I can feel the rage explode out of me. “You do not talk about him OR my father like that, asshole!”
Donald whirls on me, his face red and puffing as he shoves a piece of paper into my hands. “We’re going to fix this right now. Read this when you go out there, and say only this. I swear to God, you are not going to ruin this for me you spoiled little bitch!”
Hudson’s fist is already drawn back when he steps forward, but before he even gets close, I slap Donald hard across the face.
He gasps and sputters, holding the red mark on his cheek and gaping at me. “Oh, now you’re going to regret that! I’m calling my attorney!”
“Be my guest,” I spit out. “Oh and, Donald, I think it might go without saying, but you’re fired.”
He sneers at me. “Read my contract, babe. You can’t fire me mid-run.”
Fuck.
Hudson does step forward then, right in Donald’s face, and he glowering down on the smaller man. “And if the campaign can’t pay you?”
“Excuse me?” Donald huffs, taking a wary step back from Hudson.
“I said what if they can’t pay you. If the campaign goes broke, are you prepared to work for free?”
He sputters. “What? No, of course not! It’s ridiculous to think that I’d be willing to stick around this spoiled little brat without-”
“Excellent.” Hudson nods curtly, cutting him off. He takes his cell phone out and begins to type something before he turns to me.
“Ms. Archer?” He winks at me with a big shit-eating grin on his face. “Romantic fraternization between political and private enterprise is unfortunately grounds for contractual liquidation under your agreement with our company.”
His back is to Donald, and only I can see as he winks again and sticks his tongue out at me.
“So, on behalf of Archer Holdings, I regret to inform you that we’ll be revoking your campaign funding, effective immediately.” He turns back to Donald. “I’d recommend not cashing your check this week, it’s going to bounce.”
Donald’s face goes a bright shade of crimson, and he opens his mouth as if to say something though words seem to fail him in that moment. He sputters something unintelligible out his piggy mouth before he whirls around and stomps out of the room.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Hudson
P R E S E N T
“You know as soon as he quits, I’m making sure the funds hit your campaign again, right?”
Reagan’s cheeks are flushed when she looks up at me. “Holy shit, I mean, wow.” She laughs nervously and then with more feeling, like she’s just shrugged a weight off her shoulders.
“I should not have done that. I mean I really should not have done that! He’s probably going to try and sue you know.”
I grin. “I’m willing to bet he doesn’t know that quitting before his contract finishes voids it entirely, so fuck him. I’ll have your father’s lawyers eat him alive.”
She’s staring at me with stars in her eyes and her whole face smiling, and I can’t help but smile right back. That’s just the effect she has on me. “Hudson, I lo-”
The door bursts open and a harried and winded looking campaign intern with a clipboard barges into the room. “Ms. Archer! You need to follow me right now. You’re on stage in three minutes!”
Well shit, how’s that for perfect timing,
She nods at the kid but whirls back to me. “Will you watch it?”
“Oh, what is it we’re here for? Some sort of telethon? Are you raising money for PBS?” I grin at her as she makes a face at me. “I was actually thinking about heading across the street to that bar and catching the rest of the game or something.”
She rolls her eyes. “Hudson, you are the most infuriati-”
“Reagan,” I grab her hand and squeeze it.
There’s so much I want to tell her, so much I need to tell her. But she’s about to go on fucking television for this speech, so instead I just wink at her.
“Of course I’ll watch it.”
And I do, and it’s incredible.
She’s incredible.
There’s none of Donald’s bullshit middle of the road crap this time. She speaks the truth and she speaks from the heart. She talks about corruption and government kickbacks, and the lack of oversight. She names names, and calls people out right there on television, and it’s fucking amazing.
She’s bold and she’s fearless, and once they pull their jaws off the ground, the people there go fucking nuts.
“Ms. Archer!” A woman with a microphone calls out from the crowd of screaming reporters as Reagan prepares to take questions. “You really just came out swinging in that speech, which isn’t quite a side of you we’ve seen yet. You’re already ahead in the polls. What brought this on?”