Chapter Twenty-Three
Josh
Kason had been wrong about me not needing a woman. I needed Reagan. I’d never been with a woman that I wanted and needed as much as her. Even though it didn’t say all that much about me, she was the first woman that I had ever been with that was equal parts beautiful and smart. I’d been with a lot of beautiful women, but I’d never been with anyone that could hold down a conversation with me for too long. I chose those women because they were easier to walk away from. I could spin them lies and tell them why it didn’t work out, and still walk away as the better man. I had never been with a woman that had left me wanting more, that had left me thinking about her when she was not around. I’d slept with Reagan twice now, and both times had been incredible. I wasn’t sure if I was ever going to look at my office in the same way.
It was early Monday morning, too early for the rest of the staff to be in, but I was certain that Reagan would be there. I imagined her sitting at her desk, her head down as she furiously scribbled notes. I couldn’t wait to see her again. We were going to have to keep things quiet, and professional, and wait until the campaign was over to be with one another again. But there was something about the secrecy that appealed to me, and it was nice to have something on my mind other than work for a change.
I walked straight to the kitchen to make myself a cup of coffee before heading into the office. I was sure that Reagan had been too busy to even make herself one, so I decided to make her one too. A quick coffee and maybe even a small peck on the lips before anyone else walked in.
I walked over to my office, two cups in hand, and almost stumbled when I saw that Reagan was not alone. She was sitting in my office with Ralph, and they both looked up at me in surprise when I walked in with two cups.
“Morning, early birds,” I said casually.
“Two coffees?” Ralph asked.
“Yeah. It’s going to be a busy day, and I figured I might as well just make two cups. Save time and all that. I need the caffeine,” I glanced quickly at Reagan so that she would see that the coffee was really meant for her. Judging by the hint of a smile playing on her face, I think she understood.
“Not for me? You knew we were meeting this morning before the crowd got in,” Ralph said. I had forgotten that I was supposed to meet with Ralph that morning.
I laughed. “Just kidding. Of course this cup is for you. Reagan do you want one too?”
“No thank you. I’ll get one later,” she said.
Ralph took the cup and frowned when he took the sip. “No sugar?”
“Sorry. Where’s my head? I made yours the same as mine,” I said. I was starting to feel flustered about the whole coffee situation.
Ralph didn’t seem to notice. He shook his head. “No, that’s okay. I have been meaning to try drinking this stuff without sugar for a long time now, and I keep caving in. Maybe I’ll start today.” He took a sip and grimaced. “I have no idea how you do this. Do you take sugar?” he asked Reagan.
“No way. I want my coffee to taste like coffee.”
“Here, take this one. I’ve already had a cup this morning, anyway. Thanks, though, Josh. That was nice of you.”
I watched as Reagan took the coffee. She shot me a small smile, and I felt glad that the coffee had finally gone into the right hands.
“Right, are you ready to get started on the meeting?” I said.
“Yes, today is a big day. Today is the day you’re going to speak at the women's activist group. If anything, today might be the hardest day yet. I’m not so sure you have their vote and it’s always the worst to speak at an event where people are against you. But, you’ve been doing so well so I’d say just carry on in the same vein and you should be fine.”
“Great. Do you have the details?”
“Yes, you’re leaving in an hour, and it takes about forty minutes to get there. I’ve hired a limo to get you, and Reagan will be coming with you.”
“She will?” I asked.
“Yes. She has some great ideas that she wants to run by you, and some important suggestion points. She’ll ride with you, and you can spend those forty minutes prepping for it.”
Not so long ago I would have balked at the suggestion and told Ralph that I didn’t need anyone to help me prepare for a talk. But things were a little different now. The thought of spending forty minutes alone with Reagan was very appealing to me.
“Sounds good. Thanks, Reagan. I could seriously use some coaching on this one.”
I saw that Ralph was looking at me strangely. He obviously expected me to complain. I laughed. “I’ve finally come to realize that Reagan knows her stuff way more than I do when it comes to these sorts of things.”
Ralph looked delighted. After all, he had been the one to hire her, so he probably took that as a compliment to himself.
Later that day, I climbed into the limo with Reagan. She looked at me and grinned, and I grinned right back at her. I knew we were both thinking the same thing. If it wasn’t for the driver, we’d have ripped each other’s clothes off right there. It took a lot for me to compose myself. There were a lot better things I could think of doing with my forty minutes. Reagan turned to face me.
“Okay, are you ready? We have forty minutes, and I have a lot of ideas to go through.”
Reagan was all business, and I appreciated that. If she had leaned in and kissed me, I was almost certain that I would’ve lost control. I needed her to be the one in control so that I could follow her lead. Thankfully she seemed to notice that and was every bit the professional. She got out her notebook and began running through all her ideas with me. She had a list of subjects that I should concentrate on, as well as topics that I should be avoiding.
“Wow, this is strict,” I said to her. “It’s not like the places I’m used to talking at.
She nodded. “Oh yeah. I’ve watched all the old talks that have happened with groups like this, and I know exactly what questions they might ask you, as well as what they like to hear and what they don’t like to hear. This is one of those talks that can go very wrong if you are not prepared. So, if things start going a certain way, then I just want you to address the question with confidence and smiles and move onto a safer topic. There are ways that you can do that easily without it looking like you are avoiding the conversation. And don’t worry, we’re going to run through them all. We’ve still got some time until we get there. Just stop me if you have any questions.”
Reagan ran through a few more scenarios with me, and by the time we arrived, I felt a bit nervous but also a lot more confident than I had before. I was grateful that we had spent time going through what might happen. Reagan’s theory of always being two steps ahead was exactly what I needed after that disaster conference with Kason. We said our hellos to all the people in charge, and then Reagan went to sit in the audience while I made my way up on stage. It was a small crowd, which is what she had told me it would be. A small crowd meant that the talk was more intimate and that I would have to find a way to relate to them in a different way than I did with a large crowd. I saw a woman smiling up at me from the front row, and I knew immediately that I would be directing a lot of my attention on her. Hopefully her good mood would spread to the other women around her.
I began my talk and watched as the women all leaned in to listen attentively. For the most part, they seemed happy with what I was saying. There were a few people shaking their heads, but not as many as I had envisioned. There were ten minutes allocated for questions at the end, and I braced myself for the barrage that was sure to come. I was pleased to note that they were all questions that I had run through with Reagan. She’d somehow managed to foresee just what was going to happen, and I felt confident and prepared for each question. I was certain that if she hadn’t prepped me for this, I wouldn’t have been this calm in my answers. When the event was over, the audience broke into applause. I caught Reagan’s eye and grinned at her. She was clapping along with the rest of them.
We went to say our goodbyes to the people in charge, who seemed delighted that we had come to talk to their group. They told me that I was welcome to come by anytime again. When I climbed back into the limo, I looked at Reagan and exhaled deeply.
“I’m so glad that is over,” I said.
“Josh, that went so well!” she said.
“It did, didn’t it? I was nervous, though. They were a difficult crowd. I knew that just one wrong word could set them off. So the whole time I was just hoping that I could retain my composure.”
“You didn’t look nervous one bit up there.”
“I didn’t?” I asked. I had certainly felt nervous. But I’d often been told how confident I looked when talking in public. It was always strange to me because I never felt as confident as I apparently looked.
“You didn’t. Not even slightly. You nailed it. Those women were lapping you up. The woman next to me was hilarious. I heard her saying that she didn’t care much for you, then when you got on and started talking, I heard her say how she has always been a fan of yours. Although, I don’t blame them. You did look very good up there.”
“Oh yeah?” I said. I could feel the excitement running through me as I looked at her. I wanted nothing more than to lean over and kiss her.
“You did great, Josh. I was very proud of you.”
I wasn’t used to people being proud of me. That was nice. “Thank you. I couldn’t have done it without you, Reagan. You really are meant for this job.”
“Thank you.”
“What are you up to on Friday?”
“Friday? It’s a work day. I’ll be at the office.”
I laughed. “No, not in the day. Friday night. What are you doing?”
“Friday night? Probably still working.”
I shook my head. “No, enough working. You’re coming to my house for dinner.”
Reagan’s head shot in the direction of the driver. She was worried that he was listening in, but I didn’t care. I could see that he wasn’t listening to a word we were saying. And asking her for dinner wasn’t such a big deal, anyway.
“I’m your boss,” I said. “And this is not a suggestion.”
She looked back at me and smiled. “Well, you are my boss. I guess I’ll have to be there, then.”