"Sam," Ainsley stepped out onto the back porch and he turned and glanced at her.

"Hey."

Ainsley sat down in the chair next to him and stared out over the backyard.

"Olivia is here."

"I'll be in later."

"She wants to talk to you."

"I don't want to talk to her."

Ainsley nodded and they sat in silence for a minute.

"What does she want?"

"She wants to talk."

"You said that. About what?"

"Sam, your father just died. What do you think she wants to talk about?"

"Gee, I don't know." he muttered sarcastically, standing up. "Maybe how much of a bastard I've been over the years."

"Or maybe she just wants to comfort you."

"I don't need her comforting me. She's not my mother."

Ainsley sighed and put her head in her hands, then looked up at Sam.

"Sometimes I wonder why anyone even tries to be there for you." she said. "You're so damn stubborn all of the time."

"No I'm not." he said stubbornly.

"See, there you go. And then I remember that you seem to think you have to be a hard ass and let the public think you're unhuman and don't have feelings and don't need anyone there to back you up."

"That's not true."

"Yes it is. You think that you have to display this macho-man image to the US but right now you're not at the White House being the President. Right now you're just at your sister's house being Sam. So go talk to your stepmother." Ainsley said. Sam opened his mouth to protest and Ainsley pointed a finger at him. "And I'm not telling you again."

They stared at each other for a minute before Sam pulled Ainsley into a hug.

"I think the public would find it hilarious to know that I fear you more than anyone else I know." he murmured in her ear.

"I think they already know that honey."

"Probably." Sam pulled away from Ainsley and kissed her forehead, then walked back into the house. He walked into the living room and found Olivia sitting there talking to Gracie, who was curled up on the couch.

"He's going to Georgetown in September so I'll still be able to see him." she was saying and Sam knew she was talking about Ben.

"He's a bit older than you."

Gracie shook her head as she took a sip of her soda.

"There's only a year and a half between us. He just turned eighteen and I'll be sixteen in a few months." she glanced over at the doorway and saw Sam standing there. "Hi Daddy."

"Sweetheart, can I talk to... Olivia alone? Mom is out on the porch and I think Aunt Sarah just went out there too."

Gracie nodded and moved off the couch, brushing past Sam as she left the room. He stood in the doorway for a second, his hands in his pockets as he stared at his stepmother.

"She's a wonderful young girl Sam." Olivia said, finally breaking the silence.

"Yeah, she is." he said quietly. "Ainsley, Ainsley said you wanted to talk to me."

"Yes I did. Are you going to sit down? You look like you're ready to make a run for it."

'Can I just start screaming like she's murdering me and the Secret Service can come shoot her?' Sam wondered.

"I like standing." he said.

"Oh. Okay," Olivia looked at Sam, who was toeing the carpet, his eyes glued to a stray fiber hanging off the edge.

"You're not talking."

"I'm not sure what to say to you."

"Then this was a waste of my time." Sam muttered. "When you figure it out, come and find me."

He turned around and paused as Olivia called out to him.

"I know you don't like me Sam but..."

"But what? Pretend like you didn't have an affair with my father and make my mother's life a living hell once she found out?" he asked.

"I was going to say could you at least try to be cordial."

"Probably not."

"He did love you Sam and you don't know how proud he was of you. He always wished that he had been a better father for you. When he got that letter you sent him,"

Sam turned around then and stared at Olivia.

"What are you talking about?"

"The letter you sent him last week."

"I didn't send him a letter." Sam said. But he knew what letter she was talking about. He had written a letter to his father, then chickened out and never sent it. But then— Sam sighed and rubbed his forehead. He'd kill Ainsley.

"Anyway, he was glad when he got it. He felt like you two had finally made peace, even if it wasn't voiced." Olivia said. "Sam, James loved you very much. He talked about you constantly, always bragging about how you were his son and how he couldn't have been any prouder of you."

"Sam, CJ Cregg is on the phone!" Sarah called.

"Excuse me," he walked out of the room and down the hall, not knowing what to make of that short conversation.

---------------------TWW------------------

Gracie passed her parents' room on the way back from the bathroom and saw Ainsley sitting on the bed, reading a book.

"What's going on with Dad?" she asked quietly, forcing Ainsley to look up.

"He's just being himself." she replied.

"Why doesn't he like Olivia? I think she's nice."

"I do too but your father," Ainsley sighed and shrugged, "he just thinks differently."

"He didn't like Grandpa either."

"That's not true. He loved your grandfather. It just... he, they..."

"He did some things that I didn't like." Gracie jumped as she heard Sam's voice behind her. She turned around and stared up at him.

"Like what?"

"Don't want to speak ill of the dead." Sam brushed past his daughter, then looked at her. "Go to bed."

Gracie walked away and Sam shut the door, then leaned against it, staring at Ainsley.

"What?"

"What?" Sam repeated incredulously.

"Yes, what. And why are you looking at me like you're ready to slit my throat? You've ignored me since dinner too. What's going on?"

"You were in my study."

"I'm in there a lot."

"Last week you were in there."

"We played chess last week."

"You went into my desk."

Ainsley thought back and shook her head.

"I don't remember doing that." she said, even though she did.

"You'd think after seventeen years of knowing you, I'd tell when you were lying."

"Well Sam, you weren't going to grown a damn spine and send it! So someone had to do it!"

"Why..." Sam raked his hands through his hair, letting out a loud 'ugh!' "I... you know how I..."

"How you feel about me interfering? Sam, I was not interfering."

"Sending a letter to him that had nothing to do with you?"

"Well were you going to send it?"

There was silence for a minute before Sam hung his head, then mumbled no.

"Did you want to send it?"

Sam ignored Ainsley and sat down on the bed and buried his face in his hands, his back facing Ainsley. She sighed and moved over to him, rubbing his back lightly.

"I'm sorry." she said quietly. "I just... we knew this was coming and I saw it on your desk and... I figured you wouldn't have sent it but after... he did die, you'd be... you know..."

"No, I don't know."

"You'd be... angry at yourself and we can't have that."

"What would be the point of it if you didn't tell me you sent it?"

"I didn't think he was in that bad of shape and that he'd call you and you guys would talk things out."

"Your... intentions were good." Sam muttered.

"They were, so you can't blame me... much." Ainsley said. "How did you even find out?"

"Olivia was talking about it, then I realized you must have had something to do with it."

"Oh."

Sam just nodded as he stared down at the floor. He sighed and quickly got dressed for bed, then laid down and rolled onto his side so his back was facing Ainsley. He stared at the door in front of him, which he knew opened into a closet. This room had used to be his father's office and Sam could remember many times when he'd sit in here, admiring James and thinking he was the best person in the world. He remembered when he had gotten old enough, he'd run in here after school and start doing his homework at his father's desk, pretending he was him. Sam didn't even realize he let out a quiet sob but Ainsley did and she scooted over towards him, wrapping an arm around him. Sam rolled over and buried his face in her shoulder as he cried. Ainsley just laid there, holding him, not really sure what else to do.