Page 16 of The Devil Goes to Washington

“I dare you to say that again.” She seethed, stopping in the middle of the Hall of States to face him.

“You looked cozy. Maybe you already had a thing going on the side with Williamson. You know that would violate our contract.”

Her hand flew up to slap him, but he caught her at the wrist.

“If you were paying attention the only thing being violated was me, and if you were half the man you think you are, you would have protected me.”

“Ah, ah, ah. Smile for the press when you’re snarling at me.” Baring his teeth and holding her hand to the side, others might think they were the happy couple they were supposed to be, having an intimate moment together.

He realized had created the exact situation he had tried to avoid. Even with her scowling at him, holding her was intoxicating. Hopefully, it was enough to appease the media, until he had to endure her presence again.

Chapter 5

It had taken her hours to fall asleep the night before, and now she was paying for it. The computer section of the library was always quiet, but today the silence was almost hypnotic. The shipping labels for recent orders blurred on the screen in front of her.

“Mama, I finished my flash cards. Will you test me?” He pushed the cards across the desk.

Micah had woken early, excited to hear about her night with all the fancy people. He riddled her with questions about who they met and what they did. She had always refrained from saying anything negative to Micah about his dad, and she wasn’t going to start now, even if he still didn’t know who his father was.

“How about we have Grandma help? We’re running late to get over there before she has to go to work.”

“Yay!” As exhausted as she was, she loved watching his excitement and energy as he stuffed his things in his backpack. There had been times she didn’t think he would ever be like this.

Her jalopy made it the short distance to her old apartment. She still hadn’t switched libraries either. She told herself it was because Micah didn’t like change, but she suspected it was more of her doubt that things with Michael would work out. Besides, it was only for a year. Then she and Micah could go back to normal.

“Grandma!” Micah pushed through the door before Evelyn had removed the key.

“Hey, Mom, sorry we’re late.” The stacks of boxes Evelyn carried teetered before she placed them on the table with her bag.

“Oh my, you look wrecked. Good thing I have coffee ready.”

“You know how to speak to my soul.” Evelyn groaned at the smell of the rich elixir.

“Was last night that bad?”

“No, we met some nice people.” Evelyn glanced at Micah, hoping her mom got the message.

“Right. Hey, kiddo, what do you think about some cartoons? You can use the headphones if you want.”

“You just want to talk about adult stuff that I’m not supposed to hear.” Sometimes the boy was too smart for her. He certainly kept her on her toes.

“That too. What if I add some cookies to sweeten the deal?” Her mom negotiated with him.

“Fine. But I get to pick the cartoons.” He flopped on the sofa after snapping the headphones in place.

“Ok, spill.”

“Mom, the men were vile and their wives acted like nothing was happening. I don’t know how many times a random hand felt up my ass. But the worst part was the old creep that seemed to intimidate Michael. He insisted on a dance and then groped me in front of everyone. Not only did no one come to my rescue, but Michael accused me of having an affair with the vile creature.”

“I think they could both be described that way. What did you do?”

“I tried to smack him.” She was almost embarrassed to admit it.

“Fair enough, considering what he’s put you through. But what happened?” It was a relief to have someone on her side, especially one who knew her history with Michael.

“He reminded me that we were always being watched by the press, so he made it seem like we were dancing.”

“The pictures of you in the media today look exactly like that. So was that the end of it?”