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“You hand-picked every member of my security detail. Don’t you trust them?”
“None of them will protect you the way I can.”
Now, I get it.
She walked back to him and put her hands on his face. “Blake, I do not want you to go away. I will worry about you just as much as you will worry about me. We have jobs that need to be done. Tristan thinks the legislation is the right way to go.”
“Since when do you listen to what my brother says?”
“He makes a lot of sense. Alistair thinks it would be better if people didn’t see us together as much.”
He blew out a loud breath. “Angela, was that goodbye sex?”
She scoffed. “No. What are you talking about? I’m not asking you to leave my life forever. There are things I can do to help, and this is something you can do to help.” Tears filled her eyes, threatening to spill over.
Blake cupped her face. “I get it.”
She nodded and held back a sob. “I still remember standing on your mother’s porch looking at everyone who wanted to help find Benji. They didn’t have to do that but did because they wanted to. This is something I can do to repay them.”
He held out his arms, and she stepped into his embrace, resting her face against his chest.
“I can make their life better, to make your life better. You deserve a better world.”
He rested his chin on her head. “I’ve been living my best life for years. I never wanted for anything more.”
Angela wiped away a tear and smiled up at him. “I don’t want people to think you’re a monster.”
He held her tighter. “I’ve never seen myself as a monster.”
“But that’s what Alistair called you.”
Blake chuckled. “Alistair is an ass. You need to get rid of him.”
“He may be an ass, but he’s been invaluable.”
“I think you should give his job to Penny.”
Angela stepped back. “Penny?”
“Yeah, she does more work in two hours than he does all day. She knows everyone in this town, and if she doesn’t know someone, she knows someone who knows someone.”
“Mhh. I didn’t know that. It makes sense, though. Her father was a powerful congressman, and she grew up in this town.”
“Mom,” Benji called from downstairs.
Angela hugged Blake again, stood on her tiptoes, and kissed him. “I love you, Blake Sullivan.”
She stepped away, but he pulled her back and kissed her hard. “That’s the first time you’ve said that.”
She winked and turned to walk downstairs.
Angela had too many ideas in her head to sleep. The possibilities energized her. Blake came into her room after Benji fell asleep and quickly fell asleep next to her. She finally gave up and went to work early.
Sitting in the quiet of the Oval Office, she thought about Blake’s suggestion of firing Alistair. She wasn’t sure there was a valid reason to fire him, but the more she thought about it, the more uneasy she became. He was good at what he did, but she never felt he was entirely on her side. He did his job for him.
She sat with her back turned to the door, staring out the window. The was rising and burning off the darkness. It would have been a beautiful morning to run, and for half a second, she thought about going back to her living area, changing, and going for a run.
She was startled when the door opened, and she turned the chair around. Alistair walked in without knocking, and she hated it when he did that.
