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  “Understood.”

  “Good. Now, where are we at with face-time for Health and Human Services candidates?”

  “John Beringer is Saturday at two. Derek Benton at four…”

  “Push it to five.”

  “Candy…”

  “Push it to five, Grant. I want time with Beringer.”

  “Are you seriously considering him?”

  For the second time in a few minutes, Candace thought her head might explode. That doesn’t deserve a response. “Push it to five.” God, give me strength.

  ***

  “Where’s Mom?” Michelle asked when she entered the kitchen.

  “Hello, to you too, Shell,” Jameson said.

  “Yeah, yeah. Seriously. Where’s Mom?”

  “She’s in the study with Grant.”

  “Today? It’s Thanksgiving.”

  “Yes, I know. She was up at four getting the turkey ready.”

  “What time did Grant get here?”

  “Seven.”

  “Has she been with him all that time?” Michelle asked.

  Jameson didn’t comment; indicating her displeasure with the situation.

  “It’s almost eleven.”

  “Yeah, well, they have a lot to deal with.”

  Michelle groaned. “She could have one day off.”

  “I don’t think so,” Jameson said. “That’s not the way it works, Shell. We all knew that.”

  “Yeah, but it’s Thanksgiving.”

  “And, she has a few weeks to assemble her team. She’s got people coming here Saturday.”

  Shell shook her head. “I thought we were all coming over Saturday?”

  “You are.”

  “I’m missing something.”

  “Well, you’ll be missing her in the afternoon. From what she told me, she’s got face-to-face talks with HHS candidates.”

  “At least, she’s narrowing things down, JD.”

  “Mmm.”

  “You okay?”

  “Me? Sure,” Jameson said.

  “I’m serious,” Michelle said.

  “So am I. I’m fine, Shell. I just worry about the pace she’s keeping sometimes.”

  “Mom will be okay.”

  “Talking about me?” Candace walked up and pecked Jameson on the cheek. “Did you check on my turkey?”

  “Yes, I checked on the turkey.” Jameson chuckled. “Maybe you should go rest before everyone gets here.”

  “I’m okay.” Candace laughed at the doubtful gazes of her wife and daughter. “Good Lord, you two; I’ve had longer, more stressful days.” She looked at Michelle. “I did give birth to you.”

  “Funny, Mom.”

  “I thought so,” Candace said.

  “Momma!” Cooper scurried into the room and headed straight for Jameson.

  Candace smiled. Jameson’s eyes always lit up like a Christmas tree when Cooper called for her. No more work today.

  “What’s up, Coop?” Jameson asked.

  “Me and Spence need your help.”

  “My help?”

  “Yeah.” He pulled Jameson down to whisper in her ear.

  Jameson’s hand covered her mouth to keep from laughing.

  Candace’s brow immediately arched. Now, what is that about, I wonder?

  “Okay, Coop,” Jameson said. “I’ll be right there.”

  “’Kay!” Cooper started to run away and stopped. “Hi, Mommy.”

  “Hi, Cooper.”

  “Hey, what am I? Chopped liver or something?” Shell asked.

  Cooper giggled. “Hi, Shell.”

  “Yeah, yeah,” Michelle grumbled.

  Cooper giggled some more and ran off.

  “Care to tell us what you are being summoned for?” Candace asked.

  “Nope, but I think Shell should get the camera on her phone ready and sneak in behind me.”

  “Why am I suddenly afraid to ask?” Candace said.

  “I’m not!” Michelle grabbed her phone from her pocket. “We’ll be right behind you,” she told Jameson.

  Candace rolled her eyes. “You two are a bad influence on each other.”

  “You’re just figuring that out now?” Michelle asked. She grabbed Candace’s hand. “Come on, I know you’re as curious as I am.”

  After a beat, Candace allowed Michelle to lead her away. Oh, no. Candace could not suppress her laughter. Grant was tangled in a mess of—what was Grant tangled in? Yarn? Where on earth did Cooper and Spencer find yarn?

  “Oh, laugh it up!” Grant groaned.

  “Why is Grant tied up on the floor?” Michelle asked.

  “Because,” Cooper said. “He ‘napped Mommy.”

  “He what?” Michelle asked.

  “He kidnapped Mommy,” Jameson explained.

  Candace shook with laughter. Visions of Nate Ellison or some foreign dignitary tied to a chair in the West Wing flooded her brain. God, help them all.

  “Why are you laughing?” Grant asked. “I’m tied up! In pink yarn!”

  “I don’t know, I think pink is good on you,” Jameson offered.

  “JD!” He pleaded.

  “Ohhhh my,” Melanie opened the front door and lifted the twins’ stroller inside. “What happened to you?”

  “They did.” Grant tried to point while he untangled himself from a sea of fluorescent pink squiggles. “I thought you were helping?” He looked at Jameson.

  Jameson shrugged. “They didn’t ask me to help free you,” she explained.

  Grant shed the last vestiges of his pink cocoon. “I’m glad you’re all so amused.”

  “Hey, don’t kidnap Mom and you’ll be fine,” Michelle offered.

  Candace laughed some more. “I’m going to get moving on the rest of dinner.”

  “I’ll help,” Michelle offered.

  Jameson shook her head. “How did you manage to let them capture you?”

  Grant groaned. “They told me they wanted me to help with a fort, and then they turned on me.”

  Jameson laughed. “Did you learn anything?”

  “Yeah, I’m not having any kids—ever.”

  “Never say never, Grant. Trust me on that; never say never.”

  ***

  Pearl cornered Candace at the sink. “How are you holding up?”

  “I’m tired,” Candace admitted. There was no point in denying anything to Pearl. If anyone could see through Candace’s façade it was the woman next to her.

  “Feel like a little walk?”

  Candace nodded. “I have to…”

  “I know. No more escaping unnoticed.”

  “No.”

  “How about we hide in the pantry and have a glass of wine?” Pearl suggested playfully.

  “Don’t tempt me.”

  “I guess it’s the kitchen table,” Pearl said. “The kids all seem to be otherwise engaged.”

  “I’ll pour the wine,” Candace said.

  “So?” Pearl urged gently. “Want to talk about whatever it is you don’t want any of those fools in the other room to know?”

  “I wouldn’t know where to begin,” Candace replied honestly. “I will miss this.”

  Pearl nodded. “You’ll still have this, Candy. You will just be in a different big white house.”

  “True.”

  “But I think I understand what you mean. I think we’ll all miss it a little. You might be surprised how much you will enjoy the new surroundings.”

  Candace tipped her head. “Maybe.”

  “You were meant for this, Candy,” Pearl said.

  Candace was stunned by the comment. Pearl had always encouraged her to stretch and to make her dreams into goals. She’d been Candace’s biggest cheerleader and her most trusted confidante for a lifetime. The presidency hadn’t been Candace’s lifelong aspiration. When it became a viable possibility, Candace found herself compelled to make it a reality. There were countless reasons she sought the job she was about to assume. Much of it was because she believed she could handle it, and she want
ed a chance to make a difference. Part of her was enticed by the historic nature of her candidacy and what would be her presidency. She’d be lying if she claimed that the notion of being the first woman to hold the highest office in the land hadn’t been alluring. She had never considered herself a vain person, but Candace had always been ambitious. Ambition was a necessary trait for anyone who wanted to seek the presidency. It was not the only attribute a person needed to possess; resilience was equally important.

  “You look surprised,” Pearl said.

  “I am. I never seriously considered this until a few years ago.”

  “I’m aware.”

  “Then what makes you think I was meant for this?”

  “You were. What do you want me to do; give you a laundry list of the reasons why?”

  Candace shrugged.

  “All you ever wanted was to be in politics, Candy. You used to practice making speeches in the yard.”

  Candace chuckled.

  “You were reading legislation in junior high school when most girls your age were reading Judy Blume.”

  “That sounds truly terrible,” Candace admitted. “No wonder I didn’t have many dates.”

  Pearl laughed. “I think you came out on top in that department.”

  Candace winked. Pearl adored Jameson, and Pearl was right. It had taken Candace longer than many people to find love that would last. She’d found that with Jameson. She’d never been a believer in soulmates. For Candace, that concept over-simplified the complexities of love and relationships. Love existed on its own. It was born without your permission. In order for love to blossom and grow in a relationship it has to be nurtured. Love was the flower in a garden full of roots and weeds. It could become choked without care. Jameson understood that. They worked at their marriage. When the weeds started to take hold, they took the time to pull them up and repair the hole left behind. No marriage was perfect. Candace had found what most eluded most people for a lifetime. She’d fallen in love with someone who was equally committed to tending the garden, even when it got messy. “Yes, I did.”

  “I can’t tell you that I can imagine what you are feeling.”

  “I’m not having any regrets,” Candace said. “Facing it; looking at what I’ve agreed to take on, it’s—well, it’s daunting, Mom.”

  “I’ll bet. Scared?”

  “Terrified.” Candace chuckled. “But, also excited.”

  Pearl’s lips crinkled with amusement. She was excited for Candace, and proud of her daughter. Candace was her daughter. “I understand that. It’s a bit terrifying to watch your daughter become the president.”

  Candace smiled.

  “I can’t tell you how proud I am of you.”

  “Mom…”

  “No, it’s the truth. And, not just because you won an election. You are the right person, Candy.”

  “Well, I may need you to remind me of that from time to time.”

  “Happy to. How are things moving along?”

  “You mean with the transition?”

  “And everything else.”

  “As smoothly as it can, I think. Thank God for Jameson. If I had to deal with thinking about furniture, I think I might find myself in a big house with barbed wire instead of iron gates.”

  Pearl laughed. “Grant is driving you nuts.”

  “He means well.”

  “Mmm.”

  “What?”

  “He wants to protect you.”

  “Yes, I know.”

  “How are things between him and Jessica?”

  Candace sighed. She still cared deeply for her former partner, and she loved Grant. Jessica wrestled with profound guilt over her decision to place Grant for adoption. He’d ended up with a family who had provided well for him. It was not a family in which he felt validated. His adoptive parents’ religious beliefs bordered on obsessive in Candace’s view. Grant’s decision to pursue a relationship with Jessica, and worse, with Candace, had severely damaged his relationship with the people who had raised him. He carried fear and insecurity about both her and Jessica, and he harbored resentment for his parents.

  “It’s not easy,” Candace said. “For either of them. Jessica loves him so much. She does. He loves her. There’s so much emotional baggage for them both. He’s afraid of losing her. She blames herself for that fear.”

  “And you?”

  “Me? You know that I think of Grant as a son as much as I did Rick or Scott, or any of my kids for that matter.”

  “Yes, I do. And, Jessica?”

  “I wish she’d give herself a chance.”

  “You’re going to keep him on your staff; aren’t you?”

  Candace nodded. “It’s not only the personal part. Grant is one of the smartest people I know. He has a knack for knowing how people will react. He’s a lot like…”

  “His mother?”

  “Yeah. Why so many questions about Grant?”

  “No reason.”

  “Right. You always have a reason.”

  “Do you trust him, Candy?”

  “I do.”

  “Okay.”

  “You don’t? Even after all this time?”

  “I didn’t say that,” Pearl replied. “All the baggage—Candy, that all carries weight. I just don’t want you to get injured when he starts to unload it.”

  Candace sighed. Jameson had raised similar concerns. She could pretend that they had no merit; she wouldn’t. Anything that Pearl or Jameson expressed as a concern warranted her attention. “I know.”

  “Good.” Pearl changed the subject. “So, what do you think?”

  “About?”

  “Think there will be a wedding in that new white house your moving into?”

  Candace grinned. Marianne and Scott seemed to be heading toward making a commitment. She was not only relieved that Marianne had found someone again, she was thrilled that it was Scott. Scott loved Marianne. He also accepted her children as his. His presence in Jameson’s life meant the world to Jameson. Candace loved happy endings. Not every ending was happy. Both Scott and Marianne had received painful lessons in that reality. Simply put, they fit. “I hope so,” she said.

  ***

  “Tired?” Jameson asked when she crawled into bed.

  “Exhausted.”

  “It was a good day.”

  “It was,” Candace agreed.

  “I can’t wait to send Grant those photos Shell took.”

  “You have an evil streak.”

  “Nah. I just like to bust his balls.”

  “I noticed.” Candace grew serious.

  “Something wrong?” Jameson wondered.

  “I don’t know. Pearl said something today.”

  “Pearl said a lot of things today.”

  Candace laughed. Pearl had consumed a few glasses of wine; enough that she was sleeping in Jonah’s old room.

  “Something tells me I was not a party to what you’re talking about,” Jameson surmised.

  “Grant.”

  “What about him?” Jameson asked.

  “You were worried when he came into the picture.”

  “I was.”

  “Are you now?” Candace asked.

  “Candace, is there something going on that you haven’t told me?”

  “No.”

  Jameson nodded. “Am I worried about Grant working for you?”

  “Yes.”

  “I’m not worried that he’ll betray you, if that’s what you mean.”

  Candace remained silent.

  “Are you?” Jameson wanted to know. “Are you worried that he’ll turn back to his roots?”

  “No. You are concerned about him, though,” Candace guessed.

  “I keep my eyes open where you’re concerned.”

  “I know that.”

  “I know what he means to you, and I know that things between him and Jess have been a little…”

  “Strained?”

  “Yeah. I also know that Jess is someone you care about.”
>
  “She is.”

  “She’s been a good friend to both of us, Candace. I don’t want your relationship with him to hurt what you and Jess have managed to cultivate. There’s a lot of history with you two.”

  “All true,” Candace admitted. “I can’t explain it. I feel like he needs this.”

  “And, you feel responsible.”

  “I wouldn’t say that.”

  “No, you wouldn’t, but you do. You’ve felt responsible for him for years. You have some crazy idea that if it weren’t for you he’d have been able to make things work with his parents.”

  Candace sighed. That was the truth.

  “Look, you have enough responsibility, Candace. I know you love Grant. I get it. I think we all love Grant now.”

  Candace smiled.

  “We all love Jess too. But you have the entire world looking to you, not to mention four kids, a slew of grandchildren, and me. You can’t take on all of Grant and Jessica’s shit. You can try and help and guide; you can’t fix everything. It isn’t just Jessica carrying guilt.”

  “So, you don’t have an issue with Grant being on my staff?”

  “No,” Jameson said. “Your administration is your call, Candace. If you ask me, I will give you an honest opinion. You and I both know that will be based more on impression than on any political savvy.”

  “I think you sell yourself short there.”

  “Nope. I don’t. That’s your expertise. When you want to make a decision that’s about our family, that’s a different ballgame. Don’t second-guess yourself on that decision, not even based on Pearl.”

  Candace leaned in and kissed Jameson lovingly. “Thank you.”

  “Anytime.” Jameson laid back and pulled Candace into her arms.

  “Speaking of ball games,” Candace said.

  “Yeah?”

  “I think they’re going to ask me to throw out the first pitch at the National’s opener next season.”

  Jameson snickered.

  “Why are you laughing?”

  “I’m not.”