Notes:
Happy Valentine's Day! I wasn't going to post tonight but in my Word Document this chapter ended on page "143." So, I figured that was a sign.
Enjoy!
Chapter 20
It was a chilly Christmas Eve day as Elizabeth and Hope walked the White House grounds surrounded by four agents. She was grateful it was a Sunday. The kids would be arriving in a few hours but for now it was just two of them enjoying the sunshine and blue sky. She had Blake book her briefings early so she could let the staff enjoy the holiday.
Henry left late Friday night after the staff Christmas party to check on the renovations. Demolition had been completed with the barn frame and new walls in the house had gone up. He was also picking up the ring for Jason.
Normally she hated when they were apart but today she was reveling in it a bit. If they weren't fighting over the plot investigation, it was the kids' details or marble versus granite. They hadn't even had a memory moment since their big argument over Sarah that precipitated all this just after Thanksgiving. They needed a break.
She needed a break.
As she walked, the last month played over in her head.
"You lied. You lied to me about MY family!" He was raising his voice at her in the residence.
"I didn't lie to you, Henry. And what now they are not my family anymore? Is that where we are headed?" she barked back at him.
Ignoring the latter part of her argument, Henry pushed back, "Well, you certainly didn't fight as hard as you could have to keep her safe."
"That is not true, Henry. Whether you like it or not, Sarah is a grown woman. She can make her own choices, which is what Isabelle told me when I did fight for her" Elizabeth's voice dropped down to a more acceptable level.
"She could have been killed!" He yelled back at her. "Nevermind the fact, when this gets out, everything we have ever worked for can be gone."
"What amazes me is that you held onto this for so long? We talked about this, why now? What else is bugging you? Is it Allie?" she asked.
"No, it's not Allie,' he scoffed back at her.
"Well, I would have thought that since I heard you making comments to her about Michael last night," she said, tucking her blouse into her skirt.
"So, you are just fine with that one too? We've barely met the guy! Honestly, Elizabeth, it's like your focus on our family is just gone." He threw a hand her way.
She held up her hand and said, "I don't have time for this, Henry. You want to take this argument up with someone. Take it up with YOUR niece and Allie." She slammed the door and headed to the office.
He poked his head into the Oval from the private residence door, "Hey, do you have a minute?"
"Always, for you," she stood up to greet him and gave him a quick kiss.
They made their way to the couches but didn't quite make it all the way there.
"So, I talked to Secret Service just now. They said you are pulling the kids extra details and the ones for the rest of the family?" he asked.
"Yeah, I did. Disah has been killed. The rest of the organization has been brought down. The threat is gone. There's no reason for it," she answered him.
He gave her the incredulous look, "Well, were you going to discuss it with me first?"
She moved back to her desk, avoiding eye contact, "They're grown, Henry. It's not that big of a deal."
"No, I get that. But, I just find it odd that you managed to not bring it up and I had to find out from them," he was provoking her into another argument. One she didn't have time for.
"Henry, if you came in here to fight with me. I don't have time for that. Marine One will be landing in a few minutes. The threat is gone and they don't need the extra details. End of story," she finished.
He walked out of her office without a goodbye. She would be traveling to the Midwest and then New York for dress fittings for the next two days. She couldn't remember the last time either of them traveled without saying goodbye. That bothered her more than anything. She paused and sat down turning her chair to look out the window. She had no idea how they had gotten to this place in such a short period of time.
She boarded Marine One alone. As it pulled away from the White House she looked down on the building while spinning her wedding ring. He watched her take off from their bedroom window.
"No, marble is a pain in the butt to clean and keep clean. We need to go with the granite," Elizabeth rubbed her forehead, her migraine throbbing. This was the last thing she needed today.
"We had marble in Georgetown!" He argued back to her.
"This isn't Georgetown, Henry. It's the farm," she said back to him quietly. "I like the granite better."
He threw his hands up at her.
She made her way back into the residential doorway and took Hope's leash off. The dog took off knowing exactly where to go to look for Henry, who wasn't there. She sighed. The fresh air and nobody to talk to or talking at her, settled her mind. Couples go through this, she thought. A funk every once in a while. She knew they would get through it, but when.
As soon as she thought it, her phone buzzed. His name shown back at her and she almost ignored it. She was tired of fighting. Her only hope was that they could just hold it together through Christmas. The kids would be gone the day after.
"Hello," she answered.
"Where were you? I tried you a few times." He spat at her.
"Sorry, I was walking Hope. My phone was in my pocket. What's up?" she asked, now clearly agitated.
"Everything is coming along nicely. The stairs are done. I wanted to let you know they were able to save the railing," she could almost here him smiling through the phone.
"Well, that is great news," she said back, leaning against a wall and looking up. Maybe this is what they needed.
"Yeah, they just had to replace the steps. Incredible, right?" he asked her.
"That is," she was definitely pleased. "Henry, I am so thrilled that they were able to keep the staircase intact. That was the one thing that was killing me about this project."
"I know," he said back kindly. It was the first time he spoke that way to her in a few weeks. "Alright, I am leaving here in ten minutes and should be back in a few hours, okay?" he asked, concerned about her.
"Perfect," she answered with a smile on her face.
"Love you," he said. "I love you too," she hung up and held the phone to her heart.
Henry took his time away from the White House to re-evaluate things. He knew Elizabeth had every right to be angry with him. He hadn't exactly been that fair to her in the last month. The stress of everything getting the best of them. The plot, Sarah, the kids, the inauguration. All of it together was just a little too much. Moments like this always made Elizabeth turn away from him which made him even angrier. But, he knew couples went through this at times and they were no different. As, his motorcade pulled back into the residence about 4:30 he knew that would give him about an hour to talk to her before the kids arrived.
He walked in to find her sitting with a cup of tea and a binder. Her hair was mostly down except that small piece on her left side was held up with barrette. She was still in her exercise clothes and Hope was curled up next to her.
"Anything good?" he asked.
She smiled as she looked up at him, "Education legislation on literacy. It's actually very interesting. I figured I would get a head start on it before everyone got here," she gestured her hand towards the tree. "And all of that as well."
'Woah, babe! You did some serious wrapping!" he laughed.
He went over and leaned down to kiss her. For the first time in a month, they lingered there. Taking each other in. Henry pulled back but not too far and looked into her eyes. He went in for another kiss as she wrapped her hand around his neck, pulling him closer.
He eventually pulled away and asked, "Do you want to see photos?"
"Yes! But, show me the ring first," she put the binder on the coffee table and curled into him as he sat on the couch next to her.
"Ahhh, you spied the bag!" he said holding it up, a black bag with the silver writing of the jewelry store was in his hand. She reached for it, he immediately pulled it back.
"No way! Jayce made me promise that nobody could see it until he did. The jeweler FaceTimed with him just before I picked it up. I haven't even seen it yet," he laughed at her pouting.
"Henry, he won't even know we peeked. Hand over the bag," she reached out again.
He gave it to her laughing.
She reached in, "Uhhh, it's in a box with a ribbon!"
"Our son knows you too well." Henry said.
"How long until they get here?" she asked.
"About an hour. The motorcade is getting the kids at Andrews and then picking up Stevie and the crew. Let's look at the photos while we wait."
"Okay," she grabbed his phone from him.
It was then she noticed he changed his wallpaper. It was a photo of them from one of their early visits to the farm. She was sitting up on the white fence of the riding ring. He was standing just to the left side of her, his arm and hand resting on the inside of her thigh. She had her hand on his shoulder. They looked so young. Her hair was blonde, long and straight. She wore barely any makeup. He was less gray and his body was perfectly fit, still is but they were younger.
"Where did you find this?" she asked, still staring at his phone. "I haven't seen this photo in years." Tears were brimming in her eyes.
"The kids left a box of books in our room by accident. I opened it to check what was in it. On top was an old book of yours and it was sitting in there as a bookmark," he said smiling back at her.
He went to his bag pulled something out. Walking back to her, he gave her a red box with the green ribbon. She smiled at him and opened it quickly. She was thinking it was the photo in a frame.
When she lifted the lid, there was the book, "Jane Eyre" with the photo right where she left it.
She opened the book and pulled the photo out. The memory came flooding back to her. Looking at him, she pointed to the photo, "We had only been together about three months when this photo was taken. I think by Will. It was when I brought you to the house to meet him and Aunt Joan. Will took this photo right after your first horse riding lesson, do you remember?"
"How could I forget that lesson? My back hurt for days," he laughed.
"Well, you were too nervous. You couldn't relax in the saddle," she looked back at the photo. "You eventually got the hang of it."
"I did," he said in whisper. "Look where you left the photo."
She read it out loud quietly. She knew where she had left and really didn't need to read the quote for she knew it by heart.
"I have for the first time found what I can truly love-I have found you. You are my sympathy-my better self-my good angel-I am bound to you with a strong attachment. I think you are good, gifted, lovely, a fervent, a solemn passion is conceived in my heart; it leans to you, draws you to my center and spring of life, wrap my existence about you-and, kindling in pure, powerful, flame, fuses you and me in one."
He looked over at her as their eyes met, "I love you, Elizabeth."
She smiled at him, "I love you, Henry."
"Look, I am sorry about the last few weeks. That's on me," he told her.
"It's on both of us. Couples go through things like this. We're fine," she whispered back at him. She put the photo back in its' place and closed the book, her hand running over the top of it, "Thank you for bringing this back to me."