Emma was curled up on the couch, a ceramic coffee mug in her hands. It was designed to look like a Starbucks cup, complete with a thin rubber lid. She had found it in her car Tuesday morning. Dante ¨C Tommy ¨C must have forgotten it after their trip to the park.At first, she thought she would just shove it into the glove box and take it back to him on Thursday. But then-she couldn't resist putting her lips where she knew his had been. In an odd sort of way, it made her feel close to him.It hadn't occurred to her to give him her cellphone number, or to ask for his. She wished she had. It was funny how being apart made all these little insecurities suddenly rear their ugly heads. She kept thinking that he might cancel on her, that she would drive up and he wouldn't be there. Or he would ask her to leave.Or there would be another woman there.Emma sipped from his cup and tried to push that last thought away.She heard a little noise across the room. She looked up just as Steve tur

Music played softly in the background, some country tune she couldn't recall having heard before. He continuously surprised her with his taste in music, movies, and literature. He was complex, this god of a man.She had her camera again. He was stretched out against the headboard of his bed, pillows bunched up behind his back. He was laughing at her, holding his hands up to block the lens of the camera."This isn't a Playgirl photo shoot," he said."No, but it would be a disservice to all of humanity not to capture this sight on film."He laughed again.Emma leaned back, trying to get his full length in focus, but he grabbed her just as she pushed the shutter. She was pretty sure her hand had blocked the entire shot."Hey," she grumbled. But then she was in his arms, and that didn't seem to be such a bad thing.Her camera forgotten somewhere on the mattress, she found herself trapped beneath him as he teased her nipples with his tongue. She sighed, leaning back to give him all t

"Education is the most important issue on the political agenda today. Our children are our future, yet we have failed to give them the education they need to make a difference in the world. Half of all high school students in the state of Texas will not graduate. The rest will struggle to meet basic entrance requirements for major universities across the country. This is unacceptable."Emma tried to listen as Steve made his speech. But she was distracted by a text message that seemed to be burning a hole from her phone through the pocket of her skirt. She knew the vibration meant that Tommy had written to her. Knew it because everyone else who mattered was here in this room. She could see Jen watching her from a front table, could feel her mother's eyes from the back of the room. Even her boys were there, playing in a back room with the very capable Sunday school teacher from the local Baptist church. They had traded cellphone numbers on Thursday before she left him, before she left

Emma dropped the day's mail on Steve's desk. A manila envelope addressed to Steve in bold letters caught her eye. The writing was done in magic marker and there was no return address. And no stamp. Someone had to have put it in the mailbox themselves.Very clandestine. She smiled. Probably just campaign materials.She stepped out into the hall, about to call up to the boys when she felt a little pinch in her abdomen. She touched the spot, hoping it wasn't an indication that her period was about to start. She had been irregular for a few months. Stress did that. But she was supposed to meet Tommy tomorrow afternoon. It would be just her luck-"Boys, you're going to be late if you don't hurry up!"Right on cue, they came running down the stairs, their feet like a herd of elephants on the stairs. They paused in front of her, each dressed in a pair of shorts, each skidding across the foyer on the sleek plastic of their cleats. Justin's shin guards were almost too big for him, making

"What are you doing here? How did you know I would be there?""I'm trying to help you, believe it or not."Alvarez studied her across the tight confines of her car. There was pity in his eyes. It made Emma's spine stiffen, made her push down the darkness that threatened to overwhelm her. She scrubbed at her tears again, rubbing so hard against her eyes that she saw stars for a brief moment."Someone knows about your affair with Thomas Morgan."The sound of his name made her bottom lip weaken for a moment. She looked out the window and took a deep breath. "No one knows," she said."Someone does." Alvarez pulled out his cellphone and pulled up something before handing it to her. Emma hesitated. She didn't want to talk to this man, didn't want to talk about Tommy to someone who hadn't known him. But he insisted, jabbing the phone in her direction. When she took it, she had to concentrate to make her eyes focus on the tiny print."Want a good story about Emma Hamilton?" a text mess