Chapter Text
Chapter One: The Coffee shop
West London: Four Months Earlier
“Have you tried the coffee here,” David Budd asked the tall beautiful brunette woman, who was standing behind him in line that day at a coffee shop in London. He had no clue why he spoke to her. She looked vaguely familiar but not necessarily friendly as her eyes scanned the shop. She smiled warmly at him.
“No, I was just in the area. Do you come here often,” she asked curious about the handsome man in front of her. This woman was Julia Montague, the current Home Secretary and likely Prime Minister. She was able to sneak away from her PPOs and her overbearing husband Rodger Penhaligon, the chief whip, for a few brief moments for the chance to grab a cup of coffee. Her marriage with Rodger had been long dead. She had long lived a separate life from him, they didn’t even share the same flat but for the sake of politics, they stayed together. Julia was planning on challenging the current Prime Minister for number ten. Though, she knew this would greatly anger Rodger, he wouldn’t divorce her, he loved being close to power. The current Prime Minister was so weak that any challenge would end his political career! Her attention was soon brought back to the handsome man in front of her.
“Yes, I like it,” he replied in a matter of fact tone.
“What’s good here,” she asked in a flirty tone as she twisted a lock of her hazelnut brown hair?
“What do you like,” he responded in the same flirty tone?
“You’re one of those blokes aren’t you? I'm not the picky type!”
“I like that not picky, anything with the espresso is good here You look like you could use a jolt!”
Upon this she smiled and said “I'll make a note to get the espresso!”
“David by the way,” he said as he extended his hand?
Oh God, he was doing names but nevertheless being intrigued by this man called David, she extended her hand too and smiled and said “Julia Montague!”
With these words, Julia Montague, it clicked for him. She was the Home Secretary, the woman, who was about to become Prime Minister. He knew he should hate her, like he hated all politicians but he just couldn’t, there was something about her that mesmerized him. He was just about to ask her if she wanted to sit with him, once they got their coffees when suddenly a man with a bloodless face and angry eyes appeared. David recognized this man as Rodger Penhaligon, Julia’s hapless husband. Before Julia could say anything, Rodger yelled “what the bloody hell are you doing here? What were you thinking escaping from your PPOs like this?”
“Rodger stop it,” Julia cried, he was embarrassing her. At this she sighed and paused for a moment before saying “you know what, we’ll go.” At this she got out of line and started to follow Rodger as David called “it was good to meet you, Home Secretary!”
She smiled at him and said “you too,” as she and Rodger slipped out the door.
As she and Rodger were riding in the back of the Jaguar limousine, she couldn’t help but think of the man at the coffee shop! She was mesmerized by him! There was something special about him! She wished she had met him before she met Rodger. Of course, over the years of their loveless marriage, both she and Rodger had various affairs but that man from the coffee shop was something more than a hookup. Julia being a devotee to truth and logic scoffed at the notion of love at first sight but maybe there was such a thing. As crazy as it sounded there was something between her and that man, she just knew it, though she also knew she would never see him again.
Her friend, Allison Taylor, disgraced former U.S. President, had told her that she felt the same way about the man, she was now engaged to, Ethan Kanin, her former chief of staff, when she first met him. Allison had been married to a Rodger type character named Henry, he had divorced her, when Allison had decided that even the family of the President was not above the law. Allison had once told Julia that though she was in love with Henry at the time, she knew, when her bright blue eyes first locked with Ethan's, that she loved him. Ethan would later tell her the same thing! And maybe the Prime Minister to be, could allow herself for a second to think that maybe something like that could happen to her, maybe something like that could happen to her and that mesmerizing man, David!