Igetit.
“Either Casey-Marie Blaine or Jordan Walsh will contact you personally to arrange the details. And when I say casual clothes, I mean it. I’ll wear either jeans or sweats.”
Leanna nods as her two kids grab hold of each other and happily bounce together like joyful toddlers instead of adults.
At least in the middle of this shitshow I can bring a little happiness to their lives and make them smile. I’m certain my parents won’t begrudge their presence. Hell, Mom will probably want to adopt the kids as honorary grandkids, so maybe this will be a win all around.
Once I’m in the Beast and heading home I slump back in the seat, take off my glasses, and rub my eyes. I’m well aware of the macro-effects of my job and the decisions I make, the actions I take.
It’s the micro-effects that normally escape my view, lost in the flotsam of politics and 24/7 news cycles and partisan gamesmanship that distorts and obscures the fine details.
For one day, at least, I can help this family take their minds off the horrors they survived. I can provide them an unquestioningly safe place to decompress and have some semblance of a normal family dinner, along with giving them a unique experience they’ll be able to hopefully look back on with smiles.
It also means I now have a perfectly valid excuse to delay proposing to Leo, because I don’t want my parents to disown me before Thanksgiving.
Right?
Right.
* * *
Without a transition tocoordinate I can get on with the business of running the country while others take over planning the details of my January inauguration.
Having the Schultz family join us for Thanksgiving means Stella and Ellis’ absence is a non-issue and won’t they won’t be missed.
As I suspected, Mom practically adopts the family and goes out of her way to mother them when they arrive.
My parents are good people. Maybe their two kids turned out to be train wrecks in two different ways but I can’t honestly claim that’s their doing. We were never abused; we were loved and cared for. Mom and Dad modeled hard work and taking care of others, helping out friends and neighbors when they needed it.
My hang-ups and Stella’s narcissism weren’t caused by Mom and Dad and no way will I blame them.
Not sure what exactly caused Stella’s issues but I know my issues are mine to own. I did this to myself.
After the aborted proposal yes, I lost my nerve, and now I need to work up the courage. I’m literally scared to try proposing but I know Jordan’s right when he gently chastises me about feeling jinxed.
I want theworldto know how I feel about Leo. I’ve kept my silence for too damned long. Leo deserves public recognition as the love of my life and the man who secretly stood by me throughout all these years.
Which is why I decide the proposalwillhappen on inauguration day, during the first ball that evening. If something happens during the event to seriously disrupt it then I will have far greater problems to deal with in the aftermath than proposing to my boyfriend.
The Monday after Thanksgiving, as the inauguration preparations begin in earnest, I task Jordan with only one special request—a specific song for me and Leo to dance to at the first ball.
He arches an eyebrow at me as he takes notes. “You doing it forsurethis time?”
“Yeah. During my speech before the first song.”
“Ooookay.” He glances at me. “Youdorealize there will be alotmore people around and every eye in the room will be focused on you, right? Far more media attention. Sure you want this to happenthere?” Yeah, there’s more than a little sadist in the man, if his evil grin is any indication.
“I do.”
“Don’t want to have an intimate and romantic fireside Christmas Eve proposal?”
“With Mom and Dad here?” Terror fills me. “No! I can’t do that.”
He sets down his phone. “El, comeon. You can do this literally in a room full of people who will mostly be nearly or complete strangers but you can’t do it among just us here in the White House?”
Well when he puts it like that…
“I really want it to be public. IknowLeo won’t care,” I quickly add when I can see him winding up to lay all his rational suggestions on me, “butIcare. I will always regret not doing this publicly.”
