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“Don’t lose hope. The election is months away. Anything could happen.”
“No, it can’t.” Her expression begged him not to placate her. “I’m scared.”
He squeezed her hand, wishing he could whisk her away from the danger and keep her forever. “You’ll get through this.”
She bit her lip. “I’ve been trying so hard not to think about what’s happening with the negotiations, but it’s taking so long…”
“Don’t borrow trouble.” But hadn’t he been thinking the same thing?
“You don’t know Winston like I do. If he’s dragging his feet, he’s got some shady strategy to minimize the damage and swing public perception in his favor. I keep trying to imagine what, but I’m not devious like that.”
Matt didn’t know anyone who operated at that political level, and it worried him. Still, he wanted to put her at ease. “You don’t know what’s going on. We need to wait and see what the senator comes back with.”
“No” She shook her head, fixing the knot of her hair into a loose bun when it fell around her shoulders. “We need to proactively mitigate whatever weaknesses we have now. I’ve been mentally shoving this worry aside. I’d rather be with you and forget the rest of the world, but I can’t afford to avoid this. It’s too dangerous.”
As much as Matt ached to take all her problems from her shoulders, he feared she was right.
Deep in thought, he reached for the bar of homemade soap nearby. “Stand.”
Madison did, water dripping from her peachy-fair skin, making her look like a goddess. He smoothed a palm down her back and over her taut ass, loving her beckoning curves. He followed suit by foaming the soap, then palming his way over her shoulders, across her distended nipples, and down her flat abdomen.
Fuck, he was already hard for her again. It shouldn’t be possible after this much sex, but one touch and he ached.
He ignored his erection and focused on her, lifting her foot to the edge of the tub to gently clean her swollen pussy. She stiffened, letting out a little hiss.
He slowed his touch. “Madison…”
At the warning note in his voice, she shook her head as if to reassure him. “I’m fine.”
He cocked a brow. “You need to tell me when you’re this sore.”
“It doesn’t matter. I want you.”
God, she really was made for him. “I want you, too, but not if I’m going to hurt you.”
“The sting will be gone in a few hours.”
He nuzzled her neck. “I think you’re lying to me. Maybe that pretty backside of yours needs a paddling. There are implements in Jack’s dungeon we haven’t tried yet…”
“I didn’t think that was possible.”
“Oh, it is. And maybe it’s time I violated that ass, too.” It would solve the condom situation, at least for a few hours.
She closed her eyes, her body seeming to melt against him. “Matt…you’re distracting me.”
Normally, that wouldn’t be a bad thing. Now? She was right; there was too much at stake. They had problems to solve.
“Sorry. Tell me what you’re expecting Pershing to come back with?”
Her sigh was a combination of reluctance and resolution. “In exchange for a divorce after the midterms, he’ll want a week or two of my time in the fall. The campaign stops at big, family-oriented community events were already in the works before I left. They’ll hit most of the donor dinners and galas without me, which is great. I might get roped into a speech or two geared at teachers’ organization or a ladies’ rally, probably just before the elections. In the past, I’ve accompanied Winston’s wife, Agatha, to those. But she does most of the talking. I mostly nod and smile.”
That didn’t sound horrible. As long as she didn’t have to be alone with Todd, almost anything to gain her freedom was bearable. But Matt intended to make sure Madison was protected. “Anything else?”
“I don’t know. I expect that Todd—not me—will be allowed to file quietly for divorce a couple of weeks after the elections. I’ll be blamed, of course. Don’t be surprised if they out you as my lover again, and I’m dragged through the mud as an unfaithful, gold-digging whore. But after the initial bomb of negative press, things should calm down. Winston and the rest of the family will probably vacation somewhere, pretending to lick their wounds after my ‘shocking betrayal.’ But then I’ll finally have a life around the New Year.” She shrugged. “At least that’s what I hope.”
“What are you not telling me?” Because there was something; he heard it in her voice.
She sat and rinsed the soap from her body with a sigh. “Todd is the wild card. Winston indulges him. I worry my husband will demand some punishment for what I’ve done. He has a vindictive streak, and the esteemed senator doesn’t take kindly to slights against the family, especially those aimed at his do-no-wrong grandson.”
