The Perfect Candidate (8 page)

“I got your message about missing dinner tonight, Michael,” Norm said, not sounding terribly happy.  “You want to explain that one to me?  It’
s important to the campaign to get these men on side!
”

“Well, I was talking to a few important people over here in Detroit,” Michael argued mildly.  He didn’
t want to get into this debate with Norman again. 
“
How are things going where you are anyway?
”

“Apart from a few pissed off businessmen?  Good, great actually, and the interviews your new girlfriend gave were perfect.  They were so good in fact that I could have left Miss Kendall to manage here on her own and gone to Detroit with you and had you back for dinner!”

“So tell me about these interviews,” Michael asked, unwilling to rise to the bait.  “What did she say?” 
What was she wearing? 
He thought, but kept that question to himself.

“Have you got your laptop on you?”

“Do I go anywhere without it?”

“Well I can email you a couple of film clips then.”

“Okay, sounds good…” Michael talked to Norm for a few more minutes, outlining what needed to be done the next day, before they said goodbye and Michael tried not to too obviously unpack his laptop.

He booted it up, and then went immediately to check his emails.  Michael downloaded the files that Norm had just sent him, and tried not to smile when Ashley
’
s image flickered up on screen.

She looked gorgeous, softer than she had done that morning, but not as obviously sexy as the night before.  He listened and watched, and then winced, as the interviewer asked her a question about his “playboy” reputation.  Norm was right though; Ashley had everything under control.

“Michael spends
so
much of his time dedicating his life to the party and working for the country that he just hasn
’
t had time to build a proper relationship with a woman
…”
she paused and smiled shyly. 
“
Well until now.
”

Michael grinned back at her, and then caught himself doing so and stopped.  He wanted to see Ashley. He had said that he would call, but he wasn
’
t sure what the pretense was supposed to be.  He had thought about asking her to dinner, but now dinner wasn
’
t happening. He still needed to phone though; he had said that he would, and women tended to assume that anything a man
said
he was going to do he had
promised
to do.  Lord pity the man who failed to understand that fundamental fact!

He could call her later though.  Michael was guilty of wanting to have five minutes of peace and quiet.  It was so rare that he got any time to himself.  He couldn
’
t imagine how much worse it would be to be the President!  That was what he wanted though, and those were the sacrifices he was willing to make.  He had already sacrificed two marriages, dozens of friends and his dreams of fatherhood to fuel his ambition.  He wasn
’
t about to lose out now!

To Michael, it seemed as though he had hardly closed his eyes for a second before he was nudged awake and warned that the plane was landing in Chicago.  He had arranged for a hire car, not wanting to keep his chauffeur waiting around for hours, although he was a
little
uncertain of the
exact
way home.  It couldn
’
t possibly be that difficult though!

Half an hour later, Michael gave thanks for being about to recognize the street that he was driving down.  Unfortunately it wasn
’
t his own road, but at least he knew where he was- one right turn away from Ashley
’
s house.  Michael grinned and flicked on his indicator.

Well why not?

6

Ashley helped herself to another slice of pineapple, mushroom and bacon pizza, took a bit and perused her notes on Michael
’
s next speech.  She was sitting on the floor in the middle of her living room in her pajamas, trying to catch up on the work she had fallen behind with that afternoon when Norm had dragged her out of the office to take part in half a dozen interviews! 

Ashley really didn
’
t know how she was meant to be able to keep on top of her own work at the same time as playing Michael
’
s girlfriend!

She glanced up with a frown when a car
’
s headlight shone into the room- that was odd, she usually couldn
’
t tell if a car was driving by outside.  The house was too far back from the road.  Curious, Ashley placed her piece of pizza down and padded over to the window.  She gasped at what she saw- Michael!  Michael was getting out of the car that had just driven up her driveway!

Ashley watched, in something of a daze, as he walked all the way to the front door, and then still jumped when the doorbell rang.

She couldn
’
t answer the door in her night clothes!  She glanced down relieved to discover that, at least, there weren’t any holes in the flannel bottoms as well as with the fact that she had never gotten around to taking her make-up off. The doorbell rang again.  Chewing her bottom lip anxiously, Ashley darted out in the hallway to answer it
.

Michael rocked back on his heels, and waited for the front door to open, while he wondered if he had done the right thing.  He wasn
’
t typically spontaneous, and he was just starting to think of a number of reasons why turning up on Ashley
’
s doorstep at this time of the night might not be the best idea he had ever had
…
but then the door opened, and Michael wouldn
’
t have wanted to be anywhere else in the world.

“Michael?”

He didn
’
t immediately answer.  He
couldn
’
t
immediately answer.  He was too busy drinking in the sight of the vision in front of him.  Ashley was wearing a pair of adorably rumpled pajamas, her glasses were off and her hair was piled up on top of her head, just begging to be tugged free of its clips
…
  Michael cleared his throat.

“I told you I’
d be in touch,
”
he smiled.

“You said you’
d give me call!  I thought you meant on the phone!
”
Ashley cried, and then her eyes narrowed. 
“
You
did
mean on the phone.
”

Michael shrugged his shoulders sheepishly, trying not to pay too much attention to the fact that Ashley didn
’
t seem to wearing a bra.  Of course, once he
had
noticed that fact it was rather impossible to forget.

“I was driving passed.  It seemed silly not to stop and say hello.”

Ashley glanced over his shoulder. 
“
Are you alone?
”
she asked.  Michael nodded. 
“
Well, I suppose you
’
ll have to come in,
”
she sighed, but then shot him a cheekily little smile and stepped back to let him pass.

“Where are we?” Michael asked, wandering down the hall, glancing around as he went.  “In here?” he asked, ducking in his head into a room on his left.  The door was open and the light was on… and the scent of pizza filled the air.  Michael’
s stomach growled, loudly.

“Hungry?” Ashley giggled.  “Confess, you stopped by to see if you could beg a meal didn’
t you?
”
she teased.

Michael looked sheepish. 
“
I came to see you, and find out how your day
’
s been,
”
he assured her, but he knew his mouth was practically watering.  If he didn
’
t at least have a
morsel
to eat he was going to start drooling. 
“
Although, now that you mention it, I
haven
’
t
eaten since breakfast,
”
he confessed, gazing at her pitifully.

“What was breakfast?”

“A cup of coffee,” Michael sighed, laying it on thick.

“Fine!” Ashley laughed.  “Help yourself to my supper.”  Ashley had hardly finished speaking before Michael picked up a slice of steaming pizza.  He wolfed it down in a few bites.

“Thanks,” he murmured.  “I really needed that!”

“No problem,” Ashley laughed.  “Can I get you a drink?”

No, but I wouldn
’
t mind dessert,
he thought, eyeing Ashley
’
s figure again.  There was something wickedly arousing about seeing her like this and knowing that this was what she would look like when she crawled into bed.  What he wouldn
’
t give to crawl in with her!

“Michael?”

“A glass of water would be great thanks,” he smiled, hoping it might to the trick of cooling down his suddenly over-hot body.

“Are you sure that’
s all you want?
”
Ashley asked. 
“
I can get you something stronger if you
’
d like?
”

“Not unless you’
d also like to offer me a bed for the night?
”
Michael chuckled, letting just a hint of suggestion creep into his voice.  Ashley must have heard it, because her cheeks flushed. 
“
I
’
ll just had a glass of water,
”
he grinned, saving her. 
“
I have to drive home, and I don
’
t think it would do the campaign any good if I was pulled over.
”