Their car came to a stop and Brady exited first. She followed him into the sea of reporters. His hand reaching out for her and guiding her through the crowd was the only thing keeping her steady. She didn’t duck her head and hide from the cameras as she would have four months ago, but it still unnerved her.

When they reached the roped-off area where she and Brady would wait along with much of his staff, Liz let out a sigh of relief. It was still strange that reporters made her so uneasy when she had always wanted to be one. She tried to brush off the encounter and focus on what was going on around her.

Heather was speaking swiftly to the reporters on the other side of the roped-in area. Liz had seen these conversations before, usually to talk about interviews, spotlight segments, Q&A time, and more. Elliott was on his phone, talking animatedly to whoever had his attention. Alex, Brady’s campaign manager, was sitting at a nearby table lost to his computer. He was all strategy and planning and not usually the person in the field.

And then there was Brady, her Brady, going over last-minute details of his speech with the speechwriter. Liz had rewritten some of Brady’s speech to show him more what she was talking about. To her surprise he had taken it to his speechwriter and they had agreed to keep it. Her own words in one of Brady’s speeches! She had felt a tingle shoot through her at the prospect of him reciting her words to his captivated audience.

She could feel a buzz of excitement running through everyone in the vicinity. This was the big leagues. This was what it was all about. The start of everything Brady was working toward. She peered out at the crowd and was staggered to see that the tent that was erected for the event was full of people.

Then she heard it. Max-well. Max-well. Max-well.

Her breath caught as the cheer started off quiet and then slowly began to rise as more and more people picked up the chant. Soon the sound of Brady’s name was deafening, taking over the rally space.

She glanced over at him and he was smiling brightly. She saw it for what it was. He lived for this. Born and bred to be the magnificent person he was, to crave the spotlight and people cheering his name, to mold the country for the people. And he was hers.

“All right,” Heather snapped, walking back over to them. “Are you ready?”

“Born ready,” Brady said confidently.

“Of course you were. Now let this crescendo and then make your entrance. Afterward I’ve arranged a few interviews, then a quick meeting with some donors, and a dinner with Chelsea about that fracking thing she keeps shoving down your throat.”

“Chelsea, really?” he asked. “Can’t that wait?”

“They’re sending a ton of money our way trying to sway your vote on that. You have to meet with her.”

“Who is Chelsea?” Liz interrupted.

Heather barely gave her a passing glance. “After that you’re free for the night, but tomorrow morning we have a photo op with the mayor.”

“Sounds good, Heather,” he said in a dismissive tone. Heather gave him a pointed look and then walked over to stand by Elliott. Brady turned back to face Liz. “Chelsea works for an environmental lobbying firm that’s trying to get me to make a statement about fracking in the North Carolina Mountains. They’re huge supporters, so I can’t ignore them. So we have dinner plans.”

“We?” Liz asked, surprised.

“Of course. You’re part of my life. You’ll entertain at my side.” He swept her up in his arms and kissed her briefly on the mouth. “Now I have to charm the crowd as much as I did you.”

“Let’s hope you use different tactics,” she said breathlessly.

He popped one more kiss on her mouth and smirked. His campaign mask slid easily into place, all charm and charisma with an underlying arrogance that no one could ignore, and just a touch of something that inherently drew people to him. Brady had it all.

“Good luck,” she whispered.

“Don’t need it, baby. I’ve got you.”

With that Brady turned and sauntered up the small set of stairs and onto the stage as though he owned it. The chant turned into uproarious applause as his followers extolled his very presence. She moved next to Heather on the side of the stage to watch him deliver the speech he had been working on all week.

Heather stood with her arms crossed and her mouth set in a straight line. Liz wondered what it must be like for her—always worrying about every minute detail related to Brady and the campaign and never having a moment to truly enjoy it. She and Heather were on bad terms, but that didn’t mean that Liz didn’t understand where Heather was coming from, especially after Brady had told her more about how they had started working together.

Liz was jarred from her thoughts as Brady’s smooth voice filled the speakers. “Welcome!” he cheered.

The crowd went crazy, screaming, clapping, and throwing Maxwell banners into the air.

“It’s good to be back home, Raleigh. Good to be back with the good people of North Carolina and every single one of my supporters here!”

Liz felt herself relaxing into his speech. She had heard it dozens of times this week and almost knew it by heart. She would never be comfortable enough to give a speech in front of dozens of people, but Brady was a natural. He commanded attention. Each time his eyes were cast out on the crowd it was as if he were speaking directly to every individual in the audience.

She even saw Heather nodding along with Brady’s speech. It was nice knowing that she wasn’t immune to his onstage demeanor. Though it shouldn’t have surprised her. Heather was a professional, but believed in Brady and what he stood for. She wanted to further her own career through him, but she trusted him.

Liz trusted him too. Hearing him speak about his love for the people and his desire to continue to enact change only reminded her all over again why she had fallen for him and how he had won her vote. She had thought that he was just in it for the fame and fortune. Lining his pockets with ill intentions while fooling everyone with a pretty face and good pedigree. He couldn’t have proven her more wrong.

She held her breath as he got to the next part of the speech, the part that she had helped him work on. His audience was captivated as he started in.

“When I was elected to serve as the member of Congress for the Fourth District of North Carolina, you conferred on me your support and your trust. You believed me when I said that I was going to take your beliefs and ideas to D.C. with me and look out for your benefit,” Brady said, pacing the stage. “Over the past two years, I’ve done exactly that. Whether I was spending my time on the education committee trying to enact better legislation for our future leaders, helping to get more appropriations for the research community we have invested in, or just spending countless days working among you, listening to you, and taking into account your concerns.