Madam President (68 page)

She had just been fooling herself, of course. Lauren had been recognized twice today. Once by a middle-aged construction worker who was working on the building next to where she'd parked her car. When he saw who she was, he began screaming something about taxes, alimony, and President Marlowe. Lauren didn't stick around for an in-depth explanation. Instead, she picked up her pace.

Next, a clerk at a toy store had recognized her when she was purchasing David, Liza and Dev matching, hot pink stress balls. Lauren was surprised when the frizzy-haired teenager asked for her autograph. She was about to ask the girl which one of her biographies she'd read, when the clerk started peppering her with questions about the relationship between her and Dev. What kind of shampoo did Dev use? What was it like living in the White House? Were the President's eyes really as blue as they looked on television? Lauren actually answered that one, laughing out loud as the girl nearly swooned when she confided that somehow, impossibly, they were even better in real life.

Lauren had to face the bitter truth. While she had achieved moderate success in her own right, her private life had never been public. Not like it was now. But even though her patience had been pushed to the limit time and time again since she'd moved into the White House, in her heart she believed Dev was worth every moment of it.

Now, after having her bags full of Christmas presents for the Marlowe children searched and x-rayed, she was back in the East Wing and ready to search out Dev and try to settle things between them before they got any further out of hand. The writer's brows came together when she found a note taped to the front of her door. Fumbling with her bags, she pulled off the note and managed to open the door and stumble into her room without dropping anything. "Okay, next time, when the porter asks if I want help, I say ‘yes'," she muttered.

Gremlin appeared from behind the sofa and began whimpering with joy as he wound himself around Lauren's legs. She laughed. "I love you too. Gimme just a second, and you can slobber on me all you want."

She gently dropped the bags on her bed and perched on its edge. Gremlin jumped up next to her and laid his face on her lap, where he received an immediate scratching behind his ears. "Pleasure hound." Grem's tail, had it been able to reach the bed, would have begun to thump wildly against it, as he let out a happy moan. "Yeah, yeah, I'll take you for a walk in just a while. Let my feet rest for a minute, will ya? Should we see what's in the envelope?"

Lauren slid her nail under the flap of the envelope, and it opened with a tiny pop. She pulled out the note card, her face creasing into a brilliant smile before she even started reading.
Devlyn's hand writing.
Taped to the note was a piece of milk chocolate, wrapped in bright silver foil. "Mmm..." Lauren let out a sensual groan at the aroma, as she immediately opened the wrapper and popped it into her already watering mouth.

Gremlin whimpered.

"Sorry. No chocolate." She petted him sympathetically. "I could never be a dog."

Lauren allowed the rich chocolate to melt in her mouth, pooling on her tongue as she read.

Sweetheart,

I'm sorry.

I didn't mean to hurt you or lie to you. I've been a little preoccupied by something
very
important these last few weeks, and I had a meeting last night that brought me a step closer to my goal. I'm afraid I can't talk about it right now. Just this once, you'll have to trust me.

I wasn't thinking, and I made a poor choice. I know none of this makes sense to you. But I'll explain the best I can if you let me. Just know that I love you, and I don't like it when we argue. I thought of you all day today.

There's something I'd like to share with you. All you have to do is follow the trail I left for you.

With all my love,

Stinky

She laughed at Dev's signature
. Always the charmer, Devlyn. I shouldn't have thrown you out of my room before we could work things out.
It was immature, and Lauren knew she'd simply let her anger get the best of her. Now, however, she was more than ready to talk.
The trail I left for you?
She scratched her jaw then jumped off the bed, sending Gremlin scampering over to Princess, who was sleeping on her back at the foot of the bed in her favorite dog position.
Trail?

Lauren opened the door and peeked out into the hallway. Sure enough, there were chocolates sprinkled down the hall in the opposite direction from where she'd just come.
I need to look down every once in a while.

Closing her door, Lauren moved a few paces down the hall and picked up another foil-wrapped chocolate. A few more feet, and there was another. And so the trail continued, with Lauren scooping up the candy, until she was led right to the door of the President's formal dining room.

The writer paused at the door to chew and swallow, having popped no less than four pieces of chocolate into her mouth on the way there. She wiped the corners of her mouth with her fingertips, realizing that she was a little nervous. "Relax. It's just Devlyn," she whispered to herself. They'd argued occasionally over the past eleven months. But rarely did it reduce either one of them to tears. And this time it had done just that to both of them.

Lauren took a deep breath and screwed up her courage, ignoring the sudden churning in her belly. She lifted her hand to knock but noticed that the door was just a crack open. The blonde woman hesitated with her hand still in the air, not sure whether the open door was an invitation or an oversight on the part of the President. Deciding that Dev made very few mistakes, Lauren pushed open the door and made her way inside.

The Presidential dining room was one of the younger woman's favorite places in the magnificent house. It had a light, airy feeling that was aided by its high ceilings and floor-length, mint-colored drapes. A delicate crystal chandelier hung high over the dark wood table, and a pristine, white marble mantelpiece surrounded a fireplace. The chairs were upholstered with a green, pale yellow, and rose floral print cloth, whose colors were repeated in the beautiful bouquets of fresh flowers that adorned the tabletop and mantel. It was elegant without being excessive.

Dev looked up from her seat at a small intimate dining table that was set for two. The lights were low but several candles were lit and the curtains were open, allowing the last remnants of daylight to spill through the window. Dev quickly jumped to her feet. She'd been waiting for over an hour, hoping that Lauren wouldn't just toss her note in the garbage can. She tried to find her voice as she gestured to the table. "Would you like to have an early dinner with me?"

Lauren let out a relieved breath and nodded quickly, crossing the floor to stand in front of her lover. "Absolutely," she said softly. Lauren reached up and affectionately raked her fingers through Dev's slightly askew bangs.
God, I think I'd forgive her anything.
"I'd... I'd love to."

Dev smiled. She reached out to take Lauren's hand, but stopped herself. There was no way she was going to invade her personal space without her permission, despite the fact that Lauren was still, seemingly absently, running her fingers through Dev's hair. "I'm so sorry," she said sincerely, pulling out a chair for Lauren.

Lauren didn't say a word. The look of indecision on Dev's face, when she began to offer her hand but quickly withdrew it, pierced Lauren's heart. She reached out and took Dev's hand, wrapping strong fingers around Dev's longer ones. She tugged the taller woman towards her and surged forward herself, pulling Dev into a desperately tight embrace. She buried her face in the crook of Dev's neck, smiling when long arms immediately wrapped around her, returning the heartfelt gesture. "I'm sorry too," Lauren said on a slightly ragged exhale.

"I hate it when we argue," Dev whispered back. She tightened her arms around Lauren. "Let's not do that again anytime soon, okay?"

Lauren nodded against Dev's shoulder. "Deal."

The viselike grip on Devlyn's chest eased, and she said a small prayer of thanks as her world began to right itself.

Lauren greedily drew in a breath that brought with it the warm, clean scent of Dev's skin. She found it comforting in the extreme and didn't want to move from this spot. But after a moment she did, knowing they weren't quite finished yet. Apologies were one thing, but this particular argument called for explanations as well. She licked her lips and leaned back in Dev's embrace, tilting her head so that she could watch Dev's face as she spoke. "Can we talk about what happened?"

"I think two reasonable adults can sit here over a wonderful dinner and talk about it, if you'd like." Dev began to move towards the phone, but Lauren held her firm.

"Later. Please."

Dev turned back to Lauren, swallowing hard. "Okay. I... but I need to know if you really think I would ever intentionally lie to you." Dev sat down in her chair and gestured for Lauren to sit in hers. Then a bleak thought entered her mind.
Oh, God, what if she says yes?

"No, darlin'," Lauren reassured quickly, seeing the pleading look in Dev's eyes. She sat down and scooted her chair closer to Dev, not stopping until their knees were touching. "I don't. At least not if it was a planned thing."

Dev's gaze dropped to the floor.

"I can understand your having a private meeting," Lauren paused here, treading very carefully as she reached out and grabbed a fork from the table and restlessly ran her fingertips over its prongs. "You've gone to lots of private meetings concerning security issues or whatever. And I've tried hard not to make myself a nuisance." A wry smile curled Lauren's lips. "Which is no easy task, considering I start missing you like crazy after a few hours."

Dev dared to glance up and meet Lauren's steady gaze. A stupid, happy grin creased her cheeks. "You don't know how many meetings I've sat through where you were the main thing on my mind. I don't just miss you when we're apart. Hell, I start missing you before you're even gone." Dev laughed quietly. "I actually anticipatorily miss you."

Lauren blushed slightly, but continued. "I wasn't upset that you had to go. I was upset because when I asked you whether or not you had plans, you said no, even though that wasn't the truth." She stared at Dev with a painfully open expression. "Why would you do that, Devlyn?" Lauren asked quietly.

Dev nervously twisted the napkin she's picked up while Lauren was talking. "Lots of reasons, I guess."
And they all suck.
"I'm dealing with something now that is downright nerve-racking for me. I had a very important appointment last night, which I nearly missed because I scheduled our time together to work on the biography right over it. I forgot all about my prior commitment until a few minutes into our time together."

Devlyn shrugged one shoulder. "Then it sort of hit me between the eyes, and I panicked. I was embarrassed by my mistake and didn't want to make you feel bad or..." she winced, admitting this to herself as well as Lauren, "look foolish by having to cancel our meeting. So I tried to end it as quickly as possible. And then, to make matters worse, I tried to cover for the rotten decision I'd just made."

Lauren let out a slightly shaky breath. "That's it?" When Dev instantly nodded, she couldn't help but roll her eyes at herself. She'd been imagining all sorts of rotten things. She liked Dev's simple explanation much, much better. The blonde woman set the fork back down and reached out to still Dev's nervous hands. "It's okay," she promised.

Dev let out her own ragged breath as relief coursed through her.

Lauren lifted Dev's hand and brought it to her lips, tenderly kissing a sensitive palm. "I guess we sort of pushed each other's buttons yesterday, huh?"

Dev nodded and took a sip of melted ice water. "You really hit both of mine by comparing me to Judd. I've told you things about myself that no one on this earth but you and I know. And I trust you to protect them implicitly. I've been honest with you even when it would have been easier to omit or color the truth. So when you compared me to your ex-husband, who I knew had cheated on you..." A breath. "That hurt a lot."