I bit back my next retort, reminding myself I was here to beg for Lee’s help. Probably not the best time to lecture her about her fondness for role play. I tried a different tack. “Thank you for answering even though you’re busy.”
“You’re my little sister. No matter who or what I’m doing, I’m always going to answer. Come in. Don’t mind the living room.”
Of course, I couldn’t help but look. Was that a candlestick on the coffee table, and ladder propped against the bookshelf? What did you even do with a ladder and a candlestick... No. I shielded my eyes.
“Kitchen?” Lee asked.
“Definitely let’s go to the kitchen.”
By the time I’d settled at her kitchen table Ben was back, changed into gym shorts and a T-shirt. “Proper greeting this time,” he said, leaning over to hug me. I loved Ben hugs. I loved Ben everything, really. If he and my sister hadn’t figured out they were perfect for each other, I would’ve found a way to make him my honorary big brother.
He pulled back, grinning. “It’s good to see you, Lex. Been a while.”
I tapped my cheek. “You’ve got a little...blue.”
“Oh, sorry.” Ben rubbed the spot furiously. Unlike Lee, he had the good grace to flush with embarrassment.
“So what’s up?” Lee stood behind her breakfast counter, biting into an apple from her fruit bowl. “Good for stamina,” she explained, which I very much did not need to know.
“Um, okay. Where to start. Well, first, thank you for meeting me here.” Nope, I’d come to them. Ugh, the two of them standing there scrutinizing me was making me nervous. I felt a sympathy for their political opponents.
“I need you to endorse Logan,” I blurted. Apparently, approaching this strategically was outside my wheelhouse.
“Oh, really?” Lee cocked an eyebrow.
“Yes. Please, please,pleaseendorse him. The campaign says if you don’t, he has no shot at voters trusting him. Because now you’re more than just another politician. You’re his girlfriend’s sister. It carries weight.”
“His fake girlfriend’s sister.”
“Well, obviously no one should know that.”
Ben leaned back against the counter and crossed his muscular arms. “I’ve been following your TV appearances. You’re putting on a hell of a performance, Lex. Really selling the couple thing.”
“Mmm-hmm,” Lee agreed. “It’s almosttooconvincing. But I do have to thank you for getting Logan to do Mom’s commercial. The thought of doing it was giving me hives. She’d already emailed me a fifty-six-page screenplay.Fifty-six pages, Alexis. Apparently, she took Martin Scorsese’s Master Class and she’s convinced the whole commercial should be filmed in one long continuous shot like that scene fromGoodfellas. Have fun with that.”
“You’re welcome,” I said smoothly, though inside I was thinking,Oh, lord, what have I gotten Logan into?“See how nice it can be when we scratch each other’s backs?” Who was I, a gangster fromGoodfellas? I backed up and tried another approach. “Anita Jones’s assistant says—”
Both Ben and Lee cracked up. “Oh, God,” Ben said, turning to Lee. “Remember Anita?”
“I forgot she went over to the Arthur campaign.” Lee shook her head. “Mane’s HR department must’ve thrown a party the day she quit. Remember the things she used to say to you?”
Ben smiled fondly. “She used to tell me she was giving me the female-in-a-male-dominated-field experience.”
Lee rolled her eyes. “Oh, yes, Anita is performing one long act of community service on behalf of women everywhere. What a brave activist.”
“Anyway,”I said, “Anita’s assistant says it’ll be a deathblow if you don’t endorse him. So I’m here to beg you. Please.”
Lee and Ben eyed each other and shared a small, secret smile. Oh, I did notlike that.
“You know Ben used to work for Governor Mane,” Lee said. “And Mane’s the one who helped us pass the bill that launched my political career.Andhe endorsed me for state senator.”
“I know,” I said, swallowing. “But you also said you didn’t like the way he treated your boss Dakota after their affair leaked. I mean, Ben quit over it! And Logan’s politics are so in line with yours—”
“You also know I’m not a fan of this elaborate farce you two have going on. I don’t like people using my sister to further their careers.”
“He’s not using me. If anything, I’m usinghimto fight the education cuts. We’ve become friends—”
“You’ll have to owe me,” she interrupted.
