LaLa frowned. “The president is a millionaire, yes, but he’s no billionaire. Where is this billion dollars coming from? And besides, how can they file a civil suit before any criminal charges have even been filed?”
“They can do it, but they won’t. It’s all about publicity. All about showing just how certain they are that the president is guilty. It’s all bluster.”
Then he took her chin in his hand and lifted her face to his. Their lips were a mere inch apart. “And what I don’t want you to do is to worry your pretty little head over any of this. You hear me, La?”
LaLa smiled. She was accustomed to worrying about others. She had forgotten what it felt like to have somebody worrying about her. Especially somebody as gorgeous, as downright virile and sensual and enigmatic as Crader McKenzie. “I hear you,” she said.
And when he should have removed his hand from her chin, or she should have looked away from those blazing blue eyes of his, they didn’t. They couldn’t. The nearness, the fact that they were both sex starved, and yes, the love they felt for each other, prevented either one of them from moving even a milliliter away.
And tears began to well up in Crader’s eyes. “What I did with Liz,” he said, “was the single biggest mistake of my life. I didn’t want her. I wanted you. And when I realized that you weren’t like all of those other women I’ve had in the past, who would forgive me anything, I was terrified, La. The fact that I had ruined it with you over something I didn’t even think twice about, scared me shitless.”
LaLa would have smiled, but she couldn’t. Crader had tears in his eyes. His heart was on his sleeve. He was revealing himself to her unlike he ever had. She couldn’t smile even if she had wanted to.
“And that recognition that you weren’t going to let me get away with my usual sleeping around bullshit,” Crader went on, “was a wakeup call for me. Because, in truth, I expected nothing less from you. You’re different, La, and I knew it all along. And that’s why I can’t go to bed at night without thinking about you. That’s why I can’t wake up every morning without wishing you were by my side. That’s why I haven’t had sex with another woman, not one, since you caught me with Liz that night.”
This floored LaLa. She stared at him. Could it be true? “But. . . You’ve gone out on dates. And at Christian’s wedding I saw you dancing with all of those beautiful women.”
“I was trying to move on. You told me where you stood. I didn’t want to make a fool out of myself.” Then he exhaled, ran his hand through her long, soft hair. “But I can’t move on, La. I don’t want anybody else. I want you. I want you to be my woman. I want you to be my wife.”
LaLa’s heart began to soar. Because, in truth, she didn’t want anybody else either. But then reality set in. “But it won’t work, Crader,” she said.
“Yes, it will,” he said with a smile. “If you’ll let it.”
“But how can I even entertain the thought of marrying a man who once cheated on me?”
“Because he’s a man. I told you I wasn’t perfect, La. And I’m not promising you perfection now. But I am promising you love and protection and kindness and happiness. Those I can swing.”
LaLa stared at him. “And what about faithfulness?”
“That too,” he said easily. “Because, ironically, I’ve been completely faithful to you since the night I cheated.”
LaLa smiled. “Do you realize how crazy that sounds?”
He laughed. “Yes.”
Then she shook her head. “Can life really be this cockeyed?” she asked.
Crader laughed again, placed his hand on the side of her face. “Yes, it can!” he proclaimed. Then his look turned sober. “If you’ll let it.”
“But marriage, Crader? We’re going to reconcile and just get married just like that?”
“Yes.”
“But why so suddenly?”
Crader hesitated. He never dreamed he’d reveal so much of himself to any human being alive. But he had to come clean with LaLa. He had to make her understand just how committed he had decided to be. “Because I don’t want you to think I’m about anything other than being with you. I don’t want a girlfriend. I’m too damn old for girlfriends. Because when Dutch’s stint as president is over and I go home, I don’t want to be some pathetic old man in that big mansion of mine still chasing tail and still drowning myself in liquor over what could have been with you. I don’t want to be that man! I want you with me in that mansion. I want our ten children running around. I want laughter and love and the kind of family I’ve always dreamed of having. But I can’t have any of that, La, if I can’t have you.”
Now tears were in LaLa’s eyes. It all felt like a dream to her. “Do you really mean it, Crader? Please don’t take me down this road if you don’t mean it.”
Crader slid down from the sofa and got on his knees. This was past feeling for him now. This was the difference between a wonderful life, and a depressing, ordinary one. “Loretta “LaLa” King, my diamond within a diamond, will you become my wife, my lover, my life? Will you marry me?”
LaLa could no longer staunch the tear flow. “I don’t know what to say, Crader. I’m so scared that it could all go so wrong again!”
“It won’t. Baby, it won’t. Because I won’t let it. Say yes. Please make this broken man happy, and say yes. I’m older than you, LaLa, by almost ten years, but you’re far wiser. Please use that wisdom, look deep inside my heart, and say yes.”
LaLa smiled through her tears. How could she say no? She loved him. Even after what he did to her, she loved him. “Yes,” she said. “I’ll marry you, Crader McKenzie.”
Crader jumped up from his knees, grabbed up LaLa, and twirled her in the kind of joy he hadn’t felt in years. “Thank-you, Jesus!” he shouted.
LaLa laughed so hard that she felt like a school kid again. And when he sat her down, and looked into her eyes, he said something that, for her, sealed the deal forever.
“I want to make love to you so badly, Loretta, that I can taste it. But I won’t. I will not touch you sexually until after the moment you become my wife. Because I don’t ever want you to think this has anything to do with sex. I want you, not your body, not this beautiful mug of yours.” LaLa smiled. “I want you, Lady McKenzie. I want you! If you’re willing to wait until our wedding night, so am I.”
LaLa’s heart soared without hesitation this time. “I’m willing,” she said. “You don’t know how happy I am that you said that.” Because, in the back of her mind, she had always wondered if sex was all he had ever wanted from her.
They both knew that tomorrow would be the beginning of unrelenting damage control to savage what remained of Dutch’s presidency, or, in truth, Dutch himself. But tonight, right here, right now, they refused to let any scandal or media frenzies or anything else steal the joy it took them too long to embrace.
And he lifted her, once again, and gave her another twirl.
EIGHT
Just inside the South Portico of the White House, senior members of Dutch’s staff had assembled in the halls to welcome him home.
Crader was there, too, up front with the president’s cabinet secretaries, speaking quietly as they waited. They were what everybody in the White House called the principals, and it was an unusual display to see so much power concentrated in one hallway. But they, like everyone else assembled, wanted to show their support, too.
LaLa was there as well, just behind Gina, and she found herself unable to stop taking peeps at Crader. Last night they had decided that they would not tell anyone about their engagement (or even the fact that they were back together) until after Dutch and Gina had this monumental scandal under a little more control. Right now it was a wild card, nobody knew where it would lead or where they would end up, and LaLa, who was Gina’s best friend, nor Crader, Dutch’s best pal, wanted to distract them from that awesome task ahead.
Dutch’s helicopter was just landing and Gina, who was in the very front of the pack, could barely take it. Manny
Levine and Primrose Grier, both of whom were also among the welcome committee, had urged her to remain inside the White House and wait for the president to come inside. This was because of the press pad on the south lawn where the press was allowed to witness the president’s return, and to hurl questions in the hopes that he would answer one or two. But in the White House efforts to, as Manny put it, not let them see us sweat, and to pretend that this scandal was not consuming their time or attention in the least, they wanted Dutch to arrive without outward display. What happened in San Francisco was an unfortunate turn of events, was the rallying cry, but it was nothing more than that.
Gina heard their advice, and encapsulated it all, but as soon as Dutch stepped off of that Marine One helicopter, and began making his way toward the South Portico, she became so overcome with that very emotion they had warned her against. She broke out of the doors and ran toward her husband. She could hear Manny’s voice yelling for her to come back.
As soon as Dutch saw her running to him, he ran to her. The White House Counsel had given him the no public display spiel too. But to hell with how it looked, he thought. He needed Gina unlike he had ever needed her before. He played their game. He went on to Seattle, he chaired the economic forum, he behaved like the cool under fire president they expected of him. But enough was enough. He wanted Gina.
And as soon as they met, he lifted her into his arms, his relief unable to be tamped down. “Gi-na! My Gi-na!” he said as he held her.
“Oh, Dutch!” Gina replied. “I miss you so much!”
And for the longest time they just stood there, holding onto each other, allowing the reporter cameras to click frenetically. But they didn’t care. This ordeal was past feeling for them now. Dutch wanted to be alone with Gina, to share his fears and anxieties and he wasn’t interested in how it looked or what the public would think.
He stood her back on her feet but kept his arms around her as they made their way toward the South Portico. Manny was screaming at Crader for allowing this to happen; Crader was screaming at Manny for screaming at him; Primrose was on her cell phone to the White House Counsel, who was with the entourage coming up behind the president, asking why he didn’t prevent this from happening; and many of the cabinet secretaries were visibly alarmed. Their political futures were tied to the success of the Harber Administration. They felt Dutch could have at least stuck to the script.
But Dutch and Gina were not the script kind of people. Especially at a time like this.
They entered the doors of the South Portico and the staffers began clapping. Dutch felt equal parts grateful and embarrassed. Liz was dead, what was there to clap about? He understood that they were trying to be supportive of the boss, but there was a time and a place for everything. This wasn’t either.
He stood there, his arm still around Gina’s waist, as he waited for the applause to end. LaLa, and all of the staffers, were stunned at how defeated the president looked. LaLa even placed her hand to her heart when she first saw Dutch’s drawn-looking face. Crader, seeing her reaction, moved next to her.
“Thank-you,” Dutch said when the applause ended. “But a young woman that many of you knew, Elizabeth Sinclair, is dead. There’s nothing to cheer about here. I want you all to say a prayer for Liz’s family and to hope that the authorities are able to get to the bottom of what exactly happened to her. In the meantime, I want you all to get back to work. I appreciate your support, I truly do, but the best thing you can do for me right now is to do the work the American people sent us here to do, and to do it well. God bless you all.”
Dutch then shook the hands of his cabinet secretaries, thanking them individually for taking this unprecedented step to await his arrival. But when Dutch’s political team, led by Manny Levine, wanted to huddle with him to talk strategy going forward, Gina stepped in.
“Not right now, guys,” she said, literally getting in between Dutch and his people. “The president has to have a moment to himself. After that, he’s all yours.”
Manny didn’t like it, Crader and LaLa could see that, but they were both glad that Gina was taking charge. Everything was political to people like Manny and Primrose. They never took into account the toll this event had to have taken on Dutch. But it had taken a considerable toll. Even LaLa, who wasn’t a political pro, could see that.
As Gina steered Dutch toward the elevator, they stopped long enough only for Dutch to shake Crader’s hand and to give LaLa a kiss on the cheek. LaLa was like a kid sister to Dutch, and he felt as responsible for her as he felt for Gina and Little Walt, for Jade and Christian. LaLa was in that inner group.
“You’ve been taking care of yourself?” Dutch asked LaLa.
LaLa smiled. “Yes, sir,” she said. “Have you?”
Dutch smiled a smile that highlighted his exhaustion. “I’m sure Gina will look after me,” he said. “Why don’t you and Crader come up to the Residence with us?”
LaLa looked to Crader for guidance. Crader looked to Gina. Because they both loved Dutch dearly, he and Gina were becoming something of a White House tag team. He knew her nonverbal cues and she knew his now.
“Not just yet,” Crader said after that look in her eyes said it all. “But later.”
“Good enough,” Dutch said. He had already noticed that Crader was holding LaLa’s hand, a development that concerned him. LaLa was a sweet young lady who wore her heart on her sleeve, and too many men had taken advantage of that. Including Crader.
“Behave yourself, Cray,” he warned him.
Crader smiled, although he knew exactly what Dutch meant. “What did I do?” he asked rhetorically as he stood erect from the side wall, his hands outstretched.
Gina smiled too as she and Dutch made their way for the elevators.
“Where are the children?” Dutch asked as they stepped onto the elevator.
By using the term children, Gina knew that Dutch meant both Little Walt and Jade, of course, but also Christian, their son-in-law.
“They’re in the Nursery awaiting your arrival. Jade and Christian are so distressed that I felt it would be better if you saw them outside of the glare of your staff. To reassure them.”
Dutch smiled, pulled her to him. “You think of everything,” he said.
“Yeah, I’m cool all right. That’s why I didn’t run out there to meet you. That’s why I stayed right in that hall like they had coached me to do.”
Dutch stared at his wife. “I would have been mighty disappointed if you would have listened to that coaching,” he said.
Gina smiled, looked into his eyes. She, too, was blown away by how anguished he looked. She knew he had to have been in pain. He, after all, loved Liz. But she never dreamed he’d be this decimated.
They stepped off of the elevator in the Residence and made their way to the Nursery. Although Dutch had been away from his family for only a few days, it felt as if he had been gone for weeks. He couldn’t wait to see Little Walt’s grin again, or to feel Jade in his arms, and Christian. Before he met Gina, he always felt like a man alone. He’d come home, hear the sounds of silence, and feel compelled to have some female come over and warm his bed. But after Gina, the last thing he wanted was any outsiders around him. Gina and the children were all he needed.
As soon as the door to the Nursery opened, Jade jumped out of Christian’s lap and ran to her father.
“Daddy!” she said as she fell into his arms.
“Hey.”
She pulled back, looked at him. “It’s so awful,” she said. “You should hear the things they’re saying about you on the TV. They talk as if you’re the murderer, Daddy!”
Gina saw the look of increased anguish that came over Dutch’s face when Jade told him about the news reports. She knew Dutch. She knew he had been avoiding any media accounts like the plague. But to now know that his own daughter had to hear such sensationalism alarmed him.
He smoothed down Jade’s long, wavy hair. “Don’t believe everything you hear,” he told her. Then he shook
Christian’s hand, as he stood alongside her. “Hey, Chris. You’ve been taking care of my family?”
“Yes, sir,” Christian said in that sincere way of his Dutch loved.
Then Dutch looked back at Jade. “I don’t want you watching any of those so-called news shows right now,” he said to her. “They aren’t worthy of your time.”
“I know it’s a load of nonsense,” Jade said. “But why are they saying such horrid things about you?”
“Because they can,” Gina said as she moved toward the crib. Dutch looked over at Little Walt, too, and began moving that way.
“That’s the beauty and the ugliness of America,” Gina went on. “You can say whatever you like and get away with it.”
“But the things they’re saying,” Jade said with such distress in her voice that Christian placed his arm around her.
“Hey, there,” Gina said to a grinning Little Walt as she lifted him out of his crib. “Daddy’s back!”
Little Walt looked from Gina to Dutch, who stood behind her, and then grinned again as he lifted up his arms toward his father.
“Here’s the man of the house,” Dutch said as he lifted his chubby, brown-skinned son. “You’re getting bigger and bigger every time I see you.”
“Daddy,” Walt said, patting Dutch’s face, and his voice, his smell, his grin melted Dutch’s heart.
“Yes,” he said proudly, fighting back tears. “I’m your daddy. Thank God you’re too young to be ashamed of me.”
Gina, Jade and Christian were horrified when they heard Dutch speak that way. Jade broke away from Christian and hurried to his side.
“Don’t say that,” she said. “I’m not ashamed of you. We’re not ashamed of you.”
Dutch looked at Gina, as if he would only believe it if she said it too.
Dutch and Gina: The Power of Love Page 9
