Page 10 of The Devil Goes to Washington

“What the fuck?” He ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. “I have to answer questions about the upcoming vote on the bills going through legislation.”

“No. Not even that,” Ethan roared.

“Michael. Listen carefully. You agreed to this marriage to change your image. You’re a family man now. You need to take an interest in that family, especially when they are being stalked,” Sabrina explained in controlled contrast to Ethan’s tantrum.

“What’s the big deal? Someone took a couple of pictures on a playground. You see that on social media all the time.”

“First of all, it’s against the law and Heath is already looking into recourse. The General Data Protection Regulation requires that the parents or legal guardians of a minor give explicit consent before their image can be published online.” Sabrina was a pro at backing up her statements with facts.

“How do you know she didn’t give her permission? Or maybe she sold the pictures to them. Aha! There’s another revenue stream for her.”

“Get a hold of yourself. If you had looked at the screenshots we sent to you, you’d see she was concerned. Also, the news outlets have removed the pictures from their sites because there was no permission given in any form. But nothing disappears from the internet and these pics went viral before they were taken down.” Sabrina continued to be the voice of reason.

“Michael, this isn’t like you. If you don’t resolve whatever is going on with her, it is going to be obvious to everyone that this marriage is a sham. You’ll not only hurt your opportunity for VP, but you could destroy your career.” Blake had seen plenty of campaigns implode. He knew how bad this could turn out.

“You can tell us. We might be able to help or it could be cathartic just to talk about it,” encouraged Sabrina.

“I knew this was a bad idea as soon as I saw her, but I thought if I just avoided her most of the time, I could handle the occasions when we have to be seen together.”

“That’s not working. Even the pictures we took of you together looked painful. There was some serious Photoshopping that needed to be done.” Ethan, the graphics expert, had done an amazing job making them look like a happy family.

“Until the kiss. That is one for the books. You two have some serious chemistry. That’s not ancient history no matter how many times you repeat it to yourself,” Blake teased, lightening the mood.

“Fine! But this is off the record.”

“Absolutely,” Sabrina assured.

“Evie was a scholarship kid in her freshman year at the university where I went to law school. She was so fucking smart and witty, and she lit every room on fire when she entered. We were inseparable from the day we met. The fact that we were both from the DC vicinity made it easier to see each other during vacations.”

“Right, Heath gave us a variation of the story that we included in the press release,” Ethan confirmed

“It’s so romantic.” Blake had hoped to make a love-match from the first suggestion of the Wife for Hire agency.

“Here’s the twist. She turned eighteen before I graduated. We had a great party, then went back to her place where I proposed.”

“Yay!” Blake cheered, though he knew there wasn’t a happily ever after in this story.

“She said ‘no’.”

“No! Why?” He appreciated Ethan’s incredulous outburst.

“Said she couldn’t say, but insisted I had to trust her. Asked if we could just keep dating and not worry about all of the formalities. She knew there would be a prenup. It was the only explanation for why she wouldn’t want to make things official and start our lives together.”

“Oh, I don’t believe that.” Ethan commented, like he was watching a TV drama.

“You’d be right. I was so incensed that I took off on my motorcycle. I hydroplaned around a turn and the next thing I knew I woke up in the hospital. The doctors were saying I’d never walk again.”

“But you did!” Blake pointed out the positive.

“With a lot of bullheaded determination. It still hurts sometimes, especially if I stand for too long.”

“Right, we have that in our notes,” Sabrina confirmed.

“I usually push through until I can casually find a place to rest. I don’t want it to count against me in the running for VP.”

“There’s nothing wrong with being differently abled,” Sabrina’s comment sounded like it might have its own story behind it.

“Ha! I’m competing with men like my father. They’ll eat me alive at the hint of a vulnerability.”