Rook (Political Royalty Book 2) by Evelyn Adams Page B

with a Jenson sign and the obligatory American flag backdrop filled the bottom corner of the screen. They were clearly waiting to cut live to the governor’s press conference as soon as it started. Matt would wait a couple of minutes and then step out into the hallway to see if he could get a hold of Jess. Maybe she’d be willing to feed him enough to keep his editor from firing him right away.
    “There’s another choice.”
    “What?” he asked, shaking himself out of his thoughts and back to the present. “What choice?”
    “I know you’re not willing to leave me here alone. I don’t agree,” she said, holding her hand defiantly in front of her. “But I’m not stupid enough to try to change your pigheaded mind. If you won’t leave me, why don’t I go along with you? Like a road trip.”
    He glanced over to see if she was serious and the expression on her face was almost hopeful. Eager even.
    “What about school? Won’t that screw up your studies? I don’t want you messing up your GPA. That kind of stuff always mattered to you.” He’d been the slacker who had to wait to get accepted to college. She’d been the four point two five honor student who got in on early admission.
    “Not really. I’m ahead on my project. I already took my only exam until the end of term and the week after next is spring break. A couple of weeks won’t kill me and it could be fun. I’ve never seen behind the scenes of a campaign. Democracy at work and all that. Unless it would cause a problem for you.”
    “Hell no,” he said and had the pleasure of watching her smile a real smile, the kind that lit up her face. “I’d love that. We could fly back to Ohio to hook up with the campaign and then rent a car to follow the bus. I should warn you. The food is crap and the hotels are questionable.” He ran through the finances in his head—two last-minute airline tickets, hotel rooms on one expense account budget instead of two, and double the meals. He’d barely be able to cover it, but at least he’d still have a job.
    “You can’t pay for everything,” she said. “I won’t let you.”
    He gave her the look he’d been using since they were kids to show exactly what he thought of her paying for anything. “Of course I can. That’s a nonnegotiable too. What else are credit cards for?”
    She practically beamed at him, not like her old self but he could see her somewhere in there.
    “Road trip,” he said, giving her one last squeeze before grabbing his phone to book their flight.
    ––––––––
    J ENSON WAS SUPPOSED to get out of the race. Walker pressed the heels of his hands to his eyes and tallied all the ways his day had gotten fucked. It started with Sandra waltzing back in just as he’d finally gotten a minute alone with Haven and built steadily up to Jenson’s press conference. And that was just the self-indulgent whiny parts. It didn’t include the fact that over thirty people died on their way to work and school that morning. God help him if he ever forgot what really mattered. That things weren’t always about him, even if it sometimes felt like they were.
    He had Sandra to remind him, as an example anyway. She’d seen an opportunity for some national press and she’d turned the fucking plane around. Not literally, but close. He glanced over to see his wife cloistered with Abby and the girls in the hotel suite they’d set up as a makeshift war room. They were supposed to be on their way to Illinois but the bridge collapse changed everything. There were speeches to draft and press conferences to hold before he could get back on the bus and back on the trail.
    Instead of being on the road with Haven, with at least the chance of some time alone, he was stuck playing the family man again with Sandra clinging to his arm like an accessorized appendage. He was so tired of feeling so alone. Of seeing what he wanted and not being able to get it. He was just tired.
    Thirteen days straight on the