They met in a bar. Jenn had flown in that day and wanted to rest a little before she was shined with the inevitable spotlight of local government. She was sitting at the bar in a green dress, legs crossed, a scotch in front of her. She took a sip and absentmindedly glanced around her.
The bar was relatively empty, because, she suspected, it was five on a Wednesday. Still, the interior was dimly light. It wasn't shabby, just trying to go for a more romantic atmosphere than you'd suspect from a place where half the drinks ended with the number "69."
Apart from Jenn, there was a middle-aged man a few stools a way watching whatever game was playing on the staticy tv. He hadn't glanced away in minutes.
Hmm, no thanks.
The other person was a woman. She was dressed in a black pantsuit and was seated at a table near the door, which she kept glancing at. She didn't have a drink in front of her, just her phone. She would glance at the door, then read something on her phone for a moment, then turn back to the door. She seemed to be looping.
Oh, this could be okay…
Jenn stood and took another sip of her drink before walking across the room to sit across from the woman. She set her glass on the table with a slight clink. "Stood up?" she asked.
The dark-haired woman glanced at her watch. "Actually, I'm waiting for a potential client. She was supposed to be here almost an hour ago." She looked back down at her phone.
Jenn allowed her hand to inch across the smooth surface of the table. "What do you do?" she asked. No point in trying to jump in too soon and scaring her away.
"I'm a campaign manager," she answered, setting her phone down. "Without a candidate. We had one lined up, but..." She shrugged and helped herself to Jenn's drink.
Jenn placed a hand over her arm. "Do you want me to buy you a drink?"
"I'm enjoying yours," she said with a smile. "Elizabeth Martis. You?"
"Jennifer Barkley."
Elizabeth paused and scrunched her forehead for a moment before picking up her phone and typing something. "Holy shit," she exclaimed, "you're that Elizabeth Barkley?"
"You've heard of me?" laughed Jenn. "Good, you should have." She removed her hand and crossed her arms on the table. Leaning forward, she said, "I'm here to run Bobby Newport's campaign. Guess we're enemies, huh?"
Elizabeth matched her body language until their eyes were less than an inch apart. "Well, I don't have to find a client…"
Jenn sat up. "I've got a rental car outside and a hotel room that hasn't gotten dirty yet."
Elizabeth grinned. "You sure are a charmer." She stood, pushed in her chair, and swung on her black shoulder bag.
A moment later she was hurrying out the door, giggling. A more composed Jenn followed few steps behind her.
Jenn pointed to her car. The keys dangled in her hand, jangling as she tried to unlock the car, something that wasn't made easier by the quick kiss Elizabeth placed on her lips. Her soft hands cupped Jenn's face, brushing back her hair.
Just as Jenn finally got the door unlocked, the first few notes of One Direction's What Makes You Beautiful drifted from Elizabeth's bag.
"Oh, crap…" she muttered, pulling out the phone. She checked the screen, looked up, and said, "God, I'm sorry. I totally forgot I had this thing planned…"
Jenn raised an eyebrow. "Please tell me you you're joking. About the ringtone. Bailing. Anything."
Elizabeth sighed, stashing away her phone and pulling the bag up on her shoulder. "Sorry. And worse, I'm ditching you to watch Star Trek."
Jenn shook her head. "You know what? I'm okay. We don't have to sleep together."
Elizabeth laughed. "Don't say anything you're gonna take back."
As Jenn turned to get into her car, Elizabeth grabbed her arm. "Wait!" She pulled a pen out of her blazer's pocket. She quickly scrawled her number on the other woman's arm. "Call me," she said. "I'll tell you if we find a client."
Jenn smiled. "Well, now it'll be good for both of us if you fail."
That evening, Elizabeth knocked on William's door to find him holding a bowl of popcorn.
"You jerk!" she cried, marching through the door and planting herself on his couch.
"I'm sure you're not wrong..." he muttered, sitting next to her. "Can I ask why?"
"I was about to get it on with a really hot girl when you called me!" She crossed her arms.
"Is that why you didn't pick up?"
She turned. "Get this, she was Jennifer Barkley. Jennifer fucking Barkley, WIlliam!"
He paused for a moment before saying, "The campaign manager?"
Elizabeth nodded.
"What's she doing in Pawnee?"
"Running… Bobby Newport's campaign…" She threw up her hands. "She was hot, okay?!"
"So I'll take it things didn't work out well with Brandi Maxx?"
"I got a call on the way. She's going with someone else."
"So, you didn't get the client, and you were going to sleep with Bobby Newport's campaign manager?"
"Oh, like it would even matter. We got turned down by Brandi Maxx, Will. Sorta doubt this election is ours."
He sighed and refocused on the tv. "Star Trek?"
"I can't believe you haven't seen this yet," she said, rolling her eyes and grabbing a handful of popcorn.