Truth Be Told Read Online Free

her, but before their lips could meet, the phone rang. They sighed, and Grace reached for the phone on the nightstand.
    â€œHi, Marilyn.” Grace’s shoulders sagged as she looked at Conner.
    He mouthed no, and shook his head.
    â€œCongratulations, Grace,” Marilyn said. “We’re all so excited here.”
    Grace breathed, relieved. At least Conner’s assistant wasn’t calling for him. “Thanks.” Grace’s glance followed Conner as he moved toward the closet, her gaze focused on his naked torso.
    â€œWell, Marilyn, thanks for calling,” she said eager to dismiss the woman.
    â€œIs Conner there?”
    Grace’s smile faded. “Yes.” Her simple answer was meant to deter Marilyn.
    But Marilyn continued. “May I speak with him? It’s important.”
    Grace wanted to hang up as Conner pulled his sweatshirt over his head, then walked to the dresser for his watch. Once he took this call, it would become a war of wills—whether to stay with his wife or service his clients. In this place, at this time, she wouldn’t win. He was as committed to his work as she was to hers.
    â€œGrace,” Marilyn said again.
    â€œHold on a second.” Grace put her hand over the receiver. “Marilyn said it’s important.”
    Grace tossed the cordless phone toward Conner with more force than she expected. The phone’s tip smashed into a silver-framed photo of the four Monroes. The picture seemed to float as it descended toward the floor and hit the carpet, splattering glass slivers across the room.
    â€œMy goodness.” Grace jumped from the bed.
    Conner picked up the phone, then stepped with caution over the glass. He sat on the bed as Grace moved toward the fallen family photograph. “I’ll clean it up,” he said.
    Grace picked up the photo and stared at the picture taken a year before, when she’d declared her candidacy. Conner was standing with his arms around her, with the girls in front. Exhilaration covered their faces, though she knew her children didn’t understand the enormity of her decision.
    Before she decided to run for office, Grace had considered the effect it might have on her family. They were a strong unit, bound together even more by their tragedies. But they’d danced through their storms, and now their future was clear of any clouds.
    The campaign had been clean, thank God, though Grace had held her breath. But her opponent, Samuel Douglas, had played only two cards—her inexperience and her religious conviction.
    â€œMy opponent has served only on the school board. No one with so little experience can serve a community like the Eighteenth District. Also, Ms. Monroe has made it very clear where she stands in terms of her Christian beliefs. We cannot allow politics to mix with religion. We are a mixture of black and white, Christians, Jews, Muslims, Protestants, and Catholics. We live in a great country that calls for the separation of church and state.”
    That was the worst of it. And she’d held onto her convictions throughout the campaign.
    â€œI am not saying that everyone has to share my beliefs,” Grace had said at her campaign rallies. “What I am saying is that I am a woman of God who will seek to do what is right for everyone. No matter what your beliefs are, you must see that there is a negative correlation between the increase of violence among our children and the absence of prayer in the schools. Children are wielding guns instead of praying for friends, family, and country. There is a breakdown in the family and an increase of sexually active teenagers. The question we must ask is, What has to be done to change this? I’m talking about morals, and honor, and a belief in something besides the sex on television, the anarchy in music, and the violence in movies.”
    It had been a risky platform, but one she believed in. She didn’t want to be councilwoman if