Read Valentine Vote for Free Online Page B

The prospect of being Courtney’s first lover made him feel … special.
    They’d spent the last two weeks being safe, only going to places where they weren’t alone. Hell, he hadn’t even kissed her. And the longer he waited, the more nervous he became. Tonight, they were meeting for a drink on the mezzanine at the Mayflower Hotel. It would be the most intimate setting he’d dared—since his apartment. Elegant, yet cozy. He planned to scout out a secluded table before she arrived. They’d only have time for a brief drink as they both had work engagements elsewhere, but he hoped there’d be a moment for a kiss … or two.
    • • •
    Eric tapped his foot under the cocktail table. He’d arrived early, which was totally out of character, and had already ordered two glasses of pinot grigio. He downed half of his by the time Courtney arrived.
    “Hi.” She slid into a red leather bucket chair.
    Eric handed her the wine glass and then scooted his chair closer. “Hi. You look flustered.” Her cheekbones held splotches of red.
    “I had three congressional appointments today. Every one of the legislators was late, and I had the fight of my life with one of them. You know how that goes.” She swirled the wine in the glass and then took a sip. “Nice bouquet. You know your grapes, Senator.”
    He much preferred when she called him Eric. “Thanks. We have a winery on the farm. The grapes are in a valley between the tobacco barns.” As soon as he mentioned tobacco, he wished he hadn’t.
    “I like to forget you’re from a tobacco family.” She didn’t smile.
    “Sometimes, like right now, so do I.” He ventured a brief grin.
    She sighed. “Sorry, it’s been a long day, and I’m being too sensitive. But before we get off the subject, did you ever smoke?”
    “No. No one in my family smokes now, though my grandparents did—like chimneys.”
    “What happened to them?” Courtney looked him directly in the eyes.
    Eric ducked his head. “They both died of emphysema.” He remembered his grandmother’s labored breathing, and his heart clenched. He shook the memory, not wanting to dwell on the pain.
    “And you wonder why I’m on this campaign?” Courtney crossed one leg over the other and jiggled her foot.
    “I know precisely why you’re taking a stance for higher taxes. I simply don’t agree.”
    “How can you think like that when your grandparents died as a direct result of smoking?”
    “Courtney, we’ve been over this. I’m supporting my constituents.”
    “And you’re killing the rest of us.”
    “Could we please not talk about tobacco?
    Courtney glared at him. The tips of her ears turned red.
    “You’re losing perspective, Courtney.”
    She continued to glare. Her foot jiggle reverberated up her leg.
    “I was hoping for a pleasant, relaxing conversation, a few stolen moments before I have to be on stage again” He tried to smile, but his jaw was tense. It probably came off as a sneer.
    “This wasn’t a good idea.” She contemplated the Greek friezes on the mezzanine wall. “Maybe
we’re
not a good idea.”
    “Don’t jump to conclusions. Why don’t you go home and soak in a tub?” He cringed. He’d meant to suggest she do something nice for herself, but it came out sounding more like, “Why don’t you take a long walk off a short pier?”
    “And why don’t you cut off your nose to spite your face?” Tears welled in her eyes. “That’s what you’re doing with this tobacco bill. You say you’re helping your constituents, but will they thank you in the long run … when they’re dying?” Her voice rose an octave. She swiped at her tears.
    “Courtney, please don’t take this personally. I know this is about your mom, but you can’t get so worked up over it.”
    “Why not? What
else
should I get worked up over?”
    “Well, since you asked …” Eric grinned, which she probably read as lascivious. All he’d wanted was a few moments of closeness, and he botched it with