She stretched and Phoenix stirred. “Tell me about your house.” The question caught her off guard. Cee-Cee turned on her side and put her face on her palm, resting on her elbow. She watched him.
“Well, I don’t have one yet,” she murmured, smiling.
“What’s your dream house? What was Ashley talking about?”
“Oh, that. I took him with me to do some house hunting and see my top picks. I had to give up on the house I really wanted since it’s out of my budget, but it’s beautiful. Five bedrooms, over two thousand square feet of living space and a huge backyard. A big yellow house with a white picket fence. That was my dream.”
He swept her hair back from her face, trailing his hand to the back of her neck. He pressed his forehead to hers. thinking about all those bedrooms. “Why can’t it still be your dream? I thought NowIn was performing well.”
“Eh, it is, but there’s no way I’ll have enough money pulled together before someone else snatches it up. I think I just better be practical and live within my means.”
“I’ve never known you to give up on anything,” he murmured. Ashley kissed the back of her neck, and she turned to return the favor. Phoenix asked him, “What about you? What have I missed in your life while I’ve been too busy selfishly plugging away at my own?” He smiled ruefully, and Ashley chuckled sadly.
“Met my real dad. He has cancer. I’m thinking about canceling my tour so I can stick around for a while and help take care of him.”
Phoenix’s eyes widened. “That’s surprising and very sweet of you. Let me know if there’s anything I can do.”
“What can you do? Do you have a cure? I just need you guys to be here for me because it’s going to take some getting used to. It’s so weird, meeting him at the end of his life. I wish I had known him growing up, but that would mean I wouldn’t have had my dad, William. He’s an important part of who I am as well. Complicated.”
Phoenix patted his face playfully. Ashley kissed his palm. “I’m going to be a better lover,” Phoenix promised. “And a better friend.”
Cee-Cee turned on her back and stared up at the ceiling. “The both of you better stop being sentimental and adorable. I’ve had just about all of that I can take.”
“What’s the matter, Cee-Cee? Falling for us?” Ashley teased.
“How do you think things will be a year from now?” she whispered, wondering. Neither had an answer. One thing was certain: being with these two men was changing the way she thought about love, relationships and forevers. She had gotten it all wrong in the past. This was bliss.
Phoenix rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling. She watched him. “I think I want both of you to come with me on this vacation.”
“Aren’t you worried about what people will say if we’re seen together?” Ashley muttered.
“To hell with what people will say,” Cee-Cee replied. “We’re going on vacation!”
Phoenix replied, “People won’t say anything, because I’m going to take us someplace no one knows us.”
Chapter 29
“One date,” Gina said from other end of the line. “One night with you, Mayor Briton. I did what you needed me to do and set up that interview with Five Parker. Now, all I need from you is a precious few hours of alone time together.”
Phoenix smirked at the prospect as he gripped the telephone against his ear. He had to do what he had to do to stay on Gina’s good side so she could set up that interview with Five Parker and make sure the vivacious talk show host stuck to the script. Bryan Friedman had made it clear that Gina was the only one at PR-ISM who did what she did, maneuvering with local television networks and publications.
“I’m agreeable to that. But you have to guarantee me that Five Parker will keep his interview short and stick to the questions we’re giving him. If we make this interview work for us, I’m pretty sure it will shine on your resume. You won’t have to say that you work locally. This network broadcasts nationwide,” he said.
Gina tittered loftily. “Naturally, I appreciate your help with that. Maybe this will be the thing that shows my supervisor I’m ready for a promotion.” She blathered on about work, and Phoenix effectively feigned attentiveness, but he was lost in thought.
Phoenix had already reported to his father that he would be announcing his step down in the next two months. The election loomed closer, and it was perfect timing for such an announcement.
Buddy was hanging tight in the polls, right under Phoenix. To make matters more interesting, a newcomer had thrown her hat into the ring, and she had a chance, if her current momentum was anything to judge by. Leslie Zanders was an outspoken Independent who reminded him of Hillary Clinton. It was surprising that she was doing so well in this town, but maybe the people were that ready for a change. Phoenix had had to restructure some of his platform values to stay one step ahead of her.
Keeping ahead of the pack became more and more difficult, the more personal problems cropped up in his life. He had managed to make it believable that Cee-Cee was a serious girlfriend. The public was eating her up. She had no idea of how many people were rooting for them to announce their engagement either ahead of or right after the election. Having a wife would be superb for his image. He wondered if she would go along with getting married as easily as she had gone along with dating.
Probably not. But he imagined the two them in a five-bedroom house, a couple of kids—Ashley visiting, the “Aussie Uncle.” Christ, what was wrong with him. That’s not what she wanted.
Once he got past that interview with Five Parker, he’d have more insurance in case his father released those pictures. He sighed as he considered how many times he’d have to fight this voracious cougar off on this ‘one date’ she was proposing.
“You also have to promise me Cee-Cee won’t hear a word about this.”
“Don’t worry, Phoenix. I know the value of a good, quiet lady friend. Listen, my life doesn’t revolve around Cora-Lynn Carson. Me wanting to go out with you has nothing to do with her. This is about me and you.”
“You have a lot of confidence in yourself, don’t you,” he spoke into the phone. Her laughter echoed from the other end.
“I just know what I can do, and you will soon, too.”
“Well, I’m not exactly sure what you have in mind when you say that, but I’m not an easily persuaded man,” he promised. He was hoping she meant she was great at her PR job, but he knew that wasn’t it.
“Like I said, you give me a chance, one date, and I’ll do the rest.”
After he hung up the phone, he contemplating calling Cee-Cee and letting her know what he was doing. There was nothing intimate about this date. It was strictly business. That way if Gina got catty enough to try to make it an issue at PR-ISM, she would already be in the loop. He wasn’t going to succumb to Gina’s wiles. There’d be no sex, but he’d let her down easy to keep her ego intact.
However, judging by the way Cee-Cee had responded to the woman simply flirting with him, Phoenix wasn’t so sure Cee-Cee would be okay with that. She was his public girlfriend, and she had put such energy into playing her role. She’d feel betrayed if he went out with someone else and made her look bad, but what was his alternative? Phoenix pushed his hair back and rubbed his eyes, and a tap at his door drew his attention.
“Yeah, come in,” Phoenix called out. His secretary stepped into the mayoral office.
“You might want to see this.” The secretary hurried over to Phoenix’s desk and showed him his phone where a video was set to play. Phoenix’s forehead furrowed when the video started and he saw it was Buddy.
In white letters against a red screen, words came spinning at the viewer. “What’s Mayor Phoenix Briton hiding?” Buddy appeared and pointed at the viewer with a glower. He was a short pudgy man with an old-fashioned handlebar mustache. He had always reminded Phoenix of a sleazy used car dealer, and this ad fit the bill perfectly.
“Do you know what the mayor has been up to while he’s been in offic
e? I don’t! He’s sealed important documents related to his so-called philanthropy, and I suspect his charitable acts are all fluff. But you don’t have to take my word for it. Let’s ask him. Phoenix Briton, what are you hiding? The people deserve to know!”
It was a cheesy ad, poorly funded and nothing worth looking at twice, but the message disturbed him greatly, knowing what he knew about the pictures his father was holding. Did Buddy Steele know about those pictures, too?
Probably not about the pictures per se, he decided. But he knew Phoenix’s dad had something. How else was the old man keeping Buddy appeased? Sooner or later, Wallace would have to show his hand.
Phoenix murmured to his secretary, “Thanks for showing me, but we’re not going to worry about that now. How am I looking in the polls?”
“Still at the top. Leslie Zanders and Buddy Steele coming in close second.”
“As long as I’m still at the top, that’s all that matters.” When he was done with this interview with Five Parker, he hoped to be further in the lead. If he presented himself as a political leader who was aware of the changing times while still keeping his town’s best interests at heart, he could win over more voters.
But things had to be done carefully. So far, all was well. He was dating Cee-Cee, and he had to present himself as a heterosexual male who was tolerant enough but not too tolerant. Unfortunately, Five Parker had already linked him to Ashley, but he could say Ashley was just a friend. Phoenix rubbed his tired eyes. Just how much of Ashley’s personal life might come back to haunt him by association? He needed to do some research.
Phoenix turned to his computer and pulled up everything he could find on the rock star. What he discovered didn’t bode well for his campaign. Ashley was all over the Internet . Worse, his sexuality wasn’t anything secret. Everyone knew he was bisexual; he’d been linked with certain hot Australian actors and rockers.
“Damn it, Ashley,” he muttered in frustration.
The best thing for him to do would be to get out and about with Ashley to make it clear they were nothing more than two bros. No private dinner dates or going to the movies, and no more hanging out at the Yellow Lounge together, which was what had put him in this predicament in the first place. They needed a safe public presence so when the subject of Ashley came up during that interview, he could say they were simply friends.
Unless the pictures got out. The ones he hadn’t seen yet, but could imagine.
With Buddy drawing attention to him, Phoenix vaguely wondered if he should ask Ashley to sit the vacation out, but he didn’t want to do that. It would be easy enough to say a group trip was innocuous. He merely needed to cover his bases on the home front. Phoenix picked up his cellphone and dialed Ashley’s number, smiling when the Aussie greeted him on the first ring. “You want to hang out?”
“Phoenix?”
“Yeah, it’s me. I’ve been thinking about what you said the other night about me not making time for my friends. I’ve got the rest of the day free, and I want to spend some time with you.”
“Are you sure you want to do that? I saw Buddy Steele’s slanderous ad on the local news channel. I don’t want to cost you your election.”
“Don’t worry about that. Do you want to see me or not? I miss you.” It was true. He did miss him, and he did want to spend time with him. He just wanted to do it on his terms so it could benefit his campaign instead of hurting it. Ashley admitted that he did want to see him, and Phoenix pushed away from his desk and grabbed his keys. “I’m on my way over to your hotel. Be ready.”
“I was actually on my way out to see my dad at the hospital. Why don’t you come with?”
“Alright, I’ll be there in a few.”
Chapter 30
Winny gushed with pleasure when she opened the door and saw the mayor and Cee-Cee’s friend, Ashley, on her doorstep. The two handsome men were like night and day, with Ashley in stone-washed jeans and a character t-shirt while Phoenix wore khaki slacks and a blazer. From the very beginning, Winny had a hunch that Cee-Cee had a thing for both men, but if she wondered why her daughter’s beaus were showing up at the same time, she didn’t show it.
Throwing the door wide, she ushered them in, beaming. “Oh, hi! I didn’t know you two were stopping by today. Cee-Cee! Your boys are here! Come in, come in. I’m sure she’ll be right down. Up there squinting at the computer as usual.”
“How have you been, Winny?” Ashley asked, drawing her into a chat about her day. Phoenix nodded pleasantly, only half-listening, as he waited at the door for Cee-Cee to come down.
Up on the second floor, Cee-Cee peeped out her window and spotted Ashley’s rental, wondering what they were doing there. She had been in the middle of working on a new app. She tiptoed past Josey’s room, where the kids were napping, and quietly jogged down the stairs. Stepping into the foyer, she saw Ashley pull Winny into a tight hug and lift her off her feet while her mom giggled girlishly and swatted at him. Phoenix smiled and stepped past them into the house.
“Hey, you!” he greeted her. “Ashley and I just got in from visiting Reginald, and we figured we’d stop here to say hello before we shoot over to my place. Boys night tonight, since you’re babysitting.”
Cee-Cee curiously eyed the two, who were rarely seen in public together. She tossed her hair and put her hands on her hips when she made it to the bottom step, studying Phoenix. “I thought you had to work today.”
Phoenix shrugged. “I wrapped early. I wanted to spend some time with Ashley. Plus, I have a surprise for the both of you.”
“What’s that about a surprise? What do you have there, Phoenix?” Ashley asked as Winny swept back into the kitchen, leaving the three to themselves.
“Living room. Now.” Cee-Cee pointed ahead. When they were safely out of earshot, she dropped onto the couch next to Phoenix and pinned him with a look, smiling. “You went to visit Ashley’s dad with him? Who are you and what have you done with the real Mayor Phoenix Briton? There had to be thousands of people who saw the two of you together along the way. This isn’t like you.”
Ashley laughed and leaned on her while Phoenix blushed and looked away. “It’s not that big a deal. People are well aware that Ashley and I know each other. And, if I’m going to be doing that interview with Five Parker and saying how the three of us are all chums, then it’s probably a good idea for us to be seen in public together.”
“Wait a second,” said Ashley. “You’re doing an interview with Five? I know that guy. He asked Tegan about an interview with me after he spotted us at the Yellow Lounge together. I turned him down.”
“Well, what a coincidence. That’s the same reason he asked me for an interview. I would’ve turned him down, but with my father holding these pictures over my head, Bryan Friedman and my PR team over at PR-ISM agree that it’s time for some controlled disclosures. So, I’m gonna do that interview and make it clear to the world that the three of us are close and that I’m an ally to the QUILTBAG community.”
“Politically speaking,” Ashley added wryly.
Phoenix absently joked, “Funny that you turned the interview down. I’d imagine a guy like you would’ve gone for the publicity!” He nudged Ashley with his elbow, but Ashley fired a disappointed look in his direction.
“I turned it down since a certain someone, whose opinion mattered to me, didn’t want me blabbing about his personal life. I see now what he really didn’t want was to give up control of how the story broke.” Ashley smiled tightly, and Phoenix looked contrite. Cee-Cee glanced from one to the other and frowned. Lately there were always these undercurrents between the three of them. Why didn’t Phoenix just explain that he wasn’t a control freak? She sighed.
“Is this the new us? Will we always fight?”
“I’m sorry. I’ve been tense lately,” Ashley muttered. She knew some of the tension was over him not confessing to Phoenix that he had inadvertently had a hand in Wallace Briton having those photos. Ashley had sworn to Cee-Cee that he would take care
of the matter. She hoped that was going well for him. Otherwise, the ball would be in her court. The confession of Ashley’s secret dealings with Tegan would rip Phoenix apart.
“About this surprise,” she prodded. Better to get on to the good news. Phoenix tugged two envelopes out of his inner coat pocket and dropped them into each of their laps. Cee-Cee opened hers first and sucked in a breath at what was inside.
She stared at the tickets Phoenix had placed in her hands, and her eyebrows winged skyward as she soundlessly stammered in shock. Finding her vocal cards, she croaked, “Are you serious?!” His laughter washed over her like sunrise. Phoenix dragged her into his arms and kissed her cheek. He liked nothing better than making her happy.
“Of course I’m serious. I told you I need a break, and I want to spend it with the two of you.”
Sitting on the sofa next to them, Ashley excitedly tore open his envelope with a grin. “A seven-day cruise to the Caribbean,” he gasped. He peered at his tickets closer. They would set sail in two days. “This is perfect! I don’t have any performances, and I was afraid I was going to have to hole up in a hotel and be bored.” Ashley thoughtlessly threw his arms around Phoenix as Cee-Cee squealed in delight.
For a brief second, Phoenix let him hold him. Then, he gently disengaged as Winny and Marty strolled into the living room. “What’s all the fuss about?” asked Marty good-naturedly.
Cee-Cee flashed them the tickets. “We’re going on a cruise! Isn’t that fantastic?” Marty lifted his brows in surprise and nodded, eyeing Winny knowingly. Cee-Cee snorted and waved them both away, laughing. “No, there are no engagements or otherwise on the horizon, so quit your telepathic scheming.” Ashley chuckled.
“So, now that you know,” said Phoenix, “I suggest you start packing. I’ll send my car around Saturday morning.”
“I’ll be ready,” said Cee-Cee. She watched as her friends said goodbye to her parents and left together. It was great news that Phoenix was more comfortable out and about with Ashley. She knew it made him happy. However, she wondered if going on a cruise would solve the dilemmas they were all facing.
MMF BISEXUAL ROMANCE: Phoenix Running Page 23
