Please review! James is 8.

"Do what you need to do, Claire. Doug and I will pick up James from her playdate. I'll get her ready, and we'll meet you at the gala." Francis assured his wife as he and Doug rode through D.C. to get James. "Just worry about getting ready there. I've got everything else covered."

Claire sighed with relief. "Thank you. James's dress is hanging in my closet, and make sure she eats some sort of fruit before tonight. We won't have much for fruit here, and you know how she gets if she starts craving it."

"I got it all covered." Francis grinned. "I'll see you tonight." He hung up the phone before turning to see Doug furiously typing on his phone. "What's wrong?"

Doug glanced up before shrugging. "Pretty sure neither of us knows how to style a little girl's hair for a gala. I'm checking with Nancy to see if she can meet us at your place."

"Good call." Francis unbuckled himself as the car pulled up to James's friend's house. "If she's not available, see if Cathy Durant is. If she's close by, we can go to her." When the vehicle stopped, he hopped out and climbed the steps to the door before ringing. Within a moment, he saw the mother open the door with a welcoming smile. "Hello, I'm here to pick up my daughter. My wife, Claire, said James would be here."

"You're at the right place." The woman smiled before stepping back and allowing him inside. "I think she's just getting her things packed up. I have to admit though we had a bit of an incident."

Francis felt his body go rigid with that last word. "What happened?"

"Well," the woman began, "we were at the park about an hour ago, and the girls were playing on the jungle gym. They were going down the pole like firefighters, and I think James lost her grip. She fell off the pole and landed on her arm. I was worried, but James didn't even cry. She said it hurt, and she's been holding it a bit funny, but she said she was fine otherwise. I'm guessing she just tweaked it, but I wanted to let you know in case it didn't get better."

"Daddy!" James beamed as she trotted down the stairs with her bag slung over one shoulder. Her other arm was swiveled against her chest as if her ribs hurt. "I'm ready."

Francis chuckled as he hugged her carefully, knowing her arm tucked the way it was couldn't be a good sign. "I can see. Did you have fun?"

James nodded before turning to her friend's mother. "Thank you, Mrs. Everly."

The woman, apparently Mrs. Everly, grinned down at his daughter. "Thank you for coming, James. I know Izzy loves having over. We'll have to do it again sometime."

Francis took James's good hand into his and nodded to the woman. "Thanks for letting me know. Have a good day." He left the house with James walking calmly beside him towards the vehicle. "Does your arm hurt, darlin'?"

"Only when I move it." James stated plainly as if it were normal. She caught the worried look on her father's face. "I want to go to the gala tonight, Daddy."

"Yeah, I'll make it happen if I can, but we're stopping by the hospital first. Pretty sure you broke your arm." Francis explained before opening the car door and allowing James to get inside before climbing in himself.

Doug helped James maneuver her bag, frowning when she winced at her jostled arm. He glanced up at Francis for a second before lifting his phone to his ear. "I'll call the hospital to let them know we're coming."

"Well, Ms. Underwood, you fractured both bones in your lower arm. Good news is: they didn't go all the way through." Dr. Carter stated as he looked at the x-rays taken of James's arm. "Your father said you fell off the jungle gym at a park."

James nodded. "My friend and I were playing on the fire pole, and I slipped off." She looked up at Francis. "I told you I was fine, Daddy."

Francis shook his head, not sure whether to laugh or give into a nervous breakdown over her behavior. "James, darlin', you have two bones that have essentially cracked. If you think I'm going to agree that you were fine, you must have fallen on your head too." He turned to the doctor, running a hand down his face. "What do you recommend for treatment?"

Dr. Carter flipped off the x-ray light. "With James's age and the fractures where they are, I would recommend a cast for six weeks. A splint is another option, but I'd worry about the level of exposure still left to her arm that could cause the fractures now to completely break the bone into two or, in this case, four."

"Cast it is." Francis nodded not wanting to even risk the chance of James's arm gaining further injury.

"Good," Dr. Carter nodded before turning back to James, "I just have one important question for you." He hooked a finger around a cabinet handle before opening it to reveal a row of colored gauze. "What color?"

"Cathy said she'll be here in a few hours to help get James ready for the gala." Doug stated as he held the door open for Francis to carry a drowsy James in. "What do you need from me?"

"Get the children's liquid pain medication from the upstairs bathroom. I believe the strawberry or cherry flavor is daytime." Francis ordered before sitting down on the couch with James in his lap. "Just stay awake a couple minutes, darlin. I don't want you to be hurting later."

James rubbed her eyes with her hand not covered in a yellow cast. "We're still going to the gala later, right?"

Francis huffed out a breath. "I'm going to try. Your mother may kill me, but I'll try to get us there." He gave a quick thank you to Doug when he came back down with the medicine. Measuring out the right dosage, he gave the small plastic cup to his daughter to drink down before handing it to Doug to wash. "Okay, James, you can sleep for a couple hours before we have to start getting ready."

When James curled against him and closed her eyes, he dropped his head back in relief, closing his eyes to try and rid himself of the headache his stress had caused him. He lifted his head though when he heard Doug come back in and sit down in the chair across from him. He chuckled finding Doug seemed to be as relieved as himself over the health of his daughter. "Let's agree that pain in the ass congressmen are ten times better than taking my daughter to the hospital."

"If I still drank, I'd drink to that." Doug snorted, rubbing at his face tiredly. "You should rest up too, sir. Just tell me what needs to get done; I'll do it."

"I just need to know what fruit is in the fridge so I can deem what's available to James when she wakes up." Francis grinned before propping his feet up on the coffee table and relaxing. "Otherwise, wake me when Cathy gets here. TV remote is in the cabinet behind you."

Like clockwork, Cathy was there a few hours later. Francis watched Cathy and James talk about hairstyles as she ate through a bowl of blackberries before they went upstairs to get her ready. He took the opportunity to shoot Claire a text message saying they'd be there shortly after the gala was scheduled to start and then get ready himself, dismissing Doug for the night to go get some sleep. He showered and changed into his tux, snagged a few blackberries from the fridge for himself, and was putting the tv remote away when he saw Cathy and James coming down the stairs.

James's dress matched her cast, straps rested on her shoulders and white sandals on her feet. Cathy had helped her put her hair into a low bun with a gem covered accessory tucked neatly above it. The grin on his daughter's face made his heart swell. "Well, don't you look beautiful. Aunt Cathy, we owe you one."

Cathy grinned. "Don't mention it. Time with my favorite eight year old was well worth it." She leaned down and kissed James's cheek. "You have fun at the gala tonight, okay?"

"I will. Thank you, Aunt Cathy." James smiled before tilting her cast to Francis. "Daddy, look! She signed my cast."

"Wasn't that nice of her." Francis glanced at the black ink on the yellow gauze. "That gives me an idea."

Francis held James's good hand as they entered the gala, smiling at the familiar faces he saw as he made his way through the room to where he assumed Claire would be. He chuckled seeing the attention James was getting from the few people that knew her, hearing James greet them with her own 'hi' or 'hello'. As much as Claire and himself didn't want James to head down the path they did, he couldn't help but feel proud knowing his eight year old already knew how to work a room. Furthermore, he couldn't wait to see how she worked her assignment from him.

When they found Claire over by the pictures for auction, he squeezed James's hand to remind her that Claire was working and not to interrupt the conversation going on. Luckily, it seemed as if they walked up at the right time, because she was talking about them instead of the pictures.

"Yes," Claire smiled brightly at the woman standing with her, "I went through the same thing when I was pregnant with my daughter. My poor husband went without sleep for two days because of false contractions. Poor guy probably doesn't remember that week at all."

"Moments here and there." Francis piped in from behind her with a grin. He kissed her cheek as she turned into him. "Sorry to interrupt. I think my ears must've been burning."

"Sonia, this is my husband, Francis, and my daughter, James." Claire introduced them before she looked down at her daughter, eyes immediately zeroing in on the clunky cast that wasn't there the last time she saw her daughter. "Are you wearing a cast?"

James nodded happily. "It matches my dress."

Francis smiled nervously as Claire's gaze turned to him. "This happened off of my watch. She fell off the jungle gym during her playdate this morning."

"That sounds like it must've hurt." Sonia muttered to James.

"It did." James admitted. "But, I told Daddy I was fine." She giggled when Francis tickled playfully between her neck and shoulder, leaning back against him. "Daddy, you're going to mess up my hair."

Francis snorted. "Your hair? Darlin', you are aging before my eyes." He motioned towards the bar. "I'm going to get a drink. Can I get you ladies anything?" He saw Sonia and Claire shake their heads before glancing down at James. "Let's go, James."

"Actually," Claire smiled at him, reaching for James's hand, "she can hang out with me. I'd like to hear more about what happened today. The bar does have lemonade though, so get one for her." She turned back to Sonia as Francis walked away, giving her guest a polite smile. "Sorry. Kids, right?"

"Believe me. I've seen it all with my boys." Sonia smiled before waving to James.

Claire led her daughter to a nearby empty table, sitting her down before sitting down herself for a couple moments to figure out what happened and to relieve her feet. "First of all, are you okay, sweetheart?"

James nodded. "I didn't even cry. Daddy took me to the hospital, and Dr. Carter put the cast on my arm."

"Well, I'm glad you seem to be doing okay." Claire breathed before kissing James's forehead. "You scared me. I'll have to talk to your father to know more, but at least he took you to the doctor. I'm sure he was scared to death waiting to figure out what was going on." She smiled at her daughter. "And, you look lovely. Did Daddy do your hair?"

"He and Doug called Aunt Cathy." James blushed before showing Claire her cast. "She and Daddy even signed my cast. See."

Claire smiled seeing the scraggy scrawl across the pebbled material of the cast. "They did. You'll have to get your friends to sign that too when you head back to school on Monday." She caressed James's cheek, finding herself taken aback by how grown up her daughter looked dressed up for the gala. It made her chest ache in the familiar way it always did when she thought about James getting older and growing up. "I love you, sweetheart."

James grinned, slipping off of her chair to peck Claire's lips. "Love you too, Mommy." She reached into the pocket of her dress, holding up a marker for her mother. "Sign my cast?"

"Yes, I will sign your cast." Claire chuckled before taking the marker and doing so. "Now if you get tired tonight or your arm starts bothering you, you come find me or your father. I don't want you to be uncomfortable, and you've had a very eventful day that will probably start to catch up with you." She kissed James's temple. "What did your father task you with tonight?"

"Autographs." James smirked as she took the marker back from Claire. "Daddy said it would be a nice memo for later to see who is still left working with him."

Claire snorted with a shake of her head. "I think you mean memento. Go on. Have fun, and stay in the ballroom please." She watched James disappear into the crowd of people just as Francis was coming around with a drink for James and himself. She gave him a sympathetic smile, sure that he was stressed over James's hospital visit and how she would react to it. "You've had a long day."

Francis groaned as he took James's seat. "You have no idea. Swear to God, Claire. She acts like this is nothing. We left her friend's house, and she was completely normal other than how she was holding her arm." He shook his head, resting it on his hand when he propped his elbow up on the table. "Tell me again how on Earth we made her? The proof is her. There's not a doubt she's ours, 100%, but how?"

"Oh, Francis," Claire laughed, leaning over and kissing him softly. "I was just thinking the same thing. Seems like yesterday we were sitting in our kitchen in Gaffney reading about how big she was in the womb. Now, she's doing a cuter version of your job - collecting signatures." She bit her lip, feeling playful. "Imagine if there was two of her."

Francis's eyes widened. "No. . .you're not?"

"No," Claire giggled, rubbing his shoulder when his body relaxed from her teasing. "Don't worry, Francis. As much as I fought for our little politician, she is all I need and want."

"Well, you and your little politician are trying to give me a heart attack today. This is your new way of telling me I need to start exercising and eating better." Francis huffed. "Pretty sure I should be going to the hospital after this gala. My blood pressure is liable to cause a stroke."

Claire took his hand into hers, squeezing reassuringly. "You better not be going anywhere." She kissed Francis's cheek. "James is bound to drag you onto the dance floor at some point tonight, and I have been looking forward to that sight for months."

Francis smiled, glancing over to the crowd to see his daughter's feet stand out with a throng of people around her. "I'm sure you have been." He pinched her cheek gently, jutting his chin over to her guests. "You better keep schmoozing before I monopolize all of your time. Entertain your guests. You and I can talk about everything in more detail later."

"I'm sure we will." Claire smiled before pecking his lips. "And, relax, Francis. Our little politician is having a ball all her own with that cast of hers."

Francis chuckled as Claire walked away, watching as she went to talk to a few women looking at one of the photos on auction for the gala. He turned his gaze back to his daughter, seeing her in deep conversation with another congressman he knew very well. Between the makeover for the party and her concerned look, Francis felt his chest tighten for a whole different reason - his little girl was growing up right in front of his eyes. Standing from the table, he walked over to his eight year old to find out what world issues she was taking on with his colleague. "Ed, I see you've met my daughter."

"Now, it makes sense why she knows so much about school reform." Ed grinned before gesturing to James with his drink. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you. I'm sorry to say I've heard nothing about you though."

Francis smiled down at his daughter. "And now, you can see why. She's my secret weapon with all that knowledge she soaks up." He winked down at her, earning a toothy grin from her. "Your cast isn't so yellow anymore, darlin'."

James beamed as she held up the cast signed with enough signatures to probably be passed through the House. "Daddy, I got so many autographs. There's no room left anywhere."

"Let me see." Francis faked concern before picking her up, examining her cast with furrowed brows. Her giggle made him break though. "I think I can squeeze my name in there. Doug will want to sign it too." He kissed her cheek before looking back at Ed. "Thanks for coming tonight. It really means a lot to Claire and I."

"Honestly, it's a chance to take the wife out. She can talk with her friends, and I can drink in peace and maybe slip out for a smoke." Ed muttered before pointing his finger at James. "Don't follow my example. Your father would kill me for teaching you bad habits."

Francis scoffed. "Believe me. With this job, she's seen and heard much worse, mostly from me."

"The photographer is a friend of mine." Claire explained to a couple of her friends as they stood by one of the few pictures that hadn't had many bids. "He travels all over the world and captures the most breathtaking photos of the simplest actions. He really believes in capturing an entire life in a photo."

"If he could only capture your husband and daughter right now." Andrea chimed in, looking behind them towards the dancefloor.

Claire turned just as the notes to Here Comes the Sun played over the speakers. She grinned seeing her daughter jump in excitement and nearly jump into Francis's arms as he began to sing the lyrics to her. "Now, this I would love a picture of. I love doing these events, but my favorite part is watching James get Francis out on the dance floor." She laughed when the two threw back their heads to belt out the words together. "Felicity, you said you have your camera on you, didn't you?"

Felicity grinned as she pulled the small device out of her clutch. "Always."

"If you can manage to get me a good picture of those two dancing, twenty thousand your way for your benefit next month." Claire challenged.

"You're on." Felicity chuckled before walking away to get a better angle of the two.

Andrea wrapped her arm around Claire's as they continued to giggle. "Did you ever think you would see Frank belting out a Beetles song when you married him?"

Claire laughed. "Well, he was in a singing group in college, but never would I have thought he'd do this in front of politicians. Not this anyway." She shook her head. "But, he would do anything to make James grin like that. You've had to have seen that with Scott and your girls."

"Oh, yes. I could ask him to help me pick out drapes for our bedroom. He's not interested. If one of the girls wants to show him paint colors for their bedrooms, he is theirs." Andrea rolled her eyes. "It's a good thing. Not all daughters get to have a father like that. Luckily, we have that for our daughters, even if they do ridiculous things like play tea party in the backyard with a fake tiara."

Claire snickered. "Or, play Pretty, Pretty Princess and get drunk with power of the jewels." She had to hold back from laughing out loud when Andrea nearly buckled with her own amusement. "For a man who never wanted to have a kid, he is the most involved father I have ever met."

Andrea wiped the tears from her eyes, chest still heaving between giggles. "Please tell me you have a picture of Frank playing that game with her."

"I don't think I do." Claire grinned. "We have so many pictures though. We might have one hiding somewhere." She glanced back at the dance floor when the song ended, seeing Francis and James talking to themselves before James was looking through the throng of guests, stopping when she saw her. "Now, you have me wanting to dig up photo albums."

"Call me. I will help." Andrea volunteered.

Claire giggled before she caught James rushing over to her, beaming the smile Claire knew meant she had something up her sleeves. "Hello, sweetheart. You look like you're having fun."

James nodded fast. "Mommy, we didn't even know they would play our song." She slipped her hand into Claire's. "Daddy wants you to come out on the dance floor."

"He does?" Claire's eyebrows shot up, glancing at a smirking Francis over by the DJ. "What is your father up to?"

"He just said that if you don't want him to look like a fool that you'll join him." James stated with a smile. "He wants one dance since we're going home after this song."

Claire grinned hearing her and Francis's wedding song. "I suppose I should join him then. Are you coming with me?" She chuckled when James grinned, picking her up and smiling back at Andrea as she walked out to Francis on the dance floor. "I've been told you'll feel like a fool without me."

Francis grinned, slightly out of breath from his last dance with James. "That's on and off the dance floor." He wrapped his arm around her waist when she joined him. "Figured I had better chances of you joining me out here though by sending in my best operative."

"Uh huh." Claire smirked before feeling James snuggled against her. "Tired?"

"Yeah, she'll probably be asleep before I get her in the car." Francis admitted, glancing at his daughter. "She's had a long day and still fun despite a doctor's visit." He leaned forward and pecked her lips. "How's it going here though? I got Ed to bid on the photo you were just by."

Claire grinned. "Even better now."

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