Finally the second chapter :)

Thanks for your reviews and sorry it took so long for the update :( I hope you'll like it :)

I do not own TGW otherwise we A/P shippers had nothing to worry for tomorrows episode ;)

It was not yet 7 am when Peter sat on his desk again. He had slept badly, tossing and turning, thinking about what Kresteva had said to him last night. The few times he had fallen asleep for a couple of minutes the pictures of Will and Alicia haunted his mind. And however he had not seen them all, he hoped the images his mind conjured up were worse then the actual photos. He still had no desire at all to look at the rest of them. Although the thought crossed his mind that he had to as part of his punishment for his own sin of betraying his wife. He retrieved the key to the drawer, which hid the pictures, from his pocket. Leaning back in his chair he turned the little silver key a few times between the fingers of both his hands. Sighing deeply he finally bent down to place the key in the lock, when the door to his office was opened boldly and Eli entered. Peter stood up and put the key quickly into his pocket.

"Good Morning, Peter." Eli sat down in one of the chairs opposite to Peter. "What is so urgent that it couldn't wait?" he tried to repress a yawn.

"Sorry, Eli." Peter plastered a half smile on his face and walked around his desk to sit down next to Eli whose gaze followed him impatiently.

"Eli, I need you to prepare everything for a press conference on Monday."

"Why? What do you want to announce?" Eli couldn't hide his curiosity.

"I am dropping out of the race." he looked straight into Eli's face and saw the disbelief in his eyes.

"You can not be serious, Peter!" It had taken Eli a few moments to find his voice but now he was nearly shouting the words at Peter.

"I am, Eli. And my decision is final!" Eli could hear the severity in his tone as he continued to just stare at Peter.

"This can't be, Peter! You've got a real chance of winning here! Dropping out now is insane!" Eli had left his chair and was pacing the room now.

"Why, Peter? Everything looks good. We're ahead in the polls and even Alicia's comment on religion didn't harm us. What has changed since yesterday? Does Alicia want you to drop out?" Eli was getting angrier by the second. One strand of his hair had fallen into his face as he continued to walk up and down the room.

"Leave Alicia out of this. She doesn't even know, yet." Peter snapped at Eli.

"Then why, Peter? Give me one good reason for your decision and I will shut up!" he had stopped his pacing and stood directly in front of Peter now, who still remained in his seat.

"My reason is private, Eli. And nothing you say or do will change it!" Peter had also raised his voice now, a serious look on his face. He contemplated for a split second to tell Eli the real reason, but decided against it. The fewer people knew the better.

"But Peter, this is crazy! I thought you wanted this! Your next big dream and we are so close! You can't throw this away now!" Eli was shouting again.

"You're right. I wanted this, Eli. And I know we are close. But sometimes you have to sacrifice a dream. And that's what I am doing now." he looked seriously at Eli.

"Then tell me, Peter! What is worth sacrificing your dream for? Tell me and maybe I'll find a way you can have both!"

"No!" Peter sharply interrupted Eli and stood from his seat. "That's enough, Eli! You will accept my decision and do all that is necessary to prepare for my announcement on Monday."

"But...!" Eli tried to say something but Peter shot him a stern look, which told him this discussion was over.

"All right!" Eli shrugged. "If you're that serious. Just send over your speech and I'll do the rest." Peter could hear a hint of resignation and disappointment in Eli's voice.

He nodded in response and Eli turned to leave the office.

Peter let out a relieved sigh when the door closed behind Eli and fell back into the chair again. He was glad that this conversation was finished. He rested his forehead in his hand and shook his head. The first step was done. He had no other choice. He had to abandon his ambitions to become governor. He saw no alternative. Releasing another deep breath he rose from the chair to start on his speech. He was sure he was doing the right thing for himself and most importantly for his family.

Alicia had just returned to her office after a long day in court. She was packing up a few files on a case that would go to court the following week, talking with Cary in between. They were still sharing an office and Alicia had no doubt it would stay like this for a while although both of them had accepted the offer to become partner.

Alicia was just putting her cell phone in her bag and reached for her coat to leave the office when the door flew open and Eli stormed into the room.

"Is this your doing?" he shouted at her and tossed a few pieces of paper onto her desk.

Alicia watched Cary leap up from his seat, leaving the office fast and closing the door behind him. Alicia wished she could trade places with him. The last thing she needed to top off her day was a screaming Eli. She placed the bag on her desk again slowly, smiling at him.

"Hello, Eli." She greeted him in the friendliest tone she could manage. She saw that he was ready to explode and her calm response made him even angrier.

"Did you tell Peter to do this?" Eli pointed towards the papers that were still lying in front of her.

She did not glance at the papers but kept her gaze at Eli, still smiling.

"Do I really need to read it..." her eyes rested for a moment on the sheets before she met Eli's stare again "...or will you just tell me?"

"Peter is dropping out of the race for Governor. This is his renunciation speech. I am told to prepare the announcement for Monday." Eli's voice was slowly returning to a normal volume.

Alicia gasped and looked at him in shock.

"He...what?...are you?...he can't!" she stammered while Eli's words sank in but still made no sense.

"Why?" that was all she could manage and it was also the most pressing question in her mind.

"I hoped you could tell me why." Eli's anger seemed to fade while he looked at Alicia's upset face.

"No, I had no idea." she shook her head in disbelief, blankly staring at her desktop.

"Didn't he give you a reason?" her eyes met Eli's searching for an answer.

"Just that it is private and he wrote in his statement that his withdrawal was due to personal and family matters. So, I figured you knew or had something to do with it."

Eli let out a heavy breath. "I'm sorry for my outrage earlier, Alicia." he flashed a small smile at her.

Alicia returned the smile accepting his apology.

"Could you talk to him? Find out what is behind this?" Eli asked carefully. "I haven't told anyone, yet. We still have a few days till Monday."

"You can be sure that I will talk to him! I want to know what's going on. But I can't promise you anything, Eli."

"Fair enough." he smiled at her. "I gotta go now. Thank you, Alicia." he turned and left the office.

Alicia watched him leave, falling back into her chair. She had no idea what was happening. She reached for the papers that Eli had left and skimmed the text, trying to find a hidden message between Peter's vague words. There was none. She grabbed her coat and bag, retrieving her cell from it on her way to the elevator.

She dialed Peter's number and it started ringing by the time she waited for it to arrive.

"Hey, Alicia." Peter answered after the second ring.

"Hi, where are you?" she stepped through the opening elevator doors and pressed the button to the garage.

"In the car heading home. I just left work. Are you ok?" he sensed that something was wrong with her.

"Good, I'll meet you there. I'm leaving the office right now. We need to talk!"

"Ok! See you..." Alicia had hung up. All Peter could hear was the constant beep of the disconnected line.

He threw the phone onto the passenger seat and tried to concentrate on driving as he made his way out of the city. He had a good idea what Alicia wanted to talk about. He was sure Eli had been to see her. He groaned and grabbed the wheel tighter.

This was not how he planned for her to find out. He thought he had been clear to Eli to leave Alicia out of it. He should have known better. Eli would not rest before he knew the real reason for his withdrawal or had convinced him to go on, whatever the consequences. But not this time. His family would not become fodder for the media once more. Not if he could prevent it. If the last years had taught him anything it was that his family mattered the most. His mind went back towards the pictures which he carried in his briefcase now. He winced when he imagined them being published for everyone, including his kids, to see. He still hadn't mustered the courage to look at the whole stack. He planned to hide them at home in the safe and burn them as soon as everything was over. He couldn't risk for anyone to find them.

Finally he pulled into his driveway. He got out of the car and made his way to the front door when a pair of headlights illuminated the otherwise dark front yard. He turned in the doorway and saw Alicia's car park behind his own. He took a deep breath while she got out of the vehicle and walked towards him.

"Hey!" he let her step into the house first. She just nodded as she passed by him.

She got rid of her coat and walked straight to the living room. He also hung his coat and put his briefcase away. Hesitantly he followed her but stayed in the doorway watching her.

"Would you like a glass of wine?" he offered trying to produce a small smile.

"No!" she shook her head while opening her bag and retrieving his speech from it.

"I'd rather talk about this!" she tossed the papers on the coffee table.

He recognized it immediately. He had been right. No one else but Eli had seen this yet.

"So, Eli talked to you." he slowly walked into the room and sat down on the couch. Alicia followed his moves while she still stood in the middle of the room. He tried to make out her mood, but he could not really read her expression.

"Why, Peter?" she looked at him and now he could see the anger in her eyes mixed with sadness and disbelief.

"Would you please sit down." he gestured towards the space next to him on the couch.

She let out a small sigh while she walked towards the armchair on the opposite side of the couch and sat down. She stayed on the edge of the seat, resting her elbows on her knees, looking at him expectantly.

"Why?" she repeated.

He cleared his throat, trying to buy some time before he had to answer.

"Certain facts came to my attention yesterday. And they leave me with no other possibility then to drop out." he avoided to look at her.

"What facts? Do you care to elaborate?" Alicia looked directly towards him, trying to force him to look at her, too.

"I can't tell you, but you have to believe that I am doing this to protect you and the kids." his eyes were fixed on a point on the carpet before his feet. He could not look at her. He was too afraid of what he would see in her eyes.

After a few seconds had passed in total silence he looked up at her. She still had her gaze attached to his eyes an earnest look on her face.

"So, was the affair with that campaign worker true after all?" she closed her eyes for a moment and shook her head. "And I had thought this time you had been honest with me. I really believed you had changed, Peter." she shook her head again and released a deep breath.

"No!" Peter stood from his seat and hurried towards her. "I did not sleep with that girl. That was a complete lie. You know that, Alicia." he put a hand on her shoulder willing her to look at him.

"Don't, Peter!" she also stood up, forcing him to let go of her. "Please don't try to hide a lie with another one. Not this time." her voice was barely a whisper.

"I am not lying, Alicia. Please, you have to trust me on this. I did not have an affair with that campaign worker or anyone else. I would never do this to you again." he reached for her hand but she stepped away from him.

"Then tell me why you throw your career away. If you really have changed then tell me." her voice was filled with anger now. "Show me that you deserve my trust again, Peter!"

"I can't." he slightly shook his head. "It would hurt you too much and I can't do that."

"What could hurt me more then I've already been hurt by you?" she laughed bitterly. "If you don't tell me, Peter, I'll have to assume that I am right and I can't stand you lying to me again. I really believed you had changed. I was so close to trust you again. But I should have known it."

Peter could see tears form in her eyes. He closed the distance between them once more reaching out for her hand.

"Don't touch me, Peter." she backed further away from him.

"Alicia, please..." he started to talk but she cut him off.

"Tell me the truth, Peter, or go on from here alone." she turned and walked towards the door.

"What do you mean with that?" he called after her.

She turned in the doorway a sad smile on her lips.

"If you can't tell me the truth we probably should think about ending our marriage for real." she stepped out of the room.

"No, please, Alicia. Trust me on this. I am doing this for you and the kids, please..." he was begging now, close to coming clean about his reasons. But he couldn't tell her Kresteva's evil plan.

"I can't! Just like you!" she had already put on her coat and was opening the front door.

"Goodbye, Peter."

Alicia hurried towards her car hoping he would not follow her. She felt empty and hurt.

She glanced back at the house while she got into the car and thought she saw him behind the window watching her. She backed out of the driveway and drove away without looking back again.

All the way home the conversation whirred in her head. She could not believe he would lie to her again. She had successfully held back the tears while she was still in the house, but now they silently streamed down her face. She shook her head at herself. She had been stupid enough to nearly fall for him again. She should have known better. On the outside she had managed to keep her poker face towards him, making him believe she just wanted the physical closeness during the last weeks. But inside she had known for quite some time now that she could not keep this up any longer. She had wanted to be with him again, feeling the need to stay every time a little more when she forced herself from his arms after they had slept together. Trying not to give him false hopes too early by staying. The irony hit her hard. She had been the one with the false hopes, believing he had changed and deserved another chance. She had been wrong again. Once more he had shattered everything and she had enough. He would not get the chance to do it one more time. She would need to talk to David Lee the next day, to get things on the divorce rolling again. She let out a deep sigh and wiped the tears from her face when she drove into the garage of her apartment building. She parked the car, gathered her bag from the passenger seat and drove up towards her floor. She felt like she had no other choice but to divorce Peter at last. She couldn't go on like this again.

Finally she stood in front of her apartment door, searching for her keys when her gaze fell on a big brown envelope that lay on the doormat. She bent down and picked it up before opening the door. She put her coat and bag away still holding the envelope in her hand. There was no writing on the outside. When she opened it a photo and a sheet of paper came to view. She pulled out the paper and gasped when she read what was written on it.

If you don't want to see this in the newspapers, make sure Peter drops out of the race!

She reached into the envelope again and produced the photo. Another shocked sound escaped her when she realized the picture showed herself and Will having sex in a Hotel room. She just stood there for a while, frozen to the spot trying to take in what the picture and the note meant.

Finally she felt able to move again. She put the paper and photo back in the envelope and walked into her bedroom. She picked up the phone only then noticing that her whole body was shaking. She took a few deep breaths to calm herself before she finally dialed the all too familiar number. Her call was answered after just one ring.

"I'm sorry!" was all she managed to say before she started to sob uncontrollably.