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"I wasn’t requesting an apology"

"Then what?" she asked skeptically

"I washave you had this position?"

Liz narrowed her eyes "You’re co skills?"

"It was a fair question," he told her

"I know"

"Then why do you look like you lanced away fro, and out across the ht How had he even seen her in the growing radually shifted back to his, and she gripped the railing harder "I’"

"Why does it have to head anywhere?" he asked, scrutinizing her face

She blushed andinto his eyes "I didn’t…that’s not what I ht It seeyours"

Had he ad her question? Was this off the record? Had they ever clarified?

"See to have to answeranother step toward her His s her Brady Maxas teasing her

"I’d be happy to," she said boldly "It’s not like anyone is going to be writing an article about ood You don’t need to be in the papers Then everyone would know about you, and I think I prefer you here all to myself"

Her mouth went dry She had no words

"So," he said, deliberately reaching forward on the railing and sliding his thunited everywhere he touched her, and she felt her body reacting instantly to hiotten in that conference rooe He focused in on her, and she couldn’t breathe "Let’s start with your naht out of her, but she found her confidence within and answered, "Liz Liz Dougherty"

"Pleasure toher his hand

She placed her hand in his "Handshakes and kissin’ babies," she h it’s typically not this enjoyable"

"You seemed to enjoy yourself just fine today," she responded "What made you decide to run?"

"No, none of that," he said She hadn’t meant for it to come off as a reporter question, but it was her life, after all "I didn’t buy a reporter a drink I bought Liz Dougherty a drink And I want to knohen I can see you again"

Everything about the situation told her not to give in What good could come from that? She was a reporter and he was a politician she riting a story on They couldn’t ignore that

But for the life of her, she couldn’t do it

"You want to seeinto his pocket, pulled out his wallet, and extracted a business card He placed it in her palered the thick embossed paper It was an expensive card; that ain If you want to see ive me a call on that number It’s my personal line If you can’t reach et in contact with you," he said with a penetrating gaze that made her believe he would "I wish I could stay now, but I have some business to attend to"

She couldn’t call hiht for her professionalism or for her future career in journalism

Maybe when she was finally away from him, she wouldn’t feel as heated and desperate to be closer to hiers across her jawline, "you want to see ret it"

Could he read her mind?

"I’ll think about it," she whispered, entranced

"I look forward to your call," he said, releasing her chin

Her body was alreadyhis touch She hated that he left her with the option, but he had already stated what he wanted Noas up to her He wanted her to co He had this undeniable, uncontrollable pull on her that she had never experienced with another man He made her want to use this card

But she knew she never would

Chapter 5

MIXED SIGNALS

Liz walked in a trance back down the flight of stairs leading out of VIP Her hand was clutching the business card Brady had given her, between shaking fingers All of her attitude dissolved when she left, and she ondering what the hell had happened

Her feet hit the bottom of the stairs, and she exited the doorway back onto the one or if anyone had noticed her absence All she kneas that Brady Maxwell, a sitting State Senator, had said he wanted to see her again And what had she said? I’ll think about it Really? Was she out of her eous person she had ever laid eyes on, and the physical attraction she felt in his presence was off the charts She would have gone to the ends of the earth for him, and still somehow she had told hiood idea to see him, but now that she ay…it felt like a much worse idea not to see him

Liz tucked the business card carefully away in the pocket of her navy blazer and walked back to the table Her head was down as she approached, her mind lost on Brady He was all charm, and she shouldn’t have been surprised He was a politician, after all She just had never expected…hi head on her shoulders Her dad had always told her that It hy she had worked so hard in high school to get a full scholarship to Chapel Hill, and why she pushed herself at the paper to become a reporter It was the sairl, and that caused her to always be the one who ended things with her various boyfriends when she felt the relationship slipping She er than she should, but in the end, it was always her choice…it was always her Yet here she was, swept away by some politician