did everything I could to erase our connection to Black Tie Escorts before you joined the campaign, but we have to prepare for the possibility that Heather dug something up. In fact, that’s what tomorrow’s meeting with Katherine and Teddy is about.”
“It’s a strategy meeting?” I replied, as he placed his hand on the small of my back and led me toward a red blanket laid across the carpet in the corner of the room. “What about Isa? Shouldn’t he be there to give you the statistics on how all of this is going to affect you?”
