Page 27 of Sinful Palace

“Have you ever heard of Jeremy Carlton?”

I nodded. Carlton was a relatively-famous politician who ran a fast-rising independent party called the American Unity Party. “Yes. He did a guest lecture at my college once.”

“Oh? What did you think of him?”

“He’s pretty great. If he manages to get enough support, I think he could actually challenge the two main parties at some point.”

She nodded. “That’s what I think too. I’d love to get involved in a campaign for him.” She looked away and let out a dreamy sigh.

“You should do it,” I said. “I think it would be really good for you.”

The tip of her tongue darted out to nervously lick at her lips. “No, I couldn’t.”

“Why not?”

Her shoulders lifted and sagged in a dejected shrug. “I wouldn’t want to do something like that without Logan.”

“Logan? Why?”

“He loved politics when he was younger. He really wanted to get involved, and I always promised him I’d help him with that. I told him we’d be a team.” She let out a heavy sigh and went on. “If I started campaigning for someone behind his back, it wouldn’t feel right.”

“But he’s not even interested in that stuff anymore.”

“I know. But I’d still feel terrible. It’s hard to explain,” she said, slightly shaking her head. “And it’s not just that. Without him helping me, I’m not sure I’d feel brave enough to go behind Chuck’s back.”

I frowned. “What if you got Logan interested in political stuff again? He could help you with it. You’d be a team.”

“That’s a nice thought, but I doubt I could manage that. He seemed to throw away all of his political ambitions after Chloe’s accident,” she said, eyes turning glassy with sadness. “I’ve tried to bring it up with him before, but he never listens. He’s just not interested anymore.”

Guilt gnawed at my guts again, but with it came the spark of another idea.

“What if I help?” I asked, raising my eyes to Elizabeth’s face. “I could talk to him and convince him how much it means to you. If he hears it from both of us, he might realize how important it is.”

“You’d do that for me?” she asked, expression turning quizzical.

“Sure.”

“But…” She trailed off and shook her head. “You two don’t get along at all. You don’t even want to be here.”

“I think I could find a way to talk to him if it means I’m helping you,” I said. “You’re going to be my mother-in-law, after all. I should support you.”

A faint smile turned up her lips. “God, you really are the sweetest girl, Willow. I…” She trailed off again and looked down at her lap. “I wish he treated you better,” she went on in a soft murmur. “He just doesn’t listen to me, and he’s so angry all the time.”

“Like I said, I think he might start listening if we both talk to him,” I said. “Besides, remember what I said earlier about you being his favorite parent? It’s true. You definitely are. So if he’s really forced to think about it, I’m sure he’ll wind up deciding to help you with your dreams.”

Her eyes sparkled, and her cheeks filled with color again. “Stop. You’re getting me excited,” she said, hands twisting in her lap.

“You should be! I meant what I said before. I think it would be good for you to get involved with something like this. Plus, Jeremy Carlton would be over the moon to have your support, even if it’s in secret. You’re a freaking Hale!”

“Chuck would really, really hate it if he found out,” she said, voice tinged with nervousness again.

“I know, but you’re allowed to have your own passions. You deserve it, Liz.”

She was silent for a long moment. Then she took a deep breath and lifted her chin high. “You know what? I think you might be right,” she said. “I deserve to have at least one thing in my life I’m passionate about, and Chuck doesn’t have to know what I’m doing.”

“Exactly.”

“If you could actually speak to Logan about it and see if he wants to help out, I’d really appreciate that,” she said with a watery smile. “And thank you so much for the offer. I’ve wanted to do something like this for years. I just never thought I could.”

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