Read Complete Corruption (Corruption #1-3) for Free Online Page B

she’s hoping to get distribution.”
    He huffed. “I’m surprised anyone wants to deal with her after the lawsuit.”
    “Yes, she’s just another uppity woman asking for what she’s due.”
    “You know I don’t mean it like that, Tink.”
    I stopped chewing. He wasn’t supposed to call me that anymore. I looked out the window. “One day, we’re going to get over this,” I said, looking again at the man I loved. “Until then, let’s avoid the small talk.”
    He cleared his throat. “The thing with us, it hurt me. My numbers. Especially on the east side, where they’re really conservative.”
    “Yes, I know.” God, the ice in my voice. It felt like someone else was talking. I could will myself quiet. I could will myself honest. But I couldn’t will myself warm.
    “I don’t want you to think I’m just talking about what happened like it’s all about me and the campaign, okay? But that’s the business of the lunch. If you want to talk about it on a more personal level, I’m happy to.”
    “You’re fine. I get it. Go on.”
    “I have a Catholic Charities thing Thursday,” he said.
    “Okay.”
    “They’re supporting me because I’m not sitting still on income inequality, but the thing with us—”
    “And Clarice.”
    “And Clarice—who is gone—was a sticking point. They almost pulled out. So I’m here to ask for a symbolic gesture from you.”
    “Of?” I asked, but I knew what it was.
    “Of forgiveness. Christian forgiveness that’ll play with the San Gabriel Valley. Your family is a big diocesan donor. It won’t go unnoticed.”
    “What does this symbolic gesture of Christian forgiveness entail?”
    “If you could attend the fundraiser and stand by me.” He held up his hand as if warding off an objection I hadn’t yet made. “Not as my fiancée, obviously, but as a supporter. As someone whose priorities are my own.”
    I chewed. Swallowed. Sipped water. I knew I’d agree, but I didn’t want to throw myself at his feet. He didn’t deserve it. Or I didn’t.
    I’d heard a lot about what Daniel deserved. I’d heard that he was a worthless scumbag, and I’d heard promises to make his life in the mayor’s mansion a living hell. Those promises meant nothing to me. No one would hurt Daniel over infidelity. In five years, it would be forgotten. So I’d kept my venom to myself in public, and I released it around my family and Katrina.
    But something came into my mind—a vision of Antonio beating Daniel’s head against a car. I smelled the blood and heard the crack of his nose as it broke from the impact. I imagined a tooth clacking across the metal, his contorted face as he said he was sorry, and Antonio and I partnering over the difference between his regret and his remorse.
    “Why are you smiling?” he asked.
    I changed the subject. “We decided the public appearances weren’t working.”
    “And normally, I’d think it would just remind everyone of my weakness. But in this case, if people see you forgiving, they might follow. I can’t win unless I do something.”
    I leaned back, appetite gone. “I can see the op ed pieces now. Another political wife forgives her overambitious man’s failings with other women. Judge her. Don’t judge her. She’s a feminist. She’s the anti-feminist. She’s a symbol for all of us. None of that falls on you. It’s all on me.”
    “I know.”
    “You are so lucky I don’t want Bruce Drummond in office.”
    The air went out of him. He didn’t move, but I saw the slight shift of his shoulders and the release of tension in his jaw. “I can’t thank you enough.”
    “We’ll figure something out.”
    “I’d still marry you if you’d have me back.”
    “Daniel, really—”
    He leaned forward as if propelled. “Hear me out. Not as the maybe mayor. As me. Dan. The guy you taught how to walk straight. The guy who bit his nails. That guy’s going to be seventy years old one day, and he’s going to regret what he did. I want you