Conspiracy in the Capitol

by B Ivy Woods

  “I thought it might be something fun and out of the box. You used to like when our dates were not your standard dinner and a movie type.” Flint’s gaze landed on Rae as he walked over to her and gently grabbed her hand.

  Rae’s thoughts floated back to the time when he surprised her with a kayaking date down the Potomac River. It had been something that she’d always wanted to do, and his ability to do his research impressed her. She also liked that he kept her on her toes from that date until their relationship ended.

  With that sobering thought, she shifted her body from his and swallowed hard. She clutched her stomach as she took a few steps away from him, under the guise of looking around his apartment. Rae hoped it was enough for him not to notice how hurt she still was by their separation.

  “Rae.”

  She turned back to look at him and was startled by the look in his eyes. There was a sense of vulnerability.

  Flint cleared his throat before saying, “My one regret is losing what we had. I regret losing you.”

  If she’d dropped a pin, the sound would have echoed throughout the walls of the apartment.

  “You do?” Rae wanted to slap herself for displaying the uncertainty that she felt. She shook the feeling off and stared right into his eyes.

  “Yes.”

  “Then why did you think it was okay to do what you did?”

  “It’s not that I thought it was okay… Well, I guess I did because I did it, huh?”

  Rae nodded but said nothing else. Her eyes didn’t waver.

  “I shouldn’t have ignored you like I did.”

  “Ghosted was more like it.”

  Flint rubbed the back of his neck and looked down. Her gaze remained unchanged as he shifted his body weight and peered back at her.

  “To be honest, there was more to it than just the threats. I was scared.”

  “Scared of what?”

  Flint shifted his body weight once more and paced. “I was scared of where we were going. We were both so young, and things were serious for lack of a better word. And I knew then, I wasn’t the right person for you.”

  “And what about now?”

  “I hope to prove that I am the right person for you.” He pulled her into his embrace and held her. Bending down, he took a moment to brush his lips over Rae’s hair. The caring gesture was her undoing. She stood on her tiptoes and pressed her lips to his. The kiss started softly before it grew bold and hungry. Clothes were flying off body parts. If Rae had had time to think about it, it would have annoyed her that once again, she would have to go on a hunting expedition for her clothes. To make matters worse, they had gone to Flint’s apartment, so she hoped the clothes that were tossed remained in plain sight. Rae smiled as she backed Flint up toward his couch and pushed him down onto it.

  “Have you ever had sex on this couch?” Flint answered with a shake of his head. “Good.” Her lips descended on his once again.

  “You know, I can get used to this view. You on top,” said Flint as his hand roamed up her body. The loud laugh Rae let out would have left her self-conscious in any other situation. But here she felt she could be herself. Unapologetically her.

  She didn’t understand how he flipped them as smoothly as he did because all that was on her mind was him filling her up. Inch by inch. He painstakingly took her, giving all of himself. She didn’t know what made this time feel so different, but it did. And the thought scared her.

  Rae could feel Flint’s eyes on her. She assumed that he thought she was sleeping and she very well should have been. Rae dozed off after they made their way to his bed, but his light, feather touches on her bare back had woken her up. She let him continue tracing imaginary lines before she flipped over to lie on her side. The gentle smile on her face seemed to relax the lines on his forehead he tried to hide from her when she got a good look at his face in the moonlight.

  “Why are you still awake?”

  “Just thinking. I wanted to talk to you about something.”

  Carefully, Rae sat up, pulling the covers over her naked body. What could he possibly be thinking about this late at night? She mentally prepared for the worst.

  He gently grabbed her hand and held it between both of his. Rae’s mind raced because she sensed how important this topic was to him.

  “So, I’ve been thinking about running for office.”

  Rae’s face remained blank as she tried to process what he was saying. “Run for office of what?”

  Flint chuckled before replying, “I’m eighty-five percent sure I want to run for Congress.”

  “You’re kidding. You really want to do it?”

  “I’m not, and I do. I also wanted to tell you Rep. Clarkson is retiring.”

  “Wow. Wait. What?! How did you find that out?” Flint wanting to run for Congress wasn’t shocking because he has tossed the idea out before. Rep. Clarkson wanting to retire was a whole different discussion.

  “Now, my running hasn’t been decided, but it’s something I’ve debated for a while, as you know. I wanted to see what you thought about it. And Rep. Clarkson retiring hasn’t officially been announced, but that’s what he’s apparently telling some of his closest friends. Which includes my parents, which is how I found out.”

  “Ah, I’m not sure what to think about it. I wasn’t expecting any of this.”

  “I’m sorry. It was something I promised I would talk to you about before I decided. I’m hoping this is something we can do together.”

  Rae said nothing for several moments. “I’m not sure what to say.” She paused again. “I know how much your foundation means to you. Would you still be able to be a part of it if you ran and won?”

  “Haven’t exactly figured all of that out, but I know we’ll make something work. And this is all if I run. That isn’t set in stone.”

  “But you definitely want to.”

  Flint nodded. “My heart says yes, but my brain knows how much more difficult this will be on the people I love and on me.” He focused his eyes on her. “When I think of my future, I see you in it. Your opinion on all of this means a lot to me. The decision to run for office will affect us as individuals and as a couple.”

  It took everything in Rae not to swoon and cry at the same time. Swoon that he saw a future with her. Cry at how this might change their relationship.

  “I’m glad you think that way. I want to be there as you achieve your dreams, so if you throw your hat in the ring, I want to support you. I think we should continue to talk it over, however.”

  Flint smiled and said, “That makes sense.”

  “Could you talk more about how you think your campaigning will affect us?”

  “Well, if I run and we continue to date, then that might open your life to scrutiny. Now I would run for a congressional seat, so chances are it won’t attract as much media attention as say, a Senate race, but who knows. That’s beside the long hours that will be spent on the campaign trail. Our free time and dates would be harder to come by.”

  Rae shook her head at Flint. “Maybe Eve would be put on your beat. In terms of us, we will figure out how to make it work.”

  Flint smiled at the thought. “Maybe, but it might be a conflict of interest even though I think she would be fair versus trying to paint me in the best light possible. And I know we will.”

  “Anyway. This decision is a lot to think about. When do you need to decide, and I assume submit paperwork?”

  “In a few months. I’ve been toying with the idea for a bit because my parents heard Rep. Clarkson might be retiring to spend more time with his family, but wasn’t seriously considering it until the last couple of days.”

  “No matter what you do, I’ll still be proud of you.”

  Flint leaned over, took Rae into his arms, and gave her a sensual kiss.

  20

  “Girls, I can’t shake it.”

  Rae looked around the table to see three pairs of eyes staring back at her.

  “Flint’s mother is up to someth
ing, and I know it. But what exactly? No idea.”

  “Yeah, and it’s not like you can go up to her or Flint and make the case based on a feeling. It’s his mother. But I agree with you. Something is…off.” Eve finished her comment by stuffing a pretzel bite in her mouth.

  The Green Hat was quieter than usual and Rae preferred it that way. A lot was on her mind, and the quieter atmosphere of the bar gave her a chance to think.

  “I still stand by what I said happened a few weeks ago,” Liv said before grabbing her phone. “Her plan to get Flint to take Cassandra home backfired.”

  “And I completely believe you. Honestly, I think Gladys wanted Flint to take Cassandra and probably wanted you to drive me.”

  Liv sat up, straighter in her chair. “I thought the same thing but didn’t want to say it out loud. Which is unusual for me?”

  “What would be the point in that, though?” Jules chimed in with her question before taking a sip of her water.

  A thought popped into Rae’s head. “Wait, Jules. I assume you know at least something about Cassandra. What can you tell us about her?”

  “I don’t know her all that well, just that her parents run in the same circles as the Wests. Her father is the CEO of a company that I can’t remember the name of at the moment, and I think her mom is a socialite? I have heard little about her other than she attends events with her husband. I don’t understand why Mrs. West would have been hanging out with Cassandra without her mother, but I would assume that she and Mrs. Hopkins are at least associates. I can probably find out more. My mom doesn’t particularly like her, but I am sure she’s heard something.”

  “Do you know if Cassandra’s our age or younger? I’m wondering if she might have been friends with Flint’s younger siblings because at least according to him, he doesn’t really know her all that well, and she never took an interest in his foundation until now.”

  “I might find that out. I know that Flint’s sisters knew of her, and that’s how I heard of her. It’s weird for Mrs. West and Cassandra to hang out or come to Homes for Vets without Mrs. Hopkins being involved in the meeting’s planning.”

  Strange, thought Rae as she polished off her beer.

  “Has Flint said anything else about what happened?” Liv asked.

  Rae shook her head. “Not a word. And I don’t want to bring it up and potentially cause another fight. I stand by my conclusion that she doesn’t like me, and something strange is happening whether Flint wants to admit it or not. I’m sure Gladys is used to getting her way, so I know she’ll try again to achieve her goal.” Rae cleared her throat and continued. “On to happier news, Liv, how is planning the girls’ trip going?”

  “Fantastic. Thanks for booking your flights. I’m putting the itinerary together and have a couple of surprises up my sleeve.” Liv bounced up and down in her seat.

  “I’m a little scared of what you have planned based on the look on your face,” Eve said as she leaned away from Liv. Liv then stuck her tongue out at her.

  “You have nothing to fear. Everything that I have planned is mostly legal.”

  “I bet that did nothing to ease Eve’s fears,” Rae said with a smirk.

  “And you would be correct,” Eve said as she nodded her head in agreement.

  “It will be fun, don’t you worry. I had Jules help me a bit, and you know she wouldn’t let me do anything too crazy.”

  Jules looked at her and said, “Well, the things I have seen were tame, especially for Liv, but I can’t vouch for the other excursions that I haven’t seen.” She paused for a second before she said, “I’m super excited, though. Trying to wrap everything up before we leave in a couple of weeks.”

  “Same, but nothing compares to the craziness I had to deal with between moving and a board meeting all in the same month. I’m glad it went well and that it’s over.”

  “I have to give you props for doing that because I would have pulled out my hair…or grown little gray ones,” Eve said as she gave Rae a high five.

  Rae shrugged before saying, “Sometimes, just do what you have to do. It all worked out, and I love my apartment.”

  Eve leaned forward toward Rae. “Are you even staying there much? The last few times I texted you, you were at Flint’s place.”

  “That’s…not inaccurate.”

  Liv jumped up and whispered rather loudly, “How often are you over there?!” She looked around and noticed that she was drawing attention to herself, so she sat back down.

  Rae thought about it for a moment. “At least twice a week now.”

  “Oh, that’s not as bad as I was thinking. I would say, why don’t you just move in with Flint and save a bit of money since it makes little sense to pay rent in a place you aren’t staying at regularly?”

  Rae drank from her water glass. “Well, he hasn’t brought that up, and I enjoy having my space to come home to and to call my own for now. We’ll see where the future leads.” The other three women nodded before Rae continued. “He asked me out to dinner at a nice restaurant on Saturday evening that I’m excited about.”

  “Why?” Jules asked as she glanced down at her phone to check the time.

  “Because it’s at a super fancy restaurant. At least that is what my research told me.”

  “Is it for a special occasion?”

  Rae shook her head. “Unless I’m forgetting something there isn’t anything special about this upcoming weekend.”

  “Could it be a restaurant that he just wanted to try out?”

  Rae shrugged her shoulders. “It could be, but he never mentioned it.”

  Liv turned to her again and grabbed her left hand. “Do you think he will propose?”

  Rae’s eyes almost bulged out of her face. Her mouth was agape and the words she wanted to say died on her lips. “That’s a leap. And it would be a bit quick for us. Plus, I would like him to get to know my parents and see how they react to one another.” Rae paused for a second. “I haven’t even reintroduced them to him yet and we haven’t talked about it much since getting back together. He knows that is a conversation I would like to have before we move to start on the path to making things permanent.”

  “Understandable,” Eve said. Rae could feel her eyes on her. She knew Eve was studying her reaction to pinpoint how she felt one way or the other, but Rae kept a neutral expression on her face to mask her feelings. Knowing Eve, she could probably look past the veneer and see what she was feeling anyway.

  “So anyway, enough about me. How is everyone doing?”

  “Girl, just busy, and I’m sure I can speak for everyone on that front,” stated Eve as everyone nodded along.

  “How’s everyone doing on the dating front?”

  The scene before Rae ended up being comical. Eve glared at her, while Jules choked on her water, and Liv threw her head back as if someone had slapped her. Then the groans erupted.

  “You know better than to speak those words around us,” Liv said, her head still in the “been slapped” position. Rae’s laughter was bubbling at the surface.

  Rae shook her head at her friend before continuing, “I seriously don’t know what I would do without you all.”

  “We don’t know how you would survive either,” Eve said with a smirk on her face. And that was all it took. Rae’s laughter flowed out like water from a ruptured dam. She hadn’t laughed this hard in over a week, and she knew she needed it.

  Her laughter was contagious because Jules had to place her glass of water down to keep from spilling it. She threw her hand over her mouth to help her swallow the remaining water that she had in it.

  Watching Jules sent Eve into a hysterics, which led to her snorting. By that point, Liv had sat back up, but the snort sent her over the edge, and she threw her head back again and was holding her chest to stop from laughing.

  Rae somewhat sobered up and wiped the tears of laughter from her eyes. She looked around the table and smiled. She knew these women would be in her corner no matter what.

  21


  “This restaurant is stunning.”

  Rae took a moment to look around to get a feel for the place. The lights were dimmed, but because of candles on the tables, it was still bright enough to see around the restaurant. She had made the right choice by wearing a black dress and heels. Jules had recommended that she wear her hair up and she had done just that. Rae placed her coat on the back of her chair and Flint pushed her seat in after she sat down. She took the opportunity to look around. The restaurant’s decor was stunning, focusing on natural colors. Because of the hour they had arrived and the dimming of the lights, the room gave off a romantic vibe.

  “How did you find out about this restaurant? I’m in love with it, and I haven’t eaten anything yet,” said Rae as Flint got situated across from her.

  “I’m glad you like it. A coworker recommended it to me,” Flint said as he picked up his menu. “How about we pick what we want and then go from there?”

  The smile he gave her threw her somewhat off-kilter. Was she wrong to have immediately dismissed Liv’s assumption that he might want to propose? But they weren’t ready for that next step yet and hadn’t even talked about marriage recently.

  Rae picked up the menu and studied it to stop her thoughts from racing out of control. Picking what she wanted, she sat back and waited on Flint. When he looked up, he briefly smiled at her before turning his attention to their server. The couple gave their order, and Rae waited for Flint to fill her in on what he wanted to talk about. He reached across the table and grabbed her hand, silently playing with her fingers for a bit. And with that, Rae’s patience flew out the window.

  “So, what’s up?”

  “Rae, there is something I’ve meant to tell you.”

  Flint paused but didn’t continue. He squinted, trying to see something over her shoulder.

  “Dad?”

  Rae swung her head around and her eyes ran smack dab into Terry West.

  “Hey, son.”

  “What are you doing here?”

  Rae thought that was an excellent question and mentally gave Flint a high five for it.