The boardroom smelled of freshly brewed coffee, expensive aftershave, and desperation as Catherine Lawrence entered the room and took her seat near the head of the table.

Tiny prickles of anxiety raced through her when a cell phone went off, vibrating loudly across the polished boardroom table. The young intern sat on the opposite side, his face flushed and his eyes darting about as he grabbed the offensive device, turning it off and discreetly tucking it inside the pocket of his gray suit jacket.

Catherine sat up a little taller in her seat. She was dressed in a navy-blue, pinstripe business suit, pencil skirt, white blouse, and navy pumps. A pair of diamond studs sparkled in her ears and a simple diamond heart-shaped pendant hung on a silver chain, solely for decorative purposes. But the antique gold wedding band that she twisted absently around the ring finger of her right hand had a deep sentimental value. It once belonged

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to her deceased grandmother and she looked down at it, realizing what she was doing. The twisting of the ring was a nervous habit she picked up years ago. It usually calmed her but today it didn’t.

Catherine’s long auburn hair was pulled back into a tight bun at the back of her head and it felt restrictive as she shifted in her chair. In fact, everything about her current situation felt uncomfortable.

Her boss, Russell Tillman, cleared his throat loudly and began to speak. “I’ve called you all here this morning for an emergency meeting. See, it has come to my attention that my poll numbers have dramatically fallen

— let me restate that. My numbers have plummeted in the last few weeks and I am very concerned — again, let me restate that. I am furious!” he said, raising his voice as his eyes darted around the room, landing momentarily on Catherine before moving on.

Russell Tillman was clearly agitated and nothing short of someone’s head served up on a silver platter would suffice.

Bringing her hand up to her mouth she cleared her throat loudly, in preparation to say something, but was cut off when Russell ignored her and continued to speak.

“I want an explanation for the falling numbers! I don’t want excuses or platitudes. I want cold hard facts and I want them now!” he bellowed. Standing at the head of

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the oval boardroom table, his eyes landed on his current campaign manager, Chase Stoneman.

Catherine held her breath. She hadn’t seen Russell this worked up over anything since the murder case they’d worked on four years ago went up in flames. It was the third day of their case when a second-year defense attorney introduced a surprise witness that disputed their DNA evidence. The case was quickly thrown out on a technicality, a mistake that neither of them could ever forget.

The current campaign manager straightened his spine, sitting a little taller in his chair, his tan face turning the color of a tomato. “Sir, I can explain—” he began to say but was cut short by his angry boss.

“I said no excuses, Stoneman, and I meant it!”

“If you would just give me a private moment of your time,” Chase begged, looking very uncomfortable under the scrutiny of his incensed candidate.

“Personally, I believe I have given you more than enough of my time. Certainly, more than you have proven yourself to be worth, Stoneman. And all I have gotten in return are a bunch of lies, a bit of deceit, and a truck load of horse shit!”

Catherine took another deep breath, shaking her head with disapproval. When Russell went off on one of his long, lengthy, profane filled rants it was difficult to rein him in. The image of giant brass balls hanging from Russell Tillman’s nether region, well concealed beneath

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his perfectly tailored trousers flashed across Catherine’s mind and she shook her head to dispel it.

“Why is it that, over the past month and a half, the polls show my numbers steadily declining and you have done nothing to stop it?” he glared at Chase. “And why the hell do we find my numbers at their all-time low since I began this campaign?” he yelled, slamming his fist down hard upon the boardroom table, causing a reverberating noise to bounce off the windows.

Catherine noticed several interns wincing in fear and cringed inwardly. He was losing control, and she knew that he needed to dial it back but how would she help him see this fact?

Clearing her throat rather loudly once again, she deliberately reached for a glass of water while catching Russell’s eye. Catherine hoped that she wasn’t overstepping the boundary of their personal and professional relationship. After all, she hadn’t yet been officially named the new campaign manager.

Russell glanced in her direction but then quickly averted his eyes. He obviously didn’t want her advice, at least not yet.

“I’d love to hear an explanation,” he said.

Everyone was now staring at Chase, the one person who should have had the answer.

In Catherine’s opinion, Chase Stoneman was a vain, opinionated blowhard who thought very highly of

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himself and should never have been appointed as the campaign manager in the first place.

His Latin heritage was evident by his full, dark lashes and broodingly handsome features—but that was where his appeal ended for her. He had a smooth smile, and even smoother pickup lines. A real lady’s man. He had even gone so far, once upon a time, to deem himself the man with all the answers.

Except in this instance, Catherine thought.

Chase looked like a drowning man without a life preserver, and by the look in his eyes, he was going under for the third time. He looked desperate as his face flushed crimson. He attempted to smile but the expression didn’t quite make it all the way up to his eyes.

One could imagine the wheels in his head feverishly turning as he attempted to come up with a plausible explanation for the declining poll numbers. Unfortunately, he could think of nothing.

Russell Tillman growled and slammed his fist down hard once again, causing Catherine to jump this time as Chase gave him a pleading look.

Russell’s eyes turned icy, and Catherine expelled the air from her lungs that she’d been holding. She knew that look. She’d seen it before. That was the look he got just before he exploded like a volcano.

Frantically wanting to get Russell’s attention, Catherine loudly cleared her throat again, then began

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to throw out a quick hand signal by sweeping one finger under her nose several times.

They’d developed their own hand signals in court while working together for years because it was impossible to stop in the middle of a trial to converse with one another. She was attempting to tell Russell that he was making too public of a stink over this matter and that he needed to move on. But Russell refused to be reined in, and deliberately cut his eyes away from her after signaling

her with a negative shake of his head.

“Pick up your things and get out of my sight. You are finished in this town, Stoneman.” His voice took on a determined, resolute tone as if the simple mention of Stoneman’s name left a bad taste in his mouth. “And don’t let me catch you hanging around one minute longer than necessary or I will have you thrown out.”

You could have cut the tension in the room with a knife as Tillman and Chase locked eyes for a long, strained, silent moment.

Chase blinked first, then looked away, unable to reasonably dispute Russell Tillman’s reason for sacking him.

Chase slowly got to his feet, aware that everyone in the room was staring at him as he straightened to his full height. He gathered his things from the table, tucking them into his satchel, and slipped his cell phone into his pocket.

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“I’m truly sorry that I let you down, Sir. If there is any way—” he began to say.

“There isn’t,” Russell said, cutting him off as he folded his arms across his chest.

“Of course,” Chase added as he walked around the table, taking the long way to the door in an effort to avoid going past Tillman. He paused in the doorway as he propped it open with his foot. He allowed his gaze to land on the two women sitting across from one another at the head of the table.

Chase’s eyes landed upon Catherine Lawrence first and then Patricia Grant, Catherine’s arch nemesis and the very bane of her existence since the day she’d been hired. The two women glanced at one another from across the table before looking away.

Patricia Grant turned her eyes back towards Russell, lifting her chin just a little higher while wearing a confident smile upon her perfectly lined lips.

With a cynical smirk, Chase chuckled. “I’m just sorry that I will miss the fireworks between the two of you,” he scoffed, allowing the door to close slowly behind him.

Everyone watched Chase as he walked to his office and closed the door. Russell signaled for the two guards on duty to follow him. Tom and Ben would see to it that Chase left the building without incident.

Russell broke the awkward silence with a forced smile.

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“Well, now,” he said, taking a deep breath as if finally relaxing for the first time since he’d walked into the building that day, “it feels good to be free of that dead weight. Let us get down to the real business at hand.” He paused for dramatic effect, picked up his coffee mug and took a long drink before placing the cup back down in front of him. “I have had my eye on this young woman for quite some time, I know her as well as one knows their own right hand,” he said without hinting as to which woman he was speaking of.

But then he smiled and graciously looked down at

Catherine.

“Miss Lawrence, will you stand up here next to me and do me the great honor of accepting the recently vacated position of campaign manager? I believe you are the one who will see us all the way through to the Governor’s office.”

It took Catherine only a moment to respond as she took a hold of Russell’s outstretched hand and allowed him to pull her to her feet.

“Mr. Tillman, it would be my great honor to be your new campaign manager.”

One person, and then another, began to applaud.

Catherine had been fairly confident that the position was hers. After all, she and Russell had known each other more than four years professionally. And his wife, Angela, was her roommate and best friend from college.

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“I just want to say how honored and humbled I am to be given this opportunity. I look forward to sitting down with each of you to discuss your role in this campaign,” Catherine said as she allowed her eyes to go around the room before landing upon Patricia.

Unlike everyone else at the table, Patricia had a forced smile on her lips.

Catherine made a mental note: Don’t turn your back on Patricia Grant when she has something sharp in her hand.

“This meeting has run a little longer than I intended. You are all dismissed. If anyone has any problems or concerns,” Russell said with a wry grin, “I suggest that you take it up with the new campaign manager.”

Catherine watched everyone grab their things and file out of the room before she leaned over to pick up her purse. Russell leaned in towards her and cleared his throat. “Catherine, my office. I need to discuss a few matters with you before you get started.”

Touching his arm to keep him from walking away, she answered, “Of course, sir.” “You know that theatrics and drama play well in the courtroom but they don’t play well in the boardroom.”

“I couldn’t help myself,” Russell said, giving her a boyish smile and a wink.

“I saw two interns holding back tears, Russell. That was really unforgivable,” she sighed. “You really need to make amends and do something nice for all of them.”

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“I know, I know,” he answered, sounding regretful. Then spotting Patricia waiting for him at the door, he acknowledged her, “I can give you two minutes and two minutes only, Patricia. I have a meeting scheduled with my new campaign manager,” he said as he turned and smiled at Catherine.

“Make this up to the staff, Russell. It’s important for morale.”

“I promise,” he said, crossing his heart, just before turning and leaving the room.

Leaning over once again to retrieve the pen she’d dropped, she called out, “I’ll only be a minute,” as she stood back up. That’s when Catherine watched Patricia saunter from the door, swaying her hips as she stepped directly in front of Russell. Catherine shook her head.

“This is going to be a very long campaign season,” she muttered under her breath. “A very long campaign season indeed.”