Flashback within a flashback. I don't know how to describe it. But if you read it, you know what I mean.
She almost fell. Fortunately, she managed to support herself on the door frame in time. Andrew was less lucky. His hands wrapped around her, he stumbled and briefly lost his balance. But after a few seconds he had also caught himself again and was now facing her with his head slightly bent forward, panting. She had to laugh, but immediately fell silent again when she saw his look. She looked down and without lifting her eyes, she started to take off her coat. The slamming of the front door broke the silence and it sealed her off from the outside world, her agents and the facade she had to maintain as Secretary of State. It left her alone with him. She looked up quickly and screwed up her face in disgust. There he stood, his eyes full of greed and...
That's what alcohol did to him. It was the same every time. Before, at the very beginning, it had been different. She sighed softly as the memory came up as her very first state dinner. They had been drinking, just like today, but that was the way it was. There was always dancing, laughing and drinking. In short, partying. It was part of it somehow. Unofficially, the White House was famous and infamous in the world of super diplomats for throwing the best and wildest parties. It had taken her a while to come to terms with the idea of drinking with world-class politicians.
She pulled Nadine aside and ushered her into an empty side room, away from the partying political elite. "Please, don't let me drink any more alcohol. I'll lose control and do strange things..." Nadine burst into a horrible loud laugh. "Please?! What's so funny about that?" Elizabeth eyed Nadine suspiciously. "How much have you had to drink?"
"You know ma'am, there's drinking at a state dinner. That's part of it. Everybody drinks here. President or assistant. Everybody. This isn't about politics, it's about having fun." She chuckled. "Well, maybe that last part wasn't entirely true. But you know what I mean." With that, she turned and disappeared toward the door. Just before she stepped out the door, disappearing for the rest of the evening, she raised an arm and repeated herself. "Everybody's drinking here." Elizabeth stood in the room a moment longer with a raised eyebrow, weighing doing the same as Nadine.
While she stormed past Andrew toward the bar, already drinking a shot swiped from a passing waiter, she responded to his questioning look only with a shrug of her shoulders. "Nadine has said, that this is the way it should be." While she was already beckoning the bartender, she turned slightly towards him and clarified with a smirked. "…the drinking."
Thinking about it, it occurred to her that this had been one of the last beautiful nights they had spent together. She looked up and quickly averted her eyes when she saw him standing there like that. Drunk.
"WHAT?" He seemed to sense her tenseness that had arisen. Swaying, he took a step toward her and tried to put his hand on her shoulder. "Let me." She dodged his hand and started moving and toward the coat rack.
"HEY!" "Don't yell like that." How she hated it when he was drunk. He hadn't always been more aggressive and demanding when he was drunk. That had only come with the time.
No sooner had the front door slammed shut behind them than he was pinning her against it, kissing every piece of free skin he could find. She had to use both her hands to hold his head so she could press her lips to his. This was what she had been waiting for all evening. A contented sounding sigh escaped her and the look Andrew gave her made her knees go weak. Softly she murmured "Wait, let me hang up the coat quickly..."
Just as she turned to the coat rack, she felt him put his hands on her hips and "You know, we can do this again." whispered in her ear. His words sent goosebumps down her spine and she turned in his arms. As she leaned forward and repeated the kiss from earlier until she couldn't breathe and had to pull back, she whispered softly. "Like this?"
His hands were wrapped around her lower back, pressing their lower parts together, her hands rested in his neck. For a moment they both looked deep into each other's eyes. "Like this, and sex. Really good sex." She shuddered as she heard his rough voice. She leaned her forehead against his. "I love you." Her words were barely audible. He hummed in agreement.
She had already hung her coat away and was now bent over to put her shoes and his into the shoe closet below the coat rack, when out of the corner of her eye she saw him moving toward her. Before she could even act, he had smacked her on the butt. She pulled up and before she had thought better about it, her hand had made acquaintance with his cheek. "WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?!" He staggered backward a few steps before regaining his composure and shaking his head to clear his vision. Anger and rage blazed from his narrowed eyes. "YOU WILL REGRET THIS!" His voice cut through her loins.
As he took a few steps swaying toward her, she felt fear. Completely terrified, she backed away as far as she could until her back was pressed against the closed coat rack door. Tempted to reassure him, she breathed „Sorry, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to..." "YOU DIDN'T MEAN TO WHAT?!"
Then his lips were on hers again and his hands were working on the zipper of the dress. She moaned in pleasure as the fabric slid off her shoulders, she stood before him in just her panties, and Andrew tilted his head to give her breasts his attention. After a moment of pleasure, she reached out her hands and worked on his belt. Soon the two of them were standing in her hallway, in just their underwear, unable to keep their hands off each other. At one point, when she had to pull away from him to catch her breath, she uttered, completely out of breath and barely audible, "Take me to bed."
„With pleasure!" With that he lifted her with ease and carried her up the stairs to their shared bedroom. Wrapping her arms around him, she breathed in his scent. A deep relaxation and bliss spread through her and she turned her head slightly to kiss the spot behind his ear.
The thrust was more violent than she had expected and jolted her out of the past. She gasped as his hand met with her shoulder, pressing her against the door. "WHAT DIDN'T YOU WANT?" His spit hit her in the face, and she had to gather herself to keep from contorting her face in disgust. Instead of answering his question, she remained silent. He nudged her again. "HE WHAT? WHAT DIDN'T YOU WANT?"
Again she was silent. Firmly she pressed her lips together, trying to hide her fear in her eyes as she forced herself to look him in the eye. "WHAT, I DON'T GET AN ANSWER?" He made a contemptuous sounding noise. As his hand landed on the right side of her face, the bang echoed in the hallway. Dazed, she closed her eyes, trying to keep the world from spinning. A bright beeping in her right ear didn't help matters. Just as her vision cleared, she felt his hands on her breasts. She had no strength left to push him off her. Anyway, he wouldn't be able to keep his fingers on her this night, and she was unlikely to be able to buy enough time to escape to the guest room to lock herself for the night in.
The moment of realization caused all fighting spirit to slip from her body. Her throat tightened and she leaned her head against the coat rack door behind her. Tears stood in her eyes. She closed them. Another night of torture and pain would be ahead of her.
The next morning she was woken up by sweet kisses. She turned to him and smiled at him. Without saying a word, he took her in his arms and kissed her forehead. When she stretched to get a kiss on her lips as well, he lowered his head slightly and gave her what she wanted. As the kiss increased in intensity and their hands began stroking up and down the sides of their bodies, she pulled him over her. He recognized the hint and kissed his way down over her breasts. It wasn't long before Elizabeth was lying in bed panting and Andrew was watching her in her afterglow. At some point he reached out to take her hand "Shower?"
She gave him a gentle smile. "But you ..." He cut her off and said it again. "Shower?" Bess had to chuckle and tilted her head sheepishly. "I don't think I can walk. The alcohol and ..."
"Exactly! The alcohol!" Andrew had to laugh. "If anyone asks, it's always the alcohol. Never the grandiose sex last night." She looked at him and blushed slightly. "...The alcohol and sex. That's what I was going to say. Lots of sex. I feel every muscle in my body. I doubt that my legs will keep me through the day." She laughs.
"Yeah ,yeah. It doesn't get any better, just leave it at that." Andrew laughed heartily now and held out his arms. "May I?" Less than two minutes later they were standing close together in the shower with the lukewarm water cascading down on them.
On nights like this, she saw the decision to Conrad's offer differently. On nights, when the past was brighter than the future could ever be again.