There was a quick shot of Adam on the screen, and by his side, Mary Beth. Jennifer prided herself on being able to read people, to understand their motives, but she had been completely taken in by the moonlight-and-magnolias routine of the honey-voiced bitch. She kept pushing back the picture of Adam going to bed with that woman, making her pregnant.
Edwin Newman was saying, “Here are the latest returns in the senate race between the incumbent, John Trowbridge, and challenger Adam Warner. In Manhattan, John Trowbridge has a total of 221,375 votes. Adam Warner has a total of 214,895.
“In the Forty-fifth Election District of the Twenty-ninth Assembly District in Queens, John Trowbridge is two percentage points ahead.”
Jennifer’s life was being measured in percentage points.
“The totals from The Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, Richmond and the counties of Nassau, Rockland, Suffolk and Westchester add up to 2,300,000 for John Trowbridge, and 2,120,000 for Adam Warner, with the votes from upstate New York just beginning to come in. Adam Warner has made a surprisingly strong showing against Senator Trowbridge, who is serving his third term. From the beginning, the polls have been almost evenly divided in this race. According to the latest returns, with sixty-two percent of the votes counted, Senator Trowbridge is beginning to pull ahead. When we read the last returns one hour ago, Senator Trowbridge was two percentage points ahead. The returns now indicate that he has increased his lead to two and a half percentage points. If this trend continues, the NBC computer will predict Senator Trowbridge to be the victor in the senatorial race for the United States Senate. Moving on to the contest between…”
Jennifer sat there, looking at the set, her heart pounding. It was as though millions of people were casting a vote to decide whether it would be Adam and Jennifer, or Adam and Mary Beth. Jennifer felt light-headed and giddy. She must remember to eat sometime. But not now. Nothing mattered now except what was happening on the screen in front of her. The suspense kept building, minute by minute, hour by hour.
At midnight, Senator John Trowbridge’s lead was three percentage points. At two in the morning, with seventy-one percent of the votes counted, Senator Trowbridge was leading by a margin of three and a half percentage points. The computer declared that Senator John Trowbridge had won the election.
Jennifer sat there staring at the television set, drained of all emotion, of all feeling. Adam had lost. Jennifer had won. She had won Adam and their son. She was free to tell Adam now, to tell him about their baby, to plan for their future together.
Jennifer’s heart ached for Adam, for she knew how much the election had meant to him. And yet in time, Adam would get over his defeat. One day he would try again, and she would help him. He was still young. The world lay before both of them. Before the three of them.
Jennifer fell asleep on the couch, dreaming about Adam and the election and the White House. She and Adam and their son were in the Oval Office. Adam was making his acceptance speech. Mary Beth walked in and began to interrupt. Adam started to yell at her and his voice got louder and louder. Jennifer woke up. The voice was the voice of Edwin Newman. The television set was still on. It was dawn.
Edwin Newman, looking exhausted, was reading the final election returns. Jennifer listened to him, her mind still half asleep.
As she started to rise from the couch she heard him say, “And here are the final results on the New York State senatorial election. In one of the most stunning upsets in years, Adam Warner has defeated the incumbent, Senator John Trowbridge, by a margin of less than one percent.”
It was over. Jennifer had lost.
26
When Jennifer walked into the office late that morning, Cynthia said, “Mr. Adams is on the line, Miss Parker. He’s been calling all morning.”
Jennifer hesitated, then said, “All right, Cynthia, I’ll take it.” She went into her office and picked up the telephone. “Hello, Adam. Congratulations.”
“Thanks. We have to talk. Are you free for lunch?”
Jennifer hesitated. “Yes.”
It had to be faced sometime.
It was the first time Jennifer had seen Adam in three weeks. She studied his face. Adam looked haggard and drawn. He should have been flushed with victory, but instead he seemed oddly nervous and uncomfortable. They ordered a lunch which neither of them ate, and they talked about the election, their words a camouflage to hide their thoughts.
The charade had become almost unbearable when, finally, Adam said, “Jennifer…” He took a deep breath and plunged ahead. “Mary Beth is going to have a baby.”
Hearing the words from him somehow made it an unbearable reality. “I’m sorry, darling. It—it just happened. It’s difficult to explain.”
“You don’t have to explain.” Jennifer could see the scene clearly. Mary Beth in a provocative negligee—or naked—and Adam—
“I feel like such a fool,” Adam was saying. There was an uncomfortable silence and he went on. “I got a call this morning from the chairman of the National Committee. There’s talk about grooming me as their next presidential candidate.” He hesitated. “The problem is that with Mary Beth pregnant, this would be an awkward time for me to get a divorce. I don’t know what the hell to do. I haven’t slept in three nights.” He looked at Jennifer and said, “I hate to ask this of you, but—do you think we could wait a little while until things sort themselves out?”
Jennifer looked across the table at Adam and felt such a deep ache, such an intolerable loss, that she did not think she could stand it.