Justin Timberlake: I’m blushing. You get right to the point. But okay, we can do that.
Me: Fuck you, Titan. Go find a stripper to screw.
Justin Timberlake: You’re sexy when you’re angry.
Me: I’m turning off my phone now.
Justin Timberlake: No, you’re not.
I force myself to power it down just to prove him wrong, but I’m smiling. Jude Titan is dangerously charming. But this inside track on him can only help me. I’ll figure him out and then use what I learn to get ahead.
“Remind me who we’re meeting with,” I say to Lexi.
“County Party chairman and local elected officials. We need to get them energized and working those voter lists for us.”
“Got it.”
The event is a whirlwind. I shake countless hands, pose for photos, and give a brief speech. This is a passionate group of local Democrats, and they love discussing issues. I’m engaged in every conversation, and yet…I’m comparing the arms of a man I’d normally find attractive to Jude’s. This guy doesn’t have the same rugged appeal or the ink I can’t help staring at every time I see Jude.
What’s he doing in Carbondale? I’m sure he’s charming a group of voters. But maybe his night will end early, and he’ll have free time. What if he does screw another woman?
I hate the thought. I can’t have him, but I hate the thought of him kissing another woman. I can still feel his lips on mine, and all I want is more. More of him. More than I can have with him or anyone else right now.
But the heart wants what it wants. I don’t know if it’s my heart or just other body parts that want Jude, but I can secretly admit to myself that Idowant him. He doesn’t seem to think I’m an icy man-eater like so many other men do. Men get intimidated by successful women.
Our personal conversations are just a way for me to find his weak spots. I have to tell myself that over and over. I can’t give in to the way he makes me feel or the things he makes me want. It would be career suicide. I’d humiliate my entire family.
There’s just as much at stake for Jude, though. We have a mutually assured destruction thing going on. When Lexi and I settle into our hotel room at the end of a long day, I wash my face and brush my teeth, thinking about what I’ll find when I turn my phone back on. My stomach flutters with the excited anticipation of it.
The moment when I finally climb into bed and turn on my phone, my heart sinks when there’s no new message. Before I can overthink it, I type out a message to him.
Me: Still with the stripper?
After a few seconds, I see the dots that mean he’s responding.
Justin Timberlake: In bed by myself, actually.
Me: Sleeping with the person you find sexiest in the world, then.
Justin Timberlake: I can think of some very specific places I’d like to see that sharp tongue of yours.
I swallow hard as I read his words, my pulse pounding.
Me: Is that so?
Justin Timberlake: I went without sex for more than fifteen months when I was overseas. I’m very good at fantasizing. And when I want someone, I don’t settle for less.
As much as I love this line of conversation, I have to ask the question that’s been bothering me.
Me: Do you think I’m a shrew?
Justin Timberlake: What?
Me: Just answer.
Justin Timberlake: Not at all. I think you’re too gorgeous and smart for most men.
Me: Well, that limits my options.
