She hoped they would pass by the table and not see her as they were leaving the restaurant, but it seemed that was one layer of hope that wouldn’t be granted.
“Well, if it isn’t the woman who thinks she’s going to be the future Mrs. Morgan Steele.”
Lena glanced up, smiling. She refused to let Cassandra’s snide comment rattle her. “Hi, Cassandra, Debra, Karen and Jamie. I see the four of you are leaving.”
“Yes, we are,” Debra Kendall said, almost apologetically. And not for the umpteenth time Lena had to inwardly question why someone as nice as Debra would hang around with someone like Cassandra. Maybe she believed that sooner or later her kindness would rub off on Cassandra.
“So, what do you think of Morgan running for office?” Karen Smith asked, after looking at Cassandra and getting her cue.
“Excuse me?” Lena asked.
Cassandra smiled. “Oh, didn’t you know? Now that Chadwick has announced he’s running for office, speculation is high that Morgan will, too. He’s very well thought of in this town.”
Lena didn’t say anything. She was still recovering from Karen’s comment about the possibility of Morgan being a political candidate.
“Of course it’s not definite whether Morgan is even interested,” Debra said, as if to smooth things over.
“But if he does,” Cassandra said, grinning, “he’s going to need a woman who will complement him. Someone well groomed with a good name, a sense of fashion, style and grace, and a pedigree. Wouldn’t you agree, Lena?”
Before Lena could say anything, it was Jamie who spoke, smiling sweetly. “And I’m sure if you care anything for Morgan as well as recognize what an asset he would be in this community in politics, then you’d agree that all of us need to give him all the support he needs and the chance to win. I understand entering politics has been his lifelong dream. If you really care for him, you wouldn’t take that dream away. In fact you would work hard to make it become a reality.”
Then three of the women walked off. Debra, however, remained behind long enough to at least say goodbye.
The cold chills Lena had gotten earlier were there in full force. Why hadn’t Morgan mentioned he was thinking about entering politics? Did he just assume she would want to be a politician’s wife? Well, she didn’t. She was a person who liked her life the way it was. She and her mother lived a quiet and peaceful existence, and she had no intention of being thrust out into the limelight.
Besides, how much did Morgan know about her? Oh, he’d learned a lot about her this afternoon and probably from the two chats they’d had, but that had all been sexual. What did Morgan really know about her? Nothing. If he did, he would know that she and politics didn’t mix because she was too opinionated when it came to certain issues and she didn’t know how to remain quiet when it involved a subject she was passionate about.
She thought about what Cassandra and her group said as well as what they didn’t say. The people she hung out with, as well as those her parents hung out with, had a lot of influence and power. They would back Morgan fully if he had what they perceived as the right kind of wife by his side. But she knew they wouldn’t use any of that to help get him elected if he was intent on marrying her.
Her father had once told her there was more to be an elected official than working on balancing the budget, attending meetings and making speeches. There was a matter of respect and Morgan had it, from a lot of people; but it seemed he ran the risk of losing it because of her, mainly because she was not a fit.
She paused and sat quietly for a moment, and when she felt a tear slide from her eye to wet her cheek, she knew why. At some point during their business relationship, those sexy chats and their romp between the sheets yesterday, she had fallen in love with Morgan. And she had fallen hard. So hard that she knew what she had to do. She could only think of one other time she’d actually felt noble in her life. The first had been at thirteen when she’d actually saved Paula Brewster’s baby sister from drowning in the community pool, and the other time was now.
To help Morgan retain his regal public image and give him all the support he needed to pursue what evidently was his lifelong dream, she knew what she had to do. Summoning the waiter over to the table she said, “Please bring me my check, and when Mr. Steele arrives let him know something came up and I had to leave.”
Chapter 14
Not ready to go home yet, Lena returned to her office. She had placed a quick call to her mother to make sure she was okay and had eaten dinner. After Odessa had assured her that she was fine and not to worry about her, Lena decided to stay and work late at the office.