Her Perfect Candidate. Candace Shaw

we have one more topic to discuss,” Shawn Bennett said uneasily to his best friend.

      Steven sat at the desk in his downtown office while Bryce and Shawn sat in the leather wingback chairs in front. They’d been discussing the latest comments about Steven from the media including gossip blogs and social media. He had begun to tune them out after a while considering it was the same conversation that’d been had over and over.

      Instead, his thoughts began to wander to Megan. He couldn’t seem to get her bubbly personality, cute smile, flirty eyes or whimsical voice out of his head. He didn’t know which was cuter: the way she spoke or the sparkle in her eyes when she laughed. He was eager to leave for their lunch meeting just to resolve which one.

      He glanced at the clock on the opposite wall and then back at the two men in front of him that he’d momentarily forgot were there. Maybe if I pay attention to them we could speed this boring meeting up.

      “What else do we need to talk about?” he asked nonchalantly.

      Bryce cleared his throat, stood up from his seat and positioned himself in front of his brother.

      “Ok, big brother. It’s like this. We feel that you have a wonderful platform and a good chance of winning the nomination for Dad’s seat. There are constituents who will vote for you because of who you are plus they agree with your views on certain issues. You’re a great senator. But because of the way you’ve been portrayed in the media, people may not take you seriously as a U.S. senator,” Bryce said as he paced back and forth around the room. “Your escapades have caught national attention lately since there’s a buzz going around about Dad retiring at the end of his term.”

      “Man, maybe you need to slow down some with the ladies,” Shawn added. “You know...save some of the action for me and Bryce.”

      Steven looked at his brother and his best friend. He’d been friends with Shawn since their days at Harvard, and he always had his back. Steven knew they were both right. He wasn’t trying to have a reputation as a playboy, he just happened to enjoy the company of different women. Some spent the night and some didn’t. And after the last incident at the ski resort in Colorado with an alleged threesome, the media was following his every move.

      “Steven, is there someone in your life you can date exclusively?” Bryce asked.

      “No, not really. They were mostly one-nighters. And I don’t mean one night stands, necessarily. Just one date and then I wasn’t interested anymore.” Steven thought over the list of women he’d been out with or slept with lately. Even though only one woman was occupying his mind at the moment.

      “What about the interior decorator you were photographed with?” Shawn offered. “You two were having a grand time at the fund-raiser event. The shutterbugs couldn’t get enough.”

      “We have a meeting at noon to discuss her possibly decorating my house... Once I find one and buy it, of course. But I doubt she would want to go out with me. She’s already called me the playboy politician.”

      “This is exactly our point. You can easily lose the female vote if women only see you as a playboy,” Bryce said.

      Steven thought about what Bryce said for a moment and then gave a cocky smile.

      “Or the opposite. You know, some women will vote for me because they think I’m a good-looking playboy. Have you seen these dimples? Women go crazy!” Steven said trying not to brag and more so lighten the mood of the room.

      “Oh, you find this funny?” Bryce asked in an irritated tone. “The Monroe name is on the line. Our family has worked hard for generations in order to become established and to be taken seriously in the political world. Dad has groomed us for this, and you’re not going to ruin my chances of becoming a district attorney one day. Plus, Jacqueline is considering going into politics, so don’t ruin this for our baby sister. Shape up and get it together.”

      Steven nodded as he listened to his brother. He knew he was right. Fun and games were over. He was a grown man. He was a Monroe man. He knew his family was influential in politics thanks to his grandfather and father.

      “What do you need me to do?”

      “Cut out this playboy persona and settle down with one woman to improve your chances to win the nomination. You need to be seen in the media as a good guy and a devoted boyfriend. Ever since your divorce, you’ve been on this wild roller-coaster ride for the last ten years. It’s time to get off.”

      His divorce. It should have been an annulment, but his ex-wife, Veronica, wanted the prenuptial agreement to stand so she could receive her settlement should they ever part. After only six months of marriage, Steven knew it was hopeless. Veronica had only married him because he was a Monroe. When he realized that she never loved him, he was crushed. He thought she was the one when he saw her studying in the library while both law students at Harvard. Apparently she’d done her homework and was determined to be his wife. Over the years, they remained cordial running into each at events or speaking engagements. She was now a law professor at a college in Washington, D.C., thanks to his last name that she refused to drop no matter how many millions she was offered during the divorce settlement.

      Since they’d parted ways, he dated, but nothing serious ever came out of it. And once he realized they were only interested in the Monroe name, he dropped them, thus igniting his persona in the media.

      “I hear you, Bryce. Which one of my past conquests should I consider?”

      “Actually, Megan Chase would be the perfect candidate. You’ve already been photographed with her, and you two appeared quite cozy.”

      “Yes,” Shawn said as he grabbed a folder from his briefcase. “We did a little research as always when you’re photographed with a new woman. She’s twenty-seven years old. According to her DMV records, she’s five feet six inches and weighs 125 pounds. Her father is a principal at a local high school and her mother is a first grade teacher. They were high school sweethearts and have been married for thirty-five years. Ms. Chase has never had any arrests, and has only had one speeding ticket. She won a full scholarship to Clark Atlanta University and started her interior-decorating business out of her parent’s basement along with her best friend when they graduated from college. But now they have an office in Buckhead.

      “Ms. Chase’s twin sister is a GBI agent and their older brother is a musician who owns a jazz club/restaurant here in Atlanta. Her uncle on her mother’s side is Dr. Francis Arrington, a world renowned heart surgeon in Memphis and all his children are doctors, as well. She likes hanging with her family and her girlfriends. Her ex-boyfriend is a doctor here in Atlanta. She helped him start his practice, but they broke up about a year and a half ago once she found out he was cheating with one of his nurses.”

      “Wow. Do you know her blood type, too?” Steven asked sarcastically. Shawn had done research before but never to this extent.

      Shawn glanced through some papers in his folders. “Yes. She’s AB.”

      Steven chuckled. “I was just joking.”

      “We aren’t,” Bryce stated in a firm tone. “This is serious.”

      “Anything else I need to know about Ms. Chase? Is she lactose intolerant? How does she like her eggs prepared?”

      “Yes. She’s trying to get a spot on the show Decorator’s Dream.” Shawn closed the folder and laid it on Steven’s desk.

      Steven then glanced down at it and shook his head in disbelief. “Well, I’m not sure if I’m totally on board with this absurd idea, but I’ll give it some thought.”

      * * *

      Megan sat nervously in the parking lot of her brother’s restaurant on Peachtree Street downtown. She’d called Braxton ahead of time to tell him she was coming because she wanted to make sure her favorite booth was available because it overlooked the stage. It was the perfect spot for when jazz bands played in the evenings and occasionally during lunch.

      She tapped