“I know.And like I said, I understand.I do.I don’t know what I’d do if I had to be away from my wife and kids for any length of time like you’ve been doing.It was bad enough, I’m sure, being away from your family.”He asked him what was going to happen to him now.“Nothing.You’ll continue toget paid.That’s the least we can do for someone who has done what you’ve done for their country.”
He didn’t bother telling him no, that he didn’t need the money.It would be nice to have the income with children in the house.He asked about his retirement, too.He told him he’d be covered under the insurance that he’d had before, as well as his family.
“We might have a brood of them.”He told him that it didn’t matter so long as he was happy with what he was doing.“I will be when you send me the paperwork that states that I’m finished.I just can’t do this anymore.”
“I know.And for as long as you have been doing it, you have mine and the country’s gratitude.”He thanked him again and wiped his eyes with his hand.“Are you all right, Cullen?I’ll have to get used to calling you by your first name from now on instead of Dixon.”
“I’ll have to get used to a lot of things nowadays.”The two of them laughed, and it felt good.“You don’t have any idea how much I’ve been dreading calling you.I thought for sure you’d have me court martialed.Or perhaps put before a firing squad.This has been a long time coming for me.I’ve just had enough.I’m glad that you understand.”
“I do.Better than most people you know.But you’ve always been there for us, and I can’t thank you enough.Like you said, it’s been a long time in coming.”He paused just long enough for him to realize that he might be busy.He told him that he’d go.“I’m fine here.I have some paperwork that I’m going to send to you by courier tomorrow.It’s a bit late in the day to get you something right now.You rest up, and I’ll talk to you when I come to visit my sister.I’m looking forward to having a nice long talk with you when I’m out of here on what you’ve been doing with your life since you left your job.”
“I’ll make a list of things that I do so that I don’t forget anything.”Again, they both laughed, and Cullen leaned back on his bed.“I’ve only just realized how exhausted I am.I might have to take a nap for a month or so just to catch up.”
“Good for you.That’s my plan when I’m out of office.I plan on taking a long trip too.I don’t know where or what we’ll do, but I’m going to not worry about what’s going on in the White House for a good long time.”Cullen didn’t believe that for a moment.“It would be nice, too, to read a newspaper that didn’t have something that I’ve done wrong on the front pages.Do you think that will happen?”
“No.They’re going to realize what a great man they had in office and beg you to come back.”He said that, like him, he was done.“I understand.Just wait until my brother is in office.I’m sure that things will be just as good as when you left.He’s a good man.”
“Dallas is going to be the best there is.He is untouchable.”He asked what he meant.“He can’t be bribed, and his wife will kick someone’s ass if they try what they tried on my wife.I shudder to think about what would have happened had it not been for your family.”
Before his second term, Jamie had been ready to divorce his wife.Only to find out that she was being blackmailed by his men in office.If not for the help of Amy, Jamie’s sister, there is no telling what would have happened to her.They wanted her to look like she had committed suicide so that Jamie would be devastated and leave the office.It didn’t work out that way for everyone concerned.He was happy for that.
“I have to get some rest here.”He said that he should enjoy it while he could.“I plan on it.I have a full day tomorrow, making it up to my little family for being gone for just the few days that I was out of the country.Then I have to catch up on what happened in the courtroom while I was gone.And I’m looking forward to it all.”
Going to the bathroom again, he got back in bed when he was finished.He didn’t know if he’d be able to sleep, but almost as soon as his head hit the pillow, he was drifting off to sleep.He’d never been this tired before, and he thought that it had a lot to do with the fact that he wasn’t going to be working anymore.That took a great deal of stress off his shoulders, knowing that he’d be a stay-at-home dad for a while, and that’s what he wanted.Even if they didn’t have any more kids, he was going to look forward to raising the two that he had.
He woke once more but knew that it was night out.Still tired, he thought about getting up to go get something to eat with Emmie, but couldn’t get out of bed.Even though he’d been asleep for severalhours, he knew that he was going to be worthless to anyone who needed him until he got some sleep.Rolling to his side, he was out again in no time.
“Are you going to sleep all day again?”He smiled and asked Emmie what day it was.“Saturday.You’ve been asleep since Wednesday.I could hear you getting up every once in a while, but when I came up to check on you, you were still sleeping.Your brothers have been here to check on you, but they seem to think you must need this or you’d have been up by now.Is everything all right?”
“It couldn’t be more perfect.I’m going to get up and get a shower.Did you have any plans for the day?By the way, I’m starving.If you could ask April to make me something to eat, I’d appreciate it.” He was slightly dizzy when he sat up and had to lie back down.Getting up proved harder than that, in that his entire body was weak with rest.He finally got into the shower after twenty minutes of trying to reach it and turned the water on to the hottest blast.“I’m going to take my time coming down the stairs.So if I fall down them, it’s nothing more than my body saying that it’s too rested.”
“I’ll come and help you.”He said that he should be fine, but he was weak.“You’ve not eaten anything for four days.I’m betting even your beast is hungry by now.”
“I bet that he is.I know that I am.”By the time he got down the stairs, he was sweaty again.As soon as he got into the kitchen, he was ready for another nap or two.Getting his food put in front of him made his belly growl and his eyes water.It was the best-looking meal that he’d ever seen.“Where are the kids?”
“At your grandma Simpsons.She heard that they’re saving their money up for something big, and she hired them as well.I guess they have jobs at Dallas’ house as well.The storm knocked out a lot of branches, and the kids are getting paid well for picking them up.I don’t doubt that by this time next year they’re going to have a bundle of cash that they’ve saved.”
“Good for them.And I like your idea of putting the money in the bank that comes for them from the government.I have no idea how much it will be, but it’ll make a nice nest egg for the two of them.”She told him that’s what she thought too.“I’m going to pay them an allowance as well.Unless you’ve already told them that.”
“I did.They have to keep their rooms clean.You should have seen Beth when Marshall said he’d help her with hers.Like she was incapable of keeping her room cleaned up on her own.I think he’s going to feel the smartness from that for a while.”Cullen smiled while he finished his pancakes.Just as he was going to ask for more, another stack was put on his plate.He thought that he could eat an entire ten dozen of them and not be the least bit full.His body was starving for nutrition right now.“I’ll let you eat.I have some phone calls to make on behalf of the charities that your mother has me involved in.I won’t be long.”
He ate another stack of pancakes and more fruit when he polished off his second batch.Leaning back on the chair, he looked at April and smiled.She told him it was good to see a man with a hardy appetite.He said that he’d not eat like that all the time, but it had been a while since he’d eaten.After breakfast, he went to find Emmie.It was high time they had some quiet, or not so quiet time together.
Chapter 9
Eighteen Years Later
Dallas looked out the front window and saw the lines of people just waiting to get into the White House.He would have to make himself scarce on those tours so that he didn’t have to have his security team scramble to keep him safe.He sometimes wished that he could take the tour with his people, but they said that it wasn’t safe.Being the President of the United States did have its perks and fails.
“Weren’t you told not to stand in front of that window?I know you have at least five times, Daddy.”Anna gave him a hug and moved him away from the beautiful window.“What am I going to do with you?”
“Just tolerate me, I guess.What are you off to today?I hope it’s something fun.You’ve been spending too much time behind closed doors, and I worry about you, too.”Anna was his pride and joy.She had two younger brothers who would give him a good run for his money, but she, his first child, made him proud.“I’m to have lunch with the Committee Against Child Labor.Apparently, that sort of thing is still going on.”
“Not so much here but in other countries.”She told him all about the laws.“I’m going to see if I can sneak in and meet some of the people that you’re with.I hope you don’t mind.”
“No, not at all.Your mom can’t make it.She’s going to be at another meeting.I don’t think she’s any too happy to be going to something else, but she is a good person.”He thought of his Amy and how she’d been by his side since the beginning of his time in the White House.“I’ll make arrangements for you to be by my side.Nothing like having a beautiful woman at my side to make me feel better about my job.”
“You just want someone to get you out of remembering names.You never were very good at that.”He was getting better.After five years in the White House, he’d better.“I’d love it if you could make that happen.I could help you out, and you could help me get to meet some people that I admire.Thank you.”He pulled out his notepad and wrote down what he wanted to do.
