Jared (River Pack Wolves 3)(41)
She had a feeling it was life-changing for both of them. Even more, she wanted to make sure Jared continued to open his heart to the world. To live again. That was almost as important to her as her own integrity—which she would be testing this morning.
A light tap on the door signaled Jared had arrived. She’d asked him to come and get her as soon as he reached the estate this morning.
She hurried over to the door and opened it. Glancing around and finding no one in the hall, she whispered, “I’d really like to kiss you Good Morning, but I don’t think we should take the chance. Rain check?”
He smiled broadly, but kept his hands clasped in front of him, standing in a position of quiet power and authority. “We’re taking enough chances this morning as it is.”
She returned the smile. “I’d also like to tell you all the other things I want to do, but we have an appointment with my father.”
Jared smile dimmed. “Are you ready for this?”
“I couldn’t be any more ready.” She smirked—that was the exact thing she had said before he took her virginity last night.
A sly smile crept onto his face. “I’ve hardly slept. Too busy thinking about you.”
He was getting her hot and bothered, and that wouldn’t do—they had things to accomplish first. She shook her finger at him as she stepped out of her room and closed the door behind her.
“No dirty talk, Jared River. I need to keep my professional face on.”
His smirk grew even hotter. “That’s really unfortunate.” Then his smile tempered a little. “Grace, I’ll be right by your side the whole time. No matter how this goes, I’m going to be there for you.”
She drew in a deep breath as some of the nerves from earlier in the morning returned to flutter her stomach. “Let’s do this.”
She brushed past him, striding down the hallway, her heels clicking on the marble flooring. Jared followed. He was dressed in the same outfit as yesterday—dark blue jacket and pants and a starched white collared shirt. She had shredded the last shirt during their lovemaking, so this must be a new one.
When she reached her father’s office, she held her head high and marched in like it was just any other morning debriefing. She had the Senator’s calendar ready, but she wanted to dive into the real reason she was here right away. No more time to waste.
Her father stood at his desk, peering down at his tablet. “Ah, Grace, good morning. I wanted to talk to you about this newscast today. I think we need a different host, or possibly a different show entirely. This person’s just going to softball me with questions about the budget. And I want to use this to warm up to the shifter legislation for next week.”
Well, this was her chance… queued up like he knew it was coming. “I’m sorry, I can’t do that, Dad.”
Her father looked up sharply. “Excuse me?” He flicked a quick look at Jared, but his gaze didn’t even hesitate a moment there, just returned to Grace. “Is there some reason why this particular reporter is important to us? I thought it was just the local news.”
He was always looking for the political advantage… not that she was any different. She understood this part of him—he had trained her well.
“It’s not the reporter,” Grace said. “It’s the topic.”
Her father frowned and lifted his finger from the tablet, then came around the desk, leaned back against it, and folded his arms. “Is this about the rally yesterday?”
“Yes.” She took a breath, the words at the tip of her tongue, struggling to find a way to come out. “I need to talk to you about that.”
The Senator sighed. “I know the shifter gang attack was unsettling, but this is exactly what I’m talking about, Grace. These people are dangerous, and they need to be identified for the common good. That’s all I’m trying to accomplish with the legislation. But you saw the anger and fear out there in our constituency. We need to listen to that.”
“No, we don’t.” Her passion about this was rising up. “We need to fight back against it, not pander to it. Part of leadership is showing the people they don’t have to fear the things that frighten them.”
The Senator’s arms unfolded, and his fists clenched at his side. “We’ve been over and over this, Grace. I thought we were done with this stupid arguing. We’re launching next week, for God’s sake.”
“No, we’re not—at least, I’m not. Father, there’s something you need to tell you—”
She was cut off by a knock at the Senator’s door. She snapped her teeth together. Red fury had risen up in her father’s face, but he held up an abrupt hand to stop her.