Chapter Twenty-Five
At home, Sam jumped out of the SUV before Jimmy could get the door, earning her an annoyed glare from the agent.
“Is my little girl making friends again?” Nick asked from where he stood in the doorway with Nate.
“Always.” She loved the weight of Nick’s arm around her shoulders as he escorted her into the house. “
“I can’t believe you let them drive you home.”
“Freddie had my car. They were handy.”
“Ah, I see. What’re you doing home so early? I thought you had your grief group tonight.”
“I do, but I saw a chance to escape for a minute and took it.”
Shelby came into the kitchen, her son, Noah, on her hip, stopping short when she saw Sam there. “Mom’s home early.”
“It’s temporary,” Sam said. “Gotta go back in a bit. Where is everyone?”
“The twins are upstairs getting changed to go to the park, and Scotty’s at basketball practice. I texted to see if he wants to go with us to the park when he gets home.”
“Can we go?” Sam asked Nick.
“Sure. Let me tell Brant.”
While he went to do that, Sam said to Shelby, “Why don’t you and Noah cut out early, too? We can do the park run.”
“Are you sure? I don’t mind doing it.”
“I’d like to, if that’s okay. I feel like they don’t get enough of me.”
“Yes, they do, Sam. They love you so much, and they know you’re working.”
“Still, I wish it could be more.”
“It’s enough. They’re doing great. All three of them.”
“I’m glad you think so. Go take some time with your own family. I just saw your husband. He’s probably home by now.”
“In that case, this old preggo lady will take you up on that.”
“I want to be you when I’m ‘old.’” Sam gave Shelby a hug and kissed Noah’s cheek. “Thanks for all you do around here to make it all happen. We’d be lost without you, but I don’t want you doing too much while you’re pregnant. You have to let us know if you need relief or time off or anything.”
“I’m fine. Don’t worry about me. I love every minute with the kids. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Have a nice evening.”
Shelby’s pregnancy struck Sam with a pang for the first time in a long time.
Her sister Angela was expecting her third, Tracy had three, Shelby was having her second…
And Sam couldn’t have any. Sometimes, life was unfair, but in the grand scheme of things, she refused to look at her glass as anything other than half full.
Her life had been extraordinarily blessed, especially since Scotty and the twins had joined their family.
Speaking of one of her greatest blessings… Nick returned to the kitchen, seeming surprised to see her there alone. “Where’s Shelby?”
“I gave her the rest of the day off, which might not have been the best idea I ever had if you’re going to need her later.”
“Nope. I’m free for the evening, so no worries.”
“Oh good. I wanted to take the kids to the park ourselves. Well, with numerous Secret Service agents, that is.”
“I get what you mean.”
The kitchen door burst open, and two adorable soon-to-be six-year-olds came rushing in, excited to go to the park.
Aubrey let out a happy squeal when she saw Sam, who scooped her up into a tight hug.
“How’s my baby girl?” she asked, using the nickname Sam’s dad had given her when she was littler than Aubrey was now.
“Good. Do we have to wear coats to the park?”
“Yep, and hats.”
“I hate hats,” Alden said.
Nick plopped a hat on Alden’s head and held his coat for him. “They keep your head warm.”
“Are they gonna let us walk?” Sam asked.
“I think so. I requested that.”
She fired off a quick text to Celia to invite her stepmother to come along on the outing. “How far out is Scotty?”
“Two minutes,” Nick said. “I told him we’d wait.”
While two excited Littles bounced off the walls, waiting for Scotty to get home, Sam ushered them outside and down the ramp toward Celia’s home.
Her heart still ached every time she looked at the ramp that led to the front door of her father’s house.
She was coming to accept that the ache would never go away.
Celia came out, wrapping a scarf around her neck and pulling on gloves.
“Celia, you forgot your hat,” Aubrey said.
“So I did. Be right back.” Celia went back inside to get her hat and then joined them on the sidewalk in time to see Scotty’s Secret Service detail arrive.
The twins were so excited to see Scotty that Sam could barely hold them still until he emerged from the back of one of the big SUVs. Only when he was ready for them did Sam release their hands.
He caught them up with an arm around each of them, carrying them like sacks of potatoes. “Anyone looking for some little kids?” he asked Sam and Celia.
“They’re all yours, champ,” Nick said when he joined them. “Let’s go burn off some energy.”
The agents kept a respectful distance in front and behind them as they walked the three blocks to the playground that the little ones loved.
When they were within sight of the park, the three kids took off running toward the swing set and other equipment.
Everything came to a halt when the other parents realized who was joining them.
Sam kept her eyes on the kids while hoping no one would talk to them.
“Ugh,” Celia said. “Look away, people. Nothing to see here.”
“Right?” Sam said. “The staring is so annoying.”
The agents fanned out around the perimeter, making a bubble of sorts around their family. Sam ignored them and everyone else and focused on the kids, pushing Aubrey and Alden on the swings and riding the seesaw with Scotty until the Littles wanted to join them.
Sam wrapped an arm around Aubrey, Scotty took Alden, and Nick took pictures with his phone while Celia called out encouragement.
Just another family out for some late afternoon fun, or so she told herself.
With Secret Service agents all around, she could never slip completely into the fantasy that they were like everyone else.
“How can you not run?” a middle-aged man called to Nick. “You owe it to the country to run.”
“Sorry, but I’m with my family right now.”
“I pay your salary. You can talk to me for one minute.”
“Not now I can’t.”
When the man took a step closer, Brant was there to discourage him. “Back off. Now.”
“Or what?” the guy asked. “You fucking politicians are so full of yourselves.”
“Dear God,” Celia muttered.
“You don’t need to talk like that with kids present,” Nick said.
“Don’t act like you care about kids if you’re running away from your obligations to everyone’s kids.”
Leaving the belligerent man to the Secret Service to deal with, Nick turned his back on him and returned his focus to his own family. “Sorry about that,” he said to Sam.
“Don’t apologize. You didn’t do anything.”
“Apparently, I’ve disappointed a lot of people.”
And he hated that. She could see that as clearly as she saw his handsome face and sinfully sexy lips. “You don’t owe them anything, Nick. Tell me you know that.”
“I do, but it’s hard to realize I’ve let people down. I had no idea they were so… invested.”
“You didn’t?” she said with a laugh. “Really?”
“Not like that.” He gestured to the man who was receiving a talking-to from Brant and Nate.
She hated seeing him dejected.
“Did I do the wrong thing, Samantha?”
“No. You made the best decision for yourself and our family, and you can’t start second-guessing because people are disappointed. Someone else will run, and it’ll all be fine.”
“I hope you’re right.”
“When have you ever known me not to be?”
He laughed, kissed the top of her head and went to supervise the twins, who were climbing the rock wall.
“Don’t let them go any higher,” Sam said.
“They go to the top all the time, Mom,” Scotty said.
“They do not!”
“They do, too.” He cracked up at the horrified face she made at him. “What was that guy saying to Dad?”
“Nothing worth repeating.”
“Why are people mad at him for being honest about what he wants and what he doesn’t want?”
“That’s a very good question. Personally, I’d rather not have a president who doesn’t particularly want the job, you know?”
“Yeah, even though it would’ve been sick to live in the White House.”
“You say that now, but it’d be so confining.”
“More confining than now?”
“Confining on a different level. People watching everything you say and do. Nonstop scrutiny and security issues and life-and-death decisions.” Sam shuddered. “I can’t imagine it for the life of me.”
“Dad could do it.”
Sam put her arm around Scotty and gave him a quick squeeze. “No doubt he could do it, but he has to want to. And therein lies the problem.”
“I hate that people are mad with him for doing what’s best for himself and his family.”
“That’s annoying for sure.”
Scotty looked up at her, eyebrows furrowed with concern. “You don’t think anyone is mad enough to try to hurt him, do you?”
Sam couldn’t bear to consider that possibility. “I hope not, but try not to worry. Brant and the other agents are watching him all the time. They won’t let anything happen to him.”
“Sometimes, having the Secret Service around is a drag. Other times, not so much.”
“I hear you, pal.” Sam glanced at her watch and groaned. “I hate to say it, but I’ve got to go back to work. I have a meeting tonight.”
“The grief group, right?”
“That’s right.”
“Do you think maybe I could come? Is it something kids are allowed to do?”
“Of course you can. I’d love that. I’m sorry that I didn’t think to invite you.”
“It’s okay. You’ve got a lot going on.”
“I do, but I’m always here for you. You know that, right?”
“Duh, yes, I know that. Do I have time to grab something to eat before we go?”
“If we head home right now.”
“Let’s roll.”
Sam told Nick and Celia that she and Scotty were heading home as he ran off to tell the twins he and Sam were leaving. “He’s coming with me tonight,” she said to Nick.
“Is that right?”
“His request.”
“What a fine idea. I’m sorry I didn’t think of it.”
“I said the same thing.”
“Good thing our son is smarter than both of us put together.” Nick kissed her forehead. “You gonna be okay at that meeting?”
“Should be. You gonna be okay at home with the Littles?”
“Sure thing. We got this. I’ll wait up for you.”
“Don’t do that if you feel tired.”
“I’ll wait.”
She left with a smile for him and a wave for Celia, who was pushing Alden on a swing. “Will I see you at the meeting?”
“Not tonight,” Celia said with a small, sad smile. “Maybe at some point, but I’m not there yet.”
“I understand.”
“I hope it’s a wonderful success, though.”
“Thanks.” As Sam walked past Brant, she said, “The crazies are crazier than usual lately.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Don’t look away.”
“I never do.”
She felt confident that Nick would be safe with the earnest young agent in charge of his protection, but she worried anyway.
Sam’s detail and Scotty’s escorted them home.
Sam made turkey sandwiches for her and Scotty that they took with them to eat while the Secret Service transported them to HQ, with plans for a stop to pick up Roni on the way.
Sam agreed to ride in one of their SUVs so she could be with Scotty, not because she needed them to protect her.
Two days with a detail had reminded her why she hadn’t wanted one in the first place.
“What’ll happen at this meeting?” Scotty asked between bites of his sandwich.
“Dr. Trulo is in charge and facilitating it.”
“What does that mean? Facilitating?”
“He’s going to lead the discussion.”
“What kind of doctor is he?”
“A psychiatrist.”
“Otherwise known as a shrink.”
“Yes,” Sam said, amused by him as always.
“And we like this guy?”
“We like him very much. He’s been good to me over the years, and when I brought the idea for a grief group to him, he’s the one who made it happen.”
“In other words, he did all the work while you got all the credit.”
“Something like that.” She nudged him with her elbow. “You’re too smart for my own good.”
His laughter filled her with an unreasonable joy. “Watch out for when I lap you and take over the management of the family.”
“I’m keeping my eye on you, buster.”
“Did you find the person who killed that lady who stole from her friends?”
“Not yet.”
“I’ve been thinking about her. What do you suppose her plan was? It wasn’t like they weren’t going to find out she’d ripped them off.”
“I think she was probably planning to leave the country.”
“By herself? Didn’t she have kids?”
“Yeah, but they were pissed with her because she scammed their friends’ parents.”
He thought about that for a second. “So she was going to leave the country and not take her husband and kids?”
“Her kids are adults, so it’s not like she would have left behind little ones.”
“Still. They’re her kids.”
“That’s true,” Sam said, mulling that over. “You think they were in on it?”
“I don’t know, but I’d wonder how much they knew.”
“We think the daughter might have been running money to the Cayman Islands, which is a tax shelter, meaning that people who deposit money there don’t have to pay taxes on it in the U.S.”
“Do you think the daughter knew what she was doing?”
“We’re talking to her tomorrow, but she’d have to be pretty stupid not to know why she was being sent there.”
“Did they send her with suitcases of cash?”
“That’s what I want to know, too. And P.S., if you’re interested in a career in law enforcement, we might have a spot for you on the MPD.”
“Not if we get to him first,” Deborah, Scotty’s lead agent, said over her shoulder from the front seat.
“There’s a bidding war for me,” Scotty said with a big grin.
“How do you know about bidding wars?”
“Video games. That’s how I learn most of the coolest stuff, which is why school is so not necessary.”
The agents in the front seat laughed while Sam tried not to join them. “Your father would have a heart attack if he heard you say that.”
“Which is why we aren’t going to tell him. Got me?”
“I got you.” The motorcade pulled onto Roni’s street.
“Why are we stopping here?”
“We’re picking up my new friend, Roni. Her husband was killed recently by a stray bullet. They’d just gotten married.”
“God, that’s so sad.”
“It’s awful. I had to talk her into coming tonight. I hope she hasn’t changed her mind.”
“I hope not either.”
“Be right back.”