Series: Snapshots of the Past
Series: Snapshots of the Past
Story: Father of Daughters
Chapter 10
Disclaimer: See Chapter 1
Previously: Jed discussed the possibility of embryonic stem cell research with his staff and with Leo; Courtney, an old friend of Liz's, went to Abbey for medical advice when she feared an ex-boyfriend might have infected her with AIDS; after Elizabeth was crowned Homecoming Queen for the Class of '86, Abbey was shocked to see Doug Westin congratulating her
Summary: Ellie is inspired by her idol; Jed broaches the subject of re-election with Abbey once again; stuck 500 miles apart for the weekend, husband and wife add some spice to their phone conversation; Abbey tries to get Liz to open up
Rated R for some suggestive language
- - -
Abbey, Ellie, and Zoey stepped off the bleachers in time to hear Doug Westin shouting Elizabeth's name. He grabbed her and spun her around and Abbey watched as the college guy she had met only once literally swept her daughter off her feet. Had Liz not been laughing, she might have intervened, but the two or three seconds that played out in front of her didn't seem to faze the teenager at all.
"Doug!" Liz chided him, forcing him to set her down. "Get carried away much?" She fixed her jacket. "What are you doing here?"
"It's homecoming - welcoming back alumni."
"You went to Manchester High?"
"Nashua. But my buddies went to MHS. Class of '83." He gestured to his fraternity brothers sitting in the stands. "They dragged me here. Why didn't you tell me you were up for queen?"
"It never came up." Liz looked to her mother. "You remember Doug Westin?"
Abbey nodded, approaching the young man to say hello. Ellie and Zoey followed their mother's lead and afterwards, Doug excused himself to join his pals up in the stands. But before he left, he turned to address Liz once more.
"The first tumbling pass?" he asked.
"Second. It's supposed to be a double full." Liz had been struggling with that move for weeks.
"Not that I know what that is, but I'll keep my eye on it anyway. I'll catch you later."
Her stare was fixed on him even as he walked away.
"So..." Abbey began when Doug was out of earshot. "What was that?"
"What?" Liz recognized that look immediately, the one that was part worry and part warning. "Mom, it's cool. I see him now and then and we talk."
"Now and then?"
"Over the summer, he came by Friendly's occasionally to get ice cream when I was working. No biggie."
"You've seen him since the end of the summer. He knew you were having trouble with your tumbling pass, the one you didn't even choreograph until the start of the school year."
"Yeah. He works at the bakery I stop at on the way to school so I guess I mentioned it to him. Big deal."
Abbey had witnessed the way the pair interacted at the anti-violence rally last spring and noted the way Doug had picked her up just moments earlier and the look on Liz's face when he put her back down. There might have been nothing deeper than friendship going on between them, but she knew her Lizzie well enough to know that there was the slightest glimmer of interest on her part.
"He's a lot older than you. I can't believe you have anything in common."
"Just because he's older doesn't mean I can't carry on a decent conversation with him or that he wouldn't be interested in what I have to say. Anyway, maturity and age don't always go hand-in-hand. There are lots of guys in high school more mature than Doug."
"I'm sure that's true." Abbey fixed a strand of Liz's hair that had fallen out of her ponytail. "I'm not making any judgments, I'm just surprised, okay?"
Had Doug been her own age or even still in high school, Abbey would have teased her daughter about her obvious crush. But that wasn't the case. He wasn't just older, he was in his third year of college, far removed from the experiences of high school life and the trials and tribulations that went with them. While Liz was learning who she was and exploring her independence on the verge of adulthood, Doug was miles ahead of her and the feelings she was developing for him concerned Abbey.
Liz sensed her mother's discomfort. Grateful that she didn't have time to discuss the situation, she said, "I have to stretch. We're about to start."
"Wait a sec. I want a picture of you and your sisters." Abbey huddled the girls together and snapped a photo for Jed, then looked to her eldest daughter. "Go knock 'em dead. I'll watch for your double full."
A thankful Liz handed her tiara to her mom. "After the game, I'm going out with Tori and the girls. You said it was all right?"
"Remember your curfew."
"I will." Liz took off her warm-ups and dashed across the field in her uniform to join her squad as they prepared to give the school a sneak peek at the choreographed dance routine they would use for the Northeast Regional Finals - the competition that would qualify them for nationals.
Returning to the stands to watch the half-time show with Ellie and Zoey as the first beat of techno music rang out from the speakers, Abbey refused the Doug distraction, choosing to devote her attention solely to Liz. Like her biggest fan, she clapped for her when she hit her mark on her first back handspring and then held her breath when a basket toss launched her into a mid-air somersault.
The gymnastics was more than Abbey would have liked, having always been afraid that Liz would someday land on her head with some of the acrobatic stunts she tried. Why she always wanted to be the flyer, Abbey didn't know. Liz had been a dancer and gymnast since she was eight years old and every year, she became more daring than the last. Now that she had organized her squad into a danceline for state and national team competitions, she had put together a routine that truly tested the limits - a flashy, high-energy number that required great athletic skill and immunity to the fear of getting hurt.
Abbey's heart practically stopped with every leap and she burst into cheers of relief with every landing. At the edge of her seat the entire time, no one was happier than she was when the last tumbling pass went off without a hitch and Liz ended the number right-side-up as the stadium exploded in the roar of applause for the finale.
- - -
Back at home later that night, Abbey let herself in to Ellie's room following a single knock. "You should be getting ready for bed."
"I will in a minute." Ellie was hanging up a poster of Christa McAuliffe, the Concord High School teacher who had been chosen to ride along with the space shuttle Challenger in January.
"You know she'll be back in New Hampshire for a couple of weeks after her training at NASA." Abbey helped hold the poster straight while Ellie stood on a chair and tacked it to the wall.
"Daddy told me. He's gonna get to meet her and he said he's gonna try to take me too. I can't wait!" Ellie noticed her mom's expression - a combination of pride and awe. "What?"
"I just like seeing you so excited. I wish I could share it with you."
"Why didn't you ever learn about astronomy? You love science."
"The kind of science I love is biological. It's how the body functions that I find fascinating. Physics, mechanics, those kinds of things never really appealed to me."
"Is astronomy physics?"
"A lot of it is. You had to understand physics pretty well to do your science fair project last year, remember?"
"Yeah. Dad helped me with a lot of that stuff. He's good at rockets."
"Yes, he is. He loves figuring out how things work and why." Charmed by her husband's infinite curiosity, Abbey smiled just thinking about him. "And anything numbers-oriented he can solve in a snap! You get that from him."
"You think I'm like him?"
"In a lot of ways. You're analytical like he is and when you run into a problem, you don't give up. Even when you struggle at first, like you did with your multiplication tables, you stick with it until you figure it out. You're a problem solver."
"I guess I am." Ellie liked the idea of sharing some of her father's qualities. "Do you think I could be an astronaut when I grow up?"
No hesitation on Abbey's part. "If that's what you want, I have no doubt that you can do it."
"Do you mean it?" she questioned. "Or are you saying that because you're my mom and you have to?"
Abbey chuckled. "Even if I wasn't your mom, Ellie, I'd still tell you that you can be an astronaut when you grow up if you set your mind to it. You're a hard worker, sweetheart, and even though you have natural ability and you're incredibly bright, it's your tenacity that's going to help you succeed at whatever your heart desires."
"What's tenacity?"
"It means you're relentless. Persistent. If you see something you want to do, you find a way to do it. That's what I meant when I said you don't give up. With that tenacious quality of yours, you can make all your dreams come true."
The sixth grader cruised to her bed with a boost of confidence. She knew her parents believed in her, but it was still comforting to hear. "One day, I'm gonna fly to the moon."
"And I'm gonna be right there at the shuttle landing to see you off." Abbey pulled her covers up around her to tuck her in. "Now get some sleep. I'm going to wake you up early tomorrow so you can help Lizzie and me put the finishing touches on her Homecoming dress."
"Will I get to wear it?" Ellie had already volunteered to slip into her sister's black chiffon gown and stand on a chair so Liz and Abbey could sew half a dozen crystals and rhinestones along the bottom.
"We couldn't do it without you." Abbey leaned in to drop a kiss to her forehead. "See you in the morning."
"Goodnight."
- - -
It was after 11 p.m. in Washington when Jed finally left his office after a grueling day of meetings, conferences, debates, and votes on the House floor. He had been so energized by the work he was doing, so engrossed in his agenda for the next day that he hadn't yet realized how late it was. It hadn't even dawned on him that he was returning to an empty apartment until he took the underground escalator to board the metro for the ride home. Because of construction, traffic had been diverted on the street and it was easier to take the train than to drive. Squeezing into the car crowded with couples and families either returning from a night on the town or heading to late-night bars and restaurants reminded him instantly of how much he missed his wife and how much he'd give for her to be there with him, especially with the weekend he had planned.
It was a short walk from the metro stop to the apartment and along the way, he checked his watch to see just how late it was. Good thing he had already talked to Ellie and Zoey, he thought, since he knew they'd be in bed by now. He wasn't even sure that Abbey would still be up, but he always called her at the end of the night regardless because only her voice could bring him a peaceful sleep. Without hearing it, he was destined to toss and turn all night, just as he did when he first got to Washington. As much as he loved representing his district in the nation's capital, the thing he hated most about DC was that Abbey wasn't there.
They had been doing the long distance thing since January and slowly but surely, it was getting a little easier. The weekdays were busy for both of them and the time usually flew by. The weekends were nice, at least the ones where Jed was able to make it home and Abbey wasn't trapped at the hospital. The anticipation of seeing each other after a long week was as exciting now as it had been when they carried on a long distance romance in college. And Friday night reunions - after the kids were tucked in bed - were usually incredible. He still missed Abbey very much, but it was bearable now. He wondered if it was for her too and if they could do it for another few years. If he was to be honest, he'd have to admit he wasn't ready to end his stint in Washington. It was overpowering, this thing he was doing. It wasn't about him, it was about them - the constituents and the country, the people who put him in office and trusted him with their will. He was just learning the game, starting to get good at it. He needed more time to make an impact and accomplish what he'd set out to do when he kicked off his campaign 18 months earlier.
He had to talk to Abbey. He had to tell her that his job wasn't done yet, that he wanted to run again. He owed it to her, to the girls, to the New Hampshire Democratic Party, and to himself to come to terms with planning a re-election campaign without apology or regret.
When he reached his apartment, he headed immediately for the phone.
"Hey, gorgeous," he said when she picked up.
"I never get tired of that greeting. Have I told you that?"
"Once or twice. What are you doing?"
"Making some warm milk," she said, standing at the stove.
"You're waiting up for Lizzie." She couldn't fool him. "Is she on her regular curfew?"
"For tonight."
"And tomorrow?"
"You already know the answer to that. Tomorrow's the dance. We had a deal - homecoming and prom senior year, she can stay out as late as she wants."
"I was hoping she forgot."
"No chance of that. They already rented the limo."
"Is she going with this Alex kid? Did you meet him?"
"Yes, I met him, not that it matters. They're going as friends in a group with all the other girls and their dates. It's nothing."
"She doesn't like him in that way?"
"No." Abbey was slightly ambiguous in her answer.
"What kind of 'no' was that? What's wrong?"
"It's silly. I just...there's this boy...no, this man that Liz met last year. He volunteered on your campaign - Doug Westin."
"I don't remember that name."
"There's a shocker," she teased.
"Are you gonna pick on me or tell me what you mean by 'a man'?"
"I mean he's a tad older and I think our daughter is developing a little crush. She says they're friends, but I can tell there's something going on there. I met him last year at that rally Liz and I went to at UNH and I suspected it even then. She told me I was wrong."
"You're not?"
"I don't think so. He works at the bakery. You know how she's developed a taste for croissants and all those mornings she stops to get them on her way to school? That's where she's been going - to see him."
"When you say older what do you mean?"
"He's in college, Jed." Silence. Dead silence. "Jed?"
"What year?"
"He was a sophomore when I met him last year so he's a..."
"A junior? Forget it. She can't."
"She can't what? She hasn't even asked for permission yet. She insists they're friends. Are we going to tell her she's not allowed to be friends with him? We've always trusted her to pick her own friends and she's never given us a reason to take that away from her."
"A college junior isn't going to want to be friends with a high school senior for platonic reasons. What could they possibly have in common?"
"I said something similar when she told me. But she is mature beyond her years."
"I'm not saying she's not worthy of his attention, I'm saying they're at different points in their lives. What's the attraction?"
"Who knows? Maybe it's puppy love. Maybe something even more benign."
"Abbey, you can think I'm being an overprotective father, but..."
"I'm with you." Abbey poured the milk into a mug. "I'll talk to her about it, flesh things out."
"Make sure you do." He slipped out of his jacket.
"Surrender the Father Dearest cape and move on to something else," she asked, walking to the table and sipping her milk. "I've been waiting all day to talk to you about stem cells. Are you considering legislation?"
"Possibly. There's a lot more to it than a simple yes or no. I met with Leo to go over it."
"Oh yeah?"
"He doesn't think legislation will make it past the gatekeepers in this congress. There's too much rubbish to get through before we can make any headway."
"So what's the alternative?"
"I'm gonna make some noise and see what kind of reception I get. If it's promising, maybe something will come of it."
"Well, if anyone can command attention on something like this, it's you."
It was motivating, the faith she had in him. "Abbey?"
"Yeah?"
"One of the things Leo said was that even if I get the ball rolling now, it might be too late. It could help pave the way later on though...next term."
Abbey took a deep breath. "I guess we can't put off that discussion any longer, can we?"
"No, we can't." A quick wait and then, "I want to run again, Abbey."
It didn't surprise her. "I know."
"What do you think?"
"My honest take?"
"Always."
"I wasn't so sure last year. I was against it after the whole Bennett thing because I was worried what it was doing to you being in an environment corrupted by people like him, but I'm beginning to think I was wrong."
"You? Wrong? Never." With a touch of sarcasm.
"Don't be a jackass," she barked.
"Go on," he snickered.
"You have so much on your plate right now - every day, it's a new proposal or new bill that you're fighting or supporting. You're juggling things so well and you're doing it without losing yourself, who you are and what you went to Washington to do. And the thing is, I've thought long and hard about this. I'm not just your wife, Jed. I'm also your constituent and I can't think of anyone else I want representing me in Washington. How can I ask you not to run again?"
He was touched. "Sweetheart, as pleased as I am to hear you say all that, there's something else to consider. I miss you and our girls very much and I wouldn't blame you for having doubts about continuing to live like this."
"We miss you too, but..."
"Is it getting easier?"
"That's a trick question," she accused. "If I say no, it might change your mind about running and if I say yes, you'll ask..."
"Why the hell is it so easy to live without me?" He harassed her to make her smile. "I just do that for the laugh."
"Yeah, you're a real clown." She sipped her milk. "It's late. You'll be home tomorrow. Why don't we wait to talk about it then?"
Guilty, he took a beat and then said softly, "About that..."
"Don't."
"I have meetings."
"Jed!"
"There was nothing I could do."
"I was supposed to be on-call this weekend. I switched so I could be here with you because you were supposed to be home!"
"I didn't know Jergens was gonna pull this."
"Don't give me a line."
"It's not a line! He went behind my back and asked for a floor vote tonight and when it failed, he called for committee tomorrow to fix the language."
"On what?"
"Childcare subsidies for welfare mothers."
How could she argue with that? "Fine."
"Abbey."
"It might be unreasonable, but I'm gonna be mad at you for a few minutes, okay?"
"A minute ago, you thought I was juggling everything well."
"What did I know?"
"Abigail..."
"You were home for one night last weekend and the week before that, I was on-call the entire time. I was looking forward to snuggling up and falling asleep in your arms. We don't get to do that too much anymore."
"That's not all we don't do much anymore."
"Whose fault is that?"
"Boy, you really are testy tonight."
"I'm disappointed."
"Yeah, well so am I." He allowed a minute to pass. "Look, it doesn't have to be a total loss." Arching his brow, he asked flirtatiously, "What are you wearing?"
"Nice try."
"Come on, play with me here. What are you wearing?"
Abbey glanced down at her outfit. She couldn't very well tell him flannel pajamas without spoiling the mood. "My pink silk night gown. The one with the lace around the waist."
"And the popping cleavage?" Jed sighed. "God, I wish I was there."
Mission accomplished. "What about you? What are you wearing?"
"Nothing but my boxers," he said as he stripped out of his dress shirt and fumbled with his belt. In a few seconds, it would be true.
"Mmm." Her eyes closed, she pictured him in all his naked glory.
"I take it you approve?"
"Take off your boxers," she ordered, her voice seductive and sultry and her fingers twirling the curls in her hair.
"My, you are demanding." Jed obliged. "Boxers gone. Your turn. Take off the night gown."
Abbey felt a tingling rush of excitement. She set her mug aside and replied, "I think I'm gonna have to take this upstairs."
"Hurry up. My mind is racing with the things it wants to do to you."
- - -
It was a game of verbal sexual pleasure between husband and wife and the provocative suggestions that floated back and forth between them had them gasping for air. Abbey was piled into bed on her back, under the covers with her head on a pillow and one hand clutching the headboard above as Jed explained - in detail - all the areas his tongue longed to roam, from the peaks of her perky breasts down her stomach to her belly button and the path that led to the bundle of nerves hidden between her legs.
"I love the taste of you," he said. "I'm turned on by the way you wiggle when I touch you there, the way your inner thighs tense up and the way your muscles relax when I gently rub them. I run my finger up and down your center and my thumbs knead you just as I open my mouth to take you over and over again."
She was squirming from the thought of him between her legs, his warm breath rippling across her most sensitive little nub. His sexy voice continued to push her to the brink of ecstasy when the moment was shattered. She heard the front door open followed by the warning sound of the alarm before it was reset.
"Abbey?" Jed called. "You stopped moaning."
"I'm sorry, it's the door. I think Lizzie's home."
"I'm glad she's home, but our children sure know how to kill the mood."
"They have radar," Abbey agreed. "She's on her way up. Let me call you after I talk to her?"
"I'm gonna have to foreplay-you-up again, aren't I?"
"I thought you liked foreplay."
"Only when I'm guaranteed the real thing."
Liz knocked on the door. "Mom?"
"Come in." Abbey passed her the phone. "Say hi to Dad."
"Hey, Dad."
"What'd you do and who'd you do it with?"
Liz gave him an exasperated roll of the eyes. "I was with the girls."
"What'd you do?"
"I swore I wouldn't tell. You'll just have to read about it in the police roster tomorrow."
Abbey, still lying on the bed, poked her daughter with her foot.
"Hope you had the good sense to take off your tiara for the mug shot." Jed used his stern tone to needle her.
"So Mom told you they voted for me?"
"It's gonna go to your head, isn't it?"
"You don't think it has already? I'm Manchester royalty." She bit down on her bottom lip to keep from laughing after Abbey threw a pillow at her.
"Get your royal self ready for bed before he banishes you to the dungeon."
"What she said," Jed agreed over the phone.
"You guys are no fun," Liz grouched.
"Seriously, congratulations sweetheart. How'd your dance number go?"
"Good, I think. We fixed the mistakes we made at the pep rally and Mom said she was holding her breath the whole time which tells me our stunts have just the right level of difficulty. We need to clean up the middle and polish the whole thing and then we'll be ready for regionals in three weeks. You'll be there, right?"
"I wouldn't miss it," he promised. "I'm gonna let you go talk to your mom for a bit. Tell her to call me before she goes to bed."
"I will. Night." Liz looked over at Abbey after she hung up the phone. "He said you wanted to talk to me?"
"Yeah. I was hoping we could chat about what you did tonight."
"We went out for pizza and hung out, nothing exciting."
"Just you and the girls?"
"If you're asking if Doug went, the answer's no."
"Can we talk about him for a minute?"
"Mom, I told you..."
Abbey followed her down the hall to Liz's room. "I know what you told me, but you know what doesn't add up? You never mentioned him. I know all your friends, Lizzie, why didn't I know this one?"
Liz shrugged, taking off her letterman jacket. "Because he's not even that good a friend. More like an acquaintance. Why does it matter?"
"I like knowing what's going on with you."
"You like checking up on me, you mean."
"No."
"Mom, come on. You treat me like a child. You won't even let me drive to the Wham concert by myself. When are you going to let me grow up?"
"When did this become a conversation about you growing up?"
"The minute you gave me that look at the game. You're suspicious of Doug, right? You're afraid that I'm dating a college guy behind your back. I'm not. I wouldn't do that. If I was interested in Doug, I'd talk to you about it."
"You see him practically every morning, you saw him all summer long, and not once did you mention him. Why go out of your way to keep him a secret?"
"Why all the questions?"
"Do you have a crush on him?"
"NO!" It was an impulsive response. Liz wasn't ready to admit her feelings.
"Then why?"
"I didn't go out of my way to keep it from you. It didn't come up." That and she knew that Abbey would see through her and the puppy love - or whatever it was - dancing in her eyes would give away her infatuation with the guy.
"You could have brought it up."
"Why are you giving me the third degree?"
"I don't mean for this to be the third degree, Elizabeth, I swear I don't. I'm not trying to invade your privacy. I just want you to know that you can talk to me about things." Abbey was thinking about Courtney now and what she was going through with the AIDS scare that she refused to share with her mother.
"I already know that."
"You're almost 18 and you feel like you're an adult and your life is your own, and in some ways, maybe you're right, maybe I do need to back off a little, but if I'm holding on too tight, it's only because I love you. I don't want there to be anything that you're afraid to tell me, ever."
"Did something happen? Is there something I should know?"
"No." As a doctor, Abbey couldn't betray her patient. If she could, she would have taken Liz into her arms and made her promise that she'd never try to go through what Courtney is going through alone. "It's just a conversation we haven't had in a while."
"That's because there's nothing to talk about. I know I can come to you and I will if I need to. But do I have to tell you everything?"
"It'd be great if you would." She lightened up when Liz shot her a glare. "Do you want me to lie?"
Liz took off her earrings and released her hair from a ponytail. "Hypothetically speaking, what would you say if I told you I did have a crush on Doug? You'd say forget it, right? You'd forbid me from seeing him?"
"Are you confessing something?"
"Only hypothetically." To say that she was being playful would be an overstatement, but Liz's expression wasn't entirely serious or rigid.
"Hypothetically, I wouldn't forbid you from doing anything unless I wanted you turn around and do it."
She might have been a mother, but Abbey still remembered what it was like to be 17, so close to going off to college and starting a new life. When Liz was younger, it was easy - there were certain things she just wasn't allowed to do. It was more complicated now. It was no longer about rules or boundaries, but about making sound decisions for herself, a skill that she wanted Liz to work on before leaving home.
"So what would you say then?"
"I'd say that he's too old for you and I'd encourage you to focus on your studies this year. And if you wanted to date, I'd suggest you consider boys your own age, at least until you graduate."
"And if I made a case for a boy not my age?"
"Let's not play games, Elizabeth. If you have something to say about Doug, then say it - for real."
At least it wasn't a non-starter, Liz thought. "He's interesting to me. I haven't asked him out and he hasn't asked me either."
"But you're thinking about it?"
"If you want to know the truth, yes. Go ahead, tell me he's too old."
"He is."
"Maybe, but when I talk to him...I don't know, he's different than any guy I've ever known before. I thought he was so annoying when I first met him, but he's grown on me."
"What do you talk about?"
"Mom..." she grumbled. "That's private."
"You're right. I just assumed that if it was no big deal, you could share." Abbey clasped her daughter's hands. "Listen, all I want is for you to feel comfortable coming to me."
"That's what I'm doing by telling you this."
"And you'd like it if I could step out of my mommy bubble for a minute?"
"I don't think you can. All you see is our age difference."
"It's a big thing, Liz."
"Not to me," she said, letting go of Abbey's hands. "I understand that you want to be there for me, but I'm not ready to talk about Doug. I don't even know how I feel about him yet. How can I possibly explain it to you?"
"That's fair."
"I want to sort it out for myself."
"Without any help?"
Liz shook her head. "Not yet."
"Okay." Abbey swept her hair out of the way to give her a kiss goodnight when Liz unexpectedly embraced her. "Whenever you're ready, I'm here. I love you...very much."
"I love you too."
"Get some sleep." And with that, she left Liz alone and returned to the master bedroom, knowing that Doug would come up again and contemplating what to say when he did.
TBC