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Francis smiled and nodded to another senator before his eyes caught Claire weaving through the groups of people, smiling and politely greeting those she passed as she made her way over to their table. The plates had been cleared and it seemed as though the waiters had thinned out with their platters of champagne flutes. It was nearing the end, and no one was left at their seats. That was until Claire sat down and leaned back, taking in the event in all its pomp and circumstance. With a hand to the senator's shoulder, he squeezed reassuringly. "Why don't we talk more about this in the coming weeks? Let's get our offices in touch." Without much else, he stepped away and made his way over to Claire, sitting down beside her. "What are you doing over her all by yourself?"
Claire smiled at him gently, shrugging softly. "Taking it all in. Tonight is no different for all of these people. This is what we've been working for since before James was born." She chuckled when he rolled his eyes. "Reminiscing isn't a bad thing. If you did it more often, you might be able to remember more."
"I remember plenty." Francis retorted with a smirk of his own, leaning forward on his elbows towards her. "I very much remember the first time we brought James to an event like this. She was excited to wear her pretty little dress, and we made her wait until she was a whole hand before being allowed to come to this. Hell, we made her nap an entire afternoon to avoid a tantrum in that ballroom."
"We should've made you nap. You were closer to tantrum than she was that whole night, and she worked the room as much as you did." Claire stated, cocking her eyebrow at him and straightening his tie.
"Daddy, why is everyone staring at us?" James asked as Claire held her securely on her hip. It had been the first time since James had been born since they allowed their professional peers to actually confirm her existence visually. They had promised to take her out when she turned five, and their sitter had cancelled on them last minute. It seemed like circumstances were telling them something.
When Claire reached for a passing drink, Francis took his daughter into his arms, allowing her to rest on his hip and avoid wrinkling Claire's dress. "They all can't believe how beautiful you are. The thing is, they don't know that you're going to be their President someday."
James's little blue eyes beamed at the prospect. "Do you work with them?"
"I do. Do you want to meet them?" Francis asked, glancing at Claire. He knew she was especially nervous about tonight, but she seemed to be taking it better than he was. "I'm sure they'd all love to meet you."
Claire chuckled seeing the glint in her daughter's eyes, the gears working behind them like dollar signs in a gambler's. "You have to be on your best behavior though. Make Daddy look good in front of them. They're important people." She cupped the back of her head, kissing James's cheek. "I'll be at our table with the ladies if you need me, sweetheart."
"Okay, Mommy." James smiled before Claire walked back. She grabbed Francis's tie and adjusted it like she'd seen her mother do many times. "Let's go, Daddy."
Francis chuckled before walking over to the group of men. They opened up a space for him and James as they approached. Obviously, they were their topic of discussion. "Good evening, gentlemen. Anybody hear the score on the Dodgers game yet?"
"The wife confiscated my radio for tonight." The congressman from Chicago smiled. "But, it looks like you've got a new date here tonight, Frank. Although, she looks a lot alike your wife. Who might this be?"
"This is James." Francis smiled, chuckling when he noticed James grinning ear to ear in his arms. "Sitter cancelled, so she's tagging along tonight."
One of the Supreme Judges reached out, adjusting James's dress skirt and unknowingly making Francis swallow back his irritation. "Well, we're glad you did. We haven't met her in all this time. Hell, we didn't even know Claire was pregnant until you suddenly blazed a campaign trail with this little girl on your arm."
James sensed her father's discomfort when the man touched her dress and hugged his neck, pressing her cheek against his. "Daddy likes to keep me all to himself."
"Unfortunately," Francis cleared his throat, bringing his other hand up to James's back, hoping to prevent another touch. Although he knew these men meant no immediate harm, he also knew that letting them get away with those tiny touches would allow them to think they could push him further. "I have to share her with school. But, she enjoys school at least. On track to start at Caddie's next fall."
"Caddie's, huh? Smart girl." Another congressman, this one from North Western states, commented with a nod. "My son went there when he was her age. That school acts like it's Harvard. They only accept truly exceptional children." A smile grew on his face, one that made Francis tighten his grip on James. "I might be able to make a call for you, Frank."
Their party candidate started tapping the microphone, signaling that he was going to start his mission statement as to why he was running for the Presidency. The circle of men took that as their cue to make their way over to the stage where he stood at the podium. But, the congressman from the North Western states stopped beside Francis. "I hope you reconsider my proposition on the oil industry. I can just as easily pick up the phone to sway the school board in the other direction."
Francis smirked, leaning over the congressman himself. "I wouldn't hold your breath on that." He returned to his normal stature, pretending the interaction didn't happen. "C'mon darlin', I'm sure your momma is just waiting to gush on you in front of all her friends. She's been wanting to introduce you."
James waited until Francis started making his way over to her mother before speaking. "What did that man mean, Daddy? He doesn't want me to go to school?"
"He's just trying to make a deal with me. A lot of people here try to pull a fast one on your old man, and I occasionally let them think they've won. But, there's no way I'll let them try to hinder your life just to get something for themselves." Francis explained before he reached the table. "That's why I have to call Doug so he can make a few calls. Plus, I should see how he's doing. He still had a fever this morning." He set James down in the chair beside Claire before kissing Claire's cheek. "I'll be back in a couple minutes."
Claire nodded with a smile before draping her arm behind James on the oversized chair for her. With a soothing hand on her back, she turned back to the other wives at the table with a grin. "Speaking of her, this is James." She looked back at her daughter. "I was just telling them about you."
James smiled, a blush creeping into her cheeks. "Like what?"
"Oh my gosh, Claire. She's precious! How did you keep her hidden for so long?" One of the women asked.
"It wasn't easy." Claire chuckled before pulling James into her lap. She started running her fingers through her daughter's brown hair, the ends picking up on her natural curl. "But, Francis and I wanted her to have a normal upbringing. We didn't want her in the spotlight. Although, I think she'd love a spotlight sometimes." She chuckled when James looked up at her with furrowed eyebrows. "Yes, I'm talking about you." Her attention moved back to the other women as James leaned back against her chest. "We didn't want anyone to take advantage. You girls know how vicious our husbands can be when it comes to negotiating."
More than one of the women nodded with a roll of their eyes. "He puts more effort into getting a senator a new spin bike than he does into making dinner reservations, and I'm sure his secretary is the one getting arrangements made for the bike."
James started playing with Claire's hand. "One of them told Daddy to do his oil thingy so he'd call Caddie about me."
"When was this?" Claire asked with a small frown, seeing the shocked faces around the rest of the table.
"Just now. When I was with Daddy." James stated, sitting up to meet Claire's eyes. "He was wearing a tie with stars all over it."
Claire looked up when one of the women sighed and raised her hand stiffly. "That fool is mine. I'm sorry, Claire. Like you said, they can be vicious." She met James's eyes, smiling kindly. "I'll call the school for you, sweetie. Don't worry."
James smiled with a shake of her head. "I won't."
"Honestly, you don't have to do that." Claire stated. "James is already enrolled and expected for the fall semester. But if you still want to teach him a thing or two, you could help with my no oil-drilling campaign. We're trying to expand outside of the clean water, and I think you'd have expert knowledge on oil."
The woman smirked. "I can come in tomorrow."
Francis grinned remembering the proud Underwood glow his daughter had the rest of the night. She squashed the threat against her education even if Francis was already taking care of it with Doug, and she had managed to help Claire recruit someone for her nonprofit. "Didn't those two get divorced that year?"
Claire nodded. "He was trying to promote oil drilling while she was fighting against it. The media tore them apart before I had her contract ready to sign." She caressed his cheek. "You look tired."
"Reintroducing James back to society was eating away at me all day." Francis admitted before resting his chin in his palm. "Should we say our farewells and head up?"
"Yes, I want to see what James and Doug have found about tonight. I'm curious to see if Zoey wrote anything." Claire agreed with him before standing up and holding out her hand. "I have a feeling she'll come in handy."
Francis smirked and took her head, standing up before they heard a voice being cleared behind them. They turned to see Brighton looking as professional as always. "Brighton? What is it?"
"It's the First Daughter. It seems as though she's found something upsetting. Doug requested for you to join them in the Oval office. I told him I would bring you back as soon as you were done here." Brighton stated in a hushed tone.
Claire squeezed Francis's hand, letting him know that she saw the red flags too. "We'll say our goodbyes quickly. Then, we can go." She leaned closer to Francis as Brighton nodded and went to stand by the stairs leading to wait for them. "Francis?"
Francis wrapped his arm around her waist. "I'll go. Make an excuse to stay."
"I'm not letting you go up there alone with him." Claire whispered. "Let alone with James and Doug up there. We might be walking into an ambush, but you're better off with me than without me. Besides, we don't know who we can trust here."
Francis sighed, frustrated how right his wife was in that moment. "Someone else must be with James and Doug to keep them in the Oval. We haven't found any other links in the secret service that go back to Garrett."
Claire pulled Francis forward with her to start bidding their guests a goodnight, seeing Brighton's eyes on their movements as well. "Nothing can happen to James, Francis."
"Nothing will happen to either of you." Francis breathed before kissing her cheek. "And, I'll make anyone pay who tries to come near you."
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