According to the news, the party had already been cleaned up by the time the guy had opened fire and I was safely ensconced in my bed, despite earlier news reports stating I had been directly fired at.
Arthur McDaniels called it ‘massaging’ the story to suit the White House’s needs.
Most of the American people knew that the White House grounds had been infiltrated and the assailant had been dealt with. They also knew that the person in question had been wearing an ‘ALPHAS PRIMUS’ bullet proof vest.
Both of those things were workable for McDaniels and the rest of his staff—massageable.
What the American people didnotknow was that I had, in fact, been shot at and nearly killed.
That was more of a need-to-know according to, well, everyone.
I just wished I was as oblivious as they were about all of this.
But I had made the decision to keep on the campaign trail two weeks ago and I intended to follow through, even if I seemed to be jumping at everything and everyone these days.
I’d never been so afraid of my own shadow before and I hated it.
“I’m sure,” Zeke reassured me, ever the steady presence, as the SUV continued to hum, ready for me to take control and actually drive it.
We’d been sitting here for twenty minutes in this exact position going back and forth in much the same manner since Zeke had brought me to the nearly empty rooftop of the garage that was attached to the hotel we were staying at.
“What if I hit that car?” I asked, gesturing to the little sedan that sat clear across the lot in the corner.
“You won’t,” Zeke answered in the same soothing tone as the last time he’d answered that exact question a few minutes before.
“But what if I do? Isn’t it illegal for me to drive without a permit? Won’t we get sued out of the ass or something?”
I was panicking again and was about two seconds from yanking the door open and bolting when Zeke closed his hand over mine.
“Lennon, look at me,” he said, his fruity champagne scent filling the car and it was like a weighted blanket for my nerves.
I turned to look into his dark eyes and found them to be soft and confident.
“You are going to be fine. We’re just going to drive around the lot a couple of times to get you used to being behind the wheel, that’s it.”
I nodded and swallowed hard. “And how did you get this approved again?”
Zeke grinned and I realized for the first time that the alpha had a pair of dimples winking in the apples of his cheeks, as if the man couldn’t get any cuter. “I thought it would be better to ask for forgiveness rather than permission?”
With a shake of my head, I couldn’t help but return his grin. “Maverick is going to kick your butt later.”
Zeke snorted at that. “If he can pull his head out of his own ass long enough to do it, then I invite him to try.”
I frowned at that.
“Yeah I noticed something weird between you guys. What is going on with you two? What’s up with the Cold War?” I asked, still half-trying to distract him from the inevitable driving lessons and half-curious about the sudden shift in dynamics of my security team.
Ever since the night of the delegate’s dinner, things had changed for the weirder.
Brooks and Dallas were pretty much the same, though Dallas was less prickly than normal as his arm healed from the graze of the bullet he’d taken for me. But Maverick and Zeke, who I was pretty sure were supposed to be best friends, barely even spoke to each other anymore outside of work.
“Nothing, he’s just being his usual self,” Zeke muttered, not meeting my eyes. “Now are you going to put your foot on the gas and drive or what?”
“I was kind of hoping you’d forget,” I said, offering him a sheepish grin.
Zeke said nothing in return, but his look was enough to make me turn to face forward again, chastised and just the tiniest bit turned on.
Though, that wasn’t anything new. I’d long past given up on trying to ignore my attraction to the four alphas protecting me and my mother’s warning them off of me had just made it worse.
