The Gentlewoman (22 page)

His phone buzzed in his pocket and he checked the caller ID.
“Hey, is everything okay?”

“Everything’s fine here. How’s your mom?” Rory asked.

“Holding her own. I’m still here with her. We’ll see how she
does tonight… Do I hear water?”

“Yes, it’s water,” she answered slyly.

Jackson rose from the chair and headed to the hall. “I’ve
stepped away. Are you in the bath?”

“Yes I am. I’m in your bathtub, as a matter of fact.”

He put his head against the wall. “Oh God, and I thought I
was already missing you.”

“I was missing you too,” she said in a seductively low voice.
“So much so, you wouldn’t believe what I’m doing right now…”

“Tell me. Tell me,” he demanded.

“Well, I wanted to feel as good as I feel when you touch me,
so…”

“Are you touching yourself? Where are your hands?”

“Jackson,” a soft voice called. He craned his head around
and peeked in at his mother.

“I’m here, Mother, just a moment.” He turned back to the
hall. “Damn it, Rory, that’s my mother. As much as I’d like to continue this, I
have to go to her.” He felt like banging his head against the fucking wall.
“Look, it’s late and I’m going to be here all night. Let me call you tomorrow.”

“Sure, we’ll talk tomorrow. Take care.”

He hesitated, feeling torn. “God I miss you,” he murmured
softly.

She breathed in. “Me too. Now go to your mother and we’ll
talk tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow, baby,” he promised.

He hung up and returned to the room. He sat on the side of
the bed, taking his mother’s hand in his and kissing her cheek. Her blue eyes
smiled up at him weakly.

“Please don’t let me keep you from the Congress, son, I’ll
be fine.” Her soft, feminine voice was just a whisper.

“You’re not keeping me from anything.”

“Didn’t sound that way. Who were you talking to?” She looked
deeply into his eyes.

“Were you eavesdropping, Mother?”

“Of course, you know me.” Her eyes closed again.

Jackson smiled and rubbed the back of her hand thoughtfully.
“I was talking to the woman I’m going to marry.”

Patricia Dorn’s eyes sprang open and she gazed at her son.
“You’ve fallen in love, Jackson?”

“Yes, I have.”

She searched his face. “About time you quit screwing
around.”

Jackson laughed sharply. “Be sure and tell me what you
really think.”

“I always do.” She swallowed hard. “May I have some water?”
Jackson helped her with a drink of water and she rested back again. “You’ve
been screwing around since Lauren broke your heart. It’s about time you got
serious again. Now tell me about this lady.”

Friday faded by in a haze of meetings and preparations for
testimony at Monday’s appropriations meeting. Rory and Nicole met with Director
Hammond of the EPA to go over their notes and determine anything else that was
needed in case they were questioned.

The day dragged on in subcommittee hearings. Rory kept track
of the time and thought of Jackson in Maine.

She didn’t talk to him until Friday night, but she was
relieved to hear that his mother would be released Saturday. Jackson told her
he would have to stay to see to her arrangements at home. He was very
apologetic that it meant he’d have to delay returning home until Sunday. She
was just happy to hear his mother was better. Bored, Rory threw herself into
her work. She spent Friday and Saturday writing position papers and researching
data for legislation.

She slept in his bed both nights. She didn’t want to tell
him, but she agreed with him about her mattress on the floor. His bed was so
much more comfortable. She skipped over that information when they talked on
Saturday. He questioned her at length about her activities. He still seemed on
edge, and she assumed it was about his mother’s condition.

Jackson was relieved about his mother’s improved condition,
but he was in hell over delaying his return to Rory. Every moment he lost with
her was less time he had to explain what would go down with the vote. He was
becoming more and more nervous. He only had Sunday evening. He was going crazy,
but there was no chance he would talk about this over the phone. He needed to
be there with her physically when this came out.

The entire eastern seaboard woke Sunday to a complete
whiteout. Jackson looked out the window and cursed. He showered and dressed
before checking on his mother.

With everything covered, he packed his things and forced his
family’s driver to take him to the airport. He would show up for his scheduled
flight in hopes things weren’t as bad as they appeared. The limo slipped and
slid in the blizzard, dashing his hopes. It took two hours.

His heart in his throat, Jackson decided he had to do it. He
had to break down and explain things to Rory over the phone. He dialed her
number from the backseat of the limo. Elbows on his knees, he bit his nails
waiting for her to answer.

“Hey, baby…”

That was all he heard. The line went dead. He dialed
incessantly trying to get her back, his blood pressure through the roof.

He sat in the Providence airport Sunday evening, ready to
throw his cell phone against the fucking wall. It was fully charged, but no
calls were coming in or going out. He desperately needed to talk to Rory. He
had even tried to use the airline’s desk phone but found it was dead. He had
waited too long to prepare Rory for the vote and now he was being punished by
some evil force, he was sure of it.

The airline had promised to get him on the earliest flight
possible to DC, after he pulled the congressman card. A flight was scheduled
for three a.m., which was several hours after the snow was due to lift. If all
went well, he could get to DC and to Rory by five a.m. What a nightmare, he
thought, rubbing his face and looking around at all the stranded passengers.

She was worried sick about Jackson and at eight a.m. walked
into his office suite and looked around. Nobody was in the reception area. She
walked down the hall toward his office.

Abruptly, Jackson emerged from the conference room, pulling
the door shut behind him. He grabbed her quickly and hugged her so tightly she
couldn’t breathe.

“Oh God, Rory.”

“I missed you so much,” she whispered, relieved to be in his
arms.

Jackson took her lips hard. He pulled back and looked into
her eyes.

“Rory, I need you to listen to me.” The look on his face
frightened her.

“What is it?”

“I need you to remember what I said. You’re my girl. I need
you to remember that we’re together…” He faded off as the door to the
conference room opened and Roy Charles, her party head, emerged. She looked at him,
shocked to see him there. She cocked her head and saw several other men sitting
around the table behind him, including Lawrence Page, the head of Jackson’s
party.

A frisson of suspicion went through her. She looked back at
Jackson and searched his face.

“What is this?” she asked in a low voice, releasing him and
stepping back.

Roy spoke to her in his business tone. “Good morning, Rory.
Could you come into the conference room please? We need to talk to you.”

Her gut tightened and the hair on the back of her neck stood
to attention. She studied Jackson again before walking into the conference
room.

It was crowded. Along with Roy Charles and Larry Page, two
men who were hardly ever in the same room, there was Congressman Koepler and
Jake Schnyder. Congressman Duncan and two other men Rory didn’t recognize were
sitting at the table. Something was about to go down here and she was sure she
wasn’t going to like it. She took the seat Roy offered and Jackson sat down
beside her. She tried not to show that her heart was in her throat.

“Congresswoman, I’m Lawrence Page. Allow me to introduce my
colleagues Congressmen Howard of Illinois and Tackler of Texas.” Both gentlemen
nodded to Rory. “I believe you know the other gentlemen in the room.”

Rory’s heart sank. She knew those names. Congressman Howard
was the chair of the Homeland Security Committee and Tackler was the number
two. Every Congressperson in the room sat on Homeland. She looked into
Jackson’s eyes. He looked miserable and resigned as he stared back at her. She
looked at Roy Charles, a man she’d known most her life, and their eyes held for
a moment before she looked back at Page. Her spine straightened.

She spoke slowly and clearly. “To what do I owe the honor of
this meeting, gentlemen?”

“Congresswoman, we need to discuss the vote scheduled for
this morning,” Page began and Rory’s heart fell. Adrenaline flooded her body.
It all came down to today. If she lost now, she forfeited the entire shipyard
deal. She struggled to remain calm and show no fear.

“What about the vote, Mr. Page? I’ve worked hard to deliver
an appropriation that my district desperately needs. Roy here can tell you how
much the people of Ohio are counting on the jobs that will result from the
shipyard this vote will ensure.” Everyone in the room was quiet.

“Rory, may I call you Rory?” Page asked.

Rory stared hard into his eyes.

Page cleared his throat. “Congresswoman, we are aware of the
importance of this appropriation to your interests. Likewise, we have interests
that are of monumental importance that we need your help with.”

She died a little inside. She knew exactly what he was going
to say next.

“Congresswoman, we would like to place you into our vacant
seat on the Homeland Security Committee. We need your help with legislation
that is of utmost priority to national security.”

Rory’s eyes closed for just a second before she got a grip
on the shockwave that raced through her body. She sat back in her chair and
stared at him, unmoving.

“I have no interest in sitting on that committee, sir.
You’ve asked, and I’ve declined. What more is there to discuss?”

Page studied her. “We understand your reticence and
apologize for the necessity, but I’m afraid we must insist. If you do not agree
to sit on Homeland, your appropriations vote will not be granted.”

She blanched. “I have the vote locked.”

“You require the votes of both Congressmen Dorn and Duncan.
It doesn’t happen often, but Roy Charles and I have agreed that the Homeland
legislation is priority. If you refuse to help us, both Dorn and Duncan will
withhold their votes for the appropriation.”

She stared at his fat face. Her head rang with the shock and
adrenaline pouring into her bloodstream. She sat back and looked around the
room, into the eyes of each of the men at the table. Roy Charles looked
determined. The other men looked for her reaction.

Jackson turned to her and took her hands in his. “I’m sorry,
baby…”

She looked down and watched his thumbs caress the back of
her hands. Anger surged through her. He would do this to her. He would withhold
his vote on something so important to her. She had withheld nothing from him.
She snatched her hands away from his. “Don’t touch me.”

Her eyes searched the room as her mind raced. She needed
another answer and quickly. They were smart enough to withhold two votes that
she didn’t have the time to replace. One from her own party, which meant others
would follow suit. She was fucked.

“We need your response, Congresswoman,” Page pushed her.

There was no way out. It was this or let her constituents
down, those people she had taken an oath to represent. She found the thought of
Homeland so undesirable as to consider resigning her congressional seat. Hell,
she’d consider disappearing from the face of the earth right now.

Finally she straightened in her seat. “I guess you’ve left
me no choice. By design, of course.”

“As I said, Congresswoman, we understand your reticence and
apologize for the nature by which we must insist. We are, however, happy to
ensure your shipyard in exchange for your consent to sit on the committee.”

“I doubt if any one of you understands my reticence. Except
for you.” She looked into Dorn’s eyes. “And that was my mistake.” Jackson
closed his eyes and dropped his head. “You have my forced consent to sit on
your committee, Mr. Page.”

“Thank you, Congresswoman, you have your shipyard,” he
confirmed as he stood and offered her his hand. She looked at it and back to
his eyes. He straightened and thanked the others before they all quietly filed
out of the room. Roy Charles stayed behind.

“I’m sorry, Rory,” Roy said when they were alone. She said
nothing as she stared back. “Well, let me know if you need anything,” he
offered quietly before leaving the room.

She stood and went to the window. She held her stomach,
trying to wrap her brain around what had just happened.

“Rory, I’m sorry…” Jackson began.

“Don’t.” She put her hand up and stared out the window. Her
heart throbbed. She was so stupid. “Was this the why of it?” she asked slowly
and quietly. “Was this why you attached yourself to me?”
Déjà vu
.

“No, baby, no!” He rose and stood behind her. He turned her
and she looked into his eyes. He looked exhausted and stricken. He tried to
take her in his arms, but she pushed away from him.

“When was this planned?” She did the math in her head. She
remembered when Landon had delivered the ask for the party.

Jackson didn’t answer, which told Rory everything she needed
to know.

“From the beginning, Jackson? Was this the plan since you
met me? Is this why you met me?” She couldn’t believe this was happening to her
again. He stared at her, his eyes tired and tortured, and she felt the stab to
her heart. “Answer me.”

He looked at her as he collapsed back against the wall. He
scrubbed his face with his hand.

“This is why you went out of your way for me, wasn’t it?
This is why you took me to that restaurant and furniture shopping, why you ran
with me and cooked for me… Is this why you fucked me, Jackson?”

“No, I fucked you because that’s what I wanted,” he said
angrily.

“I see. But you gained my friendship for this seat, didn’t
you?” She waited several minutes for him to answer, her anger growing. “Didn’t
you, Jackson?” she said loudly.

“Yes.” He straightened and tried to take her hands. She
slapped him away. “That’s how it began, but it didn’t go on that way. Rory, I
meant every word I said to you. Remember what we are to each other, please, I
beg you to remember. You’re my girl; I’m yours. That’s real.”

She stared at him as if he were a stranger, bile in her
throat and horror in her mind. “No…no, you’re just like Aidan.”

He blanched. “Rory, don’t say that.”

“How is it different? You needed something to help your
interests and saw me as a way to get it. It’s the same.” She walked around the
table, a look of disbelief on her face. She looked back at him before leaving,
holding her tears in check. “You’re good. I believed those words you said to
me. It won’t happen again.” She left the room.

As hard as it was, he let her go. He wanted to hold her and
shake her, convince her of his love. But he knew better than to chase after
her. She wasn’t going to listen to him right now. She just needed time. He
would give her some time and then talk to her and make her understand. And he would
make her understand. He wasn’t going to let her walk away from him.

Rory walked back to her office. The piercing pain of her
heart was so sharp she could barely breathe. She didn’t notice anybody or
anything and didn’t stop until she stood beside her desk. She lifted her hand
to her chest. The familiar gaping hole reopened. She leaned forward as sobs
broke free.

Nicole immediately came to her side. “Rory, what’s wrong?”
Rory turned and eased into her chair, one hand still holding her chest. Nicole
stayed next to her, holding her as she fell apart.

“Tell me what’s happened.”

Rory tried to gather herself. She whispered, “It was all for
a purpose. It was all to put me on Homeland.”

Nicole looked puzzled before realization dawned. “Do you
mean you and Jackson? What’s happened?”

Rory slowly and painfully explained the ambush she had just
endured.

“I see,” Nicole said. She held Rory for another moment,
contemplating the situation. “Are you sure about this? I think Jackson’s for
real with you.”

Rory pulled away. “I’m sure.” She rose and went to wash her
face. When she returned, she grabbed her bag and retrieved her makeup. She
solemnly prepared herself for her appearance in committee. She became more and
more mechanical and sedate.