"I knew it," Josh declared, snapping the book closed. He grinned, "I knew he was a Republican all along. I could sense it. I have a sixth sense about these things. Didn't I always tell you that he was a closet Republican?"
"Honestly, Joshua," Donna chided, reaching out to take the book from his hands, "he was never a closet Republican. He never even tried to hide it or anything. He all but told us the first time we met him."
"I'm so glad that you could all make it," Jed greeted them warmly from the top step. He didn't want to take the time to navigate the stairs with the cane that he had finally been forced to start using regularly. He knew they would come to him.
"Honestly, sir," Donna said, hurrying over. "I don't know where you're going to put everyone." She gave him a warm hug, leaving Josh behind to manhandle the bags out of the trunk of their car.
"You got married in my house; you don't have to call me sir," he reminded her as he returned her embrace.
"Sorry," she laughed in response. "I always forget the first time." She held up her first two fingers and raised her right hand. "I won't do it again, Scout's honour."
"Aren't you going to come up and say hello to an old friend?" Jed called down to Josh.
"I was just waiting until after my wife had finished mauling you," he answered, shuffling over. His side was giving him trouble after sitting for so long on the drive out to Manchester.
Donna reached out a hand to swat affectionately at Josh's head as he reached out to take the former president's extended hand. "I'd be nice to your wife, Josh," Abbey warned, wiping her hands on her apron as she came to the door. "We're the ones doing the cooking today."
"She's been threatening to withhold the pie," Jed clarified.
"Donna, if you want to come on back to the kitchen," Abbey said, guiding Donna into the house and ignoring her husband, "the rest of the Sisterhood is already there."
"Are we the last ones here?" she asked anxiously, already moving toward the kitchen.
"We gentlemen have retired away to the den to enjoy our brandy and cigars," Jed told Josh. "I'll have someone bring your bags in and settle them in your room. Sam and Leo should be here soon and then the company will be complete." Jed's eyes twinkled happily as he made his slow way toward the den. It wasn't often that everyone managed to get together.
As the two men made their way down the hall toward the smoky den, the two women were entering the cheerful kitchen. CJ was lounging back against the fridge, a glass of wine in her hand, a streak of flour on her cheek, and an apron tied around her waist. "And so then he told me that he was a Democratic Republican," she finished uproariously, a wide grin splitting her face.
Peals of laughter from the others echoed around the large kitchen. "CJ," Abbey broke in, "don't tell me that I missed you telling the Leighton story again. It's one of my favourites."
"Alex and Sarah hadn't heard it yet," CJ justified. She caught sight of Donna standing behind the former first lady and, setting her glass of wine down on the counter beside her, ambled over to hug her friend.
"What's this I hear about a Pulitzer nomination?" Donna asked, returning the hug. "Something like that wasn't important enough to warrant a phone call? I had to find out like the rest of the country."
CJ pulled away for a second. "You really shouldn't let Josh answer the phone," she declared. "You've been married for eight years and he still doesn't pass on messages."
Donna broke out in a wide smile. "Sounds about right. I spoiled him when we were in the White House. But you'd think that nine years would cure him of the thought that I'm the one who's supposed to take messages."
"Remember," Zoey broke in, "this is Josh Lyman we're talking about here." She looked up from the piecrust she was rolling out on the table. "I'd come over for a hug, but I'm covered in flour."
"Hook yourself up with an apron and a glass of wine," Abbey directed, taking up another rolling pin. "I think that Margaret and CJ have a fairly good handle on slicing the apples. We're almost done with the crusts, but we're going to need tops rolled out too. There should be an extra rolling pin in the second drawer. Sarah?"
"Mom," Zoey reminded, "you completely forgot to introduce Sarah and Alex."
"It's okay," one of the two girls that Donna didn't recognize replied. "I think we're getting pretty used to it by now. I'm Sarah Sutherland."
"And I'm Alexandra Cunningham," said the other, stepping forward to politely offer a hand to Donna. "Alex."
"They're two of Jed's students," Abbey explained. "Jed asked them to stay for the weekend. Girls, as I'm sure you know, this is the recently elected Senator Donnatella Moss-Lyman."
"It's just Donna," Donna reassured them, shaking their hands. "So, how did you two get lucky enough to get Jed as a teacher?"
"We're honestly not quite sure," Sarah answered, blowing a strand of blonde hair out of her eyes. "I wasn't originally even interested in political science. And I hated economics."
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"There's something about him that just sucks you in."
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"And then before you know it you're stuck in the quagmire of political rhetoric with no conceivable end in sight," Toby declared, flicking the ashes from the end of his cigar into the ashtray at his elbow.
"That's awfully strong sentiment, Toby," Jed said as he opened the door and entered the smoky room. Light streamed through the tall windows and illuminated the well-polished woodwork. "Are you still going on about Joselin?"
"Well, look what the cat dragged in," Charlie commented, catching sight of Josh as he stood behind Jed.
"Are you implying that I'm the cat?" Jed asked, settling himself back into his favourite armchair. "Because although felines are noted to be exceptionally sly, it begs to question whether that's merely perception on our part."
"I'm pretty sure that wasn't what I was trying to say," Charlie answered immediately. "I'm pretty sure that I was just trying to say hello to Josh without sounding over eager."
"Mark? Jack? Was that what he was saying?" Jed asked, turning his sharp eyes to the two men who were unfamiliar to Josh.
"Well, sir," one answered, "I'm not quite sure that I want to tempt wandering into the inescapable quagmire of rhetoric, in this case I believe that we must look beyond the obvious connotations of such statements and into the underlying intended meaning."
"Are you mocking me, Jack?" Toby demanded. He turned to Josh, asking, "Was he just mocking me?"
"Josh, I'd like you to meet Mark Goldstein and Jack McCosham, two of the students that I invited to join us this weekend," Jed introduced, gesturing with his cane to the two as he said their names.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Lyman," Jack said politely, stepping forward to shake Josh's hand.
"Mr. Lyman makes me feel old," Josh answered immediately. "It's Josh."
"Political rhetoric is sometimes the only thing keeping you afloat," Toby maintained, not bothering to let Mark greet Josh before starting in on the argument again.
"Maybe when it's sink or swim," Josh broke in as he shook Mark's hand. "But when everything is going fine then it's just going to alienate the general populace who already doesn't trust the politicians that they elect."
"With all due respect, sir," Jack answered, "I think that the electorate elects someone based primarily on the very things that they come to hate. If you'll look back at the Joselin campaign you'll see that he didn't change at all. The voters just realized that what they elected was rhetoric, not action."
"Joselin had a damn good speechwriter and an even better publicist," Toby growled in answer. "That's why he got elected. He didn't even have the rhetoric. He just had people who could trick you into thinking he did. Just look at his early speeches."
"They weren't as well-crafted," Mark answered, "but he had ideas that needed acting on in them. It wasn't until he brought together a team to polish what he was saying that the message got lost. Had he stuck with his old staff, he would have been able to get something done instead of just talking about it."
"Joselin didn't have a single idea worth noting. I mean, my six-year-old kids are better at political strategy," Josh snorted. "I'm surprised that the Republicans managed to hold onto him for as long as they did. He was crazy, even for a Republican." Josh was pouring himself a brandy, but even if he had been watching, he probably still wouldn't have caught the look that flitted across Mark's face.
But he did look up in time to see the look on Jed's face and know exactly why he had brought the four of them to Manchester for the weekend.