Our Little Secret (9 page)

Drew lowered his sandwich.
His father
.

A female voice cut in as if someone had grabbed the phone from him, adding, “Lauren, are you there?”

For one frozen second they both stared across the kitchen, then they both scrambled for the receiver. Drew reached it first, but tilted it toward Lauren so she could listen too.

“Dad? What’s going on? Where are you?”

Lauren’s excited voice cut across his. “Meg! Are you okay?”

“Lauren!” the woman’s voice answered joyously, before Senator Creighton chimed in. “I’m fine. We’re both fine. Sorry if you were worried.”

“Dad, I called the police! No one knew where you’d gone, and Gerald hasn’t seen Meg since Tuesday.”

Lauren’s hand closed over his as she forced the phone closer to her mouth. “Meg, someone thinks I’m you, and they tried to kidnap me! What’s going on?”

An odd moment of silence hung in the air, and as Lauren’s concerned gaze locked with Drew’s, the moment nearly took his breath away.

“I’m sorry, Lauren, really. I didn’t think it would get dangerous for you. I just needed to get away from them. When they realize you’re not me, they’ll leave you alone.”

Maybe Lauren had heard numerous apologies for idiotic adventures in the past, because she didn’t seem to be moved by Meg’s words. “Who are ‘they’?” she demanded.

Drew wanted to know the answer to that one, too,
but instead his father’s voice interrupted. “We can’t tell you, but we think we’re out of danger for now.”

“Danger? What sort of danger?” Lauren’s voice was edged with panic.

“Never mind,” Senator Creighton answered. “If we tell you, then you’ll be in danger, too. Just stay out of it.”

“Please, Lauren,” Meg implored. “Let us handle it. We know what we’re doing.”

Lauren didn’t seem reassured. Drew was pretty sure his dad could take care of himself, but he didn’t want to see Lauren worry over her sister’s safety for however long it took them to “handle” things. Besides, she was running out of fingernails.

He tilted the phone back toward his mouth. “You’ll have to do better than that. We don’t even know what or who to avoid.”

“Everyone,” his dad’s voice replied firmly. “Just stay where you are, and we’ll explain when we get back.”

“When will that be?”

It didn’t seem like a difficult question, but it received a lot of thought at the other end of the line. Finally, his dad’s voice said, “I don’t know. It could be a while. Just wait. We’ll call again when we can, okay? Take care.”

He sounded hurried. “Dad, hold on a second—”

“Sorry, son, gotta run. We’re on a tight schedule.”

“Watch
Capitol Talk
!” Meg added quickly.

A second later the phone clicked off. Drew laid the phone back in the cradle and turned to Lauren.

“What the hell was that?” he growled. “We still don’t know what’s going on.”

She shook her head and twisted a lock of hair. “What’s
Capitol Talk
?”

“It’s a local show that’s half news, half rumor and gossip.” He headed back to the island for his sandwich. He’d think better with food in his stomach.

“When is it on?”

“I don’t know. I don’t live here, remember? I just visit occasionally.”

“Morning, afternoon, or evening, do you know that much?” Her voice was edgy with anxiety.

“Beats me. Check the TV listing.”

“I’m not going to waste time tracking it down.” She grabbed the phone, marched over to him and slapped it into his hand. “Ask Gerald.” When he raised his eyebrows, she told him impatiently, “He seems to know everything else. I’m sure he’ll know that.” She pointed at the phone. “Hurry up. I don’t want to miss whatever the hell she’s talking about.”

He smiled and began pressing numbers. “Results oriented, aren’t you? What do you do for a living?”

“Financial management.” Her finger tapped rapidly on the countertop while he held the phone to his ear. He laid his free hand on top of her fingers, stilling them.

“Hi, Steven? It’s Drew Creighton. Is Gerald there?” Drew said into the phone. He waited about ten seconds, aware the whole time of the way her hand had frozen beneath his. But she didn’t pull away. “Gerald? We’ve heard from Dad and Meg.” He cut off the expected barrage of questions with, “I’ll tell you about it later. They said we’re supposed to watch
Capitol Talk
. When is it on?”

He could hear the surprise in Gerald’s voice when
he answered, “Right now. I’m watching it. Channel six.”

“Thanks.” Drew hung up the phone. “It’s on
now
,” he told Lauren, finally feeling some of her anxiety. “Come on.” Pulling on the hand he’d been holding, he tugged her toward his father’s office, the closest room with a TV. Her warm fingers squeezed his as they rushed along, then pulled away when they entered the dark room and he turned on the TV. They stared at the silver blur of a sports car as it slid across wet pavement to the bass-heavy sound of rock music.

Lauren sighed with frustration at the commercial and stuck a fingernail between her teeth.

“Bad habit. Relax,” he told her quietly. He pulled her hand away and held it gently in his. She didn’t resist, just bit her lip and stared at the screen. He entwined their fingers, enjoying the softness of her hand while telling himself it was only to keep her from decimating her remaining nails.

After another minute of commercials and two minutes of the first lady speaking at a charity luncheon, Drew stiffened and felt Lauren’s fingers tighten around his. Behind the female anchor, an insert photo of Senator Creighton beamed out at them.

“And in our hearts and flowers segment today,” the woman said, “Capitol Hill was taken by surprise when Texas Senator and notorious ladies’ man Harlan Creighton unexpectedly announced his marriage to his secretary, Megan Sutherland.” She emphasized the word “secretary,” as if listeners might have missed the significance of Meg’s lowly position. “Dana Zamecki caught up with the happy couple at the airport shortly before they boarded a plane for the Virgin Islands.”
The screen flashed to a reservation desk where Meg clung to Senator Creighton’s arm, both smiling self-consciously into the camera as a pretty, blonde reporter stuck a microphone in their faces.

“Senator, you’ve been difficult to find since the announcement of your marriage,” she said.

Drew recognized the practiced chuckle his father was able to emit at will. “Well, that was the plan, Dana. And we almost snuck out of town without getting caught.” He tipped his head in amused acknowledgment. “Now, don’t you put this on the air until we’re outta here,” he said, letting a down-home Southern drawl creep into his voice. It always played well in the public opinion polls. “Newlyweds deserve a little privacy on their honeymoon.” Drew nearly choked as his father looked fondly at Meg. She gazed adoringly into his eyes before they turned and headed for the VIP security line.

The picture flashed back to the anchorwoman. “We don’t know Senator and Mrs. Creighton’s final destination, but his office assures us it will be a short trip, due to the upcoming hearing on the senator’s offshore drilling bill.”

“Huh,” Drew snuffed. “His office. Nice of them to contact us with the news. I wonder when that was?”

The picture changed to the next story, and Drew automatically hit the mute button. He stared at the silent TV while his mind tried to grasp what he’d seen. Lauren hadn’t moved, apparently as stunned as he was.

The ringing desk phone jolted him out of his trance. Reluctantly, he released Lauren’s hand and picked it up, knowing who it would be. “We saw it,” he said in greeting.

“That was weird!” Gerald pronounced.

“In what way?” Drew had his own opinion, but no one had spent more time with Harlan Creighton over the past ten years than his personal secretary.

“They don’t act like that. At least, not in front of me. The senator
never
gets that goofy expression on his face. And Megan was
hanging
on him, and practically
dripping
syrup all over him. You don’t know her, Andrew, but let me tell you, Megan is
way
cooler than that. That was Megan being played by Marilyn Monroe. Badly.”

Drew smiled. “Thanks, Gerald.” He hung up and looked at Lauren’s shocked expression. “Well?”

She shook her head. “What happened to all that stuff about being in danger? And Meg never acted so silly about a man in her life. Sexy and confident, but not silly. Something’s up.” She frowned. “What about your dad?”

“That seems to be the consensus. I thought I’d seen him in every possible mood, but I’ve never seen
that
Harlan Creighton before.”

Lauren twirled a string of hair around her finger, another habit he’d noticed her resort to whenever she thought about her sister. “But how would he act if he fell in love? Maybe he’s just head-over-heels in love.”

Drew ran a hand through his hair. His parents must have been in love at one time, but not in his memory, and he had no idea how his father would act if he fell in love again. In lust, yes. That happened frequently. But in love? “I don’t know, maybe that’s exactly how they’d act if they fell in love. Maybe they’d be as surprised by it as we are.” He found it hard to believe, but he didn’t have a better answer at the moment.

Lauren screwed up her face in an effort to imagine that scenario. “Maybe,” she said, doubt obvious in her voice. She glanced sideways from under lowered lashes. “Would falling in love make you act silly?”

He smiled. “Bad word choice—men don’t act
silly
. Although I couldn’t say for sure. I’ve never loved anyone enough to want to spend the rest of my life with her. It sounds confining.” His gaze drifted down to her left hand. How had he held that hand and noticed its warmth and softness, without ever feeling her ring? “But you must have,” he said, nodding at her hand. “Fallen in love that much, I mean. You know, with old what’s-his-name. How does it make you feel?” He hoped his relaxed stance reflected courteous interest rather than the strange tension that gripped him. Despite knowing how dangerous this line of thinking was, his question had nothing to do with his father and her sister.

“Oh.” She held her left hand in her right and looked at the ring, as if she’d forgotten it was there. She caressed it thoughtfully. “I felt happy, I guess. I mean, I feel happy.” She corrected her tenses, but must have realized how tentative that sounded. She smiled at him. “Satisfied and happy. Contented,” she added more firmly, apparently still searching for the right term. She shrugged helplessly. “Our relationship hit a point where we knew it needed to go somewhere. So we took the next step. It just felt right.”

Past tense again, but he didn’t point it out. He watched her closely. “That sounds… nice.” It sounded like a huge mistake, but he couldn’t say that when she looked so vulnerable. He forced a smile in return. “So, no acting silly, eh?”

She straightened. “Well, that’s me. Practical through and through. I guess I’m not much of a romantic.” She tried to sound light-hearted, but seemed nervous beneath the surface. Her hands went in her pockets, and the ring disappeared from sight.

Now, that was flat-out wrong. She was either covering up her emotions, or she really didn’t know she had them. Lauren was getting more intriguing by the minute.

“Speaking of romance and stuff, I really should call Jeff. My fiancé,” she explained unnecessarily.

“I remember.”

“I was supposed to call at eight-fifteen, and it’s nearly eight thirty. He’ll be wondering what happened to me.”

God, what an uptight prick. “Sure, go ahead. You can use the phone in here. I’ll go finish my sandwich.” He clicked the desk lamp on and turned off the soundless flickering of the TV. “Maybe you’ll feel more like eating after you’ve talked to Jeff.”

They exchanged overly sincere smiles as he left, closing the wood paneled double doors behind him.

Maybe talking to the anonymous Jeff would calm her nerves. Although he didn’t know how that was possible. He thought a relationship that bland and
satisfying
would give him a stomach ache. He hoped it gave Jeff one.

“Where have you been? I’ve been worried sick! You were supposed to call fifteen minutes ago. Were you delayed in traffic coming back from Virginia? I’ve heard the D.C. traffic can be murder.”

Lauren scrunched her eyes shut and put a hand to her forehead. She knew he’d be like this, and she was getting tired of dealing with his picky rules just because she hadn’t called at eight fifteen on the dot.

Blurting it out was probably best. “I’m fine, Jeff. And I wasn’t delayed in traffic, because I didn’t go to Virginia.”

“You didn’t?” It was the cool, controlling tone usually reserved for Meg, and never before directed at her. Of course, she’d never gone against his wishes before. He’d just have to learn to deal with it.

“I didn’t call you because there have been a few problems here.” She took a deep breath and began explaining about the trip to the bank and the Hart building. Before she could get to the TV coverage, Jeff’s anxiety turned into full-blown panic.

“A gun! He had a gun?” She could picture him jumping to his feet, his perfectly chiseled face going pale. “You could have been killed! What’s going on there?”