And vic-tor-y.
“Who took all these pictures and videos?” I yell at the ceiling in case anyone is listening. “I don’t see proof that I stayed loyal to Stephen.”
The last shots are of me and Jordan getting into the helicopter, with me flapping my hands and joking about barfing and being afraid.
Jordan calmly hugs me, and there’s a tender moment when he readjusts my headphones, then dots a kiss on my cheek.
We look so happy and hopeful as if we were embarking on a new beginning.
Why is the photographer documenting all of this?
Who took these pictures?
I refuse to believe Stephen took these pictures, but there’s no other explanation.
Five minutes later, I’m rapping on Stephen’s penthouse door.
“Yes?” He opens the door and steps back to let me in. “I knew you’d be back. Couldn’t stay away, could you?”
“I’m confused.”
“Really?” He lifts an eyebrow and goes to a decanter where he pours me a scotch on the rocks. “Here, drink, and talk to me. What are you confused about?”
“Why are you on board this cruise ship?” I take the tumbler but don’t put it to my lips. I’ll need all my wits when dealing with a slippery politician. He’s still wearing crisply pressed slacks, a button-down shirt with sleeves rolled up to display his expensive watch, and no tie. It’s late in the evening, but he’s cleanly shaven, as if he expected me to visit.
“I want you back,” he says. “We make a great team together, and while I had to punish you for jumping out of the cake and ruining my bachelor’s party, I did a cost-benefit analysis and decided being married makes me a more attractive and stable candidate than being single.”
I set the scotch down on the table and walk to the balcony. “I, I, I. Everything centers around you, doesn’t it? I play by your rules. I make you look good. I’m helpful to your career. You just don’t get it, do you?”
He touches my arm, and I cringe. “You never complained before about being seen with me. You came to all my events, enjoyed expensive trips, meeting royalty and important leaders. You most certainly enjoyed the personal shopper and the gifts I bestowed on you.”
“Yes, I did, but that was before I came on this cruise and spent time with the guy you hired to test my loyalty. It was before I realized what’s important is not appearances and image, but what’s inside—feelings and emotions. Having fun, being honest. Taking risks and being vulnerable.” I brush his hand from my arm and turn to face him. “These last few days were crazy and full of surprises. I let my feelings hang out and stopped caring what other people thought. I opened up my heart, and I risked being betrayed. I was teased, pranked, and lied to, but I also lived more life than I ever had. I got into a mud fight. I jumped into a hula dance. I stripped myself naked at a remote beach. I stayed up all night playing mahjong.”
“So, you got all the wildness out of your system.” Stephen strokes his chin as he peers at me like a psychoanalyst evaluating a lunatic. “I know how poised you are and how well you hold yourself in public. You truly are an asset, which is why I was so shocked when you embarrassed me at my bachelor’s party.”
“Maybe I’m tired of being the picture-perfect politician’s wife. Maybe I don’t want to live in a glass house and be talked about, photographed, picked apart and analyzed for every expression, gesture, mannerism, or hand motion.” I tilt my chin up and straighten my shoulders, knowing that he’s not looking for a wife as a life partner, but one as a living mannequin. “I will always have that wild side, Stephen. After being with Jordan the last week or so, I’m afraid I rather enjoy the unexpected prank and the state of chaos he leaves me in. I cannot go back to my overly regimented and orderly existence.”
“You’re turning down a lot.” His gaze shifts, and he sets his mouth in a harsh line. “Are you sure you want to walk away from our future? How will you feel when I become president and you’re not the one holding the Bible for my inauguration?”
“I’m walking away from your future.” I also set my mouth in a firm line. “Now, tell me where Jordan is and how I can get in touch with him.”
“He’s no longer working for me.” Stephen crosses his arms and glares at me. “I’ve terminated him.”
“Why?”
“Insubordination. But don’t worry, he gave me a good report on you. Said you never once compromised your virtue. That you were fun and engaging, but you did not respond to his advances.” His glower deepens and he leans toward me, flaring his nostrils. “Did he lie?”
“He didn’t lie. Since you’ve been spying on us, you already know the answer.” I push him back with both hands and whip around, heading toward the door. “Jordan is ten times the man you are. When I’m with him, I feel truly alive.”
“He used you. Hit the jackpot. He’s gone.”
“Where?”
“Off to his next gig with all his debts paid. He’s a con man, Dani.”
“I thought you said he cleans up your messes, that you two roomed together in college.”
One corner of Stephen’s lips tilts up. “He creates as many messes as he cleans up. Always gets away before the crap hits the fan. But mark my word, one of these days, he’s going to get trapped in his own schemes, pinned down and unable to escape.”
“Where can I find him?”
Stephen rolls his eyes and whistles. “Good luck. He can’t be found if he doesn’t want to be. The last thing he did was turn over your phone to me after checking that my payment hit his bank account.”
“He took those pictures? But how? He’s in half of them.”
“The pictures were texted to your phone. Jordan dutifully carried your phone everywhere you went and had GPS tracking turned on. He recorded your conversations and kept a record of everything you did. He probably cleaned up some of it, deleted audio, and omitted details. I wouldn’t put it past him, but I got my money’s worth.” Stephen’s jaw tenses, and he narrows his eyes. “Because I now know you can’t be trusted to be my wife.”
“I thought you said I passed.”
He grabs my arm and marches me toward the door. “A word of warning. Never ever divulge anything about me or I’ll out all your dirty secrets, including what you tried to do with Jordan inside that dark cave on Christmas Day.”
