Page 133 of Catfish

Fuck.

“Madden, Residen—”

“Really?” Lexi beams. “Who’s your favorite team?”

“The New England Patriots.”

“And color?”

I smile, easy.

“Blue.”

“Food?”

“Chinese.”

She squints her eyes. “What about celebrity crush?”

“I honestly don’t have one.”

“Fair enough.” She uncrosses her legs and leans forward. “Let’s talk about your family.”

Let’s not.

I wait for her to ask me a question because she knows she's crossing a line right now. My face says it all, and Emmy has told her as well. This was supposed to be just a casual interview, but she wants some dirt, something to spread around her tiny blog to make it explode through the internet. I already have Mila waiting downstairs to give her the USB evidence of Holden fucking his female “friend”, but I'll give her something else—if she has the balls to ask me.

I see her swallow. The inside of her cheek being bitten by her teeth.

“What do you want to know?” I challenge for her recorder. Behind the scenes, she’s getting burned alive by my eyes.

I don’t mind her asking the hard questions, it’s her job. But mine is to keep my reputation worth value for the presidency.

“Well, I…” she pushes out her lips, debating.

“Yes?”

Emmy peeks her head around the window to my office at the perfect time. She gestures a thumbs-up, for if I'm okay, and I don't respond with my usual nod.

I’m just continuing with my glare.

I think I see her mouth “shit,” and she disappears.

“You’re not seen very much with your brother and sister,” Lexi prods slowly. “People theorize that you’re not close with them. Do you see them on a daily basis? Well, maybe not a daily basis because we know you're busy but other than holidays, maybe?”

I open my mouth to feed her a line of bullshit when my door suddenly opens violently, slamming against the coat rack and almost knocking it over.

Next comes a stumbling Reagan, catching herself before face-planting into my hardwood floors.

A hand—Emmy’s hand—extends into the room, gripping the doorknob of my office door and closing it. A second later, her face appears through the window again with a smile and two thumbs-up.

Geezus Christ.

“Governor,” Reagan finally says, smoothing her maxi dress with the palms of her hands. “We have some—uh...important party planning that I need your help with.”

My nose wrinkles as Lexi turns her body towards the interruption of her interview.

“What could possibly be so important that you had to literally bust into my office?” I challenge because I haven’t forgiven nor forgotten that she brought Jed into my space.

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