He laughs. “Not right now. If I discover one, believe me, I’ll figure out a way to steer you in the right direction so you can Riverdance all over that fucker.”
CHAPTERFIFTY-EIGHT
With the usualrhythm and stress of my job quickly resuming and reasserting their pull upon my life, my thoughts of Stella and Ellis—and what potential future fuckery they might get up to—quickly fall to the side, left far behind in the dust. Even my concern about Belyaevskin fades over the following days and weeks as more pressing matters fill the gaps and take precedent.
Life goes on, in other words.
Belyaevskin will eventually pop up somewhere. If he’s still alive, it’s only a matter of time before he slips up and reveals his location. Our teams are focusing on his family and known associates.
As the weeks turn into months, a theory is floated that maybe he was killed immediately after he withdrew the money. No proof of that, though. Considering the Russians have perfected the art of defenestration and poisoning, neither of which are exactly quiet or subtle demises, most intel experts consider it unlikely that Belyaevskin is dead. If he were, a frantic scramble would have ensued among his wealthy patrons and associates to shift and redistribute assets. At the very least there would have been faint rumbles about his death and the inconvenience to their operations.
More likely is that Belyaevskin’s hiding out with the Little Fucker in North Korea, where his rubles stretch even farther than somewhere like Costa Rica or Belize, and where he has fewer worries about extradition or a CIA squad taking him into custody.
Or just plain taking him out.
I don’t have time to obsess over him. I don’t even inquire with Jordan and Leo what’s going on lately with Stella and Ellis. I’m certain if there’s something I need to know I’ll be informed when the time is right.
Hell, I don’t even ask about the preparations for our honeymoon, which I’m really looking forward to. Because with the massive reduction of stress in my life—I’m out, and I’m married to Leo—it finally feels like I’m settling into my role as commander and chief and that I’m less of an imposter as a result.
The three of us sleeping in bed together every night means the time we spend together now is quality time for both me and Jordan. Jordan appears rejuvenated, as does Leo. People are commenting I look younger and smile more. Did I get Botox or something?
Well, I certainly have more to smile about, don’t I?
The night before we leave Jordan’s dealing with a few last-minute logistics issues, leaving Leo and me alone in the residence.
“Thank you for doing this for me, Master,” I tell him. “I know that’s not your favorite part of the country.”
A dark shadow flits across Leo’s features before he schools his expression. “We don’t need to talk about that.”
“Are you sure?”
He sighs. “I can’t be unlucky enough to fall out of the sky twice in that region, right?” His tight smile doesn’t fool me, though.
“Still…thank you.”
He pulls me in for a kiss. “Hey, the boy’s worth it, and so are you.” He nuzzles my nose. “I’m also looking forward to having the two of you to myself for a few days.” He grins. “Besides, we’ll have Casey-Marie, Declan, and George to help with cover.”
Oh, yeah. There’s that. Plus Kayley’s flying in to meet us there. “I saw FNB trying to squeal yesterday that we’re wasting taxpayers’ money doing this.”
“Did you see the House Speaker’s reaction to that this morning?” he asks.
“No.”
He grins. “He started listing, in detail, how much some of the past GOP presidents wasted on trips, including ones to their own commercial resort properties where they had the utter balls to charge Secret Service more than fair-market value, and it’s amazing how quickly the FNB stooge tried to redirect the answer.”
“You fed the Speaker the data to have ready?”
“I didn’t have to.” He chuckles. “George was a little bored. Casey-Marie assigned him and Kev homework in advance of our trip. It’s a perennial controversy any time a POTUS takes an actual vacation.”
“Oooh. Are they trying to turn George into a political consultant?”
“Eh, I think more that she and Kevlovefucking over FNB.”
Especially considering it was the network where Kev used to work before his epic on-air meltdown that led to him getting fired.
Which worked out okay for him, in the end. Because he reunited with Chris, got Shae in the bargain, and became chief of staff to POTUS.
The next morning is Monday and we fly out to Bozeman, Montana, where Kayley and her detail meet us. That airport has a longer runway than Cody, Wyoming, which is closer to the park but can’t accommodateAir Force Onewithout making the flight crew very nervous over taking on a reduced load of fuel. From Bozeman we takeMarine Oneover to Gardiner, Wyoming, to a small airstrip there, where we’ll be met by my detail and The Beast, and our motorcade will proceed from there into the park.
