The Hopefuls by JENNIFER CLOSE

Author:JENNIFER CLOSE
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
Published: 2016-07-19T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 13

A couple of weeks after we got back from St. Michaels, we were sitting on the couch, watching The Daily Show, when Matt’s phone rang. We glanced at each other, wondering who would be calling, and then Matt looked down at his phone and said, “It’s Jimmy.” For a second, I thought he wasn’t going to answer, but then he swiped the screen and said, “Hey man, what’s up?”

He was quiet for a while, only saying, “Really?” or “Okay,” and once, “Wow.” I kept trying to catch his eye so he could let me know what was going on, but he wouldn’t look up. I bent my head in front of him, which was maybe a little obnoxious, and he held up a finger to me, telling me to wait a minute, and then walked upstairs. I muted the TV to listen to the conversation, but Jimmy was doing most of the talking. When Matt finally came downstairs, he looked a little shocked.

“Is everything okay?” I asked.

“Yeah,” he said. “Yeah, it’s fine.” He was speaking slowly, like he was trying to find the right words, and I waited for him to continue. “Jimmy was approached by some people asking if he’d want to run for the Railroad Commission.”

“What? What people?”

“Some ‘major Democratic stakeholders,’ he said. Apparently, they want someone new in the Democratic field. There’s one guy with some sketchy financial stuff and another old guy who’s run like three times already.”

“That’s crazy. Is he going to do it?”

“It sounds like it. I mean, it’s kind of a long shot for him to win the general. But it’s great experience. And you never know. They want someone young who can bring energy to the party. They also think he can raise a lot of money.”

“What’s the position again?”

“Railroad commissioner.”

“I’ve never heard of it.”

“You’re not from Texas,” Matt said.

“Neither are you.”

“Jimmy’s talked about it before. He thought it would be something to aim for in the future. Like years down the road.” Matt closed his eyes and leaned his head back on the couch.

“He wants to be in charge of the railroad?” I asked.

“That’s not what they do. They deal with gas and oil regulations. It’s hard to explain.”

“Was he calling just to tell you?” I asked. I was already bracing myself for this to send Matt into a spiral—one more thing Jimmy got that he didn’t, one more step forward that he wasn’t taking.

“He said he wanted my advice. If he does this, he’s going to have to start fund-raising soon,” he said. Then he gave me a wry smile. “He also just wanted to show off, I think.”

“The Jimmy Dillon Show has officially started,” I said. “He’s probably looking in the mirror, smiling at himself and brushing his hair.”

Matt made a small “hmmph” sound, but then he laughed and nodded in agreement. “No shit,” he said.

—

Jimmy officially declared that he was running in November, and that same day he asked Matt to help him put together a fund-raiser in DC.

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