Page 132 of Positively Pricked
Zane continued. "Yeah, I met her, but not in a room, if that's what you were told."
I tried to remember. Tiffany hadn't said it outright, but her implication had been pretty clear. I asked, "So, wheredidyou meet?"
"In my office.Withthe senator."
Hearing this, I was stupidly pleased. "Really?"
Zane nodded. "And you wanna know what they wanted?"
"What?"
"Money for his campaign."
Now, I was even more curious. "Did you give it to him?"
"Hell no. The guy's an asshole."
Since Zane was an expert in that department, I didn't bother arguing. "So you declined on what? Some sort of moral grounds?"
"No. I declined, because he's a shitstorm waiting to happen. It would be a piss-poor investment, don't you think?"
I didn't know what to think. But it gave me a pretty good idea why Tiffany and the senator were here at all. Probably, he was still trolling for money.
And as far as Tiffany? Well, I knew what she was trolling for. And to my extreme annoyance, I discovered that I didn't like it.
When I said nothing in response, Zane said, "Satisfied?"
Was I? I'd be lying if I didn't admit that I felt at least a little better, but it didn't change anything. Not really.
And in truth, I couldn't help but wonder why I'd asked about Tiffany at all. After all, she wasn't the one who'd eaten my proverbial dinner.
And yet, in a crazy, twisted way, it did reinforce what I'd known all along. There were way too many women in Zane's life. IfIcouldn’t keep track, how on Earth could he?
I still hadn't answered his question. Was I satisfied? No. But he had answered all ofmyquestions, and he'd been a pretty good sport about it too.
Finally, I managed to say, "I guess so."
"Good. Now it's your turn to answer."
"Answer what?"
"My question. Did you quit?"
It was a simple question. But for the life of me, I couldn’t come up with a simple answer. My own crazy mixed-up feelings aside, I had no idea how I'd get home if I decided to cut and run.
Oh sure, I could book a flight, but how much wouldthatcost? If I were smart, I'd save my pennies, especially if I was soon to be unemployed.
When I made no response, Zane looked away and muttered, "Fucking Teddy."
"Wait, what does he have to do with this?"
Zane returned to his gaze to mine. "Lemme ask you something. Who do you think sent Maven?"
"No one."
He gave me a look. "You sure about that?"
"Well, you two obviously had dinner plans."
