A/N: I'm still recovering from the flu (which I caught really badly!), so I thought instead of just boring myself to death in bed I could as well write a second chapter for this story.
Elizabeth already stood under hot drizzling water when Henry joined her in the shower after finally taking an aspirin. He wrapped his arms around her from behind and rested his chin on her shoulder to nuzzle her neck. Elizabeth let her body relax into his and closed her eyes while her husband caressed her stomach. Once Elizabeth's hair was completely wet, Henry turned off the water and massaged shampoo into her hair. When he was done, Elizabeth turned to face him and they spend some time to wash each others bodies. It was completely silent, both of them not needing any words to communicate with each other having spend so many years together. Once they were done, Elizabeth turned around so Henry could wash out her shampoo. For her, there was nothing sexual about their routine. It was simply about cherishing and taking care of each other. Wrapping themselves in towels, they brushed their teeth with the radio blaring in the background to listen to the news, just in case Elizabeth had missed something. Afterwards, Elizabeth took some time to take care of her skin with organic body lotion that Henry had gotten for her earlier that month when he caught her once again buying sample packages from TV commercials. Looking up from where she was sitting on the edge of the bathtub she caught Henry's gaze in the mirror who was just done with shaving. She smiled at him before standing up and walking to him. He slowly turned around to her and she couldn't help but notice how sexy he looked with his towel hanging low on his hips.
"Thank you for last night. I really had a fun time." She said to him while resting her hands on his chest.
"So did I. Although I would without hangovers." Henry replied before leaning in for a sweet kiss that only lasted for a second but meant so much more to them. After getting dress in casual clothes, they finally made their way downstairs just before noon.
"Hey kids!" Henry greeted their children when he walked down the stairs.
"Finally! We have been up for hours." Jason exaggerated without looking up from his phone.
"There's leftover eggs and bacon if you want that." Stevie said to her mum while pouring herself another cup of coffee.
"Thanks honey." Elizabeth took out two plates for her and Henry.
"So what's the plan for today?" Alison called out from the couch.
"I don't know. We could go to the park or the mall...Whatever you would like to." Elizabeth said while checking her phone for missed messages.
"It's too cold to go to the park." Alison replied.
"And I don't want to go to the mall." Jason responded.
"Well, how about we go to the movies? We haven't done that in forever." Stevie suggested.
"Yeah, that's a great idea. And we could stop by that burger place at 30th." Henry suggested excitedly.
"Yay, they have that yummy veggie burger. I'm in." Alison said.
"Great. That's settled than." Elizabeth exclaimed while eating her bacon. "Hey, who wants to play a round of scrabble with me?"
"Sorry. I have homework to do." Alison excused herself.
"Jase?" Elizabeth turned to him.
"Nah, I don't want to."
"I'm in." Stevie saved her disappointed mum.
"Great!" Elizabeth smiled and they moved to the living room.
"Honey, I'm gonna drive to the grocery store. Do you want me to bring anything?" Henry asked while walking into the living room. He knew how much she hated going to the store ever since she became Secretary of State because of people recognizing her.
"Can you get me some more of that chocolate that you bought last week? That was so good! And we're out of Don Julio." Elizabeth replied while getting her scrabble tile in order.
"Okay, I'll get that. I'll be back in a bit."
"Thanks babe."
Henry left, leaving Stevie and Elizabeth to themselves. After playing for a couple of minutes, Stevie broke the silence.
"So, how was last night?" She asked.
"Nothing spectacular. A lot of people who think that they are the most important in the world. It was pretty boring, but we had to stay as long as the president did. You know, one of those unspoken rules." Elizabeth replied while putting her word down.
"If it's that boring than why is dad going to these events with you?" Stevie asked shyly.
"Because I make him." Elizabeth joked.
"Mum, I'm being serious." Stevie said earnestly. Elizabeth looked up and took a moment before replying to her daughter.
"Because he loves me and it makes me less miserable when he's there with me." Elizabeth smiled slightly. "Also, it is way less boring with him being there. I mean last night, he stole a bottle of Dom Pérignon for us to have on the way home." She chuckled.
"Wow, you really have you priorities set straight." Stevie said ironically.
"Come on, you know what I mean."
"I do." Stevie said quietly, looking quite a bit sad for a second.
"Sweetie, is something wrong? There was something you wanted to talk about this morning, wasn't it?" Elizabeth completely focused on her daughter knowing that something was up.
"It's stupid, really." Stevie felt silly for even bringing it up.
"Tell me." Her mom insisted.
"Stella's parents are getting a divorce. Can you believe it? They have been together for over twenty years and now it's just over." She looked at her mother sadly. Stella was one of Stevie's best friends that she knew from preschool. Stevie had spent countless nights at their house and Henry and Elizabeth used to have a little get together with Stella's parents every now and then.
"I'm sorry, honey. That must be hard for Stella."
"That's actually the worst part. She doesn't care at all. Yeah, okay, she moved out years ago. But still, they are her parents. How can she not care?" Stevie complained.
"Oh honey, you don't know what it was like. Maybe they have been fighting a lot and it was just for the better. Or maybe they fell out of love, I mean that can happen after such a long time together. " Elizabeth tried to explain.
"I know, I know. But it still was a shock for me."
"Come here, honey." Elizabeth wrapped her arm around Stevie and pulled her into her embrace.
"But you and dad are okay, right?" Stevie wanted reassurance.
"Of course we are. You saw us this morning, didn't you? How much more do you need to know?"
"You're right." Stevie freed herself from her mum's hug to look into her eyes. "I'm glad you guys are happy."
"Me too, sweetie. I love you." Elizabeth told her and kissed her oldest on her cheek."
"Love you too."
The two finished the game with Elizabeth winning of course. Later on, they helped Henry with unloading groceries. They were almost done sorting everything when Henry appeared with a bouquet of roses back in the kitchen.
"Wow, dad, what are those for?" Stevie asked who saw the flowers first.
"These are for your mum of course." He replied while making his way to Elizabeth who was still busy in in the pantry. Walking back into the kitchen, she ran right into her husband.
"Babe, these are for you. Happy Valentine's Day, I love you." He said while handing over the flowers and leaning in for a kiss.
"Thank you, honey. They are beautiful. But I thought we weren't doing Valentine's Day anymore?" Years ago, they had agreed on not celebrating that day anymore, because they wanted to celebrate their love each day of the year and not just that one day.
"I know, but I drove by the florist and couldn't resist." He said apologetic.
"See, that's one of the many reasons why I love you." She said and opened her arms to hug him. Henry returned her hug and pressed a kiss to her hair. Elizabeth looked over Henry's shoulder and caught Stevie's gaze. She winked at her and formed the words "told you so" with her lips. Stevie smiled back at her in response before walking out of the kitchen to give them some privacy.
"I'm sorry I didn't get you anything." Elizabeth mumbled into his shoulder.
"That's alright, I don't need anything but you." Henry replied before pulling away. "Did you win scrabble?"
"Of course I did." She snorted.
"That's my girl." Henry replied with a grin.
"That's true. I'm your girl."