Will was nearing the end of his cardio workout. As he jogged to the crest of the hill, sweat ran down his brow and back. The thudding beat of the music from his mp3 player filled his ears, matching the sound of his heart. It was an exhausting routine, and he wanted to pump his fists in the air in triumph, like Rocky did when he reached the top of the Museum of Art’s stone steps.
Not only had he finished four laps around his neighborhood in record time, but he had also had several good nights of sleep for the first time in months.
If he had known he would feel this good after putting Keisha Reynolds in her place, he would have done it sooner.
“Oh, yeah!” he shouted, throwing punches into the air. One of his elderly neighbors stared in bewilderment as she pruned a rose bush on her front lawn.
Will had needed to redeem himself that day at the St. Mary’s County fair. He’d had to regain his pride somehow. Lusting after Keisha had been bad enough, but, once again, he had not walked away from her when he knew he should have. Instead he had followed her around like an annoying little brother and prodded at her just to get some reaction out of her.
When she lost her temper with him, he definitely should have taken the hint, but he still couldn’t help himself. When he was around her, there was some inexplicable magnetic force that drew him to her. And he’d finally given in to that pull, that impulse to touch her. Hell, he had been a millimeter away from kissing her!
Will had been relieved to realize the attraction he felt between them the day they met hadn’t disappeared. In fact, it was downright palpable. But Keisha had stubbornly denied that she felt anything for him in return. Worse, she had insulted both him and Dupré. What else could he have done but insult her back? Yes, he admitted, it had been a low blow to tell Keisha the rumor about her and Parker having an affair, especially when he knew for sure based on her reaction that it wasn’t true. But she had pissed him off. Keisha had turned out to be a self-righteous, naïve, hot-tempered little…
“Bitch,” Will said as he ran another block.
And she’d needed to be knocked down a peg or two…maybe even three. She was nothing like the alluring, demure creature he had met at the hotel in Greenbelt all those months ago. That woman had obviously been an illusion. Now that he knew the truth about Keisha, he no longer felt that she had a hold over him. He could finally move on and, with any luck, he would never have to speak to her again. The idea couldn’t have made him happier.
As he neared his block, Will peeled off his T-shirt, which was soaked in sweat thanks to the blistering heat. He slowed down his pace and tugged off his earphones, placing his index and middle fingers to his throat, checking his pulse.
He slowly climbed his front steps. As he neared his front door, he heard his phone ringing. Will frowned and glanced down at his watch. It was only 6:15. Who was calling him this early in the morning?
“Will?” George said when he answered. “Sorry about calling you at the crack of dawn, but I wanted to know if you could get in a little bit early today. Tried catching you on your cell phone but you didn’t answer.”
Will leaned against his kitchen counter and frowned. “I was jogging and didn’t have my phone with me. Why? What’s up?”
George sighed. “The damn Parker campaign. We’ve had about five million conference calls about this debate and we still can’t agree on just the basic terms. It took some wrangling, but Phil and I agreed that a face-to-face meeting is the only way we can resolve it at this point.”
Will sighed. “A face-to-face?”
“Yeah, you and me, Phil and Keisha Reynolds, maybe a few more staffers. We thought we should all meet tonight to discuss this. We’re supposed to work out the place today. Does that sound good to you? I want to go over a few things with you and Dupré first before we head over there, though.”
Will clinched his teeth and closed his eyes. Great, he thought. Now he would have to see and talk to Keisha again, and a lot sooner than he had intended. “Can’t wait,” he muttered morosely.