Page 27 of Capitally Engaged

Preston

Whatever you wear to work will be fine.

Well, that was nothing to go on. Maybe I could get Laurel to spill more details over the next few days. It would be nice to have something to celebrate handing off another book. It was lonely having a secret pen name, no one to share in your accomplishments. I opened the shared folder to start crafting statements when my phone buzzed on my desk again.

Preston

On second thought, wear something blue. It’ll bring out your eyes.

Was my fake fiancé flirting with me? Certainly not.

Shaking my head, I put my phone on silent and got to work. Laurel wasn’t wrong. It should be easy to get through tasks today without the guys in the office. If I could sneak out early and get back to my book, it wouldn’t be the worst thing.

Wednesday night, I sent my finished manuscript to my editor at nine and promptly passed out until the next morning. I woke up to three texts from Preston.

Preston

Did you see this? www.youtube.com/x7tU8LmP

I clicked on the link and saw the trailer for the new season of Survivor. I learned this week through texts that Preston binged old seasons in the evening, but only while he traveled, like a real weirdo.

Preston

The champions seasons are never my favorite, mostly because they give me the urge to cross reference their original seasons. It’s exhausting.

Please forget I ever told you that. It’s embarrassing and you could use it to jettison my future campaign if things between us go south.

I laughed out loud. Texts between Preston and I had regained that jokey cadence we’d lost after the couch purchasing incident. My stomach gave a nervous twinge at the thought of tonight. I presumed whatever his big surprise turned out to be would involve lights and encourage talking face-to-face. Preston Brandt was getting under my skin. There was no doubt about it.

My stomach twisted again, this time alerting me that nature was calling. This week had reached a point where anything I ate made me sick, no matter how safe it normally was for my system. Sometimes when I reached this stage, careful eating helped me get back on track. Other times, like this week, I entered a fuck it phase, and ate whatever sounded good and was convenient. As I cleansed the bathroom of this most recent encounter, I fully realized the error of that choice, given Preston would be back in this apartment with me tonight. Hopefully I could snap my system out of it with small meals and bland food choices.

The day turned out to be a real shitstorm in the professional realm as well. At his final campaign stop last night, Senator Marsden got into a shouting match with an opposition voter who interrupted his speech. Damage control took precedence most of the day, and we were scrambling to keep up with normal daily tasks.

“It’s after five, you know. You don’t have to be working so diligently. Senator Marsden is off on an emergency two-hour session with his kickboxing instructor, which should lull him to sleep for six hours, instead of his usual four.”

I smiled at my desk at the sound of Preston’s voice. Without looking up from the document I was editing, I said, “That’s rich coming from the man who admitted to regularly staying at the office past seven before he went and got himself engaged.” The smile widened as I took him in, all tall and handsome in his suit, leaning against the wall. His posture read tired, but his eyes sparkled.

“Birds of a feather, I guess,” he said, returning my smile.

“Guys, let’s goooo,” Laurel whined, appearing next to him. “Caitlin’s already there waiting for us and you know how long the line gets if you get there too long past six. Ineeda drink after today.”

I grabbed my coat and bag, following them out of the office. “I don’t know how long the line gets. Where are we going?”

“You’ll see,” Preston answered mysteriously before Laurel could get a word out.

We entered the tunnel like we were heading back to the Capitol from the Russell Building, but then took a turn I hadn’t noticed before. I looked all around, trying to guess which direction we were headed, hoping they weren’t actually going to murder me as part of the second week on the job hazing.

“The Library of Congress?” I asked, as we started climbing a set of stairs at the end of the tunnel. A sign overhead showed our arrival at the building. “But isn’t it closed? It’s after five.”

“It’s Live! at the Library on Thursdays,” Laurel explained excitedly. “You get to be in the building after dark. They still do the tours and such, but there are adult beverages and music. It’s fun.”

We walked through the metal detectors and checked our coats and bags. I took in the marble and architecture of the building, craning my neck every which way. We climbed another set of stairs to the main level, where a crowd of people waited in line in the central open area, under the painted ceiling.

“Bless her. She got in line when I told her we were walking over. Let’s go.” Laurel led the way toward a pretty black woman in a red dress and tights, giving her a peck as she stepped close. “Caitlin, this is Jax, Preston’sfiancéeI was telling you about.” The emphasis on the word gave away that Caitlin also knew the truth.

“It’s nice to meet you,” I said, holding out my hand to shake hers. “I can only imagine the energy this one brings into a home, considering how she is at the office.”

“I’m a fucking delight, thank you,” Laurel said, snaking her arm around Caitlin’s waist. “Plus, my energy means I’m great in bed.”

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