Kinsman felt as if he were in free-fall, everything drop- ping away.
Diane pulled herself bolt upright on the bed. "You didn't know about us?"
"Mary-Ellen," Kinsman heard himself mutter.
"She knows," Diane said. "We've tried to keep it as quiet as possible, of course. Nobody in Washington would really care, but they would use it against Neal back in Pennsylvania. A divorce case and an affair with a pop singer—they'd crucify him back home."
"You and Neal," Kinsman said, still stunned by it. "And Mary-Ellen knows."
"We love each other, Chet. Neither of us wanted it to happen, but it has."
"Then when you stayed at their place after the party . . , Jesus Christ, I talked him into going out and finding you, way back in San Francisco!"
"Yes, that's when I first met him. But it wasn't until the Presidential campaign, when I was doing benefits for the New Youth Alliance . . ."
"And Mary-Ellen's just sitting back and letting the two of you have your fun. Or does she have a lover, too?"
"She's being awfully good about it. Says she doesn't want to hurt Neal's career. It makes me feel like hell."
But you sleep with him anyway. Kinsman growled silent- ly. In her home. Aloud, he asked, "Are they going to get a divorce?"
Diane pushed her hair back away from her face with an automatic gesture. "I don't know. We'll see what happens after his re-election campaign next year."
Kinsman pictured Neal campaigning through the state, the solid family man with his wife and two children by his side and Diane waiting for him in motel rooms.
"I think I'm pregnant," she said in a small, almost frightened voice.
"Jesus Christ."
"I can't let anyone know it's Neal's baby. He doesn't know it himself yet."
"What'll you do?"
She shook her head. "I don't know. Have an abortion. I guess."
"And he invited you up to the space station. It wasn't just public relations." He put a slight emphasis on the word public. "It's a chance to be with you."
"Your people in the Pentagon don't know about this, do they?" Diane asked. "I mean, if they did they could use it to pressure Neal to vote their way . . ."
