Teresa shook her head, muttering in Spanish that he was going to lose because he was allowing the wrong head to think for him.
“Hey,” Jackson called out. “I can speak Spanish too, you know! And I’m using my brain, thank you very much.”
“Whatever,” Teresa retorted. Jackson grabbed his keys and headed out the door. He drove over to Amelie’s to grab a couple of salted caramel brownies and two cups of coffee. Chocolate always made things a little better. At least that’s what women always said.
After getting the order from the bakery, Jackson realized that he didn’t know where her office was located. Sitting in the parking lot, he Googled her name. Of course, the first links all led to the stories about the South Park Madam and Liza’s alleged ties to her. Finally, he found Liza’s website with her office address listed. He wasn’t surprised that her office was in uptown. Driving around the parking lot of her office, he looked for her car. After he saw it, Jackson decided to head up to her office. He was quite disappointed to find the door locked and no sign of Liza. He waited for a few minutes, then felt like a stalker and headed back to his car, wondering where Liza had run off to.
Liza felt like one of Charlie’s Angels as she and Chante walked into the Capital Grille. They spotted Robert and Nic sitting at a table in the corner sipping champagne and reading files. Liza assumed they were going over debate preparations or their next character assassination. Chante strode over to the table with Liza at her heels and slammed her hand down on the table. “Robert!” she exploded.
He looked up at her, shock registering on his face as he spotted Liza. “Babe, what’s this all about?”
“This is about you lying and spreading rumors about people you’re supposed to care about.”
“I think you can see that we’re busy here,” Nic said, then sneered at Liza. “How are you doing, Miss Palmer?”
“Don’t speak to me, you slime,” Liza shot back, then rolled her eyes.
Nic clutched his chest. “I’m hurt.” He nodded toward Robert. “Can we dispose of this quickly?”
“Dispose of this?” Chante snapped as she clutched a glass of water.
As much as Liza wanted to see her girl toss that glass of water in Nic’s face, the last thing they needed to do was cause a scene. Liza touched her shoulder and shook her head. “Not here.”
“Liza, what have you done now?” Robert asked.
“So, you’re allowing Nic to let you go dirty?” she snapped.
“Liza, you need to leave. Chante, I don’t know why you’re entertaining the alleged call girl.”
Forget making a scene. Liza grabbed the glass of water that Chante had let go and tossed it in Robert’s face. “I really can’t believe I had so much faith in you and believed that you were the right man for this job. You’re not qualified to be a dogcatcher.”
Robert laughed as he wiped his face.
“Smile, Liza,” Nic said as he snapped a few pictures with his phone. Chante slapped his phone away.
“Robert, are you behind these lies?” Chante asked.
“What are you talking about?” he asked, then laughed. “You’re listening to the wrong person if you think anything Liza is saying is truthful.”
“Liza isn’t saying a word and I asked you a question. Are you and this man,” she spat, pointing her thumb at Nic, “behind the story about Liza and the South Park Madam? You and I both know what’s being implied is a damned lie.”
“We are not responsible for what the media reports,” Nic said coolly. “Is it our fault that a reporter did his or her job and found out that your friend deals in smut?”
Liza tensed as she was about to douse Nic with the other glass of water sitting on the table. “Go to hell, Nic.”
“Seems you know the direct pathway,” Nic said. “I’m glad you’re no longer associated with our campaign and you’re so damaged Franklin’s camp isn’t going to want to touch you. It’s a pity, because you’re good at what you do.”
Chante followed her friend’s eyes to the steak knife on the table. “Now, Liza, that knife is only going to earn you an assault charge.”
“Chante, you’re being ridiculous right now,” Robert said. “And you’re allowing her to do what she does—”
“And just what is that, Robert?” Liza snapped. “I’ve been nothing but a good friend to you and this is the thanks I get?”
“You’ve been riding my coattails for years and I tolerated it because I felt sorry for you. I’m done with that now. And, if you were smart, you’d just walk away.”
“You felt sorry for me?” Liza shook her head and slumped her shoulders for a moment. This was the man she’d considered her best friend, the man she’d wanted her sorority sister to marry, and the man she’d thought was meant for greatness.
Wrong. She. Had. Been. Wrong. “I guess your mother’s crack habit did affect you. Because you’re obviously out of your damned mind. If I were you, I’d be shaking in my boots. You think that you’re the only one with dirt? The difference between you and me is that I don’t want to hurt you. But if you think I’m going to stand by and be a casualty of your political ambitions, you’re wrong.”
“I don’t have time for this or your rantings,” Robert said as he stood up, still damp from the water she’d tossed in his face. “Thanks to you, I have to change my clothes before my next meeting.” He turned to Chante. “We’ll talk about this later.” His voice sounded like a wolf’s growl.
Chante narrowed her eyes at him. “No, Robert, we’re going to talk about this now or you can forget about the fund-raiser at the law firm.”
Grabbing her arm, he gritted his teeth at her. “You’re in this with her? You bitches are trying to ruin me.”
“Bitches?” Liza and Chante said in concert. They turned to each other.
“I know he’s not talking to us,” Chante said.
“I know that’s right,” Liza replied. “Because the only bitches I see in here are Nic and his punk ass.”
Chante snatched her engagement ring off and tossed it in Robert’s face. “ ’Cause, who wants to marry a bitch?”
“Chante, wait,” he said, sidestepping Liza and trying to block Chante’s exit. “We need to think about this. You and I are getting married. We have people who—”
“No,” she said, pushing against his chest. “You want me to make sure my partners donate to your campaign and I’m not doing it. I don’t fund liars!”
“Don’t do this to me. You know I need this.” He tilted his head toward Liza. “Whatever she said to turn you against me is a lie and—”
“It’s not what Liza said, it’s what you have done. I don’t know what to believe anymore,” Chante said, tears bubbling up in her eyes. “You said all of these weeks that Liza was the problem. That she was the one who was causing problems for you and your campaign. That she wasn’t happy for us and was jealous of me. I believed you and almost lost my best friend. Have you given up everything that matters so that you can have a little taste of power?” She shook her head and pushed away from him.
“Bastard,” Liza muttered as she and her friend stormed out of the restaurant. Once the women were alone, Chante turned to Liza and let the tears flow.
“I’m so sorry,” she said in between sobs. Liza hugged her friend.
“It’s all right. We were both wrong about this man and we just have to figure out what to do.”
“I know what I want to do. I want to walk into that restaurant and slap the sh—”
Liza shook her head. “There is a better way, but the first thing I have to do is clear my name and make sure this rumor doesn’t hurt Jackson’s campaign.”
Chante raised her eyebrow. “So, what’s really going on with you and Jackson Franklin?”
A heated blush rose to Liza’s cheeks. “Nothing.”
Chante thumped her friend’s shoulder. “Don’t give me that! I know that look. You and that man have a little thing, don’t you?”
“We are just friends,” Liza s
aid, not meeting her friend’s gaze.
“Whatever. So, when you two were seen having breakfast, you were just leaving his house?”
“Maybe.”
“Wow. He is very attractive, but what was all that about you two not having anything to do with each other?”
“What was said was, I’m not a part of his campaign, and that’s the truth. Besides, he’s keeping his word about not going dirty in this race.”
“Good for him. But how do you know that?”
Looking at Chante, she wondered if she should come clean about why she’d actually gone to Jackson’s place. “He gave me his word.”
Chante rolled her eyes. “He’s a politician. He’s going to say anything you want to hear.”
“Jackson isn’t like that,” she replied quickly.
“Mmm, you’re defending him, smiling when you talk about him. Sounds like a crush to me. Be careful, Liza. Seems as if politics has a way of changing people.”
“Or simply showing us who they really are. What if I’ve been wrong about Robert all of these years? Ignored the red flags and unleashed him on your life and the people of this district?”
“You talk about him as if he’s a malignant virus. Wait, he is. But that’s neither here nor there. The election isn’t over and Jackson could be trying to use you to get the upper hand in another way. Pillow talk about Robert’s plans and . . .”
“Our pillow talk isn’t about . . .” Liza brought her hand to her mouth as Chante clapped her hands.
“I knew it. I knew it!”
“Keep it down,” Liza said. “It’s not something we’re broadcasting. Especially now.”
Chante shook her head. “I can’t believe that Robert would allow such a rumor to get started about you. This isn’t something that you can recover from easily. Slut shaming is sport with the media and Robert knows this.”
“I’ll come through it,” Liza said. Then her phone chimed. Thinking that it was another Google alert, she started to ignore it, but she pulled her phone from her purse.
Where are you? And I hope I don’t need bail money.
“Text from your boyfriend?” Chante teased as she noted the smile on Liza’s face.
“He’s not my boyfriend,” she replied as she typed her response to Jackson.
On my way to my office. I didn’t do anything this time, but I can’t say that I won’t tomorrow.
I can. I’m waiting for you at your office with salted caramel brownies and cold coffee. See you soon.
“I hope he doesn’t disappoint you, because the last thing we need is to be two bitter chicks,” Chante said.
“Bitter? Really?”
“Maybe that’s a little much, but I’m truly tired,” Chante said, then shook her head. “And you wonder why I focus on work so much. Court cases rarely disappoint me, but this thing here with Robert has reminded me why I . . .”
“No,” Liza said. “I’m supposed to be the one buried in work, not you. You’re the one who’s going to have the Claire Huxtable existence, remember?”
Chante fanned her hand and laughed. “And you were supposed to live the Whitley Gilbert life.”
“Well, Alvin was as nerdy as Dwayne Wayne,” Liza said, then rolled her eyes. “I’ve finally learned that the past can’t dictate your future, no matter how recent.”
“I’m not ready to receive that lesson yet. I can’t believe that I was tricked by . . . I’m sorry, Liza. I was so cruel to you because I believed everything that man said. I thought Robert really cared about me and bought the dream he was selling me. On paper, it looked as if I was on my way to that Cosby Show life.”
Liza stroked her friend’s shoulder. “It’s going to be fine. He’ll get his.”
“And how dumb am I going to look when I go into the office and ask my partners not to give Robert a dime after doing all that lobbying on his behalf.” Chante sighed. “I see why you work for yourself and alone.”
“No one else can tolerate me,” Liza said with a wink as they climbed into Chante’s car. “Do you want me to go to the office with you and help make this cancellation easier?”
“No offense, but people think you were part of the South Park Madam’s brothel. . . .”
“She never had a brothel!”
“I’m just saying, you would probably make those stuffed shirt assholes double their donation to Robert.”
“Anyway.”
“Besides, you have something pleasant waiting for you at your office. Don’t get caught up in my drama. I’ll find a way out of it.”
“Okay, but you know this is what I do. I’ve just got to figure out how to fix my own mess for a change.”
“Too bad good old Marie Charles cleaned up her act and moved to Paris. She’d be happy to knock you out of the headlines.”
Liza sucked her teeth and quietly wished that the former headline-grabbing socialite was up to her old tricks and would knock these rumors out of the news.
After Chante dropped Liza off at her office, the two promised to get together later and figure out how to cut Robert out of their lives and their social circles. More than anything, Chante and Liza needed to figure out how to take Myrick, Lawson, and Walker out of Robert’s back pocket.
Liza’s mind wandered to the pictures as she stood outside of her office. Why not fight a rumor with the truth? She had actual proof that Robert was an immoral, lying, cheating dog. Didn’t the public deserve to know? Maybe she could . . . Jackson’s piercing gaze stopped all thoughts of hunting down chickenheads and hootchie mamas. Suddenly, she wanted to fling herself into his arms and kiss him as if they were the only people in the world and all they had to worry about was his place or hers.
She wanted to be in a world with Jackson where elections were already won and rumors of her being involved with a call girl ring had already been dismissed. “Hi,” she said breathlessly.
“Are you all right?” he asked as she unlocked the door to her office.
“As all right as I can be,” she said, then held the door open for him to follow her inside.
“Swanky digs,” he said as he looked around the pale blue and pink office. “This is where all the magic happens?”
“You could say that,” she said as she offered him a seat on the blue velvet loveseat in the corner of the room. “It’s usually not this quiet.”
“Quiet might be a good thing,” he said, then handed her a brownie. “You didn’t confront Robert, I hope.”
“Well,” she said as she peeled the plastic off the brownie, then took a big bite.
“Were there cameras around?”
She swallowed and shook her head. “No. But Chante was there and she’s seen the light or the truth as it is.”
“Which is?”
“Robert is a low-down snake in the grass and we were both wrong about him. The sad thing is, she had her partners at the law firm all geeked up to have a fund-raiser for him. And that’s all he’s worried about. He doesn’t give a damn about their relationship or how he’s hurt her or me.”
“Do you think you’re going to get past these rumors?”
She polished off her brownie and shrugged. Jackson reached out and wiped a spot of caramel from her chin, then kissed the sweetened spot. Liza shivered and silently admonished herself for getting so distracted by that man’s lips.
“Jackson,” she said. “You know what Robert is trying to do.”
He inched closer to her, nearly planting her on his lap as he gripped her chin and stared into her sparkling eyes. “I don’t give a damn what Robert is trying to do. First of all, I don’t believe you have ties to the South Park Madam. Second of all, you and I are not working together. I came here because I knew this had to upset you. Your reputation is important to you and how you make your living.”
“And that slimy son of a bitch knows that as well. What if everyone recovers from this episode except me? Robert has already distanced himself and his campaign from me. You and I made a big show of not working together. Everyone is i
n the clear except me.”
Jackson brushed his lips against hers. “Soon enough, everybody will know that these rumors are nothing but innuendo and lies.”
A tear slid down Liza’s cheek. “It’s just hard to rationalize that someone you believed in so much could turn out to be such an ass. Kind of like dealing with my father all over again.”
“This isn’t your fault and don’t start thinking about the things that shaped you in the past. You’ve overcome a lot of things. You’ll rise above this and be stronger than ever.”
“You have a lot of faith in me,” she said with a smile.
“You’re Liza Palmer. I get the feeling that people who bet against you end up on the losing side of things.” She brought her lips to his and kissed him slowly.
“I could get used to having you as a cheerleader,” she said as they broke the kiss.
“Maybe you should get used to it,” he replied as he stroked her hips. Liza smiled and her face brightened. She had no idea why she felt as if Jackson Franklin was about to become a full-time figure in her life, but she liked the feeling.
Chapter 19
Jackson and Liza sat in the quiet stillness of her office for more than an hour before his cell phone rang. He knew it was Teresa. They had debate preparation scheduled and he was late. Though he knew he had to be ready to battle Montgomery in their upcoming debate, he didn’t want to let Liza go. The loveseat where they’d been lounging had been so comfortable. He even noticed that she’d dozed off as they sat there.
“I guess the real world had to interrupt at some point,” he said as he reached for his phone.
“Well, you do have an election to win. And I, for one, hope you crush Robert in the debate. He’s going to try to outslick you with his lawyer bullshit.”
Jackson brought his finger to her full lips. “Remember our agreement? We don’t talk about politics.”
“That’s just ridiculous,” Liza snapped. “I know that you aren’t going to use the ace in the hole, but you could at least . . .”
Rumor Has It Page 15
