Page 117 of Not the Plan

“She could. But I’d be wary if a temporary aide called me about something this scandalous.”

“Good point.” He stood. “I’m going home.”

“But, Daniel…we have at least three other bills up tomorrow. Don’t you want to—”

“Nope. And you don’t either. You have much more pressing business,” he said.

“I do?”

“Yep. Talk to him. Hear him out. I promise it’ll be worth it.”

—

For the second weekday in a row, Isadora found herself at home much earlier than expected.Well, tonight it’s just six, not four like yesterday.She reached down the side of her nightstand to retrieve her personal-phone charger. She’d just hung up, having sworn to RJ that she’d let Karim in. At first, she’d been irritated that he wanted to come by without asking, but RJ was right, he wasn’t trying to be the hero. He was respecting her autonomy, bringing her what he’d found so that she could decide how to proceed. And to do that, he had to bring it to her place.

She didn’t understand her life anymore. Until Karim waltzed into it, things had been clear. The path had been evident. The goal was D.C. by way of Daniel’s presidency, and her emotions had stayed well compartmentalized where they didn’t cause any trouble. But now, down was up and up was down. Daniel was unconcerned with becoming president. He even put her love life on the same level as a multiyear goal. And her heart was running amok.This is what I get for letting myself feel. Destroying my dreams and ending up hurt and alone. Just like my mother.She’d avoided crying over Karim that day because she’d been in a rage, trying to manage her regular work while figuring out how to stop Julian. And now, she was stuck, waiting around for that six-foot-plus, broad-shouldered, green-eyed demigod to show up again. On their first flight together, she’d wondered what his lips tasted like. Now she knew. She’d been jealous of the seat-back tray and his magazine because they knew what his touch felt like. Now she knew.

She fell back on her bed. Daniel, Glenna, and RJ were all pushing her toward him, telling her to give him a chance, that he and her dreams weren’t mutually exclusive. And that he loved her. She hoped that they were right, because now she knew: She was in love with him. Her doorbell rang.

I’m not ready to see him.She was on her feet and headed to the door before she’d made the decision. She swallowed hard and wrapped her arms around herself to keep from shaking. At the door, she took a deep breath.

“Hi,” he said, barely making eye contact over the rim of his glasses.

“Hi…yourself,” she managed. “Will you come in?”

A smile crashed across his face, full of relief, as he stepped inside.

“Did you think I wasn’t going to let you in?” she asked, closing the door.

He looked down, hands in his pockets.

“I wasn’t sure what to think,” he said. Then he peeked back up at her.

The shyness he always hid was on full display. The contrast with his virility melted her heart while lighting her body on fire. It got difficult to breathe.

“RJ called,” she said, sliding her hands into the back pockets of her jeans. “He cleared you a path.”

Karim nodded, smiling. “RJ has been…an unexpected friend,” he said. His voice was already heating her up.

“Um.” She swallowed and rubbed the back of her neck. “Yeah, he’s a good guy. He said you went to Ike’s? Oh! Sorry! Why don’t we sit down?” He nodded and followed her to the couch. She sat first, perched on the edge of the seat. He did the same.

“Do you have your laptop?” he asked.

“Yeah.” She got it from her bedroom, opened it, and put it on the table. He pulled a blue USB key out of his pocket and plugged it in.

“I’m sorry it took me so long to get here,” he said, focused on what he was doing. “Peter and Julian wanted to celebrate after the insurance bill passed. Had to play along.”

“Thank you,” she whispered, unable to look at him. “For what you’re doing.”

“It’s my pleasure, Isadora,” he said. His voice had that deep, soft tone to it. It was the same right after they’d made love, whenhe was relaxed, and they were talking about nothing, and he was caressing her skin. She let out a heavy breath, meeting his gaze.

His cheeks tinged pink, and he looked down at his hands. “This morning, Julian brought me into his office to show me what he had on the other senators. After I got over the shock, I realized those might not have been the only videos. So, I went to Ike’s while they were in session after lunch and…convinced the owner to give me what he had on Julian and Peter.” He’d leaned into the couch, sliding his hands under his thighs.

“How did you convince him?” she asked, confused at his position.

“Hmm.” He looked at his lap and then back at her. “I told him Julian lied to him. Not far-fetched, so he believed me. And then I gave him a different USB key with a video-eating virus.”

“You didn’t! Karim, that’s awesome. I’d have been so focused on getting the videos I wouldn’t have thought of destroying the others,” she said.

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