'The party will choose its new leader; that's how it'll be done. It'll take a few weeks, I guess.'
'Will there even be a contest? Who'll oppose you after that?'
She looked at him, seriously. 'Who says I'm standing? Let's go and grab a coffee.'
They found their way into the deserted lounge, where Aileen poured two cups and brought them to two chairs by the fire. 'Why wouldn't you stand?' he asked at once. 'It's the natural progression of your career.'
'Not everybody might see it that way. I know my party: I scared a lot of people in there today. Sure, the west of Scotland lot might back me, but Tommy's cronies will be out to get even. Plus there's another factor: you and me, and how the press handle it. I laid a lot of personal stuff on the line in my speech, because I had to. I tried to lean as heavily as I could on the word 'friend', but the red-tops won't take that at face value.'
'They'll have to,' said Bob, grimly.
'Oh, yes, and when they start probing into your marriage, what happens?'
'They get told to piss off. I'm not discussing that with any hack. Eventually, word will get out, but not yet.' He told her of Sarah's decision to settle in New York, and of the agreement they had reached.
'When will she go?' asked Aileen.
'She stays till Christmas, as we promised the kids. In January, she leaves for Manhattan.'
'And until then how do you co-exist?'
He laughed. 'Do you mean will we sleep together? Are you getting jealous already?'
'You haven't slept with me yet,' she pointed out, 'so I suppose I don't really have grounds for jealousy.'
'If you did, you wouldn't, if you get my drift. Sarah's chosen the spare room, and none of the kids is old enough to notice the difference. Anyway, I'm going to be away for a couple of weeks.'
'Where are you going?'
'London. I've been asked to head an independent investigation into some stuff that's been going on down there. I'm taking Neil McIlhenney with me as co-pilot.'
'Can I come and visit you while you're there?'
'That would be nice, but it's not a good idea. You have to stay visible up here. If you went down to London, the press might follow, and that would be bad news, for a whole lot of reasons.'
'Spooky.'
'Very. Anyway, you'll be too busy being elected First Minister.'
'If I run.'
'Which you will.'
'You know me that well already?'
'Well? Don't I?'
She laughed. 'Yes, I think you do. Too bad about London, though.'
'That's a hell of a place to go anyway. On the other hand… what do you have on your plate for the rest of the day?'
'Nothing. Why do you ask?'
'Because my car's outside, and I could make Glasgow in an hour.'
