JULIA WASN’T SURE how she’d made it through her business lunch without spilling anything on herself. There had been a nervous tremor in her hand for close to two weeks and she’d done everything in her power to hide it from those she worked with, as well as Schultz. He didn’t need to know about the blackmail note or the pictures. She could handle this herself and he never had to know what she’d done back in college or put him on the spot by forcing him to use resources from his position in the White House.
“Julia.”
It was as if her thoughts had conjured up Schultz Jessalyn. She’d not been expecting anyone as she lingered at the table to take care of the bill after her business associates had left. She looked up from her phone in surprise. He stood there as if he’d appeared off of the pages of GQ Magazine in an immaculate executive suit with his black hair cut in a classic style. His dark eyes never failed to make her feel as if she were the only woman in the room. It was something she treasured and had grown used to over the eight months that they’d been together. It wasn’t unlike him to surprise her with a spur-of-the-moment visit, but she hoped that it wasn’t because he’d caught on that something was wrong. She’d done her best to act normal these past couple of weeks and she would only need to keep up the pretense for a little while longer. She looked past him to see that two of his agents had taken up positions toward the front, since the one assigned to her was standing in the back of the restaurant. She’d gotten used to that as well.
“Schultz,” Julia said with a smile as genuine as she could make it, still not wanting him to notice that anything was amiss. It had been very hard these past fourteen days dealing with someone who wanted to expose a part of her past to hurt Schultz through her. She’d done the only thing she could and took matters into her own hands. “This is a nice surprise. I thought you had meetings all day, but you won’t find me complaining. Have you eaten?”
Julia waited for Schultz to lean over to kiss her as he normally did but he pulled out the chair opposite of her and took a seat. His usual smile was absent. It was as if he’d switched a lever to release butterflies into her stomach, and not the pretty kind either. Her breathing became somewhat labored as she waited for him to answer. She’d been so careful about how she’d handled the situation that there was no way he could know about the pictures…even if he did work for the White House. Right? She needed that reassurance and she wasn’t getting it from his reticent attitude.
“I lost my appetite this morning during a meeting that I had with Jon.” Schultz didn’t waste time getting to the point…and it was sharp. He also shook his head at the waiter who’d appeared out of nowhere. The young man had the intellect to back away and leave them to their privacy. Julia’s phone made a thud as it hit the table when his words had finally penetrated. He knew. He was now fully aware of the embarrassing position she’d put herself into and the fact that having her in his life would hurt his career. Her fingers had gone numb and her peripheral vision became thinner until Schultz’s handsome face was the only thing she could see through the tunnel. This couldn’t be happening. “You should read the fine print in your contracts a little more carefully.”
“Schultz—”
“You don’t need to worry about the person trying to extort money from you any longer. He or she will be dealt with before Monday’s deadline.” Schultz was lucky that she’d heard anything after his declaration that Jon had gone behind her back and informed the one person she hadn’t wanted this situation to touch. She’d been protecting him, but he wouldn’t see it that way. It dawned on Julia that he’d purposefully chosen a public place so that all she could do was sit and listen to what he had to say. There would be no exchange of heated words and this gave him the ability to leave before she had a chance to explain herself. She’d been in Washington long enough to know how to play the system, but she wasn’t going to allow him to do that to them. She’d had damned good reasons for keeping her baggage out of their lives and he didn’t get to close her out only knowing half the story. “It’s apparent you didn’t trust me enough to come to me in the first place. I don’t have to tell you how humiliating it was to hear that you’re being blackmailed from a mutual friend. I think—”
“We’ll talk about this in private,” Julia said carefully, finally gaining some composure as her mind spun with solutions. She’d known all along that he would have been able to make all of this disappear had she gone to him immediately after receiving the extortion note. She’d chosen another route based on her own pride and wanting this swept under the rug before it could damage his reputation. She also didn’t want him using his position to take care of her problems, which in all likelihood would weaken his position in the administration. She wouldn’t apologize for that. She was a grown adult who could make her own decisions. Her fingers finally grasped her phone and she slipped it inside her purse, making sure she met his stare. He hid his emotions behind his hooded eyes, but it was the tic in his square jaw that told her he was beyond livid. He had this all wrong and he’d understand once she had a chance to tell him everything. “I’ll meet you back at my place since it’s closer.”
“Your apartment is being electronically monitored.”
Julia stilled her movements, grateful that she hadn’t stood up from the table quite yet. She was receiving one blow after another. Schultz leaned back in his chair and tilted his head as he studied her, giving the appearance that he was calm and collected. He was anything but. She wasn’t sure what he was looking for, but his stare caused a sliver of fear to invade the bubble of protection she thought she’d been surrounded in. She’d had everything under control five minutes ago and now everything was falling apart.
“What do you mean…like it’s bugged?” Julia asked in a low voice, leaning in so that only he could hear her.
“What I mean is that you’re in over your head. You’re dealing with a professional and it’s highly doubtful that all he wants is your money,” Schultz pointed out in a restrained tone. In fact, it was as if he were conducting business with a stranger and that scared her most of all. Julia needed to get him alone so that she could explain, but he continued to drive his point home. “Someone went to a lot of trouble to locate something that they could use against you. Do you have any idea who that might be? Is there even a remote chance that it is someone from your past?”
Julia so didn’t want to have this conversation here and yet Schultz didn’t seem to be in any hurry to leave. She couldn’t stand the detached look on his face or the fact that he wasn’t focusing on the issue that needed to be addressed. The problem they had now was that he felt betrayed and that was the last thing she wanted him to think. But if talking about the actual extortion here at the table led to them going home to discuss their relationship, she was all for it. She set her purse down on the table and got down to business.
“Schultz, did you even read the note? This has nothing to do with me. I’m a pawn,” Julia stressed, needing him to understand that this went beyond her. This was what she’d hired Jon to take care of. “They’re using me to get to you and I wasn’t about to let that happen.”
Julia could see that Schultz wanted to respond to that, but he stopped himself just shy of getting the words out. She wanted him to counter her just once without thinking. He was always too in control over everything in his life, especially in the bedroom, but he had to see that there wasn’t a way to talk about her blackmailer without bringing up their personal lives.
“You’re assuming it’s about me because the blackmailer stated in his note that he will release those photos of you to the media if he doesn’t receive the money, thereby ruining my reputation,” Schultz said as he reached into his pocket to pull out his phone. He glanced at the screen but then gave her back his full attention. Julia would have given anything to know what the message said that he’d just received but he continued before she could ask. “He or she knows you. They were confident you wouldn’t allow that to happen and they were absolutely certain you wouldn’t come to me for help because of the nature of the photographs. Who knows you that well, Julia? I certainly didn’t.”
Schultz’s last shot was a direct hit and she hissed in a breath as she pulled back, trying to dodge some of the pain. It didn’t work. And talking about this in public wasn’t working either. Julia made a decision and she hoped like hell that she wasn’t about to make a huge mistake. She stood as gracefully as she could and picked up her purse, sliding the thin strap over her shoulder.
“I’m going to assume that your apartment is free and clear for us to continue to have this conversation because I’m through having it here. I’ll cancel the rest of my appointments for the afternoon and meet you there.” Julia held her head up high as she walked through the restaurant, grateful that the lobby was clear at such a late hour so she didn’t run into anyone she knew. It didn’t help that tears blurred her vision. She startled right before reaching the door, not expecting the feel of Schultz’s warm hand through the material of her thin grey blouse. “I told you that I’m not discussing this here.”
Schultz escorted her through the door and around the side of the restaurant’s entrance until he had her back flat against the concrete of the building. Julia had instinctively placed her palms on his chest, amazed that she could feel the beat of his heart through the fabric of his jacket. The speed of his heartbeat matched her own. It was rare that either one of them put on public displays of affection, especially given their jobs and the fact that they attended high-profile functions.
“You went behind my back to seek help from another man when you were in trouble…something that threatened both of us,” Schultz whispered in a rough voice, his lips inches from hers. His dark brown eyes deepened with emotion when she parted her lips to deny what he was saying, but he prevented that by shaking his head and sliding a hand up to cup her cheek. The gentleness of his touch contradicted the turmoil written in his features that led her to understand just how much she’d hurt him. “You’ve lied to me for the past two weeks, Julia. Where does that leave the two of us?”