She nodded. “I came down with something, but it’s gone now.” She managed a smile.
“Well, good. Bradley, take care of your girl.” He patted his son on the back. “I’m sorry your mother couldn’t be here too, but she’s still in New York meeting with the strategists we hired.”
“It’s okay. I’ll talk to her when she gets back. Umm … Dad, can we talk alone?” He inclined his head toward Mitchell, who held up the wall behind the senator’s desk.
“Come on, Brad. I’ve known you since you were this big.” Mitchell gestured to a much lower height.
Stephan glanced at Brad, who shook his head.
“Mitchell, please excuse us. Let me talk to my son and Amanda.”
“But—”
The senator straightened himself to his full height. “Go, Mitchell. I’m sure you have plenty to do.” He shot the other man an insistent look, forcing Mitchell to stride out, grumbling his displeasure.
He left the room but didn’t close the door completely. Amanda couldn’t find a way to tell Brad, so she let it go.
“Let’s sit.” Stephan gestured toward the couch and chairs in the corner of the office, obviously placed there for more intimate conversations.
They all settled in.
“So what’s bothering you?” Stephan asked, leaning forward in his seat.
Brad reached for Amanda’s hand and held on tight. “Dad, I know you think Amanda and I are going to be getting engaged. I know you love her and so do I. But the thing is…”
He squeezed her hand harder. A quick glance told her he’d broken into a sweat. As difficult as he’d thought this would be, it was clearly that much worse.
She squeezed back, conveying her support.
“The thing is,” he began again, “I’m g*y.”
“I know.”
Amanda blinked, startled. He knew?
Brad coughed hard. “What? For how long? And why didn’t you say anything?”
“Bradley—”
But Brad wasn’t finished and he went on. “Why did you not only let us perpetrate this … this charade, but push even harder by practically announcing our engagement on TV?” he asked, his voice rising along with his obvious frustration.
Stephan touched Brad’s back. “Son, if you weren’t ready to come out, it definitely wasn’t my place to do it for you.”
Brad turned a healthy shade of red.
“And let’s face it,” the senator continued, “your relationship benefited both my career and place within the party.”
Amanda listened in disbelief, remaining silent, as this wasn’t her family or problem.
“But your career and the party is the only reason I didn’t come out before now.” Brad rose to his feet and began pacing the floor in front of the senator’s big wooden desk. “I didn’t want to destroy something you worked your whole life for, so I remained silent. Meanwhile, this lie has been eating me alive for years. It’s put a wedge between me and the man I love, and it’s cost Amanda as well.”
Senator Ritter stood and Amanda did the same. “Bradley, do not put your choices on me. I never once asked you to lie or pretend to be something you’re not in order to benefit my career. You did that yourself. Admittedly, I let you, but don’t mistake your choices as anyone’s but your own.”
Brad’s shoulders slumped in silent acknowledgment of his father’s words.
“I’m not saying I don’t appreciate that you cared so much about me and my career. I do and I’m grateful. But let’s be clear. I didn’t ask or demand it of you. I would never do that.”
In that powerful reply, Amanda saw the man who would possibly one day be president. A man who was strong enough to believe in himself, to be selfish enough to let his son suffer without once giving him an out, and a man capable of twisting a situation while keeping things just on this side of the truth and come out on top. Because the fact was, the senator had valid points. She and Brad had made their choices. And now they had to live with the consequences.
Brad ran a hand through the hair he’d styled well before coming here today. More evidence of the fraud he perpetrated in front of his father. Not that he realized it. Clearly, they both had growing up and changing to do.
“My God. I can’t believe you knew.” Brad’s eyes were red-rimmed.
The senator placed an arm around his son. “So what now? I know you came here to do more than tell me that you’re g*y.”
Brad drew himself up straighter, owning himself and his new choice. “I want to come out publicly. I figure if Dick Cheney’s daughter is a lesbian and his career survived, yours will too.”
“The hell it will,” Mitchell said, storming back into the room.
To her surprise, Amanda had forgotten he was listening.
“We’ve worked too hard to get to this point for you to blow things up at this late date.” The campaign manager’s face turned beet-red as he spoke.
“Mitchell, calm down. We don’t live in the Middle Ages. We can deal with this. It’s not like I didn’t have a contingency plan all along,” the senator muttered. “We will sit down with a sympathetic journalist. As a family. We’ll choose someone known for the hard questions but who we can trust to give us the right spin.” He was clearly in politician mode.
“Does Mom know too?” Brad asked.
The senator leveled his son with a steady look. “She raised you. What do you think?”
Amanda winced, hurting for Brad. Both his parents had denied who he really was, using the excuse that he’d never told them. But Brad’s omission had been in order to protect his father, while Stephan’s denial had been so he could enhance his career. Or at least not sabotage it while he was on his way up the political ladder. Still, the man seemed to accept him now, and that was a lot more than Amanda could say about her own parents.
“This is bullshit,” Mitchell muttered. He picked up a glass paperweight and looked as if he was ready to throw it through the window. Or at Brad’s head. Based on the way he glared at him, either was a possibility.
Stephan strode over to his best friend. “Now, Mitchell, put that thing down and let’s get busy. Make a list of potential interviewers. We have to find ways to mitigate the fallout.”
“The only way to do that is to make sure things continue on as they were. The party isn’t going to take this well. You just announced your candidacy. You bring in the heavy right wing and tea party votes and money. No one will like the fact that you’re embracing your queer son.” He sneered the word.