Tri City Weather Forecaster Of The Year
Disclaimer: The characters from Scarecrow and Mrs. King are the property of Warner Brothers and Shoot the Moon Productions. I have borrowed the characters without the consent or knowledge of Warner Brothers or Shoot the Moon. I will return them shortly. The extra characters and story are mine.
Timeframe: season one
Summary: Why is she over there and I am here? Second in 'Dean is a nice guy'
"What is she doing here?" demanded Assistant field section chief Francine Desmond glaring at the entrance door.
The tall, handsome man beside her turned to her asking, "who?"
"Amanda!" Francine huffed as her pencil moved down the list of names on the clipboard.
Lee was mesmerized by the sight of Mrs. King dressed in a blue taffeta formal gown with a sweetheart neckline, sheer tight sleeves and a flared skirt. Her hair was swept up in a smooth French knot. A tuxedoed man joined her and escorted her to a reserved table near the platform. Francine was still muttering as she rechecked her list. Stetson pointed to a name on her paper. "McGuire, Dean and guest. She has been dating him since last spring"
"You knew she was coming?" the blond agent demanded angrily.
"Yeah," he answered grinning.
Agents and personal bodyguards kept a close eye on the proceedings, anything could happen when TV personalities, high society and politicians were together. "Tell me again why I am here and Amanda King is over there," Desmond requested in an irritated voice.
"OK", agreed the Scarecrow, "you are over here because you are a highly trained professional agent in charge of security for the 'Television Personalities Award Ceremony' while Amanda is just a civilian dating the 'Tri City Weatherman of the Year'.
Both agents watched the partygoers closely. Vigilantly prepared for trouble, Francine kept her facial expression pleasant and calm as she circulated. As she discreetly followed Mrs. King progress mingling with the high ranking individuals assembled together.
Lee on the other hand studied Amanda's date. Dean never left her side, he introduced her to those people that she did not know. However it appeared that she already knew most of the people he worked with.
Dean guided her over to the highest ranking person in attendance that night. "Amanda, may I present you to Major General Howard Stevens of the U.S. Army? General, Mrs. Amanda King." He was astonished by their greetings.
"Good to see you, Panda," said the general with a smile.
"It has been way to long, Maverick. Mother will be so disappointed that she isn't here. How have you been? How is the family?" she said grinning.
"Take a breath, Missy," he ordered laughing. He kissed her hand while bowing over it. Keeping her hand to set it in the crook of his arm, the general lead her over to a group of distinguished people with Dean following behind them.
"Hey, Cuz," said a short, blond congressional aide.
"Hey. Cuz," she replied before introducing her boyfriend to the small crowd.
Agent Desmond closed in in time to hear the general say, "may I borrow your lady for the next dance, McGuire?" Francine knew that it really was not a question, it was a stated fact that he was taking Amanda.
Dean glanced at his girlfriend as he agreed, "yes, sir, General."
Holding hands with the general heading tward the small dance floor, Amanda said, "good evening, Francine. Are you having a good time?"
"Of course, it is a lovely party," Ms. Desmond answered as they passed her.
Mrs. King allowed herself to be folded close to the general's chest. "I need to talk to you, Panda."
"Yes, Maverick," she replied.
"How do you know Francine Desmond?"
"She is the friend of a friend," she answered carefully but truthfully.
"By any chance would that mutual friend be standing back in that corner?" he inquired.
After a quick look, Amanda looked up at Maverick and nodded, "how did you know? I haven't spoken to him all night."
"No, you haven't but you have been aware of him. He has certainly been aware of you. Are you involved with him?"
"Not really. I have been dating Dean since early this year. I met Mr. Stetson at the train station one morning. Then I met him at that Halloween party so we could talk. I was assigned as his 'bedside bluebell' for several days. I became friends with Princess Penny when I showed her around Phillip and Jamie's school. Mr. Stetson was in charge of security for the royal couple," she explained.
"OK," he responded. "If you are going to be out and about more, I need you to be careful. Occasionally someone you know may warn you off. Remember 'baby signals'."
"Yes, Papa, 'baby signals'," the young woman agreed. "Lee is going to want to know about you. Should I have ignored Francine? Trying not to recognize Mr. Stetson didn't work well."
Major General Stevens stopped near the agent and nodded him over. "Panda, It might just take more time." Stetson joined them, his countenance impassive. "Agent Stetson, you have been doing a good job tonight."
"Thank you, sir," Stetson replied then nodded politely to Mrs. King.
"Lee, do you know Major General Howard Stevens?" she asked. "Maverick was Daddy's best friend."
The expression on his face did not change but there was a slight relaxation in his stance. The two men talked for several minutes while the general kept Amanda tucked under his arm.
Still closely observing the agent, Maverick looked down at his dance partner, "let's go , Panda. I need to return you to your boyfriend."
Stetson's body stiffened to attention. Amanda acknowledged the statement, "of course, you do. Borrowing implies returning that which is borrowed."
The general placed her hand on his arm to lead her back. He surveyed Stetson's demeanor as they left, "interesting, interesting."
The agent watched Major General Stevens escort Amanda King back to Dean McGuire. Dean continued to stay with his date socializing with other guests. No hand holding, no arm around each other, not even standing close to each other, they were friends, maybe even good friends but they were not lovers. "Good," he thought.
The night had been uneventful; no assassins, no kidnappers, no disruptions of any kind. It was the kind of detail security teams dreamed of. Ms. Desmond and Mr. Stetson stayed alert until the last guest left. Lee escorted Francine to her car.
"McGuire sure isn't into public displays of affection but he was solicitous when he walked out with Amanda," she mentioned.
"He was?" questioned Lee.
Francine said, "he sure was. He helped her with her coat, put his arm around her shoulders and he was really listening to some story about her 'Daddy's' best friend."
Lee looked thoughtful and told Francine, "Maverick was her Daddy's best friend."
"She told you about her father's best friend? Really, Lee, that is to much," the blond agent said derisively.
"No, she did not tell me about him. Amanda introduced me to him. Major General Howard Stevens is Maverick."
"Oh," she said softly.
As Lee drove home he wondered about the real relationship between Amanda King and that weatherman, Dean McGuire.