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Breaking Barriers
Part 2
By nine o'clock Jed figured she would be late. By nine thirty he wondered if something had happened to her. Not a pleasant thought. By ten he wanted to send Secret Service out to find her, but how to explain that one. He wasn't sure what time it was when he heard the phone ring, but he made a hasty retreat inside from the balcony to it, hoping it was Abbey. "Hello."
"Am I interrupting something?"
CJ's teasing voice greeted him as Jed flopped down in the chair. "Oh, it's you."
"Well, hello to you too, sunshine."
"I'm sorry, I just hoped it was Abbey." He glanced at his watch, twenty minutes past ten.
"Abbey? I thought you had dinner with her?"
He sighed deeply. "She never showed."
"Ah, The President has been stood up."
"It wasn't a real date, CJ." But Jed couldn't help feeling rejected.
"It's not like Abbey."
CJ's voice was now all serious.
"Maybe there was an emergency at the hospital. Call Leo, if she's been tied up, the kids are with him and Jenny."
The thought had occurred to him, but he didn't want to seem too eager. "No, Leo doesn't know that Abbey was coming here tonight unless she told him. I mean it's not a date, but I don't know how he would feel. He's very protective of her."
"I know, but he also wants Abbey to be happy and you are his best friend."
Though what CJ said could be true, Jed wasn't so sure. Jed knew Abbey and Lane's marriage had not been the best and it had caused Abbey tremendous pain although he didn't know the details. He did know that Leo had had several arguments with his brother over Abbey. Jed never pushed to know more even though he could see it hurt both Leo and Abbey.
"Listen, I'll talk to you later, OK?"
"OK."
They said their goodbyes and then he hung up. He walked over to the window. CJ was right; there very well could be an emergency at the hospital. She always volunteered to help if they were understaffed. He decided not to let it get to him, knowing very well it would.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Sir." Leo greeted as he walked over to Jed upon entering the Oval Office.
"Leo, what's going on?" There was no meeting planned and it looked like Leo had something on his mind.
"Nothing much, I'll just need to leave for a while to drop off my nieces at school." He put on his coat as
he talked.
That would mean they had been with Jenny and Leo all night. "Now?"
"Yeah, they have a late start today, some teacher's workshop or something." It wasn't something that had not happened before, but usually he could drop them off early in the morning or Jenny did it. "Anything you need, sir, I'll take care of it as soon as I get back."
"I don't need anything, Leo." Jed tried to sound casual. "So, why were they at your house? Is Abbey
OK?" The answer to that would probably explain why Abbey had not shown up the day before. Jed never really asked why Laurie and Leah were over at his house before. He usually just figured it was because Leo wanted to spend time with his nieces, trying to do some of the things with them that their Dad would do if he was still alive.
Leo wondered about the way Jed looked when he asked about Abbey. What was that? "Yeah, she's OK, but a friend of hers had a miscarriage last night so she wanted to be there for her."
Jed should have known. It was so like Abbey. "I'm sorry to hear that."
"I'll be back as soon as I can." There was something about Jed today. He couldn't understand what, but he would try to find out what was on the President's mind when he got back.
"No problem." As Leo walked out, Jed briefly thought about calling Abbey. Thinking she would probably still be with her friend, he postponed that idea for now.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It was late afternoon when he couldn't hold it off any longer. He had to talk to Abbey. After telling CJ why Abbey had not shown, CJ had told him to call Abbey. He had kept putting it off, but now he couldn't any longer. He dialed, hoping she was home and yet hoping she wasn't.
"McGarry."
It was always pure delight hearing her voice. "Hello, Abbey."
"Mr. President."
There was no doubt she was not prepared for him calling her and he felt bad for her. "I heard about
your friend. I'm so sorry."
"Thank you. I'm really sorry about yesterday. I was so wrapped up in..."
"There is no need to explain." He interrupted her. "I understand."
"Listen, I...you're welcome to come over for dinner tonight. Laurie and Leah would be happy to see you."
Of course Jed would rather be alone with Abbey, but he had not seen her in so long he was aching to. He also was very fond of her two daughters.
"That is if you can."
He smiled as he responded. "I would love to come over. It's been a while since I've seen the three of you. However, The Secret Service will have to come over and do a sweep of the house first and check out the neighbourhood. After all that, I hope you still want me
to come."
Jed heard Abbey giggle. "Of course, sir, I understand. It comes with the territory. Can you have them dust under the beds and organize the garage while they're at it?"
It was Jed's turn to laugh. "Anything to make you happy."
Leo watched from the door as Jed talked to Abbey. There was no doubt. His face gave everything away. He heard Jed end the conversation before he made his presence known. "How long have you been in love with Abbey?"
Jed was startled to hear Leo's voice. It wasn't so much the voice as it was those words.
Leo was now standing in front of the desk. "Jed, how long have you been in love with Abbey?"
The fact that Leo used his first name showed how serious Leo thought the situation was. He wasn't sure how Leo would like this. "I don't know." He replied honestly.
"You don't know?" It occurred to Leo that Abbey might have had something to do with Jed and CJ's divorce. "Is Abbey the reason you got divorced?"
"We had a deal." Jed began. "CJ and me. When either one of us fell in love with someone else, we would get divorced."
"I take that as a yes." Leo was not sure how he felt about this. Jed was his best friend, but he was very
close to Abbey and she had been through enough to make her swear off men.
"CJ realized how I felt for Abbey." No matter how he tried, Jed couldn't tell how Leo felt about the
situation. The man could close up like a shell. "I really love Abbey, Leo."
Leo didn't doubt it. Jed's whole face lit up when he said her name. "I don't know if that's enough."
Jed tilted his head, looking at his best friend. "What do you mean?"
"Abbey has no interest in men anymore." He debated with himself just what he should tell Jed. It might be better to tell him everything, so Jed knew just what he was up against should he decide to pursue this.
Those were words Jed did not want to hear. "Why?"
Leo sighed as he seated himself. "All the men Abbey has been in a relationship with, including my brother, had one thing in common. They all cheated on her. It got harder for her each time and one can say my brother was the worst. Abbey had problems trusting men before he came along, so he had to work on it and he succeeded. For a few years, they were happy and Abbey thought she finally had found the right one. When she found out he had cheated on her, she confronted him and wanted to know why. He basically told her it was because she couldn't satisfy him the way a woman should satisfy a man'. With her history with men and those words being repeated several times, Abbey
finally started to believe him. Then when Lane died, Abbey decided never to get involved with a man again. She has two children and that is enough for her."
Jed had listened carefully to everything Leo had told him. He couldn't imagine doing something like that to Abbey, to anyone. He could clearly see Leo arguing with his brother to get Lane to treat his wife better. Jed had, however, also known Lane and knew what a jerk he could be, in private that is. In public, he had been a much loved Senator. That was one of the few reasons Leo tolerated his brother and put on a smile in public, because of some of the good things he had done while being a Senator. "I never knew. Even when he was running for the Senate and Abbey quit her medical practice to help him, they seemed so happy together. Although I thought she was too good for him, they seemed happy."
His brother had always been a good actor at covering up things. Abbey had not done so bad herself, but her motives were less selfish then his brothers. "It was all an act. Abbey only played along because she believed in several of the causes he worked on. Besides, she figured if she left him, he might try and take the kids from her." Leo got up from the chair. He was having a difficult time with what he was saying, because even though Lane could be a jerk, he was still his brother. After a minute, Leo continued. "I don't doubt that you have very strong feelings for her, but she's been through enough. If you're not sure, really 100 percent, about what you want, then just leave it alone, Jed. What Abbey needs most from a man is that she can trust him, no matter what. I don't intend to stand for her being hurt again, not even by you."
Jed watched Leo walk away while thinking about those last words he said. He was sure about what he wanted. He wanted Abbey. He wanted Abbey to be his friend, his lover, hopefully someday his wife, to share the rest of his life with him. He wanted her to trust him and he could be that man. He knew he could and would never betray her in any way. He also knew he would have to be careful and not scare her away. To make sure, he would take it as slow as she wanted. And if need be, he would leave her alone if that's what she wished.
He really didn't know when he fell for Abbey. Was it a few months after Lane had died when he had offered her the challenge to come and work for him? He had said he did it based on the great work she had done for her husband, but maybe a part of him had wanted her near for other reasons. He honestly didn't know, but he did know that by the time he was running for President, he had fallen hard for her. But of course he couldn't do anything about it then. But now, he had given her time to grieve and to adjust to life on her own. And this was the time for him to make his intentions known.
CJ once said that life was much simpler before he became President. She was right in more ways than one. It would not stop him though; he would not let The Presidency stand in the way of his love for Abbey. In time he would reveal how he felt for her and then, it would be all up to her. She would have the final say. He could only hope she would give him the answer he wanted to hear.
TBC............
Breaking Barriers
Part 2
By nine o'clock Jed figured she would be late. By nine thirty he wondered if something had happened to her. Not a pleasant thought. By ten he wanted to send Secret Service out to find her, but how to explain that one. He wasn't sure what time it was when he heard the phone ring, but he made a hasty retreat inside from the balcony to it, hoping it was Abbey. "Hello."
"Am I interrupting something?"
CJ's teasing voice greeted him as Jed flopped down in the chair. "Oh, it's you."
"Well, hello to you too, sunshine."
"I'm sorry, I just hoped it was Abbey." He glanced at his watch, twenty minutes past ten.
"Abbey? I thought you had dinner with her?"
He sighed deeply. "She never showed."
"Ah, The President has been stood up."
"It wasn't a real date, CJ." But Jed couldn't help feeling rejected.
"It's not like Abbey."
CJ's voice was now all serious.
"Maybe there was an emergency at the hospital. Call Leo, if she's been tied up, the kids are with him and Jenny."
The thought had occurred to him, but he didn't want to seem too eager. "No, Leo doesn't know that Abbey was coming here tonight unless she told him. I mean it's not a date, but I don't know how he would feel. He's very protective of her."
"I know, but he also wants Abbey to be happy and you are his best friend."
Though what CJ said could be true, Jed wasn't so sure. Jed knew Abbey and Lane's marriage had not been the best and it had caused Abbey tremendous pain although he didn't know the details. He did know that Leo had had several arguments with his brother over Abbey. Jed never pushed to know more even though he could see it hurt both Leo and Abbey.
"Listen, I'll talk to you later, OK?"
"OK."
They said their goodbyes and then he hung up. He walked over to the window. CJ was right; there very well could be an emergency at the hospital. She always volunteered to help if they were understaffed. He decided not to let it get to him, knowing very well it would.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Sir." Leo greeted as he walked over to Jed upon entering the Oval Office.
"Leo, what's going on?" There was no meeting planned and it looked like Leo had something on his mind.
"Nothing much, I'll just need to leave for a while to drop off my nieces at school." He put on his coat as
he talked.
That would mean they had been with Jenny and Leo all night. "Now?"
"Yeah, they have a late start today, some teacher's workshop or something." It wasn't something that had not happened before, but usually he could drop them off early in the morning or Jenny did it. "Anything you need, sir, I'll take care of it as soon as I get back."
"I don't need anything, Leo." Jed tried to sound casual. "So, why were they at your house? Is Abbey
OK?" The answer to that would probably explain why Abbey had not shown up the day before. Jed never really asked why Laurie and Leah were over at his house before. He usually just figured it was because Leo wanted to spend time with his nieces, trying to do some of the things with them that their Dad would do if he was still alive.
Leo wondered about the way Jed looked when he asked about Abbey. What was that? "Yeah, she's OK, but a friend of hers had a miscarriage last night so she wanted to be there for her."
Jed should have known. It was so like Abbey. "I'm sorry to hear that."
"I'll be back as soon as I can." There was something about Jed today. He couldn't understand what, but he would try to find out what was on the President's mind when he got back.
"No problem." As Leo walked out, Jed briefly thought about calling Abbey. Thinking she would probably still be with her friend, he postponed that idea for now.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It was late afternoon when he couldn't hold it off any longer. He had to talk to Abbey. After telling CJ why Abbey had not shown, CJ had told him to call Abbey. He had kept putting it off, but now he couldn't any longer. He dialed, hoping she was home and yet hoping she wasn't.
"McGarry."
It was always pure delight hearing her voice. "Hello, Abbey."
"Mr. President."
There was no doubt she was not prepared for him calling her and he felt bad for her. "I heard about
your friend. I'm so sorry."
"Thank you. I'm really sorry about yesterday. I was so wrapped up in..."
"There is no need to explain." He interrupted her. "I understand."
"Listen, I...you're welcome to come over for dinner tonight. Laurie and Leah would be happy to see you."
Of course Jed would rather be alone with Abbey, but he had not seen her in so long he was aching to. He also was very fond of her two daughters.
"That is if you can."
He smiled as he responded. "I would love to come over. It's been a while since I've seen the three of you. However, The Secret Service will have to come over and do a sweep of the house first and check out the neighbourhood. After all that, I hope you still want me
to come."
Jed heard Abbey giggle. "Of course, sir, I understand. It comes with the territory. Can you have them dust under the beds and organize the garage while they're at it?"
It was Jed's turn to laugh. "Anything to make you happy."
Leo watched from the door as Jed talked to Abbey. There was no doubt. His face gave everything away. He heard Jed end the conversation before he made his presence known. "How long have you been in love with Abbey?"
Jed was startled to hear Leo's voice. It wasn't so much the voice as it was those words.
Leo was now standing in front of the desk. "Jed, how long have you been in love with Abbey?"
The fact that Leo used his first name showed how serious Leo thought the situation was. He wasn't sure how Leo would like this. "I don't know." He replied honestly.
"You don't know?" It occurred to Leo that Abbey might have had something to do with Jed and CJ's divorce. "Is Abbey the reason you got divorced?"
"We had a deal." Jed began. "CJ and me. When either one of us fell in love with someone else, we would get divorced."
"I take that as a yes." Leo was not sure how he felt about this. Jed was his best friend, but he was very
close to Abbey and she had been through enough to make her swear off men.
"CJ realized how I felt for Abbey." No matter how he tried, Jed couldn't tell how Leo felt about the
situation. The man could close up like a shell. "I really love Abbey, Leo."
Leo didn't doubt it. Jed's whole face lit up when he said her name. "I don't know if that's enough."
Jed tilted his head, looking at his best friend. "What do you mean?"
"Abbey has no interest in men anymore." He debated with himself just what he should tell Jed. It might be better to tell him everything, so Jed knew just what he was up against should he decide to pursue this.
Those were words Jed did not want to hear. "Why?"
Leo sighed as he seated himself. "All the men Abbey has been in a relationship with, including my brother, had one thing in common. They all cheated on her. It got harder for her each time and one can say my brother was the worst. Abbey had problems trusting men before he came along, so he had to work on it and he succeeded. For a few years, they were happy and Abbey thought she finally had found the right one. When she found out he had cheated on her, she confronted him and wanted to know why. He basically told her it was because she couldn't satisfy him the way a woman should satisfy a man'. With her history with men and those words being repeated several times, Abbey
finally started to believe him. Then when Lane died, Abbey decided never to get involved with a man again. She has two children and that is enough for her."
Jed had listened carefully to everything Leo had told him. He couldn't imagine doing something like that to Abbey, to anyone. He could clearly see Leo arguing with his brother to get Lane to treat his wife better. Jed had, however, also known Lane and knew what a jerk he could be, in private that is. In public, he had been a much loved Senator. That was one of the few reasons Leo tolerated his brother and put on a smile in public, because of some of the good things he had done while being a Senator. "I never knew. Even when he was running for the Senate and Abbey quit her medical practice to help him, they seemed so happy together. Although I thought she was too good for him, they seemed happy."
His brother had always been a good actor at covering up things. Abbey had not done so bad herself, but her motives were less selfish then his brothers. "It was all an act. Abbey only played along because she believed in several of the causes he worked on. Besides, she figured if she left him, he might try and take the kids from her." Leo got up from the chair. He was having a difficult time with what he was saying, because even though Lane could be a jerk, he was still his brother. After a minute, Leo continued. "I don't doubt that you have very strong feelings for her, but she's been through enough. If you're not sure, really 100 percent, about what you want, then just leave it alone, Jed. What Abbey needs most from a man is that she can trust him, no matter what. I don't intend to stand for her being hurt again, not even by you."
Jed watched Leo walk away while thinking about those last words he said. He was sure about what he wanted. He wanted Abbey. He wanted Abbey to be his friend, his lover, hopefully someday his wife, to share the rest of his life with him. He wanted her to trust him and he could be that man. He knew he could and would never betray her in any way. He also knew he would have to be careful and not scare her away. To make sure, he would take it as slow as she wanted. And if need be, he would leave her alone if that's what she wished.
He really didn't know when he fell for Abbey. Was it a few months after Lane had died when he had offered her the challenge to come and work for him? He had said he did it based on the great work she had done for her husband, but maybe a part of him had wanted her near for other reasons. He honestly didn't know, but he did know that by the time he was running for President, he had fallen hard for her. But of course he couldn't do anything about it then. But now, he had given her time to grieve and to adjust to life on her own. And this was the time for him to make his intentions known.
CJ once said that life was much simpler before he became President. She was right in more ways than one. It would not stop him though; he would not let The Presidency stand in the way of his love for Abbey. In time he would reveal how he felt for her and then, it would be all up to her. She would have the final say. He could only hope she would give him the answer he wanted to hear.
TBC............