Campaigning for Love (14 page)

Chapter 13

T
hree red lights on her way to his apartment complex didn’t do anything to cool her temper. When she walked into the lobby, the bellman looked up. “Can I help you, ma’am?”

“I’m here to see Nick Delaney.”

“Yes, ma’am. Is he expecting you?”

“He should be.”

The man glanced down at his desk and scratched his head. “He didn’t call down and let me know anyone was coming by.”

She exhaled slowly to calm her raging blood pressure. There was no reason to subject an innocent bystander to the wrath meant for Nick—he deserved the full load. “My name is Katherine Harper. I’m Citizen of the Year and Mr. Delaney’s number-one competition in the race for city council. We have each other on speed dial. Believe me, he’ll see me.” Her smile was feminine yet feral.

The man hesitated, then shrugged as if it wasn’t worth the fight. Maybe she had more charm than she thought. He pointed her toward the bank of elevators and provided Nick’s apartment number.

At his door, she pressed her finger to the buzzer and let it squawk until he responded.

“Who is it?”

“Why don’t you open up and find out?”

He immediately snatched the door open with what she could only describe as a befuddled expression. “Katherine?”

“In the flesh, you egotistical, domineering, aggravating martyr wannabe.”

“Huh?”

She pushed past him and stalked into the center of his living room. With her fists anchored on her hips, she leveled a menacing glare on him, ready for battle. “Are you crazy?”

He turned toward her with that look still on his face and asked in an infuriatingly calm voice, “Kat, what are you doing here?”

“What am I doing here? That’s good. Like you don’t know. I’m here because your father just informed me you plan to pull out of the election Monday morning. Is that true?”

“My father? When did you speak to my father?”

“Stop countering my questions with questions. I want answers and you’re going to give them to me—right now.” She threw her hands in the air and started pacing around the room. “You really intend to withdraw?”

“Yeah, I do. And what business is it of yours what I do?” He folded his arms across his chest in a defiant stance that made her bristle even more.

“If the reason you’re chickening out is because you think you might hurt my feelings, it is definitely my business, Nicky Boy.”

“What do you mean by Nicky Boy? And I’m not chickening out.” His voice rose until it clashed with hers.

She rolled her eyes and gave him a patronizing scan from head to toe with a doubtful smirk. “That’s what it sounds like to me.”

“Well, it’s not.” He growled and moved forward until he stood towering over her. “And frankly, I don’t appreciate you storming your way in here at this time of night, yelling at me.”

She straightened, bringing her face closer to his. “Got company?”

“No, I don’t have company.” Then, with an incredulous look on his face: “My dad really called you?”

She let out a long-suffering sigh. “Yep. After you told him you were wimping out, he went to see Uncle Charles. Their solution was to call me.” She poked him in the chest with a sharp fingernail. “You can’t quit.”

“I can if I want to.” He glared down at her.

“But why would you want to? You’ve always dreamed of going into politics. Now is the perfect time for you to do it. Are you afraid you’ll lose to me?”

Apparently, the word “afraid” sparked the competitor in him. “No, I’m not afraid I’ll lose to you!”

Sudden awareness of the warmth of his skin and the beat of his heart pulsing against her fingertip caught her off guard. She snatched her finger away from his chest. “Are you afraid you’ll beat me and I’ll be upset?”

He stepped away from her and dropped down on the couch. “Yes, I care about you. In fact, I care more about you than winning the election. If I have to choose, I’d rather lose the election than you.”

His words wrapped around her in a gentle caress that cooled the heat of her temper as fast as a breeze after an unexpected spring shower. She sat down across from him in a suede recliner. “Well, I’d feel cheated if I won the seat because you withdrew. How could I be sure the voters really wanted me?” She fiddled with the magazine on his coffee table.

“There will be other council seats. I’ll run next term.”

“No,” she argued. “You should run now. The city needs someone like you. You don’t let yourself get bogged down in the here and now. You look at the big picture and find solutions for the long term. Pemberly needs that. They need you.”

He gave her a lopsided smile. “Be careful, Counselor. You’re giving me some good stuff to use in my campaign ads.”

“Does that mean you’ll use them against me and stay in the race?”

He exhaled a long breath. “I’ll stay in the race. If I win, it’s your fault,” he warned, pointing a finger at her.

“Oh, I hope so. I really do.” She paused in the doorway and winked. “I’ll see you ’round.” She walked out with her shoulders straight and her ponytail swinging.

* * *

He stared at the door after it closed behind her. This was the first time she’d made a grand exit that left
him
rattled instead of the windows. He leaned back on the sofa and closed his eyes. Slowly realization came and peace filled him. She didn’t want him to quit. Why, he didn’t know. But he’d stay in the race because it’s what she wanted him to do.

At the basketball game the next morning, Nick was warming up with Jeremy. He lunged for an underthrown pass and caught a glimpse of shimmering black at the edge of the court. The ball sailed past him and he landed with a loud thud, sliding across the floor before he scrambled up with as much finesse as he could manage after having the wind knocked out of him. He sent a self-deprecating smile and a wave to Abby and Katherine where they stood gawking at his lack of grace.

Retrieving the ball he’d missed, Nick dribbled it as he walked over to them. “Good morning, ladies. Nice shirts.” Their black T-shirts sported sparkling silver-colored rhinestones that spelled out P-a-n-t-h-e-r-s in big cursive script.

“These old things?” Abby pulled at her sleeve before giving Nick a sly smile.

Katherine didn’t speak, but kept her eyes on him. Even though he directed his comments to Abby, his gaze rested on her. She squirmed under the obvious attention. “I couldn’t find any pom-poms,” she said with a straight face.

“Yeah, I’ve heard they’re pretty scarce. I think the girls made their own.” He maintained a somber face but couldn’t hide the twinkle of mischief in his eyes.

Abby looked at Katherine. “Am I missing something?”

Katherine broke eye contact with him first. “Uh, no. It’s just a little joke. Between us.” Katherine turned to him. “So, ah, you’re good this morning?”

“I’m great. I told Jeremy I slept like a baby.”

“That’s good.”

Abby continued to eye the two of them curiously until Jeremy’s arrival distracted her. Nick took advantage of the lull in conversation to test this new awareness he and Katherine had of each other. “I’m going to the Big Brothers Big Sisters banquet Monday night. Would you like to come with me?”

Before she could answer, he shifted the ball he held to his other hand and took hold of her arm to lead her away from the others. “I know you’re going to the banquet, but would you like to go with me, as my date?” He held his breath, taking a leap of faith.

Instead of the “no” he thought she’d give him, she beamed a smile as bright as the sun. “I’d love to. I have to be there a little early for a sound check. If you can pick me up at five, that gives us plenty of time.”

“Perfect.” He dribbled the ball he’d been holding in his hand, but couldn’t stop watching her nibble on her lower lip. With his mission accomplished, he needed to leave before she changed her mind. “I have to go warm up. I’m one of the starters.”

She smiled again. “I know. Good luck. I’ll be cheering for you—I mean, the team.”

He walked away with a sloppy grin plastered on his face that matched hers. Yep, he was definitely growing on her.

* * *

The Monday session of family court was different. Katherine was used to frequent changes in counsel for the state, but she missed Nick. She caught herself looking across the aisle several times, expecting to see him. She admonished herself for moping and forced her attention back to the case they were discussing.

Mrs. Zimmerman didn’t object to any of her suggestions. It made the hearing proceed much faster, yet time barely crept by. Katherine checked her watch every few minutes, going over her schedule for the afternoon in her head.

“Since we have a busy schedule on Thursday, I’m going to dismiss for the day. Both of you come prepared to discuss the audit Family Services has done on the list of files I ordered sent to your offices. Mrs. Zimmerman, I realize this is your first week in my court. If you have any questions, call my office and my clerk will assist you.”

Katherine signaled her goodbye to the new woman with a nod of her head and rushed out the door. She had twenty minutes to make it across town or she’d be late for a meeting with Corinne Hightower and Abby. As she rushed out of the courthouse, she almost plowed into a man on his way inside. He caught her by her upper arms, bringing her to a halt right before she wiped her nose on his tie.

“Hey, where’s the fire?” a familiar voice asked.

Glancing up, she offered a sheepish grin. Regaining her balance, she straightened her suit jacket. “Hello, Nick. Sorry about that.”

“Where are you off to at full speed?”

“I—I have a meeting with Abby.” She glanced at her watch and bit her lip. “I really have to go or I’ll be late. I’m sorry.” She squeezed his hand before she took off again. “But I’ll see you in four hours.”

He laughed and called out to her quickly retreating back, “That’s three hours and forty-five minutes, Miss Harper.”

Seeing Nick—no, running into Nick—was a good thing. She needed reassurance her decision was the right one and looking into those beautiful blue eyes worked. Now all she had to do was convince Abby and Corinne she knew what she was doing. Taking a deep breath, she opened the door leading into the reception area of Abby’s office. Corinne was on the sofa flipping through a magazine. She looked up and smiled in greeting.

“Hello, Future Councilwoman. How was your day in court?”

Her greeting brought Katherine up short. “Aren’t you getting ahead of yourself?”

“Oh no, I’m thinking positive. That’s why I said ‘Future’ Councilwoman.”

Katherine bobbed her head as if she understood. “Okay.”

Abby breezed in through the glass door from the corridor. “Hi, ladies. I had a meeting down the hall and we ran over. Come on back.”

Abby took her place behind her desk and motioned Katherine and Corinne to the two chairs facing her before she became all business. “Thanks for fitting this into your schedules. I know both of you are as busy as I am, but we really need to go over our campaign strategy since the election is in a few days.”

“Abby, I want to thank you again for heading up Katherine’s campaign,” Corrine fawned. “You have a true knack for this. You should consider starting your own consulting firm.”

Laughing, Abby shook her head. “I’m afraid not. If I did that, my father would insist I run his campaigns. He’s a bear when he’s on the campaign circuit.”

Katherine sat quietly while the other two planned. She let them decide which aspects of the campaign required the most attention. Abby was the one who noticed her lack of input. “Katherine, this is your campaign. Feel free to speak up if you don’t like something we’ve lined up for you.”

“You two are doing fine. I’m just trying to take it all in.”

Corinne prattled on with her day planner spread across Abby’s desk while they agreed on a luncheon and a guest appearance on a local government news channel, and interviews with reporters from the newspaper. Katherine jotted down notes in a diary until Corinne slapped her calendar closed. “Well, ladies, as fun as this has been, I need to get started on arranging all these big ideas.” She smiled, shook hands with Abby and patted Katherine on the back before she left.

Abby cocked her head to the side and eyed Katherine. “Want to tell me what’s wrong?”

Katherine continued doodling on her notepad but peeked up through her lashes. “I don’t know what you mean.”

Responding with a snort, Abby rested her chin in her palm with her elbows propped on her desk. “For someone who wants to make such a difference in our little ol’ town, you sure didn’t give much input regarding the plans for what you’ll have to do in order to be elected.”

Katherine pressed her lips together and straightened in her chair. “Maybe I’m questioning if I’m the best person for the job.”

Abby’s expression changed from gentle concern to intrigue, and she scooted forward in her chair. “And
who
would be the best person, in your opinion?”

Her cheeks betrayed her with a heated blush, and Katherine shrugged.

“Uh-huh. I see.”

“You always say that. What exactly do you see?”

“I see someone who’s getting a little moon-eyed over her competition.”

“I am not moon-eyed.”

“Call it whatever you like. You sigh like one of the cheerleaders when he walks into the room.”

“I do not. And besides, that would be the pot calling the kettle black, don’t you think?” Katherine challenged.

“What do you mean?”

“Oh, come off it, Abby. You couldn’t be more gaga over Jeremy if you two had been high school sweethearts.”

Abby shook her head. “We discussed the finance budget during the entire drive home from the movie.”

Katherine’s conscience pricked her. “I’m sorry. I was teasing and I shouldn’t have.” She frowned. “I’m not qualified to give anyone relationship advice. I’m—well, I don’t know what I am.” She rose and moved about the room, coming to a halt beside a bookshelf near the window. What could she say that would express the gamut of emotions swirling inside her? Taking a deep breath, she turned toward Abby. “I don’t feel the way I did about Nick, or even his father, anymore.”

Then suddenly the frustration, confusion, admiration and love—yes, she couldn’t deny it to herself anymore—welled up and poured out of her. “Did you know he put Stevie Mills’s grandmother in touch with an organization that offers prepaid college funds and another one that provides housekeeping services to the elderly?”