Total pages in book: 114
Estimated words: 108483 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 542(@200wpm)___ 434(@250wpm)___ 362(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 108483 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 542(@200wpm)___ 434(@250wpm)___ 362(@300wpm)
“The hell you wish me the best.” Lacy stands, her fists clenched at her sides. “Bitch. Do you know how hard it will be for me to find another job in politics without a reference letter?”
“Harder than keeping your legs closed, I’m guessing? ’Cause that proved really difficult for you.” I lean back and press the intercom. “Karla, Lacy’s ready for her escort.”
The heavy glass doors swing open. My assistant, Karla, stands there with two security guards. They walk forward, and though they don’t grab Lacy, it’s obvious if she jumps, they’re ready.
“This is ridiculous,” Lacy screams. “I’ll sue you for this.”
“Try that. You signed an iron-clad contract that you wouldn’t have sexual relations with any candidate Hunter, Allen represents. We’ve all signed that agreement with the understanding that violating it is grounds for instant dismissal.”
“You’ll regret this,” Lacy grits between her teeth.
“You can clear out your things.” I reach behind my desk and proffer a box already assembled. “Or Karla can do it for you. Either way is fine with me.”
Lacy snatches the box from my hands and walks toward the door with her head held high and Karla at her heels. “I’ll do it myself. I’ve done nothing to be ashamed of.”
“Actually you had an affair with a married woman whose wife almost died giving birth to their triplets. So…yeah. The public would think you should be ashamed.”
Susan should be ashamed, too, but she probably won’t be. Concerned, yes, about whether we can convince her wife to hang around. Concerned that this never makes it to the public’s greedy noses. She won’t be concerned, though, that I just fired one of the most brilliant tech minds I’ve encountered in a long time.
“And now I need a replacement.”
“Yeah, you do,” Kimba says from the door, the “Allen” in Hunter, Allen & Associates. “And fast. This campaign is in full swing.”
“Karla!” I say loud enough to carry to my assistant’s outer office. She hurries in, running a hand over her purple pixie cut and with red in her cheeks.
“Lacy is not happy,” she says, her eyes wide. “But the guards are with her.”
“Good. I want her off the property in ten. Find Kristin Bowden for me, will ya? I need to speak to her ASAP.”
“Got it, boss.” Karla heads for the door but leaves a parting shot over her shoulder. “And ASAP number two needs to be getting outta here and down to the set.”
“Exactly why I’m here,” Kimba says. “We need to leave in ten minutes if we’re gonna make it to the taping in time.”
“Ugh.” I massage my temples. “Remind me again why we’re doing this now? I fly to New York tonight for that rally in Queens. This is the last thing I need.”
“We’re doing this because Beltway is the hottest new political show around.” Kimba raises perfectly shaped brows over shrewd brown eyes. “You know I love stuff like this about as much as a Pap smear, but we got books to sell, baby.”
“Louder is already a New York Times bestseller, no thanks to Bryce Collins. If he’d actually wanted to help, he would have had us on for release week when we asked. Why now?”
“Who said he wants to help us? I’m sure he has his own agenda, but don’t kick a gift horse. Get that pretty little ass in gear.”
I grin and wiggle the pretty little ass in question at her, walk behind my desk, and then flop down into my chair with a whoosh of tired breath.
“And the publisher wants us to do it,” Kimba continues. “The studio’s sending a car over to take us.”
“Fancy.”
The intercom buzzes on my desk.
“Lenn,” Karla says. “I have Kristin Bowden on the phone.”
Kimba and I exchange a harassed look. I sigh and pick up the phone, leaning back in my chair and kicking my feet up onto the desk.
“Kristin,” I say, ready to beg and mollify. “Thanks for taking my call.”
___________
“So she’s still in?” Kimba asks once we’re in the car Beltway sent for us.
“Barely. She was angry and hurt, of course, but she does believe in Susan’s vision. And she loves her and wants to save her marriage, so hearing that Lacy is no longer working for the campaign went a long way. Good luck getting Susan to stop long enough to focus on fixing the marriage, though.”
“Is every politician a narcissist?”
“Pretty much, with few exceptions. We work with whom we’re given.”
“You know how everyone talks about that once-in-a-lifetime candidate?” Kimba asks. “We’ve put some incredible people in power and done a lot of good, but I’m still waiting for that.”
“Me, too.” I sigh. “Until then, we keep doing our best with what we get.”
Our best has been great, and we’ve gotten a lot. In the five years since we started our political consulting firm, Allen, Hunter & Associates, we’ve gotten a lot of people who champion the causes of marginalized people elected.