At the Pleasure of the President (The Perfect Gentlemen 5)

That news jarred Liz. “I thought the guys were insisting that you two go through with it.”

Gus gave her a friendly pat on the shoulder. “I told Roman that until you were comfortable with it, he could do that interview all on his own. He knows damn well it doesn’t work without me. He’s looking out for Zack. Someone needs to do the same for you. Let me know if you need anything.”

God, she loved Gus. Liz had no idea what she would do without her. “Thank you.”

As they started down the hall again, Vanessa looked at her watch as they approached. “You’re cutting it close today. Here’s the briefing. I typed it up from your notes.”

“Thank you.” She took the papers and the water bottle.

“You had a call from Mr. Harding this morning,” Vanessa said, following her to the door.

The last person she needed now was Paul. “I think Zack should handle that one.”

After all, he wasn’t listening to her counsel about how dangerous Joy’s father could be to Zack’s reputation. Maybe if he talked to his former father-in-law himself, he would grasp the gravity of Paul’s threats.

A single intensely judgmental brow rose over Vanessa’s eyes. “I’ll let Mr. Harding know you aren’t interested in dealing with him.”

Liz scowled at the woman. “Do you have something to say?”

The younger woman shrugged. “The man lost his daughter publicly and violently. You were supposedly friends with her. It seems harsh for you to just dismiss him.”

“Well, this is a family matter best handled by family, which I am not. So until you know the whole story, maybe you shouldn’t form opinions.” Liz dragged in a bracing breath and stopped. Vanessa’s assessment didn’t matter. She couldn’t know the whole story. “I’ll call Mr. Harding when I’m done here and see if I can connect him with the president. Thank you for letting me know.”

Without waiting for Vanessa’s reply, she threw open the door and forced herself to step behind the podium with a smile plastered on her face. As she addressed the press, the chaos began.

Twenty minutes in, Liz nodded at the reporter in the front row. “Candace.”

The woman in the professional red power suit stood. “Does the president have any response to the story printed on the Capitol Scandals website about the affair his chief of staff allegedly had with his wife prior to her death?”

She glanced to the back of the White House briefing room and found Gus standing there. She gave Liz a shrug as if to say you knew that was coming.

“The president chooses not to respond to tabloids.” It was the simplest answer. And it was the truth.

“The New York Times will be publishing a story tomorrow corroborating much of what Capitol Scandals reported,” Candace insisted.

“I will ask the president if he wishes to respond after he’s read the article. Bob?”

Bob Hewitt, from one of the largest cable news networks, stood. “This is about the natural gas pipeline project. The original timeline for an announcement has passed without a single word from the White House about its status. Are there any new developments?”

They had originally planned to announce the project in London a few weeks ago. That would have launched the major platform for his second term. But the Russians’ blackmail threats had changed all of their plans. “As you know when attempting a project as technologically advanced as a transatlantic natural gas pipeline, many factors and issues must be considered. We have to take into account not only whether the project is viable, but also what effects it will have on the environment and the people affected by its building and maintenance. For all those reasons, the president wants to move cautiously and will keep everyone updated as to the project’s current status.”

Suddenly, every member of the room collectively bounced out of their seats. Liz quickly realized she was no longer the center of their attention.

She glanced over her shoulder to see Zack walking into the press room via the private entrance she’d used. He headed straight for the podium. Roman followed, looking big and grim in his tailored suit, like a fashionable reaper.

Anxiety churned Liz’s stomach. Was this the scheme Gus feared they were plotting and planning? Liz glanced across the room, and sure enough Gus was glaring at her fiancé. He stared right back in a silent battle of wills.

“Ms. Matthews, if I could have the floor, please.” Zack was solicitous, his face a polite blank.

She was not looking into the face of her lover, but an inscrutable stranger.

“What’s going on?” The question slipped out.

“If you’ll move out of the way, I’ll tell you.”

His words doused her like a frigid shower. He’d cut her entirely out of the decision-making process and would tell her whatever he’d decided when he told the press. Before he said another word, Liz already knew that whatever he uttered next would change things between them.

She stepped back. “I wouldn’t dream of standing in your way.”

His eyes gave away nothing as he climbed up to the podium, but the smile on his lips was the practiced expression of a career politician, nothing real.

Liz joined Roman a few paces away. “What’s going on?”

“Zack is tired of waiting, and I agree,” Roman said enigmatically.

“Waiting for what?” she whispered.

“Everyone, settle down.” Zack raised a hand as he turned on the charm and ignored questions shouted his way. The crowd seemed to calm. “I wanted to make a few things plain about the pipeline. This was a project conceived by my predecessor, and it’s one I believe in. We’ve done the work. As much as we can, we know both the positive and negative impacts this project could potentially have. So, with great enthusiasm I announce that we’re moving forward. I’ve got a group of the world’s smartest engineers meeting to plan the launch of a transatlantic pipeline that will bring American energy to the rest of the world. It will lower costs for our neighbors by introducing competition where there is none, and it will provide jobs for this country. I’ll have a more formal announcement and documentation available this afternoon. My press secretary will be more than happy to distribute it to you when it’s available.”

Liz stared at him, her whole body going cold. He’d just put a massive target on his back and he hadn’t once mentioned that he was even considering it.

“How could he do this?” she murmured to Roman. “After what happened to Holland…”

“He did it because of what happened to Holland. Now they have to make a move, and we can get this over with,” Roman explained, his eyes steely. “Now they’ll know we won’t be cowed and maybe find someone else to push around. Don’t worry, Liz. He’s determined to protect you.”

“He’s not protecting himself,” she sputtered.

“If you can’t hold it together, you should leave. They’re watching,” Roman said.

They were. Most eyes were on the president, but she could see a few reporters staring her way, their gazes razor sharp, like predators sensing a good meal.

She forced a passive smile on her face, so she didn’t give them anything that made the administration look less than one-hundred-percent in sync. No infighting. That had been their motto from day one. Of course they’d also promised to trust one another. Zack had never kept any job-a

ffecting decision from her, so she’d always walked up to the podium with perfect confidence and the total trust of the pool of reporters who covered the White House.

Until today.

Now, she forced herself to stand serenely and look at Zack as if this had always been the plan and she was happy to serve.

Her heart thundered in her chest as Zack waved and brought the briefing to a close. He turned, ignoring the reporters who again leapt to their feet, shouting questions as he left the room. Liz fell into step behind him, Roman at her side.

Zack turned the minute they were safely out of the press room and in the hallway. “I’ll have those documents to you in a few hours. They shouldn’t expect anything before five. Let me know if you have any other questions.”

Oh, she had plenty of questions. “How could you ambush me like that?”

He took her by the elbow and drew her away from the others. She hadn’t even noticed Vanessa hanging around, but Zack obviously had. “I didn’t ambush you. The plan changed very recently, and I thought I should brief the press.”

“You could have mentioned it to me.”

“It was on a need-to-know basis, and until now you didn’t need to know,” Zack replied without an ounce of emotion. “You are my press secretary, not an advisor on this project. And you know there are things I can’t tell you. You’ve always known that.”

“I still don’t understand why you hijacked the press conference and dropped this bomb with zero notice.”

Frustration showed in the way his jaw tightened, in the set of his shoulders. “How I what? I proceeded with a project that we all agree is important. That’s all.”

She kept her voice low but couldn’t entirely hide her panic. “You’re acting like this announcement was no big deal, but you and I both know this could get you killed.”

“I’ve thought a lot about this,” he replied with a long sigh. “I don’t have any public appearances, so if they’re going to try to assassinate me, they’ll have to know my schedule. Roman and I discussed changing it up every day. I won’t be easy to find, and Thomas is on alert. Connor will also stick close for a couple of weeks.”