Free Politically Incorrect by Jeanne McDonald

tone of his voice. “Good to know,” I choked.
    Liam stepped back, his thick brows raised. “But to me, sex isn’t a toy. It has meaning and depth. Two bodies sharing a connection. I will only ever engage with a woman I have true feelings for.”
    I brushed my bangs back from my face and reached for my bag. Now it was my turn to hide my face. “A very rare quality. Most men don’t think like that.”
    “And most men miss out on what it feels like to make love to a woman for the first time. I assure you, there’s no greater rush.”
    I draped my bag over my shoulder, chuckling a little.
    Liam stretched his arms over his head. His shirt pulled against his tight stomach. A small gasp perched at the seam of my lips at the thought of that stomach, bare, wet, with just the right amount of light brown hair trailing to…
    I diverted my eyes from going any further. I couldn’t allow myself to go there again, so I blurted out the first thing that came to my mind. “I guess I kind of know what you mean. Until recently I didn’t date much, either. Jordyn’s the reason I started dating again. For some reason she thought I was lonely after she moved into the dorms. She said I was working too hard and needed more social interaction that didn’t include a political function.”
    “It’s nice to have someone worry about you. Aaron worries about me constantly.”
    “Yes, about Aaron. Will he be here tonight?”
    Liam glanced down at his watch. “Actually, he should be here…”
    “Hey, you two,” Harper called out, entering the room. “Look who I found.”
    Aaron followed behind Harper, standing a good head and shoulders above him.
    “Speak of the devil,” Liam mumbled.
    Introductions were made, and I determined rather quickly Aaron belonged in the realms of politics. He was nothing like Liam. Where Liam came off as honest yet frustrating, Aaron had that smile to your face but lie behind your back vibe. He came off as a bit of a trickster, countering Liam’s seriousness. It was safe to say, I felt comfortable with Aaron Baxter and had a certain assurance he would be able to get politically dirty if I needed him to.
    “Liam told me all about you last night,” Aaron stated, glancing over to his brother. A look passed between them making me wonder how much Liam had told him. “If you have a moment, there are a few things I’d like to discuss with you.”
    “Aaron, can we do this later?” Liam stated. “Elizabeth and I just spent the last two hours talking policies and campaign strategies. I need a break to clear my head.” He rubbed his forehead, his long lashes fluttering. “This woman’s a tyrant.”
    “I’d say, if she made you fire Victor,” Aaron noted with a grin. “I’ve been begging you to do that for a year. Besides, we don’t need you here if you don’t want to be.”
    “You know I always want to be involved,” Liam growled. “And she didn’t make me fire anyone. I agreed to it. I even made the call personally this morning. It’s done.”
    Aaron turned his green eyes to me and grinned. “I’m looking forward to seeing what else you can get this knucklehead to do. Lord knows he won’t listen to me.”
    “I said she didn’t make me…”
    “Yeah, yeah, yeah. You keep telling yourself that.” He shrugged Liam off. “So, Ms. McNeal, I’d really like to discuss new staff arrangements, which, by the way, will we be meeting our new press secretary tonight?”
    “Aaron.” Liam’s tone darkened with authority. So much, in fact, it made my girly bits quiver. What woman didn’t enjoy a man who exerted his power when necessary?
    Down girl.
    “What? You started without me. I can’t help it if I need to get up to speed.”
    “Later,” Liam declared. “We need to let Elizabeth get ready for tonight.”
    “Oh, yeah. That reminds me, Bet,” Harper interjected, “your dress arrived. I had Ivory take it upstairs to your room.”
    I’d been so beguiled by the power struggle between Liam