Bernie nodded for me to follow him down the hallway. When we walked into a spacious living room, I almost froze at the sight of Senator Callahan sitting at the twelve-person dining room table in the next room. There were two men sitting on either side of him, and at the sight of me, they all stood up. When Senator Callahan nodded at them, they picked up the files in front of them and headed out of the room.

I followed Bernie across the living room toward Senator Callahan. A warm, inviting smile lit up his face as he came around the side of the table and he threw out his hand for me to shake. “Miss Monroe, James Callahan. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

A nervous titter of a laugh escaped my lips. “No, sir, I’m sure the pleasure is all mine.”

After pumping my hand several times, Senator Callahan motioned for me to have a seat. Bernie pulled the chair out for me before sitting down next to me and once we were seated, Senator Callahan once again sat at the head of the table. Then he riffled through a few papers in front of him before handing one to me. “Before we proceed with our meeting, I need you to sign this non-disclosure agreement.”

Whoa. This was some pretty serious shit. I mean, I’d barely been here five minutes and they were whipping out an NDA. I guess I should have imagined that any private meeting with the senator would entail as much. As I picked up the embossed Callahan for President pen in front of me, I momentarily wondered what would happen if I refused. After a quick read-through, I realized I wasn’t signing over my firstborn child or anything like that. Once I had scribbled my name on the form, I handed it back to Senator Callahan.

“Thank you, Miss Monroe.” After he filed the form away, Senator Callahan smiled at me. “Bernie has told me what a fantastic job you’re doing as our volunteer coordinator.”

My pride surged. “Thank you, sir. It’s truly an honor to hear you say that. I want to do everything I can to ensure you secure the party’s nomination, as well as the presidency.”

Senator Callahan glanced past me to give Bernie a knowing look. “I’m very glad to hear of your strong commitment to me and my campaign. It’s why I hope you will be willing to accept my proposal.”

The seriousness of his tone had me squirming in my seat. “And just what is your proposal, sir?”

“Since the beginning of presidential campaigns, a contender’s family life was very important to voters. A man or woman needed to exude that they could maintain a strong marriage and produce healthy and successful children. The more picture perfect the family, the more likely a prospective voter was to connect with the candidate. This is still the case today.”

“I would interject to say that you do have a picture-perfect family, sir. I always mention yours and Thorn’s service when setting up VFW and military volunteers. If I were to be so bold, I would add that you’ve also had a scandal-free, happy marriage.”

“I would say you are correct on all those points.” With a wink, he added, “I hope Mrs. Callahan would also agree on the happy marriage part.”

I smiled. “I’m sure she would.”

“While I thank you for your candor, Miss Monroe, I’m more interested in what you know about my son.”

“Thorn or Barrett?”

“Barrett.”

When I glanced at Bernie, he nodded his head. Once again, I prepared to give my best book report. “Barrett graduated top of his class at Yale and now works for The Callahan Corporation. He was unable to follow in your military footsteps like his older brother, Thorn, because he was deemed unfit for service due to a congenital heart defect.”

“Very nice. I see you presented me with the G-rated version of my son’s life.”

“He does have a reputation of enjoying partying and playing the field,” I added, although that was putting it politely. Barrett’s handsome face was always splashed across the society section of the Washington Post, and he usually had a different girl with him in every picture—thought they always fit the same mold of being blonde stick figures. Since Barrett lived in New York City, he hadn’t been by campaign headquarters yet. Even if I had been out of the office at an event, I was sure the other office girls would have let me know.

While both Callahan sons would be considered very good-looking, Barrett seemed to have hit the jackpot when it came to the hotness lottery. Both men had a muscular build, although Barrett was leaner. Thorn was blond and blue-eyed like his mother where Barrett had Senator Callahan’s jet-black hair and greenish-gold eyes. It made for a winning combination. It also didn’t hurt that Barrett oozed sex appeal. From the videos I’d seen of him on TMZ, he had a confident swagger when he walked, along with a megawatt cocky grin. I didn’t know what it was exactly, but he just had that star quality, the it factor.

“Yes, you are correct about Barrett’s extracurricular activities.” He slid the manila folder in front of him over to me. “Within the contents of that file, you can read about the findings of an image consultant hired by the campaign, or I can briefly sum it up for you.”

“I’m fine with hearing it in your own words, sir.”

A pleased expression came over Senator Callahan’s face at my declaration of trust, and I wasn’t bullshitting him. I couldn’t have possibly worked for his campaign if I didn’t believe in his character.

For a moment, I saw a flash of Barrett in the senator’s more relaxed face. “Basically it boils down to the fact that with his playboy ways, Barrett is a liability to my campaign.”