Tall, Dark_.Westmoreland! - Brenda Jackson [39]
Now it was her turn to study her father’s features, and she could see that what she’d said had him thinking. Was he so disjointed from his campaign staff that he truly didn’t know what was going on? Did he not know what they were capable of?
“I’m having a meeting with my campaign staff this morning, and if I discover that someone on my staff is connected to yesterday’s story in any way, they will be dismissed.”
She came close to asking if that included Senator Reed. She had a feeling he was behind the rumor. “Thanks, Dad. I think it will be in your best interest in the long run.”
“Where were you yesterday, Reggie? I tried reaching you all afternoon,” Brent said, looking across the breakfast table at his friend. They were sitting in Chase’s Place, where they had met for breakfast.
Reggie shrugged. “I was busy. Did anything come up that you couldn’t handle?”
“Of course not.” Brent set his coffee cup down, and his blue eyes studied Reggie intently. “But it would have been nice if I’d been able to contact you. Someone from Newsweek called to do an article on you. We’re not talking about a local magazine, Reg. We’re talking about Newsweek. You know how long I’ve been trying to get you national coverage.”
Yes, Reggie did know, and he felt badly about it. But at the time all he could think about was that he wanted to spend uninterrupted time with Olivia. “I’m sorry about that, Brent.”
“You’re seeing her, aren’t you?”
Reggie lifted a brow and met Brent’s stare. “It depends on who you’re referring to.”
“Orin Jeffries’s daughter.”
Reggie leaned back in his chair. He and Brent had been friends for a long time, since grade school, actually. After attending college at Yale, Brent had worked for a number of years in Boston before moving back to Atlanta a few years ago to care for his elderly parents. A couple of months ago, Reggie had been the best man at Brent’s wedding.
As far as Reggie was concerned, other than his brothers and cousins, there wasn’t a man he trusted more. He met his best friend’s eyes. “Yes, I’m seeing her.”
Brent let out a deep sigh. “Do you think that’s smart?”
Reggie chuckled. “Considering the fact that I plan to marry her sometime after the election, yes, I would have to say it’s smart.”
Brent’s jaw dropped. “Marry!” And then he quickly glanced around, hoping no one had heard his outburst. After turning back around, he nervously brushed back a strand of blond hair that had fallen onto his face. “Reggie, you just met the woman on Monday at that luncheon.”
“No,” Reggie said, smiling, as he absently swirled the coffee around in his cup. “Actually, we met before then.”
Brent lifted a brow. “When?”
“Saturday night, at the Firemen’s Masquerade Ball.”
“Saturday night?”
“Yes,” replied Reggie.
“That wasn’t even a week ago. Are you telling me you decided once you saw her at a party that you were going to marry her?”
“Something like that. And at the time I didn’t know who she was. I found out her true identity on Monday, at that luncheon, the same time she found out mine.” Reggie could only smile. Brent was staring at him like he had totally lost his mind. “Trust me, my friend, I haven’t lost my mind. Just my heart.”
Brent took a sip of his orange juice. His expression implied that he wished the juice was laced with vodka. “Do the two of you understand the implications of what you’re doing? Hello,” he said, putting emphasis on that single word. “Her father is your opponent in a Senate race.”
“We’re aware of that. However, we’ve decided that has nothing to do with what’s going on between us,” Reggie said.
“And you love her?” Brent asked incredulously.
“With all my heart and then some,” Reggie answered truthfully.
He had thought about it a lot last night. To be honest, he hadn’t been able to think about anything else. As crazy as