“You have a good night, Titan,” she says, her eyes sweeping over my exposed skin once again.
“Reagan,” I say before her hand touches the doorknob. She pauses two feet to my right, and I can smell her, the salty sweetness of her perspiration mixed with her perfume. “We don’t have to be enemies.”
Her head falls forward, but she doesn’t look at me. “I wish that were true, Jude, but we most certainly can’t be friends.”
She walks out, leaving me with a boner and her scent lingering in the air. Reagan Preston may just be my undoing.
Chapter 6
My phone lights upwith my father’s name and number yet again. I’ve been avoiding him since the TV interview the other night. I know I did poorly, and getting a lecture about it will only make me feel worse.
With a sigh, I slide my finger across the screen of my phone and put it up to my ear. “Hey, Dad.”
“You’ve been avoiding me.”
“I’ve just been busy.”
“Do you have any idea how hard it is for me to manage damage control when you’ve got your head in the clouds?”
I feel a spark of defensiveness. “My head isnotin the clouds. I’ve been working with my staff from morning ’til night on research and a new strategy.”
He scoffs. “That softball staff of yours isn’t prepared to deal with Jude Titan as an opponent. Sonny Solomon is one thing, but a decorated veteran is another.”
“I’m aware. And my staff is loyal to me, so I’m loyal to them. They’ve gotten me this far.”
“Listen, Reagan,” he says in his soft, good-cop tone, “you’ll never have a better opportunity to break in than this. My approval ratings are off the charts, and I’ve given you my wholehearted endorsement.”
“I know. I’m working as hard as I possibly can, Dad. I really am. Elections aren’t won overnight.”
“You don’t need to give me any advice on winning elections,” he says scornfully. “And I hope you realize what an embarrassment it will be to me if you don’t win this.”
I close my eyes and try to rein in my frustration. No one does this to me but my dad. Nothing’s ever good enough for him.
“We’re on it,” I assure him. “Jude Titan took us by surprise, but we’re getting our bearings now.”
“I can send Tom Harbor.”
“No,” I say firmly. “That won’t be necessary.”
I’m sitting at the desk in the hotel room I’m sharing with Lexi, and she steps out of the bathroom and gives me a sympathetic look.
“I think it’s more than necessary,” my father says. “You need a seasoned strategist running your campaign, not your friend from college.”
“Look, it’s under control.”
“It looked veryoutof control in that interview the other night.”
I blow out a frustrated breath. “What’s done is done. We’re adjusting our course.”
“I’ve got people who can do the background work on Titan that you’ll need when Election Day is closer.”
“Sure,” I say, resigned to the fact that I have to give in on something. “Just don’t send Tom. Background is always good.”
“Don’t ignore me again,” he says, a warning in his tone.
“I wasn’t ignoring you.”
“Reagan.”
