The Senator's Daughter (14 page)

The budget was supposed to go to conference by July. If Alex didn't get the IED bill passed in the next month, he'd lose most of the votes he'd gotten by making budget promises. This was no time to get distracted by Kat.

The quartermaster handed them olive drab T-shirts and camo pants. Alex knew they'd never see their luggage. In the time it had taken the security personnel to change the tire, anyone from local villagers to hidden insurgents could've shown up. The security company would trade the bags for their own safety.

They headed to their quarters to shower and change out of their clothes, which were now dusty and a little ripe from nearly twenty-four hours of travel. On the way, Alex greeted the soldiers who were already back from patrol, surprised at how familiar everything felt. He'd signed up for the reserves in order to pay off his college loans. He was called up in the early years of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars and had gone in thinking the experience might look good one day when he ran for office.

He'd shown up with a superior attitude and a law degree under his belt. It took less than a day to be humbled by the men in his unit. They'd taught him what it meant to fight for freedom, how to put his own needs aside. Nick was serving his second tour and had shown him the ropes. Alex started out by counting the days until he was out, but when his time was up, he tried to fight it. It was his mother who'd talked him out of returning to active duty after his relatively minor injuries healed.

The shower was cold, and Alex was grateful for the sting against his skin. What was wrong with him? He'd dealt with difficult staffers before; it was inevitable when spoiled rich kids realized they'd be expected to do real work. He'd stared down powerful members of the US Congress, negotiated with tough lobbyists and industry officials. Why couldn't he get one woman to toe the party line?
Because she's not just any woman.
She was the one woman who threatened to undo everything he'd worked for in his life, including what was most precious to him—his self-control.

He made his way to the mess, desperate for a cup of coffee. He hadn't slept well on the flight, unable to stop the sweet scent of Kat's perfume from hitting his nose or admiring the way her lashes fanned over her cream-colored skin.

Kat was already in the hall, looking fresh and scrubbed. She'd pulled her hair into a ponytail. He stopped. Not even the olive drab T-shirt ballooning around her could hide how beautiful she was. The campaign manager in him wanted to ask if she could borrow makeup from a female soldier. Although there wouldn't be any media, he knew people would take photos and put them up on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. But he didn't have the heart to tell her to change. Her beauty was in her simplicity, and he liked it.

“Are you ready for your big speech?”

The mess was set up like a cafeteria with metal tables and long benches. A small stage made of wooden crates had been erected at one end. She nodded. “I'm going to speak from the heart.”

He needed something stronger than coffee, maybe a Xanax—or a blow on the head—so he could pass out and not have to witness the disaster that was coming. “Kat, this is not the time.”

“I can be respectful of the soldiers without compromising my ideals.”

“How long before you have enough material for your book?”

“Let's see how this trip goes.” She grinned. A genuine smile that lit up her face. “Are you tired of me?”

He nodded. “You are a pain! I have several new gray hairs, thanks to you.”

She pretended to study the top of his head. “I count at least ten.”

“Why do you do this to me?”

“I'm not torturing you on purpose, although that is a side benefit. I'm open to changing my opinions, but you haven't given me anything that compels me to do that. Your pretty face alone is not enough.”

He pinched the bridge of his nose. He was too tired to argue with Kat, and it wasn't worth it. She would say what she wanted and he'd have to deal with the consequences.

The mess hall was filling up. “Have you eaten?”

She shook her head. “I'll wait to get a tray until after I speak.”

“You're a professor—you talk all the time.”

“About subjects I'm comfortable with. Motivational speeches aren't my thing.”

The base commander stopped by their table and chatted with them for several minutes about the training exercises earlier in the day. When the mess was full, he stood on the wooden crates and whistled. The entire hall went silent. He introduced Kat simply as the senator's daughter. She stepped on the crates, looking tiny in the big hall with her baggy clothes. Perfunctory applause greeted her. Alex started the video recording on his BlackBerry.

She stood frozen for several moments and he stood, ready to go to her side if needed. Her eyes locked on his and he nodded. Beginning tentatively, she introduced herself as a college professor and the recently-discovered secret daughter of the senator, which elicited chuckles from the crowd. “You may have seen the news coverage that I'm not the most well-behaved daughter of a prominent politician.”

Alex sighed. He'd left his tablet in his room and now regretted not having another device to start damage control. He could already see several soldiers pointing phones at Kat.

“The senator's chief of staff and campaign manager, Alex Santiago, is back there and is probably having a coronary right now.” She pointed to him and all eyes turned to stare in amusement. He gave a wave, grateful that his skin color hid most of the raging red in his face.

“But here's the thing—each and every one of you is here so that our media can take a bad picture of me and blast it on TV, so I can stand up and openly oppose a powerful US senator. You're here so my students feel safe coming to college every day and are available for learning. They don't worry about their families at home, and they don't know what a missile careening toward your building sounds like. You make it possible for me to enjoy the freedoms that many in the world don't...”

He watched as she held the attention of the soldiers, doing better than the talking points. She gave a heartfelt speech and sincere thanks. When she was done, she got a standing ovation.

He looked up as the base commander slapped him on the back. “Hey, thanks for that. I gotta admit, there was some moaning among the rank and file when I told them we'd be having this during dinner. The guys aren't into stump speeches from blowhards, but this—” he nodded toward Kat “—was genuine.”

She stepped off the crates, nearly toppling the makeshift stage. Several soldiers rushed to her rescue and she rewarded them with a stunning smile. On her way back, she stopped at several tables to shake hands. They were enamored with her, especially the young men. He could see the attraction and admiration in their eyes. It took every bit of self-control he had left to stay glued to his seat, resisting the urge to stand up and drag her back to his table. He didn't have any claims on her.

She returned with a big smile on her face. “I think it went well.”

“If you do say so yourself.”

“What's the verdict from the office?”

He thumbed his BlackBerry. Her speech was getting mixed reviews; some of the campaign staff worried that by joking about opposing her father, she was creating negativity. There were some nasty comments about her appearance. He scrolled to find something positive and came up empty. She hadn't been that bad, had she?

“Job well done, Kat.”

She beamed. “I know you and I disagree on a lot of things, but at least we can agree on the fact that the troops deserve our appreciation.”

One of the soldiers stopped by with a tray of food for her, flirting shamelessly. She turned him down kindly.

“There's no shortage of handsome young men here willing to fall at your feet.”

“I'm thirty-five,” she said. “They all seem a little young for me.”

“My guess is many of them are close to that age. You should accept one of their offers to take you out.”

“I'm not really interested,” she said.

“Why don't you date?”

Her brows furrowed in annoyance. “I date,” she said defensively. “I'm just focusing on my career right now.” She forked some mashed potatoes into her mouth then scrunched her nose.

“They make the powdered kind since fresh fruits and vegetables are in short supply,” he told her.

She tentatively speared the steak, and Alex shook his head. “I wouldn't. Try the peas and bread—they're the most palatable.”

“They eat this every day?”

Alex nodded. “When they can get a warm meal. A lot of times they're in the field eating MREs—meals ready to eat. Those are nasty. After a few days here, you'll give anything for something fresh.”

She pushed her plate away. He wondered whether she'd dated anyone since Colin. Was she still hung up on that jerk?

“When was the last time you went out with someone?”

She snapped her eyes to him. “A few months ago.”

“What happened?”

“We could barely keep the conversation going through appetizers.”

He suppressed a smile. “I can't imagine you not being able to talk through dinner. All you have to do is disagree with everything the other person is saying.”

She rolled her eyes at him. “When was the last time you were in a relationship?”

“Relationship, not dating?”

“If we're going to talk about personal things, I don't want to know about meaningless dates.”

Relationships were hard for him. Dates were much easier, like the one he'd just gone on with Mellie. They'd had a good time; she was a good conversationalist and they'd gotten through dinner effortlessly. The only problem was that by the end of the night, the thought of a lifetime of such dinners, filled with inane chatter, had him sick with dread.

“Crista was the last person I dated for more than a few weeks.” Saying it out loud was so much worse.

“Why did you break it off with her?”

“She broke it off with me.”

“So she says,” said Kat.

“We weren't right for each other.”

“How so?”

“When were you last in a relationship?” It was time to turn the questions back to her.

She paused. “I get it—tit for tat. I was engaged to Colin, the guy from that story three years ago. We broke up after...all that.”

Alex leaned forward. “He took advantage of you.”

She nodded.

“What attracted you to him in the first place?”

“He understood why I needed to take care of my mother. For all his faults, Colin was really sweet to my mom. Until things got bad, he was good to me, too.”

Alex couldn't see any scenario where Colin had been good to her. “How so?”

“Until he stole my research and analysis, he didn't want anything from me. He accepted me as I am.”

And I expect too much of you.

“In an odd way, I understand why he stole my analysis. He always felt so inferior to his siblings and wanted nothing more than to impress his father, to show that he was worthy of being part of his family. I guess I can empathize with that. What I can't forgive is that night when he hit me. I never saw it coming. The fear that caused... It's made it hard for me to trust. To let anyone—any man—get close to me.”

Alex reminded himself to breathe deeply. The slight tremble in Kat's voice made him want to launch from his seat and hunt Colin down, make him fall at her feet and apologize until she saw him as nothing more than the coward that he was. Except, if he did that, how was he any different?

Colin had lost control. He'd let his anger at the situation override him, something Alex was all too familiar with. He wouldn't be another Colin in Kat's life.

She leaned forward. “Your turn. Tell me more about your relationship with Crista.”

“I don't have much more to tell. Crista wanted marriage and I knew I'd never get there.”

“Why not?”

“Because I'm not that different from Colin. I want to make my mother proud. I want to be a man who wins.”

Kat opened her mouth then snapped it closed. She sighed. “I'm tired. Do you mind if I head to bed?”

He nodded, feeling a gnawing pain in his stomach. Could he be a better man? Not with Kat, he couldn't. She pressed all his buttons, and while he wasn't an angry teenager anymore, he needed to work hard to keep his temper in check. Kat didn't need a man like him. He walked Kat to her room.

“Thank you for trying to save my life today.” His soul stirred as she looked up at him with luminous eyes, her fire and idealism shining through. He wanted nothing more than to cup her face and kiss her hard, to lose control for just a minute. Was she worth giving up everything he'd worked for?

He stepped back. “Things didn't work with Crista because I want a woman who can stand by my side, be my first lady. She's too smart and independent for that.”

“Are you kidding me? In this day and age you think women need to take a backseat to their politician husbands? Look at Hillary Clinton and Michelle Obama. I think it should be a requirement that spouses of elected officials contribute to the public good.”

Was Kat ever going to let up on him?

“Listen, I didn't mean a politician's wife can't be smart and pursue her own goals. But she does have to follow party politics. You don't see Hillary Clinton or Michelle Obama siding with the Republicans, do you?”

“You want a woman who can stick to the party line,” Kat whispered.

He nodded. That was the whole point of accepting a date with Mellie. She was supposed to be getting his mind off Kat. Mellie was the kind of woman who could help him achieve his goals. So why hadn't he called her? And why was he standing here wondering whether he wanted something different? He turned and left before he did something he'd regret.