Page 10 (2/2)

"I do have one question," he breathed into her ear

"U her throat "What’s that?" Where were her reporter instincts? Why wasn’t she pushing him away? Why couldn’t she keep her heart under control?

"I was curious how you were able to speak so strongly about et to knowrecord It was an accurate portrayal," she responded unapologetically His thu away her defenses

"You should know that voting records don’t always tell the whole story," he said with a set to know a person before judging theeyou are"

"So, you think I’?" he asked with a smirk that said he already kneas

She hu between the in

Brady’s head tilted doard her ear, and he whispered, "I’et to know me Is that so bad?"

It wasn’t Actually, with hison this dance floor

They left the sentence hanging between the ended

Liz dropped her arms to her sides reluctantly, and was surprised to find she actually wanted another dance She had to agree with Brady; it was better when she was in his arht had been placed on her shoulders when he let her go But that wasn’t what she was here for She wasn’t here to get to know Brady Maxwell She was here to make connections and to make her time this summer at the paper tre opportunities seriously tonight, then she would be in for an upward battle the rest of the cao back tomore than to stay

"I think you’ll stay with ood idea?" Liz couldn’t help but wonder how it ether Not that she believed many people here either kneho she was or knew that she had written an article They were probably safe, but she never felt like it surrounded by politicians and reporters

"I think it’s the only idea I care about," he told her as a matter of fact

She sed hard She knehat his intentions had been that night in VIP Of course she had known, but without hiined how alluring and powerful his appeal was

"I know I’ you from your cheesecake," Brady said with a s you out of ive you," Liz whispered If she could be more shocked than she already was, she didn’t think it was possible He was so forward…so different frouys she was used to She was sure that was part of his charm, but how could she resist it?

It worried her a bit--a very little bit at the moment--that she didn’t even want to resist him She had never had the iirl side of her college friends Liz’s world was rooted in reality, and she had always liked it that way But she was starting to think that was only because she had neverat her with an unrivaled intensity She had the odd feeling that Brady Maxas seducing her He had said that he wanted her at the club, but this…this was entirely different This was hi victi eyes, and knowing s his hand up her ar shivers up her spine

"Yes?" Her eyes fluttered closed at the electricity flowing through her body at his touch They opened back up to stare into his eyes, and she felt her walls cruo," he said, lust evident in his voice

Even knowing it could be a bad idea, she nodded "Couldn’t agree more"

"I have a li a small slip of paper out of his pocket "I’ll meet you there"

Liz took the paper out of his hand and without another thought veered toward the door This was not like her It was not like her at all One-night stands weren’t in her repertoire Yet here she was leaving the Jefferson-Jackson gala that she was supposed to be working for networking contacts to get in Senator Brady Maxwell III’s limo

How had her world flipped upside down so easily?

Chapter 8

NO ONE ELSE KNOWS

Liz was leaving the gala She was actually leaving

She took a deep breath and kept her feettoward the valet station She had to force herself not to look over her shoulder at the party she was leaving behind The evening was just beginning and she alking out on the festivities

It was deserted outside, and Liz briefly wondered if anyone would notice her absence No one had known she would be in attendance, and she wasn’t a naoing to be here, and she didn’t want to think about hiher and strode to the valet

"Can I help you, miss?" he asked with a siven her and waited as he called for the liht about it too et into that liret it forever

She wasn’t prone to rash actions, but so about Brady made her insides flop Her body heated despite the weather being balmy, comfortable, and beautifully breezy She feltin the heat of her Ta black stretch limo pulled up to the valet and he motioned her over

"Here you are,the door open for her

"Thank you," Liz said, sliding onto the black leather seat The door closed behind her and cast her into di

She looked around, taken with the beautiful sleek interior An uncorked bottle of chane chilled in a bucket filled with ice A flat-screen TV hung against the back wall, and a fully stocked lasses took up a seat on the left

Liz had never been in a liet one for proht it was a waste of money They had taken his dad’s BMW instead And Brady had a liala event What a different world Liz found it ironic that this would be her first experience Victoria would die to know the details, but there was no way she could tell her

She knew that this was a bad idea…a really bad idea If anyone found out that she had slept with Brady, then she could lose all credibility as a journalist It would be career suicide for her The paper had been the only thing she had wanted and worked this hard for Maybe she shouldn’t even be here Maybe she should get out the other side and walk back to her car