Dutch stared at her. Was she nuts? When in the world did he become perfect, or anywhere near it? “Just as Crader doesn’t deserve your guilt,” he said, “I don’t deserve your praise, Loretta. Crader and I are cut from the same cloth. He’s just clumsy with his screw-ups. But we both have them.”
LaLa looked at him. “But you would never cheat on Gina,” she said. And then looked at him. “Would you?”
Dutch fell silent. He fell into what all of his friends often called his broodiness. And then he’d answer. “If I were to have asked you that same question before you cheated on Crader, what would you have said?”
LaLa understood fully what he meant.
“I never say never, Loretta,” Dutch continued. “I try to do the right thing as often as I can, and to love my wife as best as I can. But I haven’t been perfect in my marriage, nor in my life itself, and I don’t ever want you to think that I have. Sometimes I feel as if I’ve failed Gina miserably.”
LaLa was astounded. “You?” she asked.
“Yes, me. I made her come back to DC with me. She nearly died in this town just a month ago, and I still made her come back here. And why? Because I live in terror of something else happening to her. I’ve never admitted it to anyone, Loretta, but I’m still traumatized by that day. There have been many nights, while Gina was recovering, where I fell on my knees and prayed to God that if He got her out of this that I’ll never put her in harm’s way again. And now I’ve got her back here in DC a month later. Not to mention a lot of other behavior I’ve demonstrated in our marriage. I’m no saint. Believe that.”
LaLa could hardly believe it. How could a wonderful man like him think so lowly of himself? Then he stood up.
“I’ve got meetings lined up this afternoon so I’d better get to it. I’m sure they’re anxiously awaiting my arrival in the Oval.” He placed his hands in his pant pockets. “But you take care,” he said. “And stop feeling guilty. Crader will come around and realize what a fantastic, beauty, sweet woman he has. I guarantee it.”
LaLa smiled. “You have such faith in Crader,” she said. “Why?”
“Because I know him. He’s a good man.”
“You give me hope, Dutch,” she said so heartfelt that it broke Dutch’s own heart. He leaned down, kissed her on the lips again, and left her office.
And no matter how derisive Dutch was about his character, LaLa didn’t believe it. In some ways she believed she stayed with Crader because a man like Dutch, a man she respected above any other man, had such faith in him.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
A few days later and Christian sat in the chair across from Jade and Sam. On Dutch’s orders, they were staying at a private apartment inside the White House, but both were beginning to feel disappointed. They had been hopeful when the Secret Service arrived in New York and hurried them into an unmarked, heavily fortified SUV as if they were precious cargo. When Jade asked why, one agent was blunt. “You’re the president’s daughter,” he said.
And those words alone made Jade feel as if she was turning a corner. For Dutch to personally insist that the Secret Service escort them to DC for their own protection was reassuring. He really did care about them despite the past. But he hadn’t so much as dropped in to say hello the entire time they’d been there. And Jade couldn’t bear it much longer.
Christian, the man who had filed for divorce from her, was her only link to Dutch.
“But did you tell him I wanted to reconcile with him?” she asked Christian, in a different way, yet again.
“Yes, I told him.”
“Then why hasn’t he come to see us?”
“He didn’t say yes, Jade,” Sam pointed out. “He said he’d think about it. Maybe he’s still thinking about it, dear.”
“But what’s there to think about?” Jade wanted to know. “I’m his daughter, and you’re my mother. We should be closer to him than some Gina!”
Sam and Christian exchanged a glance. What in the world was she talking about? Then Christian looked at Jade.
“Why would he be closer to you than he is to his own wife?”
“Because I’m his flesh and blood!” Jade said as if it was too obvious to mention. “She married into the family. I am his family! And I think it’s a shame that he won’t even come and see if I’m alright.”
“He’s trying to run the country, Jade,” Christian said. “He probably doesn’t have time for his own fam. . . .” Christian caught himself. “Not even for the First Lady and Little Walt.”
“You were gonna say for his own family,” Jade said. “As if I’m not his family.”
“You are his family, as you pointed out. And he loves you. But---”
“But what?”
“But, Jade, you were there when his wife was shot. And you didn’t try to warn her.”
“I told you I was in shock. I would have warned her, but I was in shock myself. Marcus Rance tied me up, don’t forget about that. I had to fight to get free. When I did, and I ran upstairs, I was still in shock. And then Gina walked in.”
Jade didn’t want to even think about that fateful day. She walked over to the window, and looked out. Then she turned to Christian. “You’ve got to do more, Chris. You’ve got to get him to come and see about me. I miss him so much.” Tears appeared in her eyes, and she turned back toward the window.
Christian looked at Sam. Her unhealthy attachment to her father had bothered both of them at various points. And they both wondered if rekindling that attachment would be a good idea after all.
But Jade, Sam thought as she looked at her daughter, was as stubborn as stubborn could ever get. She was going to stop at nothing to get her beloved daddy back. No matter what it took. And Gina and Little Walt be damned, Sam thought, with grave concern.
The elevator doors opened and Dutch made his way inside the White House Residence. It had been another long day of meetings and teleconferences and going before the American people yet again. But when he entered the family room, and saw his wife and son curled up together on the sofa fast asleep, it made it all the more worth it to him. They had tried to wait up for him, bless their hearts. But it was one in the morning. Even Gina, Dutch knew, could rarely hang that long.
He hated to awake Little Walt, but he hadn’t had a chance to talk to him all day and he missed his smile. He lifted him out of Gina’s arms and placed him into his arms. Both mother and child stirred, and then both woke up.
“Daddy!” Little Walt yelled as soon as he realized who was holding him. “You’re home.”
His smile warmed Dutch’s heart. “That’s right, baby,” Dutch said, kissing him and falling in love with him all over again. “Daddy’s home.”
“Mommy fell asleep.”
Dutch laughed. “Mommy couldn’t stay awake for Daddy?” He sat his tired body on the sofa beside Gina. He placed Little Walt on his lap.
“No, sir. She said we were going to wait up for Daddy, but she couldn’t wait.”
That boy, Gina thought. “And I suppose you could, Little Man?”
“I couldn’t wait either,” Little Walt admitted. “Daddy took too long to come home.”
Walt would never know how much those simple words pained his father. Gina, however, could sense it.
“The good news,” she said, “is that he’s home now.”
“That’s good news,” Little Walt said as he curled up against his father. “That’s the best news.”
Dutch looked at Gina with thanks in his eyes. Then he leaned over and kissed her on the lips. “You okay?”
“I’m okay.”
“Sure?”
“Positive. Especially now that you’re here with us.”
Dutch kissed her again and slouched down, leaning his head back and closing his eyes. “It’s great to be here with you and Walter.”
“How did it go?” she asked him. She began rubbing his silky dark hair.
“The day, or the address to the nation?”
“Both.”
�
�It went about as expected. There’s nothing new to report. The country’s getting tired of excuses. This is America, the greatest country on earth. They expected us to find the guilty party the day it happened. They want answers yesterday. Answers I don’t have.”
Gina looked at him. She hated to say it, but she knew it had to be said. “They blame your decision to resign as the reason why we were attacked. That’s what they’re saying all over cable news. Even MSNBC. They say you plunged the government into chaos when you announced your resignation, and the terrorists reacted to that chaos.”
“Yes, I know what they’re saying.”
“Do you agree?”
Dutch hesitated. If he couldn’t talk to Gina about this, who could he talk to? “My resignation didn’t help.”
“But it had to be pre-planned, Dutch. Don’t you dare blame yourself for this!”
“I understand it was pre-planned. Probably for months before I even thought about resigning. But I would be lying if I didn’t say the timing is concerning.”
Gina exhaled. She looked at Little Walt, who was already fast asleep in his father’s arms. “That’s why I won’t object.”
“Object to what, love?”
Gina swallowed hard. “To you rescinding your resignation permanently.”
Dutch’s eyes flew open. He looked at his wife. “What?”
“I’ll be willing to stay here in Washington while you complete your term.”
Dutch knew what it took for her to say those words. He took his hand and pulled her to him. “No,” he said firmly. “I’ll never ask you to stay here a second longer than you have to. Once an arrest is made, we’re out of here, do you hear me? Me, you, and our son will leave this place for good.”
“But what about your legacy?”
Dutch almost used a profane word. “I couldn’t care less, Regina. I couldn’t care less.”
Gina leaned closer against him. And inwardly smiled.
The next day, Christian was in the Oval office asking if he could have a moment of the president’s time.
Dutch was surrounded by aides and his national security advisor, but he looked up from the mountain of files before him and acknowledged his son-in-law’s presence.
“Give us a minute guys,” he said to his team, although they knew, like he knew, that he didn’t have even a minute to spare.
“I’ll review the final draft, sir,” his National Security Advisor said to him, “and get with Allison for any rewrites.”
Dutch nodded his head and his NSA, along with the aides, left. Christian unbuttoned his suit coat and walked up to the desk.
“Have a seat,” Dutch said, dropped his pen, and leaned back. “How are you, Chris?”
“I’m good, sir,” Christian said as he rubbed down the legs of his pants and sat in front of the desk. He then smoothed his blond hair out of his face.
“So what can I do for you?”
Christian knew Dutch was a busy man, so he got right to it. “Jade wants to see you, sir,” he said.
Dutch continued to stare at Christian with that silent broodiness Christian knew so well. But then Dutch exhaled. “Why would you care what she wants after what she did to you?”
Christian didn’t want to be reminded of her infidelity with Marcus Rance, but he knew it would always be that elephant in any room that included Jade or Jade’s name. “She cheated on me, and I filed for a divorce because she admitted she didn’t love me. But that doesn’t mean I no longer care for her. Because I do.”
Dutch stared at Christian. He was a young man with a heart of gold. That was why Dutch loved him.
Christian continued. “And I think she genuinely wants to have you back in her life again. I don’t think she ever meant to hurt you.”
“She hurt Gina. So she hurt me.”
“I understand that, sir. And I agree with you. But she doesn’t think she hurt the First Lady.”
“I don’t give a damn what she thinks,” Dutch said snappishly. “But she did hurt her.”
Christian sighed. This was not going as he had hoped. “The thing is, sir, I was wondering if you would be willing to take a moment out of what I know is a very busy schedule, and talk to her.”
Dutch didn’t want to deal with Jade right now. Not right now. “We’ll see,” was as far as he was willing to go.
“The thing is, sir,” Christian said again, but this time slowly, carefully, “she’s sitting in the hall right now.”
Dutch frowned. “Who’s sitting in the hall? My daughter?”
Christian nodded. “Yes, sir.”
Dutch felt blindsided, and he didn’t like it. “You get her out of that hall and take her back to that apartment. I don’t like the bum-rush, you understand me, Christian? Don’t you ever pull a stunt like that with me.”
Christian’s heart slammed against his chest. He stood to his feet. “Yes, sir,” he said. “I apologize, sir. I didn’t mean to be disrespectful. I thought that. . .” But Dutch’s look dissuaded him from further explanation. “Yes, sir,” he said again, and turned to leave.
Despite his anger, Dutch knew this was a problem he eventually had to face. “Chris,” he then said, prompting Christian to turn around. Dutch rubbed his forehead in a kind of distressed surrender. “Bring her in,” he said.
Christian could see the distress on the president’s face. And he hated that he was the source of that distress. Especially with all the stress he was already under. But he didn’t pretend he wasn’t relieved. Because he was. Jade was a lot of things he couldn’t stomach, but she did love her father.
Christian walked out of the office and closed the door. Jade was seated on a bench outside of the office. She stood up anxiously.
“No?” she asked.
“Yes,” Christian said, and she ran to him and threw her arms around him.
He just as immediately threw her arms away from him. “But he doesn’t like it,” he warned her. “So don’t go in there making excuses.”
Jade had no intentions of excusing her behavior to anybody. She knew her father. His precious Gina was involved, and was, in Jade’s eyes, the reason for their estrangement. Which meant, she knew, that he was going to be even more unreasonable than he normally was.
“Don’t worry,” she said. “I’ll be sweet little innocent Jade today.”
Then she smiled again and entered the office, closing the door behind her. Christian stood in the hall and stared at that closed door. When he first met Jade and fell in love with her, he knew there was an oddness about her. But he always assumed it was because of her odd mother and, later, because of the fact that she had been in a very abusive relationship with her former fiancé, Henry Osgood. But now he wondered if her oddness didn’t border on something else entirely. But he exhaled, and began walking away. He could at least take some solace in knowing that, thanks to her own misbehavior, she wasn’t his problem anymore.
Back in the Oval Office, Dutch’s heart squeezed in pain when Jade walked through that door. It had been over a month since he last saw her or spoke to her, but not a day went by when he didn’t think about her.
And how grandly she betrayed his love.
He motioned for her to have a seat in front of the desk.
“Thanks,” she said with a sweet smile that didn’t reach her eyes. She sat down.
She stared at him as he then stood up and walked around his desk. Because his suit coat was off, she could see his muscular biceps and thighs, and how flat his stomach remained even at his age. And his face still remained the most beautiful face she’d ever seen. She was still proud that he was her father.
Dutch, however, held a different emotion as he took a seat next to her chair. He missed her, but her part in Gina’s pain still hurt him to his core.
“Thanks for agreeing to see me, Daddy,” she said in an upbeat tone, as if there were no chasm between them at all.
Dutch crossed his legs. It was that lack of acceptance she was already displaying that made him feel as if this “
meeting” was going to be a total waste of time. “What is it that you want, Jade?” he asked her.
Jade’s heart squeezed with disappointment. He didn’t even try to smile and be friendly with her. But she didn’t let his mood dampen hers. “I wanted to see you, and just talk to you. I wanted to find out why you won’t take my phone calls anymore.”
“Jade, you know exactly why we have these problems.”
“I was in shock, Daddy! I didn’t just stand there without warning her the way she said I did. I was still in shock. How can you hold that against me when I was in shock and didn’t know what to do?”
“Were you in shock when you phoned and begged me to come and see about you? Were you in shock when you knew Rance was setting that trap for me that my wife walked into?”
“I didn’t know, Daddy!” she said honestly. “He made me call you. He forced me at gunpoint! I would never let anything happen to you. That’s why I fought with all I had to break myself free. That’s why I ran up those stairs to warn you.”
“And when you ran up those stairs and saw that it wasn’t me, but Gina, then what, Jade? Did you decide you didn’t need to warn her? You wouldn’t let anything happen to me, but since it wasn’t me but was my wife, did you decide that you didn’t care either way?”
“That’s not true!” Jade insisted. “Of course I cared. I know how much you like her.”
Dutch looked at his daughter incredulously. “You know how much I like her? Are you fucking serious? That’s my wife! I love her. If something happens to her, it happens to me.”
“That’s what I meant. You love her,” Jade said with bitterness in her voice. “You can’t love both of us so you had to choose. And you picked her. I’m your daughter, I’m your flesh and blood, but you picked her. I know exactly what you’re saying, Daddy.”
Dutch shook his head. “You don’t know a gotdamn thing, Jade. Because if you did you wouldn’t be comparing my relationship to Gina with you. My relationship with my wife has nothing to do with you!”
“Okay, okay,” she said snappishly. “I didn’t come here to fight with you. You can blame me for everything if you want to. I don’t care. I just want your forgiveness. I just want to be a part of your family again. Are you going to forgive me, Daddy?”
DUTCH AND GINA: WHAT HE DID FOR LOVE Page 14
