Total pages in book: 105
Estimated words: 98398 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 492(@200wpm)___ 394(@250wpm)___ 328(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 98398 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 492(@200wpm)___ 394(@250wpm)___ 328(@300wpm)
“But, like, I don’t tell anyone really what I do and don’t support. I like to leave them guessing. It helps me cultivate a sense of mystery. And you never know what is going to be canceled next, so it’s best just to stay quiet and let people guess what you are about.”
“Right.” Was it a bad sign that I was relieved she didn’t want to talk to anyone about her seriously fucked up views? I supposed it didn’t matter, not really. She wasn’t going to be by my side to take interviews. And even if she did end up having to take a few, she could be coached on what to say.
“So, what else did you want to know about me?” She looked down at her now empty wineglass then grabbed the nearest waiter. Literally reached out and grabbed his arm, almost making him drop a plate of seafood pasta. His save was actually impressive.
“You refill this wineglass now and check to see how much longer our food will be. We have been waiting for five minutes. Do you know who this man is and how important he is? I will have you fired if you don’t fix this now.”
To the waiter’s credit, he nodded sagely and poured the wine with one hand, while handing the pasta off to another server. He apologized to Catherine and me, then went to check on the order.
I made a mental note to add another zero to his tip.
“I cannot believe how incompetent people are today,” she said, giving me a look like I was supposed to agree.
“Yes, some things certainly tell you a lot about a person’s competence,” I agreed.
“Do you want kids?” she asked. She answered before I had a chance to. “I want at least four. Two boys, an heir and a spare, of course, then two girls who will make important connections for their brothers. I’ll get pregnant with the heir myself for appearances and then of course use a surrogate for the rest. I think we should start right away. In fact, since we are getting married so soon, I don’t see why we have to wait for the wedding night. We can start practicing now. How about I come over when you are done with work and give you a preview?” She placed her hand on my thigh and tried to move it up.
I grabbed her fingers and returned them to her lap.
“That won’t be necessary. I don’t want children.” I hadn’t even realized the truth of that statement until I said it.
It hadn’t been true until this moment. There was no way I was going to give this woman children. Two boys to preen over and coddle and then two girls to shame and suffocate the individuality out of. She would have been worse than my mother. It could not happen.
“Oh, but your mother said…”
“My mother says a lot of things. I want to make this perfectly clear. This is not a love match, and when we are in private, I have no interest in pretending it is anything other than what it is: a business arrangement. I get a pretty girl that will paint me to be a family man and not a bastard, and you get to be the DA’s wife, and eventually, my political aspirations may elevate you further.”
“Oh…” She sat back, folding her hands in her lap.
“There will be a generous prenup, and if I ever decide to leave office and no longer require the services of a pretend wife, then we will divorce, and you will have adequate money to live how you want and where you want.”
“And if you decide to run for a higher office, requiring more of my time and effort?”
“Then we will negotiate terms before I run.”
“No.” She crossed her arms over her chest and sat back in her chair. “I am worth more. I am far too valuable an asset to be shelved, and if you do have the political aspirations that your mother seems to think you do, then you will need more. You want to project a family man aesthetic, something the middle-American voter will be able to identify with. The child-free lifestyle may be understandable to sophisticated New Yorkers, but if you are going to make me First Lady someday, then you need the potato eaters in Ohio to like you as well.”
She may have been rude and tactlessly abrupt, but she wasn’t wrong.
“So, I propose that we get married and then start trying for a child right away. Also, to really sell this, we will need to meet for lunches and dinners a few times publicly in the next few weeks, and then you will need to be seen at Tiffany’s. My registry is already set up, with not only the ring but a matching necklace, earrings, and bracelet.”