“Yes.” He didn’t even try to hide behind his charming words.
“Why? I don’t get it.”
“I want to see you, but in the position I’m…we’re in, it’s not possible,” he told her.
“What, because you’re running for office?” She knew she sounded incredulous, but it made sense. He wouldn’t want to risk anything…especially not on a woman, no matter his big talk.
“And you’re a reporter…a college reporter,” he reminded her.
“And I wrote that article,” she said, filling in the blanks.
“You did,” Brady confirmed. “While I don’t mind you pointing out my faults, the campaign and my opponents will see it as me giving up the nomination.”
“Why are you here then?” she asked, her anger mounting once more.
“Because I still want you. Weeks later, I still want you. And you want me too.”
Liz’s stomach dropped and all the anger she had been holding dissipated. He wanted her. She knew he did, but hearing it like that was intoxicating. She didn’t want to give him up. She was having a f**king hard time even concentrating on anything else. After he had left, it felt as if she had a hole in her chest. She didn’t know if it was the sex, because that had been fantastic, or if it was just Brady. As much as she wanted it to be the second, that idea scared the shit out of her.
“So, you want me, but you can’t see me?”
“I can’t see you on your terms,” he corrected.
“What does that even mean?” Liz asked, raising her voice. She immediately quieted down and looked around the restaurant. No one had even glanced at them. That was lucky.
“Look, I want us to continue what we’re doing, but in private. I don’t want to jeopardize my career…or your career,” he added quickly.
Liz breathed in and out deeply, realizing finally what he was saying. “You want a f**k buddy,” she stated as bluntly as possible. If he was going to be all out in the open, she wanted plain words. She wanted to know what he was offering…what kind of deal she was willing to take.
He sighed as if she was misinterpreting, but she was sure she wasn’t. He wanted to sleep with her, no strings attached, while he was on the campaign and too busy for anything else. She had heard of these kinds of situations before. She never knew how they happened…how they got started—apparently at seven o’clock in the morning at a dingy diner in downtown Chapel Hill over coffee.
“That’s not what I had in mind,” he said.
“No? That’s what it sounds like. So, what kind of situation is this?” she asked, her anger resurfacing. She didn’t even know where it came from, because it wasn’t as if she didn’t want to sleep with him, and it wasn’t as if she didn’t want to keep it a secret. Some innate trigger in her brain was firing and she was listening. “Do you get to sleep with other people? Are you going to be dating someone who fits you better in the spotlight? Should I find someone else to date in the meantime?”
“Liz,” he snapped, cutting off whatever she was going to say next. “I’m not here to argue the point. I’m not here to discuss terms. I want you, and I want you anytime I can have you. That happens to be a much more limited time frame. If you aren’t interested, then good luck with your paper.” He pulled out his wallet, threw two twenties on the table, and stood.
“Wait,” Liz said, reaching for his arm, “I didn’t say I wasn’t interested.” Her cheeks flamed at the admission, but she sure as hell wasn’t going to let him walk out of the diner.
His brown eyes stared right through her, as if measuring the honesty in her statement. “All right,” he said, sitting back down.
“Uh…” she began, nibbling on her bottom lip, “I’ve never exactly been propositioned…let alone at a diner first thing in the morning.”
“As much as I enjoy hearing that…I find it hard to believe. No one has ever come on to you?” he asked inquisitively.
“It’s not that,” she said, trying to find the words. “I’ve had boyfriends before, but I met them in…normal places, like school or work or something. But usually people aren’t that interested before getting to know me. Um…I’ve heard I’m intimidating.” She shrugged.
“Really?” he asked, looking her up and down. “I guess I could see that.”
She didn’t know how. She couldn’t figure out why anyone thought that.
“You’re a well-educated woman at a top university with staggering confidence,” he told her, filling in the blanks.
Liz looked down, overloaded by the compliments. “Well, I did bring a Senator to his knees once,” she said, trying to break the tension.
He chuckled softly. “I hope it’s not just once,” he responded.
Liz stared at the napkin resting on the tabletop. She wasn’t sure what to say. He was making a proposition that, to be honest, sounded downright appealing. It’s not as if they could ever come out and announce they were dating. It’s not as if he had asked to date her. He wanted her and he wanted her whenever he could have her. Those were his words…the terms he refused to discuss.
“You’re thinking too hard about this,” he told her with a shake of his head.
“I can’t think about it?”
“The longer you think about it, the more likely you are to make a decision I don’t agree with,” Brady answered.
“So, you’re saying if I think about it…I’ll realize how much of a bad idea it is to get involved with you?” she asked, arching an eyebrow.
“Something like that.”
“Well, that’s not true. I’ve already realized that.”
“It’s not a good idea.” His voice lowered and he leaned toward her. “I’m not telling you that it’s a good idea. But it’s the only idea.”
“Is that so?” she whispered, meeting his intense tone.
“Tell me you haven’t been thinking about me since we parted.” He waited.
She didn’t respond. How could she?
“Tell me you haven’t been thinking about me pressed against your body, the feel of my lips kissing every inch of your skin, me thrusting in and out of you in the dark hotel room. If you can tell me that, then I’ll let you go. No questions asked,” he said, sitting back once more and crossing his arms. “Because I haven’t stopped thinking about any of those things, and your flushed face tells me you haven’t either.”