She turned her head to face him.
“This is how it always is for you, isn’t it?” she continued, “you just never get away from it. There are always people around here who want to talk to you about one thing or another, someone who wants to get a little face time, someone who wants to get a taste of what it’s like to be close to power.”
“Jane,” Michael responded, “I’m not that powerful, I’m a state senator. Most people in my district probably couldn’t pick me out of a lineup.”
“Now you are,” Jane said, “but if I can’t go on a bike ride with you now, when you’re just a state senator, what happens when you’re a congressman? What happens when you’re governor? It’s not just you I’m worried about here, I also have to deal with this.”
“Jane,” Michael reassured her, “Democrats don’t get elected t
