Chapter Twenty-Eight
The next morning after she saw the kids off to school, Sam called in to work for the shift-change meeting at eight o’clock. “Update me, people.”
“How’s your arm?” Freddie asked.
“It’s fine.” The numbness had worn off in the middle of the night, and it hurt like seven angry bitches, but she wasn’t admitting that to anyone. “Talk to me.”
“Bob Tappen made almost as big of a scene as Josie Ouellette did after he heard Lucas had been arrested,” Gonzo said. “We showed him the video of Lucas entering Mark’s office and shooting him. The poor guy completely lost it when he saw that. We had to call the paramedics to tend to him.”
“I feel for him,” Sam said. “His family has been nearly destroyed in the span of a week.”
“We’ve presented the cases against Grace and Lucas to Charity, and she’s proceeding with charges against both of them. Lucas will be charged as an adult.”
Sam felt sick at the waste of two promising young lives. “Did they honestly think they wouldn’t get caught?”
“I suspect that’s exactly what they thought,” Green said. “It never occurred to either of them that anyone would think they did this.”
“Hell, I didn’t think they had done this,” Sam said. “I wish it had occurred to me sooner so we could’ve saved Mark.”
“We got there as fast as we could after we realized he was a target,” Freddie said.
“And not for nothing, he flat-out lied to us at the beginning when we asked him if anyone else knew about the affair. Grace had already confronted them about it and made her threats. If he’d told us that she and Aidan knew, we could’ve talked to them and maybe figured this out sooner. ”
“That’s true,” Sam said. “Did someone brief the media?”
“Gonzo did it, and he did a great job,” Jeannie said.
“Aw, shucks,” Gonzo said.
“Did they ask about the lawsuit against Thorn?” Sam asked.
“They did,” Gonzo said, “and I was able to deflect the attention away from that and right onto Tiffany, where it belongs.”
“Thanks for that. Well, since Gonzo and the rest of you have everything well in hand, I’m officially on vacation from job number one. Try not to eff anything up while I’m gone.”
“We’ll try not to,” Gonzo said, chuckling.
“I’ll see you all on Christmas Eve?”
“We can’t wait,” Jeannie said. “Good luck tomorrow in Des Moines. We’ll be thinking of you both.”
“Thanks. Good work on both cases, everyone. I was hoping to have the chance to say this in person, but I want to thank you all for the great work this year. We’ve had a rough year losing our beloved Detective Arnold, and I’m proud of the way we’ve come together to continue the work, despite our heartbreak.
Cameron and Matt, we appreciate the contributions you’ve made since you joined our squad.
Cam, it wasn’t easy for you to come in and replace someone who was irreplaceable to the rest of us, but you’ve done an admirable job of making it work. ”
“Thank you, Lieutenant. It’s an honor to work with you guys.”
“We lost my dad, and we solved his case and a bunch of others. Detective Tyrone decided to leave us. Freddie, Jeannie and Gonzo got married. A few things changed in my personal life…”
The others laughed at her understatement.
“Through it all, we kept our eye on the ball, and we got the job done. I’ll always be proud of us for surviving this year. Homicide is a tough, often thankless job, and I’m glad I get to do it with all of you.”
“Likewise, LT,” Jeannie said. “If I may add, we’re so proud of the way you handled the outcome of your dad’s case and how you didn’t let it break you or ruin your love of the job.
None of us would’ve blamed you if it had.
And we’re also proud to have the country’s first lady leading us and to be able to say our wonderful new first couple are our friends. ”
The round of applause Jeannie started embarrassed Sam. “Thanks, Jeannie. You guys make me look good every day. I’m looking forward to celebrating with you all on Christmas Eve. I’ll see you then, if not before.”
“We’ll be there,” Freddie said for all of them.
After a delicious lunch of tomato soup and a salad that was delivered by Roland, one of the butlers, Sam was on her laptop, reviewing the reports on the arrests of Grace and Lucas, when Nick walked into the bedroom.
Upon kicking the door closed, he removed his suit coat, dropped it on the floor, pulled off his tie, unbuttoned his dress shirt and pulled that and his T-shirt off, adding them to the pile on the floor, revealing the sculpted chest and abs that made her mouth water.
“Is there any charge for this presidential striptease?” Sam asked without looking up from what she was doing, although she watched everything he was doing with keen interest.
“It’s free to you,” he said as he unbuckled his belt and dropped his pants.
“Do others have to pay?”
“I only perform this act for you.” With his hands on his naked hips, he whistled a stripper tune as he bumped and grinded that had her cracking up laughing and closing her laptop as he approached the bed with all his considerable assets on full display.
“My wife is working from home today, so I had to take full advantage of living above the store.”
“If the media could see you now…”
“Thank God they can’t. Now, I’d like to remind you that my birthday is coming up, so if you want to get a jump on birthday-level services, I’m up for that.” To emphasize his point, he did an added little jig that made his hard cock slap against his stomach.
“I had no idea you had a stripper living in there.”
“I like to think I can still surprise you.”
Sam held out the hand of her good arm for him. “You definitely surprised me with the Magic Mike routine.”
He took her hand and brought it to his lips. “Thought you might like that.”
“How long do we have?”
“Ninety beautiful minutes.”
“Did you lock the door?”
“As Scotty would say, duh. How does your arm feel?”
“Not bad as long as I stay on top of the pain meds.”
“May I help you out of your clothes?”
“Yes, please.” Sam sat up so he could gently remove the oversized T-shirt of his that she’d worn to bed the night before. Before he’d left to go downstairs to the office, he’d changed the dressing on her wound and treated it with the antibiotic ointment she’d been prescribed.
“You sure you’re feeling up to some naked fun?” he asked as he traced his index finger over her collarbone.
“As long as it’s not too athletic.”
“Slow and sultry it is.” He moved her laptop to the bedside table, eased her back and leaned over her, propped up on muscular arms. “I’m so glad you’re still here with me.”
“Where else would I be?”
Nick planted a kiss on her chest. “A few inches to the left and…”
“Shhh. Don’t go there. I’m fine.”
He propped his forehead on her chest for a long moment while she ran her fingers through his hair. “You can’t let anything happen to my Samantha. I’d die without her.”
“She’s going to be around to drive you crazy for many more decades.”
“I’m counting on that.” As he kissed a path from her chest to her neck and then her lips, her entire body felt electrified.
She wrapped her good arm around him and held on tight as he kissed her with sweet tenderness.
He kept up the tender theme as he moved down to her breasts and belly, kissing every part of her with soft lips that skimmed over her sensitized skin.
Usually, he dragged out the torture during the slow and sultry program, but he took mercy on her today and slid into her slowly and carefully so he wouldn’t jostle her sore arm.
“Tell me if anything hurts.”
“Nothing hurts, but I do have this particular ache. Why don’t you see if you can find it?”
Laughing, he said, “I’ll see what I can do, but you don’t mind if I take my time, do you? After all, I have…” He stopped moving to check his watch. “Seventy-eight minutes left.”
“I don’t mind if you take your time.” She was thrilled to be on vacation from work, to have this stolen time with him in the middle of the day, to share this life and this love with him.
If he wanted to take his time, she was going to let him, because for once, she had all the time in the world to give him.
Nick held her close to him as their bodies cooled and calmed after slow and sultry resulted in epic orgasms for both of them.
He couldn’t recall being this relaxed since he took the oath of office.
His days were frantic and busy and stressful with decisions that impacted the lives of so many people coming at him one after another, but he had put all that aside to enjoy this stolen interlude with his beloved in the middle of a workday.
He needed the connection after she’d been injured yet again on the job. She rolled with each disaster, but every one of them shaved years off his life as he pondered what could’ve happened.
“I’ve got a secret,” he said after a long period of contented silence.
“Do tell.”
“How bad do you want to know?”
“Bad.”
His Samantha was impatient, impertinent, nosy, mouthy and perfectly imperfect. He wouldn’t have her any other way. “Harry asked if we’d mind if he proposes to Lilia at some point on Christmas Eve.”
“Oh my God! That’s huge! I can’t believe you waited this long to tell me!”
“You conked out early last night.”
“You should’ve woken me up for this.”
“Not when you needed the rest.”
“We need to get her people here and surprise her with them after the engagement. I’ll coordinate it with Harry.”
“That’s a good idea.”
“Everyone wants the Lincoln Bedroom.”
“I know. How are we going to decide who gets it?”
“I’ve got a plan.”
“I can’t wait to hear all about it.
The next morning, they departed from the White House on Marine One, which transported them to Joint Base Andrews, where Air Force One waited on the tarmac for their arrival.
Nick had requested minimal press coverage of their trip to Des Moines and had only five reporters and one cameraman making the trip, along with Terry, Derek and Harry, who, as Nick’s personal physician, went anywhere he did.