“Hey, Tyson, can you give us a minute alone?” I ask.
“Sure.” He steps out of the room and closes the door behind him.
Jude put his hands on my waist and pulls me close, looking down into my eyes. “What’s up?”
“My bosses have been blowing up my phone with texts about this. I’m not sure what to tell them.”
Jude furrows his brow in confusion. “What do you mean? Tell them it’s bullshit.”
I sigh softly. “That’s not the issue. They’re concerned with perception. It’s hard for me to work on bipartisan issues when Democrats are flaming pissed at you.”
“Democrats arealwaysflaming pissed at me, love.”
“Not like this. There are even Republican women calling for a full investigation.”
Jude’s expression darkens. “Bring on an investigation. I have nothing to hide because I didn’t do anything.”
“I know.” I lay a palm on his chest. “But you get where they’re coming from, right?”
He shakes his head. “Sounds like they’re blaming you for the shitstorm surrounding me, and that’s bullshit. You’re your own person.”
“I know, but we’re married.”
He considers for a second before saying, “Aren’t you planning on quitting anyway? To take the job with Andrea?”
I nod and look down at the floor. “I was, but…Andrea rescinded her offer. I just saw the text when I checked my phone a few minutes ago.”
Jude’s eyes widen with disbelief. “What the fuck? Over this?”
“I’m sure it is. Andrea’s work is much like the Lancet Foundation’s. She can’t have the optics of a sex scandal.”
“Fuck.” Jude rubs his temple and exhales deeply. “There is no sex scandal, Ray.”
“I know.” I overemphasize the words, frustrated with him telling me what we both already know. “But it’s about perception, Jude.”
“No, this is total bullshit. You’ve busted your ass for the Lancet Foundation, and now they want you to resign over a bullshit accusation againstme? With no proof at all?”
“They want me to take a leave of absence.”
“Is that what you want?”
I shrug. “I think it’s for the best. I’d end up getting cornered with questions about you in any meetings I have anyway. And I get why the Lancet people need to distance themselves from us.”
Jude starts to speak, stops himself, and then starts again. “No, babe. Fuck no. That’s not okay. You live in this world where everyone has to look out for number one, because that’s what your dad always did.”
I recoil. “Excuse me?”
“I don’t mean you. I mean the people around you. You don’t think you deserve loyalty. But you do, Reagan. You fucking do. You were loyal to that organization, and if any of them were worth a shit, they’d be loyal to you.”
“Politics isn’t always fair, though. We both know that.”
He runs a hand through his dark hair, his jaw set in a tense line. “Yeah, but it’s not supposed to affect my wife. Your career that you’ve worked so hard for… Fuck.” He shakes his head and looks away.
“Hey.” I use my fingertips to turn his cheek until he’s facing me. “This is where I need to be right now anyway. Let’s focus on the biggest fire, and we’ll worry about the other little ones later.”
He nods solemnly. “I do need you here. I don’t know why this woman made up that story, but I know her reason can’t be good. This could ruin me.”
“We’re not going there,” I say firmly. “We’re going to take this campaign one day at a time. We knew going in that it would be a fight.”
