Radclyffe - Honor Under Siege

me. She crossed her legs, her black skirt rising to reveal the barest hint

of shapely thighs. “Let me give it some thought, but that just might be

an excel ent plan. Of course, youre going to have to tel me where it is.

“Just you?

“For now.

“Whitley

Point.

“Tanner

Whitleys

place?

Blair

nodded.

Lucinda laughed. “Oh my God, you and Diane and Tanner together? I

feel for your security team.

“Tanners married, Blair said, grinning. Lucinda had been around for most

of her wild prep school years and was aware of some of the trouble the

three of them had got en into. Of course, most of the time theyd been

successful in pul ing of their fairly frequent disappearing acts. “Which

brings me to the other thing I wanted to discuss with you.

“Oh?

“Cam and I intend to get married this

fal .

“That may be problematic, since same-sex marriages arent legal y

recognized anywhere in the United States.

“Neither is my sexual orientation, Blair said, “but that hasnt stopped me,

and it never wil . We wont have any dif i culty fi nding someone

to perform the ceremony, legal or not.

“That wil be dif i cult to keep quiet, Lucinda

said.

“It wasnt my intention to keep it quiet. At Lucindas look of surprise,

Blair went on, “Im not planning on taking out an ad in the New York

Times, but Im not going to sneak around with this either.

“The fi rst person outside of your immediate circle who gets a hint of this

wil go straight to the papers with it. A caterer, a dressmaker, even

someone you think is a friendthis is going to be news, Blair, and

people wil pay for this kind of information.

Blair fl ushed. She hated the thought that her life was tabloid material.

“I cant stop that. Ive never been able to.

“Wel , at least consider the timing. Lucinda sat forward. “Wel be

facing midterm elections soon and then swinging directly into the

presidential reelection campaign. Your timing couldnt be worse for

something like this.

“Something like this, Blair said fl atly. “Something like this would be

my life , Lucinda.

“I know, Lucinda said gently. “I know, and I know how much of your

life has been overshadowed by your fathers career. Im not going to

apologize for that, but I do know.

Blair rubbed her forehead. “Dont switch sides on me now, Lucinda. Just

stick with the hard-ass routine.

Lucinda smiled. “Youre going to expose your personal life to

international scrutiny. To say nothing of fueling every right wing fanatic

in this country. Do you real y want that?

“What I want is to do what feels right for myself and my lover

and our relationship without worrying about the politics of it. Blair

sighed. “Dont tel me you cant fi gure out a way to spin it.

“Probably. At least give me time to work on

that.

“Il postpone hiring a fl

oat.

“Thank you. Lucinda glanced at her watch and then rose. “Ive got a

budget meeting, so Il get back to you on this.

“Il let you know before I leave

town.

“Good. By the way, theres a fundraiser in Boston this weekend that I

need you to attend.

“I cant do it, Luce. Theres just too much going on right

now.

“I understand. Lucinda walked back to her desk, sat down, and drew a

fi le toward her. “Its for stem cel research. One of the primary

investigators at Harvard wil be there, and I just thought you might want

to show your support.

“Damn it. Blair had no doubt that proponents of stem cel research,

including major pharmaceutical companies, were lobbying hard in

Washington to prevent legislation aimed at restricting the source of

tissues used for the studies. Her father couldnt publicly issue a

statement in favor of the research, but she could, as the daughter of a

woman who died of breast cancer. Her presence at the fundraiser

would send a clear message as to the White Houses position. Despite the

fact that she didnt like to be used as a White House front person,

she happened to believe in this research. She yanked open the door. “Il

be there. E-mail me the details.

“Thats wonderful. Thank

you.

Blair closed the door without answering. As usual after leaving Lucinda,

she was never certain if shed won or lost the skirmish. She walked

briskly past Paula and Felicia and pul ed out her cel phone.

“Hows it going? she asked when Cam

answered. “Im going to be here most of the

day. You? “Bloodied, but unbowed.

Cam laughed. “What about the rest of your plans? Any

changes?

“No. And you dont have to say it. Il be

careful.

“Thanks. Il see you later,

then.

“Al right. I love

you.

“I love you

too.

Blair closed her phone, smiling. She wondered what the national security

chief thought about that .

Chapter Eight

A re you ready for some serious shopping? Blair held up Dianes

coat. She hoped that the diversion would take Dianes mind of

Valerie, but knew it wouldnt. Shed been there too many times

herself, not knowing what was happening with someone she loved, not

being able to help or protect them.

Diane smiled, but it didnt reach her eyes. Her smooth, milky

complexion was even paler than normal, and lines of tension marred the

sleek planes of her face. Diane was ordinarily so poised and kept her

emotions so tightly reined that to see those cracks in her composure

made Blairs heart ache. It also made her angry. Angry at Valerie for

involving Diane when she must have known something like this

could happen, at the political system that so ef ortlessly ignored the

human consequences of its policies, and even at herself, for not

knowing the best way to help her friend.

“The Shops at Georgetown? Blair

suggested.

“Lets start on M Street and fi nish up

inside.

“Done. Blair grinned when she heard Stark muf l e a groan. Many of the

trendy boutiques on M Street in Georgetown fronted a portion of the

four-story mal that housed over seventy shops and restaurants. It was the

best shopping in DC. She hooked her arm through Dianes as they

stepped out into the foyer and pushed the but on for the elevator. “Im

glad youre here.

“So am I, Diane

whispered.

Paula slid into the elevator next to them. “I dont suppose you could

think of a slightly less crowded place for your retail therapy?

“What, and take al the fun out of it? Blair feigned shock. She knew

from experience that her security agents hated it when she went to

large, crowded places where it was impossible for them to set up

advance surveil ance. But if she let that dictate her movements, shed

never go to a movie or a street fair or a shopping mal . Until the recent

at acks, outings such as this had been more an inconvenience than a

serious security issue, and that was al the more reason for her not to

change her behavior now.

“Fun, Paula mut ered. “More like

hel .

“You never know. Blair laughed as the elevator opened and they al

stepped out. “You might end up enjoying it.

Paula, busy alerting Hara in the vehicle idling at the curb that they were

exiting, didnt bother to object.

“Oh, goody, Blair said as Felicia moved up beside her, “girls

day out.

“We didnt think Greg would mind if I took his shift this afternoon,

Felicia said. “Hi Diane.