Page 113 of State of Affairs (First Family 1)

“Will you give me a heads-up if you’re coming for me?”

“If I can.”

That was, Sam knew, the best he could do. “Was that all you wanted to talk about?”

“I wanted to also tell you that we’re continuing to dig into your mother-in-law, and we’re finding some interesting things. I’m not yet ready to talk about it, but as you know, where there’s smoke, there’s often fire.”

“Why am I not surprised?”

“She’s a piece of work.”

“You have no idea.” She put her coat back on. “I need to get going.”

“Before you do, thank you for asking Shelby to be your social secretary. I know it means the world to her that you asked.”

“There was no one else in the world I would’ve asked. And I know it’s a big ask at this moment in your lives.”

“We’ll find a way to make it happen if it’s what she wants.”

He walked her out to rejoin her sisters. They said goodbye to Shelby and Noah, and as they headed home in the Secret Service SUV, Sam couldn’t help but wonder if a mistake she’d made two years ago was going to come back to haunt her.

On Monday morning, Nick arrived at the Oval Office to discover that his lovely wife had been there. He grinned as he read her note and viewed the beautiful photo of the family they’d created together. Knowing his wife, she’d been up to other mischief, so he wasn’t surprised to find that the items he’d placed in the drawers had been “reorganized.” He found the second note she’d left and sighed with pleasure at knowing he was loved by the most extraordinary woman.

He was asking a lot of her. He knew that. And yet, she’d stepped up to the challenge with admirable fortitude. Last night, he’d found her in bed, reading one of the books Mrs. Nelson had given her.

“Did you know,” she’d asked, reading from Inside the White House: Stories From the World’s Most Famous Residence, “that the president is all at once the ceremonial head of government, leader of a political party, administrator of the nation’s laws and domestic affairs, director of foreign policy and commander in chief of the armed forces?”

“Is that right?” he’d asked, amused by her as always. “I didn’t realize that.”

“That’s a big-ass job, Nicholas.”

“Yes, Samantha, so I’ve heard.”

“You know what’s seriously hot?”

“What’s that?”

“You all the time, but even more so as the ceremonial head of government, leader of a political party, administrator of the nation’s laws and domestic affairs, director of foreign policy and commander in chief of the armed forces.” She’d shivered dramatically. “Way sexier than seersucker.”

Nick laughed to himself as he recalled finding her reading Congress for Dummies way back when he was first in the Senate and she’d wanted to better understand his job. She’d been particularly intrigued by the Senate tradition of Seersucker Thursday. How far they’d come from those early days in the Senate when he’d been under the impression that he’d reached the pinnacle of his career.

Terry knocked before he entered the Oval Office. “Mr. President, we’re ready for you in the Situation Room.”

Nick walked with Terry to the most secure room in the White House, where the national security team waited to brief him on the incident in Iran with Ruskin.

“Mr. President,” Teresa said, “per the reports you were provided with at your morning briefing, we’ve met with Secretary Ruskin and the security team that accompanied him. We’ve received two very different stories. According to Secretary Ruskin, he was told the talks with President Rajavi would continue at the resort. Once there, he claims he was denied outside communication. He believes he was tricked into the photos that were taken.”

“He seemed awfully happy for a man who’d been kidnapped, tricked and misled,” Nick said.

“That was our impression as well, sir. The security team told an entirely different story. The lead agent indicated that Ruskin was offered a weekend of debauchery, and he willingly accepted the invitation.”

“Why were we unable to reach the security detail during the hours in question?” Nick asked.

“They were put up in rooms at the resort that they believe were in some sort of blackout zone that made it impossible to use any of their communication devices.”

Nick took in the information and looked for the truth in the various versions. “Who do you believe?”

“The agents,” Teresa said without hesitation. “It seems Ruskin suffered a breach of judgment, perhaps in part because of the changing of the guard here and his belief that he wouldn’t be held accountable. One of the agents overheard him saying you don’t ‘have the stones’ to discipline him.”

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