Gaia forced a smile to her lips and braved a glance at the couple admiring her and her wardrobe. Just like everyone else in attendance at what appeared to be a private victory party of sorts, they were outfitted inBarbarellameetsThe Hunger Gamesattire. “Praise Jesus,” she said quietly to her admirers, not knowing what else to say. She noticed that the woman wore a gold belt around her hips with a lock in the middle. The man who stood beside her, presumably her husband, wore a gold key on his jacket much like one would sport a corsage.
“Praise Jesus,” the couple returned in unison.
Gaia continued walking, Chastity nudging her along. “I can’t wait for General Evans to see you,” she whispered. “I’ve outdone myself with your wardrobe if I do say so myself!”
The rest of the walk felt like it took forever. “Praise Jesus” was exchanged more times than Gaia could count. She noticed that there were four other people of color in attendance. One black man—Frank—and three female guests. All of the women, like Gaia, were married to men of European descent. All of them wore a lock of varying colors around their waists or hips, their husbands’ jackets sporting the matching keys.
Gaia mentally sighed. The lock and key thing was getting to her. It was too outlandish for words.
Chastity guided her through another throng of attendees and off to the right. Ryan stood by a table talking it up with two other men, oblivious to her presence. His companions, however, noticed her right away. “Lucky man,” she heard one of them intone.
Ryan turned his head to see who they were talking about. His eyes rounded a bit when he saw Gaia coming toward him. She painted on a smile, her nerves damn near shot. “Gaia,” he said as she came to stand in front of him. “You look incredible.” His smile wavered as he took in her dress from head to toe. “Where is her lock?” he asked Chastity. He sounded rather irritated. “A married woman should always have—”
“It’s on the back of her dress,” Chastity cut in. She nudged Gaia to twirl around. “See? I thought my design was quite clever.”
Ryan’s tone returned to normal. “Ahh okay, now I see it. Excellent work, Chastity. Very clever indeed. Thank you.”
“So you like it?”
“I love it,” he assured her. “My wife looks stunning.”
Gaia was back to feeling like a thing rather than a person. She let her irritation show. Obviously intent on avoiding a scene, Ryan asked everyone to excuse them for a few minutes of alone time. He led her into an empty room and closed the door.
“Are you okay, baby?” he immediately asked. “I’d hug you, but I don’t want to mess up your dress or makeup.”
“God forbid such a travesty as that should happen,” she sarcastically returned. At his raised eyebrow, Gaia admitted, “These people make me feel like your pet instead of your wife!” She was wearing four-inch heels, giving her the height of a woman who stood five foot nine, but she still only came up to his jawline. He was easily six and a half feet. “All this talk about my dress being a tribute to my husband—and to God somehow!—is utterly insane.”
His jaw tensed. “It is a tribute to me,” he said, his voice and demeanor territorial. “Just as my attire is a tribute to you.” He pointed to the key pinned to the chest of his gray suit.
Gaia sighed. “Do you have any idea whatsoever how weird this lock and key thing comes across to a person who’s lost the past five years of her life?” She shook her head. “That wasn’t a thing five years ago.”
“I’m sorry,” Ryan offered, gently nudging her chin up. “You’ve only been home one day. I know this is a lot, but you’re handling it like a trooper.”
“Yeah?” she asked.
“Yeah.” He smiled. “A beautiful, sexy trooper.” He kissed the tip of her nose.
“Careful,” she murmured, her timbre more lighthearted, “you might mess up my makeup.”
“I’ll chance it.”
He looked like he was about to kiss her and she felt too overwrought to deny him, but a knock at the door jarred them both back to the here and now. “Yes?” Ryan barked. “What is it?”
“The Chief Justice has arrived, sir,” a male voice called out. “We’re ready.”
“Chief Justice?” Gaia whispered. She shook her head. “Why?”
“The inauguration will take place directly after my victory speech,” Ryan informed her. “Future elections will work the old way, but right now we need solid, steady leadership the people trust.”
“An incumbent president.”
“Yeah. I mean, I’m already doing the job so this is largely symbolic, but sometimes people need that.”
She supposed that made sense. Still, she was feeling overwhelmed on a massive scale. She should have taken Sheila’s advice a long time ago and allowed Ryan to visit with her. Perhaps then she would have learned everything in bits and pieces and it wouldn’t have felt like the entire world was crashing down on her head during one long night. “I just want this evening over and done with,” Gaia admitted.
“I know.” Ryan’s smile was self-effacing. “Me too. My aides know I’ll be spending the next couple of weeks largely with you. They realize how important it is for you to get your bearings.”
“Will the vice president fill in or…? I don’t know how this works.”
