The Perfect Candidate (44 page)

Norm was at the front door.  He had got a lift over to the Reese
’
s house in the car that had come to pick Michael and Ashley up.  He drove with them to the polling booths, anxiously giving last minute advice.  Ashley was amused to see that the campaign manager was almost as nervous as her husband!  She couldn
’
t believe that she was the calmest member of their little party!  She was sure it wouldn
’
t last the whole day
…
but for the moment at least, she was serene and relaxed.

A large mass of reporters and camera crews were already there, waiting for Michael, when he, Ashley and Norm, arrived just a few minutes after six to cast their votes.  Ashley smiled and chatted for a few minutes after voting, laughing when one reporter asked her to tell them who she had voted for on her ballot.  She still felt amazingly in control, and beamed with pride as she watched Michael give a little impromptu interview.

“Well, that’
s three votes I know I
’
ve got at least,
”
Michael joked, when the three of them hopped back into the car. 

He seemed calmer now, Ashley guessed that what he had said before they left home was true- he needed to do something- he needed to keep himself active.

Unhappily, the time had come for Ashley to part ways with her husband.  Michael was going to head up to the northeast, to attend a string of rallies that morning, while she was staying in Chicago to make a few television appearances, before heading west that afternoon, trying to fire up the voters who still had a little time on their hands before the booths closed in their states.

“I’
ll try and give a call around lunchtime, and let you know how things are going?
”
Michael suggested, kissing Ashley soundly (and completely ignoring the presence of Norman), as the car stopped to drop him off at the airport.

“Don’
t worry about that!
”
she said. 
“
Just concentrate on the job you
’
ve got to do today, Mr. Reese,
”
she smiled, straightening his tie one last time before letting him leave.

She waved goodbye to Michael (and Norm, who
she
hadn
’
t forgotten was watching, and who was going to stay with Michael all day), and then the car drove away from the airport and took her to her first interview of the day.

Once things got properly underway, Ashley had to admit that she wasn
’
t sure she ever wanted to be involved in an election campaign again.  It was completely manic!  She didn
’
t have a second to herself all day- she barely had time to use the restroom.  She just smiled, waved, and tried to convince every person over the age of eighteen that crossed her path to vote for her husband!

By the time that she was allowed to climb wearily onto the airplane that was heading back to Chicago from Texas, Ashley was no longer a little Zen of calm.  She was an absolute bag of nerves!  Some of the results from back east had already started to come in!  Things were looking
…
okay
…
Ashley didn
’
t let herself get her hopes up any more than that- Michael had a tiny lead, but she knew perfectly well that he might loss it all in a heartbeat!

It was a three and a half hour flight home, and she refused to let anyone tell her how or if the results had altered as they made the journey. 

She hadn
’
t
wanted
to hear anything at all until it was all over- it was too stomach churning to wait and watch every precinct report back!  But she hadn
’
t been able to avoid overhearing a news broadcast before she boarded the plane.  She was determined not to listen to anything else however, she was going to lock herself away in one of the rooms of the hotel that the party had booked and not come out until it was all over!

Ashley managed to shut herself away in the room that had been put aside for her and Michael with surprising ease.  She supposed that everyone else was too busy listening to the results that were coming in to bother with her.  She couldn
’
t say that she minded- she was looking forward to having a little time to herself.  Michael wasn
’
t back in Chicago yet, but he already knew that she didn
’
t want to be told
anything
under the final result was given.

Ashley kicked off her heels once she was safely ensconced in the hotel room. She helped herself to a drink from the mini bar and then sank down onto the soft bed, curling up on the luxurious mattress as she sipped her red wine.  She flicked on the television (very careful to avoid any of the channels that might mention the election) and found an old movie that she tried to watch.  It was hard to follow what was going on though- she was too tired and distracted to keep up with the plot.

She finished her drink and settled down on the bed more comfortably, snuggling back against the fluffy pillows.  She closed her eyes- just to rest them.  Ashley was far too tightly strung to fall asleep- or so she thought- the wine must have relaxed her more than she had realized, because the next thing she knew, she was being woken up by the sound of a her phone ringing.

Ashley started and jumped up off the bed, almost tripping over in her sleepy hast.  By the time she had fumbled around with her purse and found her cell phone she was a little more awake- and rather apprehensive about answering the call
.

A glance at the caller ID told her that it wasn
’
t Michael phoning.  It was Cat
…
all the way from England
…
but was she calling to congratulate, or commiserate, or just to chat?  Ashley didn
’
t know of course, but she couldn
’
t risk answering!  She let the call ring through the answer phone, and saw on the display that Cat had left a message for her
.

Was that good or bad?

Ashley just didn
’
t know!  She
thought
she could hear people cheering outside
…
but of course, she didn
’
t know
why
they were cheering!  She paced back and forth for a little while, almost deciding that the not knowing
anything
was worse than knowing only part of something
…
but before she had fully resolved to go downstairs and join everyone else, the door to the room opened and Michael stepped inside
.

The first thing that Ashley noticed was how
tired
he looked, and then she saw the serious, virtually
grim
, set of his mouth
…
they must have lost
.

“Oh Michael!” she murmured, hurrying over to him.  She felt the disappointment keenly, but she refused to feel defeated.  She threw her arms around his neck and held him tight.  “I don’
t care what the result was- I
’
m so proud of you!  You
’
ve worked so hard- you
’
ve done so much! 
I
believe you were the best candidate!  I still believe it!  We won
’
t give up!  I
’
ll help you on a new campaign, Michael!  I
’
ll help any way I can!  I- I can write your speeches again!
”
she nodded fervently.

Michael finally started to grin.  His smile grew until he was positively
beaming
at her. 
“
Well, that
’
s good to know.  I
’
m going to need you in another four years.
”

“You…  W-What?” Ashley breathed shakily.

Michael kissed her, hard and deep, until she swayed and swooned in his arms. 
“
CNN just called it
…
we won, baby!  We won!!!
”

“We- you- you won?” Ashley stammered, dazed.

“You don’
t need to sound
quite
so surprised,
”
Michael chuckled.  He tried to kiss her again, but she placed her hands on his chest and held him back.  If the look on her face was anything to judge by then the meaning of his words was slowly sinking in.  It had happened the same way for him- it was just too huge an enormity to take in all at once. 
He was going to president!

“Oh my God, Michael!” Ashley screamed.  She threw her arms around his neck again.  He picked her up and twirled her around the room.  “You won!  I knew you could do it!” she cried euphorically.

“
We
did it,
”
Michael corrected her firmly. 
“
I could never have done this without you,
”
he insisted, and meant it whole-heartedly.

He moved to kiss her again, and this time she didn
’
t try to stop him.  Michael devoured his wife ravenously, he knew exactly the manner that he wanted to celebrate their victory, but he also knew that they could only count on having a few minutes alone.  Someone had probably already been sent from downstairs to fetch him.  Right now though, he didn
’
t care.  He had his wife in his arms, her taste in his mouth, and he wasn
’
t going to stop kissing her until he was forced to.

That
happened much too soon for Michael
’
s liking.  The door wasn
’
t even
knocked
on before it was thrown open. 

“I
thought
I might find you up here, Michael,
”
Norm sighed.  He gave his head what looked like an amused shake. 
“
Good evening, Mrs. Reese,
”
he said politely.

“Good evening, Norman,” Ashley mumbled.  Her skin had flushed a deep crimson, but she didn’
t try to struggle out of his arms, Michael thought, with a surge of pleasure.