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Not that he could ever let on that anything exhausted hi did He had followed in his father’s footsteps, and they were big shoes to fill At least Brady believed that he could do it He had been one of those kids hen asked what he wanted to be when he grew up, had answered without pause, "The President of the United States" That dream had never faded, and luck seeet hih this election He just hadn’t anticipated Liz She was the one gaoddaet her out of his head

Brady entered the ee and took a seat on a brown cushioned chair He leaned forith his ars He had about fifteen e before all of his supporters, staff, and press He wanted those fifteen ht…the rest of the can would be without a moment of peace

He typed in Liz’s nues not to know it

Hey, are you in the crowd?

Liz’s response was almost immediate Yes, I’m here with my boss

Brady frowned Her boss He was sure she didn’t iven her the research assistant position, which

Brady clenched and unclenched his fists a few tier overpower hi her what she wanted, but he couldn’t do anything about it right now

And then the fact that she had run to someone else…just infuriated him She said that it wasn’t like that, but still Despite it all, he still wanted to be with her He still really wanted to give her what she asked of him

I have some time and wanted to see you

Heather will flip her shit if she saw et you in any sort of trouble This is a big day for you

He wished he could tell her what he was really thinking--that he wished she were the wo out on that podium with, that he wanted her to stand by his side, that he loved her But he couldn’t proive her false hope for a life he couldn’t offer her right now He was a man of the state, and he couldn’t just…fall in love Not like this Not on the cae his career

Relationships were about compromise, and he couldn’t do that He couldn’t con, or the country for anyone…not even Liz Not even if he wanted to…

At least you’ll be out in the crowd I’ll find you froe

I think it’ll be really hard for you to find me I’m with the press You have your work cut out for you

Airplanes, baby I’ll find you

Brady waited for her response, knowing that the ti away faster than he would have liked He was ready for his speech, ready towith Liz made him want time to stand still

That was how he always felt with her Tih She was always just out of his grasp

I have no doubts that you’ll findonstage

Always Brady shook his head at that word Alas a long ti to be a busy can…

He didn’t even knohy he had sent her that Did he just want to instigate this conversation? He couldn’t help pressing her buttons and seeing how far he could push her She always rebounded, but how long could he keep it up? She wasn’t completely elastic There was some part of her that would crack and break if he pushed too hard

So as he even testing it? He needed her

I know, Brady I’ht now Just don’t forget, okay?

God! Why was he torturing her? How ether? He couldn’t seem to convince himself, so he felt the need to beat the words into her instead Whatever he n through to the end

Who are you trying to convince, Brady? You have a speech to give…I should probably let you go

Brady felt as if she had just hung up on him, yet they weren’t even on the phone He slid his phone back in his pocket and ground his teeth in frustration That godda he did made it worse Why had he fallen for her? Why couldn’t their relationship just have stayed exactly what it hen they started? Brady had ht He would tell her that he loved her, that he should have told her a long tiive her what she wanted He had been denying hih He needed her to know Once this was all said and done, he wanted to give her the world and ht after the primary She would need to know He would make her understand

The door to the room creaked open and Elliott’s head appeared in the doorway "Brady, it’s about that ti to be able to recover?" Elliott asked hi the door

"Recover fro out his suit He’d had someone pick hiotten it tailored, the thing fit perfectly "I just won the pri your reporter would be in your best interest" Brady narrowed his eyes "Yes, I know she’s in the crowd Yes, I know that you’ve still been seeing and talking to her"

"What’s your point, Elliott?" he asked His voice had a steely edge to it