by Law, Kim
“I need to get off the phone, Bob. We’re about to land.”
He’d called because he’d seen the beach pictures that had now made it to all the news channels. It hadn’t been hard to watch the clips of the auction and see that it was the same person with him in Anguilla. “You’re sure you’re okay?” Bob asked.
He didn’t know the story behind her life but knew enough about her that he understood that being caught soaking wet, and with one of the country’s highest-profile people, was not anywhere near being on her bucket list.
“I’m fine, honestly. I just seem to keep making a spectacle of myself. Hopefully today’s pictures will be the last incident.” Not that she believed that at all. There were still topless photos out there waiting to surface, but it wasn’t like she could tell him that. It would be mortifying enough when it came out.
“And you don’t need anything for the interview?” Bob was sending someone to trade out the news van for her car in the morning, but she’d keep the equipment she needed out of it.
“Just the hotel room, please. If you don’t mind. Can you extend it through Saturday?” She had not been looking forward to explaining how she’d failed to secure the interview after all, so she had been thrilled to be able to discuss her plans on the call instead.
He chuckled. “No problem, kiddo. I’m sending that bill to the Atlanta station anyway. For all they know, they’re stealing you from me. I might as well make them pay something for it.” He paused, then his tone turned more serious. “As you get segments ready, send them to me for a second set of eyes. I’ll do everything I can to make sure you get the job you want.”
Her heart grew heavy at the thought she would soon be working for someone other than him. “Sounds like a good plan, Bob.”
He’d been there with her since she’d begun this career, and far too often she’d had to rely on him as more of a surrogate father than merely a boss. She spent holidays with him and his family when she couldn’t get away to see her own mom and had dinner with them at least once a month. She’d miss that.
“I’ll get off here now and let you get back to that young man you’ve snared,” he teased, but she could sense his worry beneath it. “You be careful, okay?”
She nodded, a tear forming in the corner of her eye. He knew as well as she that JP had only been a fling. She might have to cry on his shoulder a bit after she wrapped up the interview and stepped away from JP for the last time. “Will do.”
They ended the call, and she got herself under control as JP lowered himself to the couch beside her. He stretched his long legs out while she studied the man she’d become so close to over the last couple days, amazed at how much more she wanted to know about him. And not purely for the story.
Before she let herself get carried away, she slammed shut her personal thoughts and glanced back at the notebook in her lap. She tapped the eraser of her pencil against the paper in a rhythmic fashion.
“Good call with Bob?”
She looked up and nodded. She’d told him a few stories over the last couple days revolving around her job, several including Bob, and he’d picked up on the fact that the man was more father than boss. “He’s just worried about me.”
“I can understand that. You’ve probably surprised him a time or two the last few days.”
She chuckled under her breath. “I’ve surprised me the last few days.”
JP’s large hand reached over and squeezed hers. “I’ve loved all of it.” He paused, as if sensing something was on her mind. “You doing okay?”
Again, she nodded. She was, but she couldn’t help but worry about what else was to come. “Can I ask you something?”
Stretching one arm along the couch behind her, he shot her a hot look as he leaned in and whispered, “Want to know if we can make love in the air one more time before we land?” He wiggled his brows. “It’ll have to be a quickie, darlin’.”
His warm breath bathed her neck and made her smile. In the last twenty-four hours, he’d more than proven himself as they’d not only made good use of the bedroom aboard his plane, but they’d also christened the dining room table in their hotel room, the kitchen counters, and multiple locations on the private yacht they’d rented for the day. When not exploring each other, they’d spent time snorkeling and riding Jet Skis.
For the first time in years, she’d felt like part of a couple. And she’d liked it. She had to put a stop to it, though, before it got out of hand. She knew from experience how bad it could get.
She sighed and leaned into his embrace. “Any idea if that alley shot made the tabloids yet?”
Her only hope at this point was to pull together an interview so extraordinary that even if every detail of her past was once again exposed, no one would think twice about what she’d done beforehand.
Slim chance.
JP squeezed her to him before leaning back in his seat. “I checked internet sites about an hour ago. I didn’t see anything other than those shots from last night. If it shows up, though, it’ll be okay. We’ll handle it.”
Her eyebrow twitched, and his mouth twisted in a grim line.
“I know,” he sighed out the words before smiling. “It’s your breasts, and I shouldn’t be so flippant.”
She loved his smile. “That’s not what I’m worried about.” And honestly, her breasts being exposed was the least of her worries. She cradled his jaw, caressing the five o’clock shadow. “I don’t want it to hurt you.”
He smirked. “What? You don’t think the governor will be impressed with his political appointment being caught face-first in a pair of naked breasts?”
She wanted to smile at the forced joke, but the matter was serious. She instead lowered her hand from his face. “I’d think you’d be worried, too.”
“Of course I am. Nobody wants to be splashed around the world in an unsavory manner such as that.”
Yet it seemed to her that he wasn’t as worried for political-career reasons as he should be. It could change the governor’s mind completely, no matter how clean he and his family were. Then there were all the other reasons he didn’t even know about that would hurt him. Everything about her past.
He must have picked up on the shift in her thinking because he reached out to wrap a loose piece of her hair around a finger. “Tell me what else we’re looking at, and I’ll fix it before it causes a problem.”
She shook her head. “You can’t fix it. It was a long time ago.”
“Sweetheart.” JP picked up her hand and pressed a quick kiss to it, then kept it held between his hands. His eyes pleaded with her. “Let me in. Let me help.”
He couldn’t help. That’s what she’d been unable to get him to understand. Her mind drifted off on all the ways she’d messed up and how it still unfairly affected every part of her life today. If the affair came out, so would the lies.
“Vega?”
She blinked, refocusing on his face.
“Talk to me, baby.”
He seemed so concerned and had been so sweet with her the last two days, but she couldn’t risk letting him in any further. She had to keep some things to herself, and that included her past and her heart. She couldn’t afford to be crushed again.
And good guy or not, she would be the ruin of JP. He wouldn’t want her in the end.
She pulled out a fake smile. “Thank you for your concern, really. But it’s not anything I can’t handle. I do have a question for you, though.”
The look on his face said he didn’t approve of her refusal to let him into her life or her quick change of subject. “We agreed no interview questions until tomorrow.”
“Yes, but this is something I just want to know.” It was something she’d thought about several times as she’d made notes on him and his family.
Reluctantly, he nodded agreement for her to ask her question.
She glanced down at her notepad, then back up to him. “You have an older brother.”
“Yes, Bennett.”
“A
nd your family is heavy into tradition.”
He eyed her as if trying to figure out where her line of questioning was leading. “You know they are.”
“Right.” She nodded. “So I’m wondering why you got named after your father instead of your older brother.”
If she hadn’t been staring so intently, she wouldn’t have caught the change in the blue of his eyes. But the warm glow turned just the tiniest bit chilly. “Honestly? I have no idea.”
“You parents never told you? Did you ask?”
“I asked.” He sat up straighter, pulling slightly back from her. “My father informed me I had been given the honor because I would be the one to follow in his footsteps.”
“Ah.” She blinked as another thought came to mind. “That’s kind of rude toward your brother, isn’t it? Did your father tell him the same thing about you?”
“I would imagine.”
Wow. No wonder the eldest had disappeared into the Army and rarely came home. She studied the man sitting before her, now far more distant than the mere inches separating them, as another thought popped to mind. It was a big one, but she had to ask it. “Then can I ask you one more question?”
He didn’t nod agreement, but he didn’t say no either.
“I’ve gotten the feeling from a couple things you’ve said, that maybe you don’t really want to go into politics?”
The planes of his face hardened. “Of course I do. I’m a Davenport, aren’t I?”
“See? You just did it again.”
He barked a laugh. “I did nothing, darlin’. I simply agreed that I want the life that’s been laid out for me.”
She tossed her notebook on the small table at their side and shifted around to face him. She gripped his hands in hers. “You said the words, but there was no passion inside you. What’s going on, JP? Is this what you want or not?”
His jaw twitched. “Don’t forget this whole conversation is off the record. And that I approve the final version of the interview. Air anything I don’t agree to and my lawyers will bury both you and the station.”
She sighed. “I signed the papers your lawyer faxed this morning, remember? I know the rules. But I’m not asking this for the interview. I’m asking for my own reasons.” She softened her tone and reminded herself that she’d have to shut down those reasons just as soon as the plane landed. She couldn’t keep caring about him as she was. It would hurt too much at the end. “I’d simply like to understand. Is this what you really want?”
He stared at her so long she became certain he wouldn’t answer. Watching his eyes change as his mind coursed through his own thoughts intrigued her, reminding her of the previous evening when he’d made love to her for the first time.
He’d insisted she let him see into her soul, to see what his touch did to her, but she wondered if he’d realized what she’d witnessed in him as well. It hadn’t just been sex. Not for her or him. She was certain of that. She didn’t know what else it was, exactly, but he’d let her see it was definitely more than just about bedding her. Yet another reason it had to end when the plane landed. She wouldn’t be able to stand watching his feelings change when he learned who she was.
They’d go back to being professionals. She’d create a piece benefiting both him and her, then she’d continue with her life—while secretly cheering him on from a distance.
Finally, he laced his fingers through hers. “We should get to our seats and buckle in.”
Once settled, he surprised her by answering her previous question. “Honestly, I have no idea if this is what I want. It’s simply…my life. It’s what’s expected of me. I’ll be the next Georgia senator. From there…” He shrugged. “Who knows what’s next.”
She clicked her seat belt around her. “But what do you want?”
JP’s strong profile stared straight ahead, and she couldn’t take her eyes off him. His throat worked, his Adam’s apple bobbed up and down, then he finally spoke. “I like running my company. The takeovers, seeing new buildings go up, making a hell of a lot of money. I love everything about it. I’ve also taken care to get the right people in place to keep it moving when I’m not there day in and day out.”
The whir of the jet engines filled the silence until Vega asked, “But?”
“But…” He sighed. He turned his clear gaze to her. “But there’s more, outside of business, that I want to accomplish. Something more personal.”
“And you can’t do this if you’re a senator?”
“I’m not sure.”
The plane began its descent, and she caught the flash of the lights of Atlanta before they circled over and headed to the small airstrip outside the city. “Will you tell me about it? Maybe another person’s opinion would help.”
He grew quiet. “Maybe I’ll show you later in the week.”
The thought sent a flutter through her body. “Something for the program?”
“Probably not.” He twisted his head in her direction and frowned. “We’ll talk about it later.”
Moments later, the plane coasted to a stop, and they gathered their purchases from the island. When she stepped outside, Vega was startled to catch sight of a dark figure just outside the small hangar, his hands to his face and a flash going off.
“Damn,” JP muttered, seeing the photographer the same instant as she did. He ducked his head and stepped in front of her, hurrying them both to the waiting town car.
Sliding quickly in behind her, he slammed the door, the tinted windows making them safe from further photographs. “I’m sorry, babe. It never occurred to me anyone would get past my security like that.”
She hadn’t thought so either. “It’s okay.”
Unless they wanted to ram into the building and run the man down, it would have to be okay.
She said the only thing she could think of. “Maybe it won’t show up.”
Silence reigned over the interior for several seconds before JP stated flatly, “You don’t believe that any more than I do.”
She shook her head. “Nope.”
“We’ll deal with it.” He smiled and reached across the seat to hold her hand. “Together.”
She didn’t feel like telling him at the moment that she dealt with things alone.
“I know you’ve got your hotel room for the rest of the week, but I thought you could stay with me.”
Vega froze, shocked. It had never crossed her mind that staying with him would be an option, though she knew she should have. Their chemistry hadn’t yet fizzled, and JP liked to get what he wanted. “I’m not sure that’s the best idea.”
“At least tonight, Vega.” JP’s hand tightened around hers. “We’re not finished. You know it as well as I do.”
“It’s after dark, and I have a lot of preparations before showing up at your office in the morning,” she said, working up the nerve to put her plan into action. “Plus, I need to switch out vehicles with a colleague in the morning. It would be best if I go on to my hotel.”
JP’s jaw clenched. “Is this because we were just seen? I can guarantee it won’t go beyond the airport. I have a private entrance to my place so no one would possibly know who, if anyone, arrived in this car with me. There’s no reason not to come back with me tonight.”
There were plenty of reasons. She had to retreat now, or she wouldn’t be able to. Even if his feelings grew for her to the point that they tried something as crazy as a relationship, they’d always have the issue of her background between them. She looked away, threatening tears choking her voice. “I can’t, JP.”
Even not facing him, she felt his anger. It vibrated through the car. He leaned forward and lowered the glass panel, instructing the driver to take them to her hotel. “I’ll give you tonight, but you know as well I as do that we have something here. Maybe it can’t go further than this week; maybe it can. But we need time to find out.”
“It can’t,” she whispered.
His eyes flared. “I won’t accept that.”
“Can I ask yo
u something?” She was pretty sure she already knew the answer but hearing it would help keep her focused on ending it. “Did you only agree to the interview so you could sleep with me a few more days?”
JP’s eyes grew dark in the shadows of the car. A flash under a passing streetlight showed the hard angles of his face, and she couldn’t stop a shiver from echoing through her.
“You know it’s more than just sleeping together, Vega.”
“But did you? Is that the reason you agreed?”
A low growl filled the back seat of the car as he raked a hand through his hair. “I don’t like people invading my personal life. I’ve never hidden that fact.”
“So if I refuse to see you again?”
“You won’t refuse.”
She didn’t respond.
They rode in silence for several minutes, neither willing to acknowledge what was happening between them.
Vega watched storefronts flash by one after the other and finally spoke as if talking to herself. “I love the city after dark.”
“Then you would love it from my place.” JP’s anger was only marginally controlled in his tight voice. “I’ll show it to you tomorrow night.”
“And if I say no?” She had to make him understand it was ending tonight. Right now. She couldn’t walk into his office tomorrow, spend hours watching him through an eyepiece, without having this decided. “If I refuse anything further, will you cancel the interview?”
“Dammit.” He slammed the side of his fist against the door. “No, of course I wouldn’t go back on my word. I promised to do it for you. I think you need this to see that you want more out of life than just being behind the camera. You need to be in front of it.” He turned to her and cupped her cheek, his gentleness surprising her. “You need to confront your fears, Vega. I want to help you do that.”
“I’m perfectly happy where I am. Who I am.”
His stormy eyes drilled into hers. “Is that right?”
She nodded.
“And that means you’re perfectly happy with a couple days and nothing more?”
