Her Secret, His Duty

“Although I know I need to come to a decision in the next couple of weeks. It’s a long, arduous process to begin a campaign, but the men who have already thrown their hats in the ring are not what the country needs right now. I do believe I’d do a better job than any of them, but I also realize the price I’d be asking my family to pay if I decide to become an official candidate,” she said as she turned back to look at Debra.

“You’ll make the right decision,” Debra said confidently. “You always do. Either way, you’ll do what’s best for both your family and the country.”

Kate flashed her the bright smile that had been her trademark both when she’d served her four years as vice president and as a beloved ambassador to France. “You’re the special secret in my pocket, Debra. There are days that your efficiency and loyalty are responsible for my very sanity. Thank goodness you possess the organizational skills that keep me on track.”

“I have a feeling you’d be just fine without me, but I love what I do, and now I’d better get back to my office and take care of the RSVPs on these invitations.” Debra stood. “You’ll let me know if there’s anything else I can do for you. You have nothing on your calendar for the day so hopefully you can give yourself a break and just relax a bit.”

“Maybe.” Kate stood and carried her coffee to the window that looked out on a lovely garden.

Debra left the room aware that Kate didn’t know how to relax—until she made up her mind about the next presidential election, she would worry and stew, weigh pros and cons, until she made a final decision about what her future would hold.

Debra didn’t even want to think about her own future. She knew that the first thing she needed to do was see a doctor. She’d try to schedule an appointment with her gynecologist for the weekend to confirm what she already knew.

In the meantime, day by day—that’s how she would have to take things right now. She’d scarcely had time to process the reality of her condition.

Eventually her pregnancy would show and she’d have some explaining to do, but until that day came she had to focus on her work.

She remained at her desk until just after eleven when Kate used the intercom to call her back into her office. Debra grabbed her notepad and reentered Kate’s office, only to stop short at the sight of the ridiculously handsome man seated in the chair she had vacated earlier.

Trey Winston was not only incredibly handsome with his rich dark brown hair and striking blue eyes, he was also the CEO of Adair Enterprises, the family business, a rich and powerful man who was well liked by his employees and friends. He was also the father of the baby Debra carried.

* * *

“Here we are,” Kate said as Debra entered the room. She gestured her assistant to the chair next to Trey’s. Trey offered Debra a faint, rather uncomfortable smile.

Uncomfortable. That’s the way things had been for him whenever he saw Debra after the crazy one night they’d spent together—a night that should never have happened.

He’d been at the popular bar/restaurant celebrating the close of a big business deal and she’d been there commiserating a breakup with her boyfriend. The two of them had somehow hooked up, shared too many drinks and then had continued to make the mistake of heading to a nearby hotel and having hot, passionate sex.

He hadn’t been too drunk to know what he was doing and neither had she, but he should never have allowed it to happen at all.

He’d spent the past six weeks putting it out of his mind, trying to pretend that it had never happened. Unfortunately, trying to forget had been difficult.

His mother would kill him if she found out. Kate would give him a motherly smackdown to end all smackdowns if she believed he had taken advantage of her assistant, a young woman he knew his mother loved and trusted.

“Trey has just informed me that I’m not the only political beast in the family,” Kate said once Debra was seated next to Trey. “He’s thinking about running for the Senate.”

Debra looked at him in surprise and then quickly averted her gaze back to Kate. “I’m sure he’d make a fine senator.”

“You know that and I know that, but what we need to do is see how much support he would be able to get behind him,” Kate replied.

Trey could see the wheels turning in his mother’s head. Of all the people in his life, Trey trusted his mother more than anyone. He’d been flirting with the idea of entering politics for some time and finally felt the time was right now.

“What do you have in mind?” Debra asked.

Her voice was sweet and soft, but Trey had memories of husky moans and sighs of pleasure. He also couldn’t help but notice and remember the fresh, clean scent of her, so unlike the cloying perfumes most of the women in his social circle wore.

“A fund-raiser dinner party.” Kate’s words snapped Trey back to the matter at hand. “And we’d need to get it scheduled and on the calendar in the next two weeks.”

“Two weeks?” Debra sounded horrified as she stared at Kate. “But that’s impossible.”

“Nonsense. Nothing is impossible,” Kate replied confidently, “especially if you’re in charge. You’ve set up these kinds of things a thousand times for me in the past, Debra.”

“But not in less than a month,” she protested.

Trey watched the interplay between Debra and his mother, knowing no matter how the conversation went the dinner would get done in two weeks’ time. Kate usually got her way and Debra was one of the most efficient women Trey had ever known.

“I’ll have Haley step in and do most of the work you normally do for me,” Kate said, mentioning one of her senior interns. “That will free you up to work closely with Trey to get this done. I recommend you both go into the sitting room right now and figure out a specific date and a venue. Let’s get this thing rolling.”

Trey could tell that this was probably the last thing on earth that Debra wanted to do. He could see her reluctance as she slowly stood from her chair, in the small crease that darted across her forehead.

He wasn’t exactly thrilled by the idea of working closely with his one-night stand, either. But, he also knew that if anyone could pull this event off on time and with flair, it was Debra Prentice.

They could work together, he told himself as he followed her slender frame into the informal sitting area at the back of the house. All they had to do was continue doing what they had been doing for the past six weeks: pretend that crazy night they had shared hadn’t happened.

“I didn’t realize she was going to pull you into this,” he said as she sat in one of the plush, comfortable beige chairs and he sank down on the sofa opposite her.

The family sitting room was large, with floor to ceiling windows on one side and comfortable, yet attractive furnishings. A bar was located at the back of the room and doors led out to the patio and pool area.

It was in this room that the family had often come together to discuss problems or simply to enjoy each other’s company and catch up on busy lives.

“My job is to do whatever Kate needs done and since this is important to you, it’s important to her.” She stared down at her notepad. “The first thing we need to do is find a venue. With less than a month lead time that might be a problem. Do you have any place specific in mind?” Her vivid green eyes finally made contact with him.

“I was thinking maybe the Raleigh Regent or the Capital Hotel,” he suggested. “Both places are popular for such events.”

“That’s the problem.” That tiny crease deepened again across her forehead. “I’m fairly sure that the Capital Hotel ballroom will be impossible to get at this late date. I’ll check with the Regent and see what’s available. Last I heard the ballroom was undergoing some renovations and I’m not certain if they are complete or not. I’m still not sure I’m going to be able to make this happen so soon. I’m assuming you want a Saturday night?”

“Or a Friday night would be fine,” he replied. He watched as she made several notes on the pad. Debra Prentice wasn’t a knockout kind of woman, but she also didn’t play up her pretty features. She wore little makeup and her hair always looked as if it had been tortured into a position at the back of her head that it couldn’t possibly hold.

Still, he knew that her light brown hair was incredibly silky and that she had a cute, perfectly proportioned figure that had fit perfectly in his arms. He knew how her eyes sparkled while in the throes of passion and exactly how her lips tasted.

“Trey?” Her eyes held a touch of impatience, making him realize she must have tried to get his attention while he’d been lost in thought.

“Sorry. What was the question?”

“How many people are you expecting to invite?”

“Two hundred or maybe two hundred and fifty,” he replied.

“Pick a number,” she said with a light edge to her voice. “I need a specific number to tell the event planner when we settle where this is going take place.”

“Two hundred and fifty,” he said firmly.

She nodded. “I’ll need the guest list from you as soon as possible. Invitations will have to go out in the next couple of days or so. Thank goodness it’s January and there isn’t much else going on around town.” She wrote a couple more notes on her pad and then met his gaze again. “I think that’s all I need from you to get started. By the end of the day I’ll have a list of dates and places for you to consider.”

She stood as if dismissing him, her body instantly poised to run back to her little office.

“Then tomorrow let’s make arrangements to see some of the venues together,” he said as he also stood. “And I’ll want to be with you when you speak to the event planner. We’ll need to pick the menu and make decisions on a number of other things.”