by Marie Force
Hanigan shook Nick’s hand. “Excellent.”
When the other man began to walk away, Nick said, “Tom.”
He turned back, gray eyebrow raised. “Yes, sir?”
“I just wanted to say… I’ve been where you are right now. The chief of staff to a high-ranking official who died in office. Like you with President Nelson, John O’Connor was also my longtime friend. If there’s anything I can do for you, please let me know.”
Hanigan seemed momentarily stunned by Nick’s kindness. In a cutthroat town like Washington, kindness was often in rare supply. “Thank you, sir. I appreciate that. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Before they left with the Secret Service, Nick and Sam went to the Red Room to say good night to Gloria and her daughters.
“Please let us know how we can help with the funeral and anything else you might need,” Nick said to her.
“Thank you, Mr. President.”
“Call me Nick. Please.”
Gloria’s chin wobbled as she nodded. “Nick. And Sam, I’d be happy to show you around the residence and answer any questions you may have. Let’s get that on the schedule in the next few days.”
“That’s very kind of you,” Sam said. “Thank you.”
“I was happy in this house for a long time,” Gloria said wistfully. “I hope you will be too.”
“We’ll give it all we’ve got,” Nick said.
“Don’t give it everything,” Gloria said. “We made that mistake and paid the price.” She looked up at them with shattered eyes. “Don’t let that happen to you too.”
“Come on, Mom.” Collette put her arm around her mother. “Let’s get you up to bed.”
“We’ll see you tomorrow,” Nick said. “If there’s anything at all you and your family need, please don’t hesitate to ask.”
“Thank you so much, Nick,” Gloria said.
Nick gestured for Scotty to come with them as he signaled to Brant that they were ready to go. They were escorted to the limo with the usual efficiency. Again, Nick sat next to Sam, while Scotty sat facing them.
“And with that, my dad became the most powerful man on earth,” Scotty said, beaming. “So freaking awesome.”
“Glad you think so,” Nick said dryly. “Let’s hope you’re still saying that when you’re in high school being trailed by agents.”
“They don’t bother me. I barely notice them anymore.”
“Until the first time you want to kiss a girl, and you’ve got agents watching,” Sam said.
Scotty wrinkled his nose. “I’m not the one who does all the kissing around here.”
“Yet,” Sam said. “Just you wait.”
“Thanks for being there with me tonight, you guys,” Nick said.
“Duh, where else would we be when you were being sworn in as the freaking president?” Scotty said.
“That’s two freakings in two minutes,” Sam said. “The swear jar will be expecting your contributions.”
“That doesn’t even count as a swear. If it did, you’d be broke.”
“So that actually happened,” Nick said on a long sigh as the rush of adrenaline seemed to leave him all at once.
Sam smiled and placed her hand on his leg. “How lucky am I to be sleeping with the president?”
“Gross,” Scotty said.
“Nothing gross about it, my friend,” Nick said.
Scotty put his hands over his ears and closed his eyes. “Get it all out of your system while the child isn’t looking.”
Nick took advantage of the opportunity to kiss his gorgeous wife. “Thanks for holding it together in there.”
“Did I hold it together? Didn’t feel that way to me.”
“You did great.”
“It was super sexy watching you give Hanigan orders,” she said with a dramatic little shiver that made him laugh.
“I know we have a lot to talk about…”
“We’ll do that tomorrow. Right now, you should just breathe.”
Scotty, who’d become bored with hiding from the kissing, was looking at his phone. “You want to know what people are saying?”
“No,” Sam and Nick said together.
“I want him to sleep tonight,” Sam said. “Let’s worry about that in the morning too.”
“Good plan,” Nick said.
His insomnia was a bitch at the best of times. Nick wondered if he’d sleep at all over the next three years. Ugh, three years… Don’t think about it, or you’ll never sleep again.
They pulled up to their house on Ninth Street a few minutes later and were escorted up the ramp and inside. “The detail seems to have expanded,” Nick said to Brant.
“Tripled, sir.”
“Are you able to go home at some point?”
“Shortly, sir. I’ll be back in the morning, and the director will want to meet with you in the next few days. They’ll want to assign more senior agents to your details.”
“Wait, what? So you won’t be my lead agent anymore?”
“Probably not, sir.”
“Yeah, that’s not happening. I’ll take care of it.”
Brant cracked a rare smile. “If you say so, sir.”
“I say so. I’ll see you in the morning. Go home. Get some sleep.”
“Yes, sir.”
“So hot and commanding,” Sam whispered, loving the way his face flushed with embarrassment.
“Hush and get your butt in bed. I’ll be right there.”
“Yes, sir, Mr. President.”
His low growl had her laughing all the way up the stairs.
Chapter Four
After pouring himself a glass of bourbon, Nick went upstairs and saw that Scotty’s door was open. When he stopped in the doorway, he found his son shirtless in the middle of the room, wearing a pair of Washington Federals pajama pants. For the first time, Nick noticed that Scotty’s chest was filling out and taking on the contours of a young man. That was happening far too quickly. “You all set, bud?”
“I will be when I can find a T-shirt. I forgot to fold the laundry that Shelby left for me to do, so she took it back and hid it.”
Nick made a mental note to compliment Shelby on the passive-aggressive parenting. “That’s what you get for not doing what you’re told.”
“I know. I guess I’ll have to freeze my balls off as a result.”
“Your mother would tell you not to talk that way.”
“I’m not saying it in front of her.”
“I’ll take mercy on you this one time and let you borrow one of my shirts. But next time Shelby tells you to fold your clothes and put them away, get it done, okay?”
“Yes, sir, Mr. President.”
“Cut that bullshit right now.”
“Swear jar!”
“You drive me to it. Be right back.” Nick was endlessly amused by the smart, sassy boy he’d met two years ago at a state home for kids in Richmond. Bringing Scott Dunlap Cappuano into his and Sam’s life was one of the best things he’d ever done. He found one of his favorite Harvard T-shirts and took it to Scotty. “This shirt is a precious relic, and I want it back—washed, dried and folded. You got me?”
“I got you. Thanks.” Scotty put on the shirt, which was huge on him. “There’s no way I’d ever get into Harvard, so stealing this shirt would make me look like a poser.”
“Don’t say that. You can still get into Harvard if you want it badly enough. When you walk into high school next fall, you start with a clean slate. The only thing that’ll matter to Harvard or any other college is what you do during those four years. If you work really hard, anything is possible.”
“Huh, well, it’s good to know that eighth-grade algebra won’t be held against me.”
“Nope, but ninth-grade algebra will be.”
“You had to go and kill my buzz. But,” he said, visibly brightening, “don’t schools like Harvard love to have presidents’ kids go there because they get all the publicity? They’ll probably let me in no matter how I do in ninth-
grade algebra.”
Nick rolled his eyes. “I’ve only been president for an hour, and you’re already coattailing me.”
“What does that mean? Coattailing?”
“When you grab hold of my coattails,” Nick said, gesturing to the back of his suit coat, “and get ahead based on what I do.”
“There has to be something in this for me,” Scotty said with an impish grin. “If I gotta kiss girls in front of Secret Service agents, the least you can do is get me into Harvard.”
Nick cracked up and then gave him a gentle bop on the head. “Go to bed and shut the light off. It’s after midnight.”
“Night, Dad. I mean, Mr. President. Sir.”
“Shut it.” He left Scotty laughing and nodded to Debra, Scotty’s lead agent, who was positioned in the hallway.
“Congratulations, Mr. President.”
“Thank you, Debra. I think…”
As she laughed, he went upstairs to check in with Eli.
“Just wanted to let you know we’re back,” Nick said.
“It all went well?”
“As well as possible, I suppose.”
“I saw the video online. You guys looked great. Are you okay?”
“I’m still feeling shocked, but we’ll figure it out. Everything okay here?”
“Yeah, I checked on the twins an hour ago. They’re out cold.”
“Then I guess we’ll see you in the morning. Get some sleep.”
“You too, Mr. President.”
Nick smiled at the young man’s cheeky grin. “Not you too.”
“Sorry, I couldn’t resist.”
Amused by Eli, Nick went back downstairs and into his room, shut the door and leaned back against it.
“What’s up?” Sam asked from bed.
“Everyone calling me Mr. President. It’s very weird.”
“It’s only one word different from Mr. Vice President.”
“And yet there’s a world of difference between the two.” Nick pushed off the door and went into the closet off the master bathroom to get undressed. As he hung up the suit he’d worn to be sworn in, it occurred to him that the suit would be featured someday at the Smithsonian, or within the walls of his own presidential library. Everything about him now belonged to the public, even his clothes. Well, almost everything… A few things were private and would remain that way, primarily the relationship he enjoyed with his wife.
He brushed his teeth and headed for bed, wearing only a pair of the same Washington Feds pajama pants that Scotty had. They’d been gifts to him and Scotty from Celia and Skip for Christmas last year.
“Both our phones are going nuts,” Sam said of the phone he’d left on the dresser.
Nick went over to turn his off. “I guess the word is out.”
“Gonzo texted to say, ‘Holy fucking shit. I guess you did have something else to take care of tonight. Please tell Nick we said congratulations and… holy fucking shit.’”
Nick grunted out a laugh. “I guess that about sums it up.”
“Do you want to turn on the TV?” she asked warily.
“Absolutely not.”
“Good answer.”
He reached for her, and she snuggled up to him, bringing the lavender and vanilla scents of home with her. She had the softest, silkiest skin and curves in all the best places. Her long toffee-colored hair tickled his nose until she looked up at him with light blue eyes full of questions and concerns about the momentous events of this evening.
“How’re you doing, babe?” she asked.
“Um, fine. I guess. You?”
“Same. I guess.”
Sam snorted out a laugh. “Hell of a first couple we’re gonna be. We can’t even figure out how we are.”
“We’re going to be an awesome first couple.”
“You sound very sure about that.”
“I am very sure about it. We’ll give it all we’ve got, and that’s all we can do.”
“Well, I’m not going to give it all I have. I’ll give it what I can. First and foremost is our marriage and our children and making sure they successfully adjust to this massive change in their lives. Second is my job. Third is being first lady.”
Nick didn’t say anything to that, mostly because he still hadn’t figured out how it would be possible for her to continue to hunt down murderers while they served as president and first lady. The Secret Service would try to forbid it, and part of him hoped they did. He wanted her safe and protected from the crazies who’d try to get at him through her. But he also wanted her to be happy and was well aware that’d never be possible without the job she loved.
“You’re not saying anything.”
“I don’t know what to say. Not yet, anyway.”
“You could say, ‘Of course those are your priorities, Samantha. Why would they have to change just because I got promoted?’”
“Promoted,” he said with a chuckle. “Is that what we’re calling it?”
She sat up and faced him with the covers wrapped around her. “That’s what happened. You got promoted to a bigger job in the city where I happen to already work. We’re only moving across town. Why should anything else have to change?”
He knew neither of them would sleep until they’d had this conversation. “Is that a rhetorical question?”
“It’s not a rhetorical question, and you already know that. I’m going to need you to fight for me the same way you did when you became vice president.”
“You know if I could do anything I wanted—”
“You can! You’re the fucking president. You can do whatever you want.”
“Within reason.”
“Exactly! Don’t tell me there’s no way to make it work so I can keep my job while you’re president. I refuse to hear that.”
“Okay, then I won’t tell you that. All I’ll say is we’re going to have to think it through and find a way to make it work for both of us.”
“What does that even mean? Why does it have to work for you? You’d be the first one to say you’re not running for anything. You’re going to do these three years, finish Nelson’s term and then figure out what’s next. What do you care if they come at you about your wife working a job outside the White House?”
“I couldn’t care less if anyone ‘comes at me’ about that. What I care about, more than just about anything, is your safety. This is a whole new ball game, Sam, and you know that as well as I do.”
“So what’re you saying?”
“That I need time to think and breathe and talk it through with my team and to figure out a plan that works for both of us. I’m not going to lie to you. It’ll be an uphill battle. No one is going to approve of you keeping your current job while I’m president.”
“Do you approve?” she asked in a small voice that was so not like her that it hurt him to hear it.
“I approve of you continuing to do what you love as long as you’re safe. We’re going to need to figure out what that entails.”
“You mean Secret Service.”
“Among other things.”
“What other things?”
“I don’t know yet!” He’d been president for ninety minutes, and they were already fighting.
“Here’s what I know—I’m so happy for you to have this opportunity, even if I’m sad for the Nelsons that they had to lose their husband and father to make it happen. I wouldn’t have wished for that in a million years, but here we are, and I was so proud tonight watching you take the oath. The American people are incredibly lucky to have you. They have no idea how lucky they are, but they’re going to find out. I’m prepared to support you one thousand percent in this, even if it’s not what I would’ve chosen for either of us. In return, I expect you to support me at the same level.”
“I understand.”
“Do you? Do you really?”
“I do, Samantha. After all this time, I certainly know what makes you happy, and I’ll do everything I can to make sure you’re happy.”
“Everything in your considerable power?”
“Yes,” he said with a sigh as he reached for her. “Come back. I don’t want to fight. I hate fighting with you.”
“I don’t want to fight with you either. You know I don’t.”
“Then let’s not do that, okay? Let’s figure this out together. We’re both going to have to compromise to make this work.”
“I’m willing to compromise about everything except my job. That’s nonnegotiable.”
Nick wasn’t sure how to respond to that. She might have to make some concessions to stay safe, but he wasn’t going to be the one to tell her that. “It’s going to take a minute for people to wrap their heads around the first lady having a job outside the White House.”
“There’s a first time for everything, and I’d love to make history by showing the world that a woman can support her husband and pursue an outside career at the same time.”
“For the record, I have no issue with you working while you’re first lady.”
“Well, thank goodness for that.”
“This is no time for sarcasm.”
“It’s always time for sarcasm.”
“Your position has been duly noted, as has your sarcasm. I’ll do everything I can for you, the way I always do.”
“Why do I hear a ‘but’ in there?”
“Some of this might not be up to me, Sam. They’re going to insist you have Secret Service, even if you’re not required to have it.”
“I might be willing to compromise—somewhat—on that if necessary.”
“Awww, look at you. My little girl is growing up.”
She poked his ribs, which made him laugh. “It wasn’t awful having them following me over the last week. If that’s all it was, I could live with that. But I still get to drive myself.”
He ran his hand up and down her arm. “We’ll have a meeting and work out the details.”
She released a deep breath and relaxed against him. “Thank you.”
“Anything for you, babe.”
“I feel like I dreamed this whole thing. Did you really just go to the White House to get sworn in as president?”
“I really did.”
“Giving all-new meaning to Black Friday.”
“Right?” he said, laughing. “What a fucking shit show. You know what the headlines will say tomorrow?”
