More Than Rivals (12 page)

Deep in an often ignored pocket, she found the Speedo swimsuit she carried everywhere. She believed you never knew when you might need a swimsuit, and Speedos covered enough of your body, so you’d be comfortable even in a crowd of specious old men who tended to congregate at hotel pools.

A few minutes later, Lily swiped her keycard at the door to the pool. When she walked in, she noted the pool was busy with three swimmers in the middle of their laps, while the hot tub was blissfully empty. Ignoring the swimmers, she headed straight for the tub.

Her numb feet felt a burn as she dipped them into the water, but by the time she was fully immersed she thought she was in heaven. Leaning her head back onto the edge of the tub, she closed her eyes while the bubbles and warmth soothed her long day away.
 

As she enjoyed the relaxation, she heard the door to the pool area slam shut a few times, but she paid it no heed. It was only a voice that caused her to open her eyes.

“Excuse me, ma’am,” said the voice.
 

Her eyes opened to see a young guy in a hotel employee uniform looking down at her. She knew her time was up. “Are you closing up the pool?”

“Yes, ma’am, but you can stay as long as you want. I’ll lock the door so no one else comes in though, in case you were waiting on someone.”

“Oh no. I’m alone.”

“Okay. There’s another guest left in the pool, just so you know.”

“Thanks for letting me stay,” she said, as she looked at the red swim cap bobbing in the pool.

“No problem,” he said and walked toward the door.
 

Lily closed her eyes as she heard the door slam, but a moment later, they opened again when the bubbles to the tub abruptly ended. The giant room fell silent, but for the rhythmic splash of the swimmer. Looking down at her wrinkled palms, she decided it was time to leave.
 

She grabbed her robe and headed over to a stack of towels when she heard a familiar voice say, “Fancy meeting you here.”

She turned around and saw Jack climbing out of the pool. The first thing she noticed was
 
the goofy swim cap covering his hair which made her smile, and she kept smiling as her eyes traveled down his all but naked body. But when he turned to her and she caught full sight of his tiny Speedo, barely covering a large bulge, she lost her grin.
 

The nurse in her took over at once, and she immediately averted her eyes, though really she wanted to stare. She checked herself for a moment. In her years of nursing she’d seen hundreds of men up close and personal; a guy in a Speedo shouldn’t have any effect on her. Yet Jack, fully on display, made her want to gawk.
 
Instead, she looked straight at his face. “Hey. I didn’t know you were here.”

“I’m training for a triathlon. I hope to do one next summer after the primary.”

As he walked over to her, she strained to keep her head high so as not to look. In the back of her mind, though, she could already hear Jordan screaming in delight, “You saw John Bengston’s package!”

Realizing she too was only in a swimsuit, she asked, “Want me to get you a towel? I was getting one for myself.”

“Thanks,” he looked down at his swimsuit with a chuckle. “Sorry I’m a little underdressed.”

She smirked. “I can say I didn’t expect to see a fellow candidate so
exposed
today.”

“Oh, yeah?” he said, arching a brow. “You think I’m
exposed
?”

She turned on her heel and flipped her ponytail. “No need to show off for me. I’m a nurse. I’ve seen it all before in every shape and size.”

“I guess that’s right.”
 

She grabbed two towels and handed one to him. As they dried off, he said, “You know you’re showing off a little skin yourself.”

“I’m covered up to my neck in this suit,” she said clutching the material over her chest.

“I’m still getting a pretty good idea.” His face held all the swagger of a man in full flirt.

“You’re not supposed to be looking,” she said with exaggerated shock and a smile.
 

“You’re right.” He stared and winked. “It’s just hard to stop.”

“Avert your eyes. That’s what I do.” She wrapped the towel a little tighter around her body.

“I
knew
you were checking me out.”
 

 
“I’m a nurse. I avoid looking as a rule.” She rolled her eyes. “I have to. Every man is so proud of himself. It’s your favorite body part.”

“You know, I had no idea today I’d be talking with another candidate about my junk.” He raised his eyebrows as if he was upping the ante.

“I am
not
talking about your penis,” she said as her cheeks started to flame. She’d chosen the anatomic term, but somehow it sounded naughty.

“Oh yes, you are,” he said taking a step toward her.
 

The same twinkle was in his eye that she’d seen earlier in the evening. His mind was up to something, but she didn’t know what. She clutched the towel and giggled.
 
“No, I’m talking about men in general.”

He touched her arm. “You’re such a liar. You deserve to be punished.” With one swoop, he swiftly picked her up, and as she yelped in surprise, he dumped her in the pool.

The crash of the water around her filled her ears, and she heard another splash after her own. She squinted under water as she watched her towel float away and soon saw him right next to her. At that moment, she had no thought as to their respective stations in life. Childhood instinct told her what to do. When someone threw you in a pool, you tackled them.

She came up for air and saw him treading water with an evil grin. “You bastard!” She laughed and threw herself at him. Trying to pull him under, she clung on to him.
 

“You deserved it,” he said, restraining her. “You’re not going to get me under, so don’t even try.”

“Oh, yes I am.” She climbed on his shoulders, and forcing her weight against him, they tumbled into the water laughing. She tried to break free, but he wouldn’t let her go, so she climbed up his torso, willing him under. He retaliated by grabbing her waist and tossing her back into the water.

“Not fair!” she cried when she came up for air.

“Sorry. It was too tempting.”

She pounced on him again, this time hitting his shoulders and knocking him over. The horseplay continued, and for a minute or so, she concentrated on the battle. After a while, her body diverted her thoughts to the fact she was touching a man who was practically naked. Slick skin on skin felt good, and brushing against his manly chest and leg hair felt even better. She’d been with other men since David died, but this felt different. It was Jack. Fantasy and reality were merging.

As they tangled themselves up in giggles and limbs, more than once she felt her legs and stomach against his swimsuit, occasionally against his bulge. The first time she wasn’t sure what exactly she’d touched. The second time she knew, and it startled her. The third time she felt him, something stirred deep inside her wanting more. The fourth time she did it on purpose and was happy to find him a little stiffer down there than before. Though they were still flailing in the water, her body was on fire, and she ached to wrap her legs around him so she could feel him where it counted.
 

Before she could do anything she would later regret, he swung her around to cradle her like a baby, and she threw her arms around him holding on tight. He panted as he smiled at her. “This is better because now I get to see you.”

She looked down at the black maillot, covering everything important. “I told you there’s not much to see.”

“And I’m telling you I like what I do and can imagine everything else.”

She slowly raised her eyes and met his gaze. She smiled at the droplets of water dripping off his wet hair.
 

Before she could say something flirty in return, his grin softened. “I think you’re beautiful.” As if he was struck by the need to confess his sins, his next words were a rushed whisper. “And I’ve wanted to kiss you for months.”

It was just what she wanted to hear. Her lips parted at the temptation, and she inched her mouth closer to his. As he lowered his lips to hers, a loud rattle of the door jolted them. Lily’s head jerked around where she saw the silhouette of a man knocking at the frosted glass door. He wore a bathrobe, looking as if he wanted a late swim, too.

Panic overtook her—as did reality. She sprung from Jack’s arms and dove to swim underwater, fighting her way to the nearest wall. Without a look back, she climbed out, grabbed her robe, and fled the scene.
 

The next morning Jack woke early, showered, dressed, and then positioned himself in the lobby so he saw everyone exiting the elevator. After she abandoned him in the pool, he immediately texted her when he returned to his room. He already knew they needed to talk. When she didn’t respond to his text, he was certain he’d scared her off.

Between glances at every open elevator door, he bided the time with a few newspapers. A little before eight, he spotted her exiting the elevator, wearing a nice suit, probably for a day of campaigning.
 

“Morning,” he called out from his bench off to the side. She turned and smiled a smile that told him things had changed.
 

“Hi,” she said, not even venturing toward him.

He jumped up and gestured to her suitcase. “Can I help you with that?”
 

“Oh, no. I can get it.”

Her eyes darted about the room, and he could tell she was nervous. It was as if ice was forming between them—the last thing he wanted. “Do you have a minute? We could get breakfast.”

“Sorry. I’m meeting Jordan for breakfast.”

He’d hoped he wouldn’t have to be so direct, but his fears were coming true. “Lily … we should probably talk.”

“Oh, I don’t think we need to. We can just forget about it.” Her words sounded practiced.
 

“I don’t want to forget about it.” He grazed his hand along her arm. “And I don’t think you really want to either.”

“But I should, and so should you.” She gave him a fearful, long look and walked away.

***

That week Lily faced another text from Jack, but she didn’t respond. One of them needed to be responsible. Knowing that the stakes in an affair were always higher for a woman, she understood the responsibility landed squarely on her shoulders, not his.

She threw herself into her work, doing her best to keep thoughts of him at bay. That came to an end on Saturday morning when she received a call from Kelly, her friend from the hospital.

Kelly’s voice was anxious. “I hate to bother you. I know how busy you are, and you’ve probably got plans for tomorrow.”

Lily tried to recall her next day’s schedule, but the only appointment that came to mind was a meeting with Jordan. She planned on spending the rest of the day making fundraising calls. “It’s okay,” she said. “My schedule is actually kind of flexible tomorrow. What do you need?”

“Well, I was supposed to work tonight, but my boyfriend got tickets to the opera. Would you switch with me tomorrow? It’s a crazy early shift, but I promise I’ll make it up to you whenever you need it.”

The state convention dinner immediately popped into Lily’s mind. The fundraising opportunities there beat the hell out of the cold calls she’d have to make the following day, and she’d wanted to go for months. She jumped at the opportunity. “It’s a deal.”

It was only after she ended the call that she remembered she’d see Jack that evening. She grimaced at the thought, but resigned herself to her future.
I was going to see him again one day. I might as well get used to it.

***

The hotel ballroom was cavernous, yet it was filled with people as Lily and Jordan walked in. He muttered under his breath, “Showtime. Can I get you a drink?”

“No. I need to be able to shake hands easily when I work the room.”

“Okay, then I’ll go get myself a drink.”

“Go ahead. Just let me know when you see someone I should talk to.”

“I’ll grab you,” he said with a nod and walked toward the bar.
 

It wasn’t really necessary to alert Lily of someone important. There were scads of donors and politicos far more powerful than her. She happily made her way through the crowd, shaking hands, meeting new people, and chatting everyone up. All in all, it was worth every minute of her time there.
 

She was so immersed in her work that she forgot she eventually would run into Jack. She’d just finished talking with some high-tech, new money from Atherton, and engrossed in the conversation, she didn’t notice Jack was only a few feet away.
 
When she spotted him, his tall profile first came into view, but she blinked twice to confirm it was him. The man she saw was sidled up against a redhead, her hand resting on his shoulder.

After recognizing him, self preservation kicked in, but before she could turn to flee, the man Jack was speaking to looked at Lily and whispered in Jack’s ear. Jack turned and spotted her. He had been smiling, but his face fell, and he stepped aside from the redhead. “Lily,” he said with no emotion.

“Hi,” she squeaked as she was overtaken by an emotional metamorphosis. It was as if she’d lost her age and wisdom, replaced by the feelings of a sixteen year old girl. Considering how she’d given Jack the cold shoulder, Lily shouldn’t have been jealous of the redhead, but she was. All she wanted to do was get the hell out of there.
 

The redhead turned around at once, her smile bright. Like the perfect political partner, she held out her hand. “Ursula Robles. It’s wonderful to see you again. I’m Beverly Reggio. We’ve met once before, but you probably don’t remember me.”

“Of course I do,” Lily said with a fake smile. Though her jealously remained strong, the seasoned politician rose again inside of her. She shook Beverly’s hand. “It’s nice to see you.”

The man at Jack’s side also extended his hand. He was around Jack’s age with an engaging smile. “Supervisor Robles, I’m Bill Dresser. Normally, I’m Jack’s best friend, but right now I’m his finance director. It’s great to finally meet you.”