together?” he finishes for me. “I was so filled with rage that night, Veronica. That boy had nearly… he’d nearly hurt you. And it was my fault.”
“It wasn’t your fault,” I tell him. “Trevor was crazy-”
“I should have predicted that you’d run,” he says, disagreeing. “I should have stopped you or followed you quicker. I could have made it so he’d never get his hands on you. But I failed.”
“And then?”
“And then I saw you again, back in your room. And you were looking… so beautiful, but I was so angry at myself. Somewhere along the way, something snapped in me. And I crossed a line.”
“You didn’t cross any line,” I say quietly. “I wanted it. I wanted to be with you like that.”
“I know,” he says softly. “I know you did. But the problem lies with me. Love is dangerous, Veronica. Especially to people like me. People who shouldn’t open themselves up to being vulnerable.”
I want to argue back, to push more. But my world stops and freezes entirely on one thing that David has just said. Or rather… one particular word.
“Love?” I say, my voice barely about a whisper.
“I’m falling in love with you, Veronica.” David grabs one of my hands in his own, bowing his head. “I’m falling in love with you and I have to stop myself.”
All of a sudden he takes his hand away from me, breaking touch. And then he rises to his feet.
“I’m sorry about all of this,” David says. “I had to come out here in order to explain myself. But I don’t think I can stay any longer.”
My heart drops. “What do you mean? You just said-” I gulp. “You just said you’re falling in love with me.”
“No, Veronica,” he replies. “I just said I can’t fall in love with you. I can’t allow it. So I’m ending things here.”
“Ending things?”
“I’m going back to DC,” he explains. “You don’t have to follow me. In fact, you shouldn’t.”
“Why?” I exclaim. “Stay here and talk to me, David.”
“I’ll talk to Andrews,” he says. “I’m sure we can sort something out with the Press Office. Explain that the pressure of the media has been too much for our relationship, that we’ve had to end things. It won’t look particularly good for my reputation, but we can minimize the damage if we start now.”
He looks at me, something clouding his eyes. He’s really about to leave. He’s about to end this - this shared thing we’ve both barely begun to acknowledge - for reasons I can barely understand.
I get to my feet. “No, David.”
He moves away, like I’m going to chain him up here to stop him leaving. “I can’t control myself around you.”
“Then don’t.” I reach out for him, running my hand down his arm.
He flinches as if my hands are knives. “Veronica-”
“David, you’re in control,” I tell him. “But if you let all these excuses get in your way… are you really the one with the power here?”
His mouth parts. “I…”
And then I do it. I pull him down by his tie, bringing his lips to mine.
Screw his rules. And screw self-control.
“You’re the President of the United States,” I say against his lips. “Take what you want.”
He’s still beneath me. For a second, I wonder if I’ve broken him. If I’ve fried the brain of the President.
And then in one swift motion, he pushes me down onto the bed and makes love to me.
His mouth is on my neck, his teeth nibbling at a spot that makes me moan at his slightest touch. David is an impressive multitasker. Before I know it, his hands are lifting up my shirt and pulling it over my head.
“You want me to lose control,” he pants, his body a weight on top of mine that pins me to the bed, “like this?”
“Just like this,” I agree, my voice breathy and high pitched.
There’s a soft click as he removes my bra, throwing it across the room. His hands are warm on my breasts, cupping them gently. I shiver as he runs a finger in circles around one of my nipples, the motion teasing.
“The number of times I’ve been tempted to break the rules because of your breasts alone,” he whispers, “is dangerous. So dangerous, Veronica.”
“Break them, then,” I order him. “Break every rule you have.”
He pushes my top half down flat on the bed, so that all I can see is the top of his head. His hands are doing something that I can’t see.
“David?” I ask, missing