Welcome to Season Seven of the romantic fiction serial White House Rhapsody, in which Mark and Sharon try to find a way to make their secret romance public. You can catch up on the previous seasons by clicking here for the buy links, or by reading the Story So Far summary here.
Sharon Wheatly couldn’t help pausing just outside the White House. The last of her colleagues were making their way into the West Wing to begin another day’s work. December air chilled her, and she wondered if they would get any snow that night.
The building held the same iconic power to awe her as it always had and probably always would. At the same time, it was familiar and comfortable. She would never have expected that a year before. It had been exactly a year to the day that she had quit her high-paying and cushy private sector job, intending to get on at the State Department or some other diplomatic corps position. She’d arrived in Washington, DC, the following January and applied immediately to the State Department, only to have her application land by accident at the White House instead.
The young, single, and, at that time, newly inaugurated President Mark Jerguessen had been looking for a World Affairs Advisor and had found in her resume just what he’d needed for the position. They found in each other a deep attraction, a friendship, and finally, love. The only problem was neither of them wanted anyone else to know that they were seeing each other.
Sharon smiled. He was inside, probably in some meeting or other, which reminded her that she had better get to her office in the West Wing. As she came into the entryway, she saw Mark’s sister, June, talking with Press Secretary Jean Bouyer.
“Hi, guys,” Sharon said.
June and Jean both looked up and smiled. June had her brother’s height, but the ultra-thin figure of a runway model. Her blondish hair was growing out, and she had deep blue eyes. Jean, at least physically, was June’s polar opposite, being slightly rounded and very short, which Jean made up for by always wearing high heels and piling her red hair on top of her head.
“Hey, Sharon,” June said, smiling. “Are you coming to the press conference at ten-thirty? We’re showing off the decorations today.”
Every one of the public rooms in the mansion had been carefully strewn with gently sparkling garlands and other decorations. June, a fashion designer, had overseen the plans and Sharon had been stepping around workers all week.
“I don’t know. I might.” Sharon shrugged. “I’ve got to see who’s misbehaving first.”
“We’re going to start in the Blue Room,” Jean said. “All staff are invited.”
“Thanks.”
June followed Sharon to her office. “What time do you want me to be at your place on Saturday?”
“How about eleven?” Sharon smiled at her newest best friend. “By the way, everything looks fantastic.”
She and June had gotten close over the previous year, while Sharon and Mark had tried to avoid getting closer than just friends.
“Thanks,” June said. “I’m really happy with how it turned out.”
Sharon’s phone vibrated, and she checked it. “And I’m off and running. I’ll talk to you later.” She tucked her laptop bag under her arm and swiped the phone and began talking in Chinese.
One reason Sharon was particularly adept at keeping on top of what was going on around the world was that she spoke ten different languages fluently. Her day was busy, as usual, but riots in Uruguay had the president concerned enough that he’d requested a briefing from her after the decorations press conference, or rather, after his part of the conference.
Sharon went to the press conference mostly so that he wouldn’t have to wait to call her. As he stepped to the podium in the Blue Room, she couldn’t help smiling at the tall, broad-shouldered man with the gorgeous green eyes, and soft brown hair. He pretended he hadn’t seen her, but the entire West Wing staff knew their boss had a thing for the World Affairs Advisor. There was even a full-on conspiracy to get the two together. Sharon smiled. No one knew that she and Mark hadn’t needed any help.
The president made the usual sort of remarks, including several compliments aimed at his sister, June. Then June took over the conference and Mark headed back to the Oval Office.
Sharon arrived there less than a couple minutes after he had. Kent Jeffries, the president’s main secretary and gatekeeper, barely looked up from his computer screen as he admitted her.
“Uruguay?” Sharon asked as Mark looked up from the desk.
Mark grinned. “If only I didn’t have to give a damn. But, yes, I need a briefing on the riots there.”
Satisfied that they were alone, Sharon went over and gave him a warm kiss, then settled onto the couch in the conversation group on the other side of the room. Mark went about brewing some coffee.
“I’ve got a little Ethiopian action today,” he said as he ground the beans.
“Sounds good.” Sharon opened up her laptop. “I wish things in Uruguay were so nice.”
“What’s driving the problem?”
“The usual. Corrupt government and not enough jobs.” Sharon shrugged. “Not to downplay any of it. It’s pretty serious for the people living there.”
“True. But we do see an awful lot of that sort of thing.” Mark sighed.
The electronic kettle he kept on a small credenza to the side of the desk signaled that the water was ready. Mark put the grounds in a French press, wet them slightly from the kettle, then glared at the whole rig.
“So, what do we do about it?” Mark asked.
Sharon shrugged. “Sadly, there isn’t much we can do beyond the usual statement. At least, the government there isn’t blaming everything on us.”
Mark frowned. “Do they have any reason to?”
“Not really. That doesn’t always stop them.” Sharon frowned at her screen. “Leonidas says that the problems are so deeply internal that it’s not likely anyone is going to buy that our Imperial forces were behind anything. Still, we might want to express some… kindness, I guess. Somewhere between offering help, which we can’t do, and trying not to score political points, while still sounding genuinely concerned for the people.”
“In other words, the usual tightrope.” Mark rolled his eyes. “I’ll talk to Gus and Jean. Not that I don’t care, but seriously? I am way over the whole thoughts and prayers thing.”
“I know.” Sharon sighed. “So find another way to say that you care without saying that.” She looked at him and smiled. “Do you want to come over for dinner tonight?”
Mark grinned. “I thought you’d never ask. Hell, yes. Do we know what we want to make?”
Sharon had to think about it, but the two of them settled on spaghetti carbonara and salad. As Sharon left the office, she couldn’t help grinning. It was going to be another good night. There wasn’t much either of them could do about the sadness elsewhere in the world, which was one of the reasons being together was so lovely.
The dinner was both simple and satisfying. Even more satisfying was the leisurely lovemaking that followed. Both fell asleep, then Mark’s iPhone buzzed around 2 a.m.
Slowly and reluctantly, he got out of bed and got dressed. Sharon stirred as he finished buttoning his shirt.
“Time to go?” she muttered.
“I’m afraid so.” Sighing, he sat down on the bed next to her. “I’m not suggesting we do, but there is a part of me that would dearly love to go public. It would make it so much easier for me to stay overnight.”
“You staying overnight would be lovely. But the noise wouldn’t be.”
“I have to agree.” He leaned over and kissed her, then slowly made his way downstairs and then on further down to the basement where his Secret Service bodyguard waited next to the secret entrance to the alley behind Sharon’s Georgetown townhouse. The entrance had been built around the time the townhouse had by a senator who didn’t want the public to see the various women coming and going inside his place.
Mark sulked a little as he rode back to the White House. He completely understood Sharon’s reluctance to go public with their relationship. He was terrified of what could happen as well. At the same time, he loved waking up next to her.
It was a relatively quiet week for both of them. If Mark was looking forward to the weekend, it was not so much about the family party for Sharon’s niece Toby as it was that he’d get to be there. He arrived at the townhouse around seven on Friday night.
“I’m so sorry I couldn’t get here earlier,” he told Sharon after a warm kiss and hug in the basement.
The two went upstairs arm in arm.
“I assumed you weren’t late by choice,” she said. “Do I want to know why?”
He chuckled. “Probably not.”
He rolled his shoulders as they stepped into the kitchen. It had been remodeled into a modern style with plenty of cherry wood cabinets and opened up into the dining room. A granite counter at the back of the sink separated the two spaces. Mark wore a t-shirt over jeans and carried a garment bag with slightly nicer casual clothes for the next day.
Sharon grinned. “Well, I’ve got some lovely curry from that Indian place around the corner and a nice gewurztraminer to go with it.”
“Sounds great, and I’m starved.”
As Sharon dished out the food, Mark felt the knots in his back slowly loosen. He couldn’t help smiling at her. She was lovely, with full blond hair and brown eyes and a shapely figure. But as physically beautiful as she was, Mark loved her intense intellect and her ability to stand him down when necessary.
“So, is everything ready for tomorrow?” he asked as they sat down at the dining room table.
“Aside from getting the short ribs in the oven and the salads made, yes.” Sharon smiled at him.
Mark checked his phone. “We’ll want to wait a bit on the short ribs. How about the mashed potatoes?”
“We’ll be making them, yes. I’ll have to do the gravy, though. I’m not sure we want everyone to notice just how familiar you are with my kitchen.”
Mark winced. “You’re right. And you make a very nice gravy.”
After cleaning up the dinner dishes, they worked together, getting everything as ready as could be for the next morning, then watched a movie from bed. Sharon got up at three in the morning to slide the short ribs into the oven, but did not stay up.
When Mark stirred, there was blond hair in his nose and he couldn’t help smiling and kissing the bare shoulder next to him.
“What time is it?” she muttered.
“About eight-thirty.”
Sharon grumbled a curse under her breath. “We’d better get up.”
“Why? You said nobody’s supposed to show until eleven.”
“I also forgot to mention that my darling brother has no sense of time whatsoever. He’ll show up when he gets here, whether it’s hours early or hours late.”
Mark pulled her close to him. “Just a couple more minutes.”
Sharon purred, but only gave Mark a couple more minutes of snuggling. She showered first and dressed while Mark got into the shower. As she went downstairs, the doorbell rang, then rang again.
Sure enough, her niece Toby was on the doorstep. Toby was the older of Michael Wheatly’s two daughters, and it was her birthday being celebrated that day with a party, including Sharon’s whole immediate family and several of Mark’s family members, as well. That Mark, his sister June, and their nephew Matt were included had as much to do with Toby’s baby crush on Mark as anything else. She’d asked Mark to join the party at Thanksgiving the week before.
“Toby!” Sharon squealed loudly, hoping that she’d heard the water upstairs shut off already. “What are you doing here so early?”
“Dad dropped me off. Can I come in?”
“Sure. Here. Drop your coat on the rack.”
“It’s cold out there!” Toby was model thin, with brown hair and eyes.
“It’s not that bad. So, why did your dad drop you off so early?”
Toby shrugged. “He needs some extra room in the car to pick up Grandmere and Grandpa.”
Madeleine Wheatly was a native of the French-speaking side of Belgium, which is why her children called her Maman and her grandchildren called her Grandmere. Her husband, Robert Wheatly, was from Wisconsin.
Sharon did not express her skepticism. Toby’s younger sister, Jodi, and Jodi’s best friend and almost sister, Tiffany Sheppledorf, were supposed to be getting to the townhouse by way of the Metro subway trains from their boarding school in the city. Given Toby’s slight form, there was no reason to believe that her presence would make it difficult to fit Sharon’s parents into a car that already held her brother Michael and Michael’s partner Inez Santiago.
“It smells good in here,” Toby said, wandering further into the townhouse.
“I’ve got the short ribs in the oven,” Sharon said.
Toby’s eyes lit up. “And mashed potatoes?”
“I’ll be fixing those closer to noon. Which was when you were supposed to be here.”
“It’s cool.” Toby grinned. “I can help.”
Sharon doubted that, but smiled. The shower had definitely turned off, but how was she going to get upstairs to warn Mark?
“Hey.” Toby grinned. “When is You-Know-Who going to get here?”
Mark’s chuckle filled the stairwell. “I’m already here. Nice to see you, Toby.”
“How did you get so early?” Toby gasped.
“It’s not that early.” Mark shot a quick grin at Sharon. “It’s almost nine-thirty. Besides, your aunt was having some problems with her treadmill and I said I’d look at it.” He looked at Sharon. “There was just some dirt in it. I cleaned it out.”
Sharon sighed in relief, praying that Toby wouldn’t notice that Mark’s hair was just a bit wet.
“Anyway, is there anything I can do to help?” Mark asked.
Toby giggled. Sharon shook her head.
“Everything is under control,” she said. “Although, Toby, I could use some help getting the dining room table expanded and set.”
The three of them went to work putting the extra leaves into the dining room table, choosing a tablecloth, and setting out dishes, flatware, and glasses. Then it was time to get the potatoes prepped for mashing.
The rest of the guests all arrived in dribbles. Michael and Inez showed first, at ten, with Sharon’s parents, Robert and Madeleine.
“Maman, Dad, I’d like you to meet Mark Jerguessen,” Sharon said, her insides quaking.
“I’m off duty today,” Mark said quickly, shaking Robert’s hand. “Just call me Mark.
“Of course,” said Madeleine with a sly grin.
Robert glanced at his wife, then smiled. “It’s good to meet you.”
Maman promptly hugged Toby and took her to the kitchen to see what was going on there. Robert, Michael, and Inez headed for the living room. Mark followed Sharon to the kitchen.
Sharon’s younger sister Susan and her partner, Max Epstein, showed next, and it was not without some drama. Susan, who had lost the use of her legs in an accident a couple of years before, made her way up the stairs in front of the townhouse Sharon had rented from her friend. Susan used crutches and leg braces instead of the wheelchair she’d been using. As Sharon opened the front door, Susan was sniping at Max.
“I managed!” Susan glared affectionately at Max. “You didn’t have to dog my every move.”
Max grinned and rolled his eyes. “Yes, my darling.”
Susan glared at Sharon. “Hello, dear sister. Why couldn’t you have gotten a place that’s ADA compliant?”
“There was no American Disabilities Act when this place was built,” Sharon said. “And my friend didn’t have any friends who had disabilities when she bought it, but did need to have someone here while she’s off in Africa.”
“That’s no excuse.” Susan rolled her eyes and gracefully, in spite of the braces, got herself into the dining room and plopped down into a chair. “I gotta say, it’s nice being upright for a change, but the crutch and brace thing is a hell of a lot more tiring than I’d thought.”
Michael, tall with blond hair, plopped himself into the dining room chair next to Susan.
“Hey, Susan. How’s it going?”
“Managing.” Susan grinned at her older brother. “And how’s the swelled head doing?”
Michael, who was a successful rock musician, was routinely teased about it by his three younger sisters.
“I’m hanging in.”
Sharon checked the flame under the potatoes, then lifted the lid on the pot to see how done they were.
Even though Jodi and Tiffany and Matt were taking public transportation in from their respective schools, the three somehow arrived together. Sharon couldn’t help noticing the looks between Matt and Tiffany. The two really, really liked each other, but were determined to be responsible. Jodi said hi to Matt, then went to greet the rest of her family, including Toby, which was saying something significant, given how Jodi felt about her older sister.
June showed up next, apologizing for being almost late.
“It’s no big deal,” Sharon said.
“I just had to take a call from New York.” June frowned. “I also have to head back to there first thing tomorrow. Have to finalize the fall collection for next year and get some other details together.”
June, a noted clothing designer, ran her own company, although she was also in Washington as often as she was in New York, helping out with some of the traditional First Lady duties. She hugged Toby, then made her way around the guests, saying hello.
The only person missing was Sarah, Sharon and Susan’s youngest sister. It was, perhaps, to be expected. Sarah’s sense of time was even worse than their older brother’s.
Sharon got the potatoes drained, then set Toby on getting them mashed under Robert’s supervision. Meanwhile, she got the short ribs out of the cooking pan, put them on a huge platter, and started making gravy.
Soon, the lunch was ready to serve, but Sarah still hadn’t arrived.
Madeleine sighed. “We should begin without her.”
But everyone had barely settled into seats around the table when the doorbell rang and, when Sharon answered it, Sarah swept in. Sarah looked puzzled when she saw everyone at the table.
“Am I late?” Sarah asked, looking worried.
Sharon bit her tongue.
“Not so bad,” Madeleine said. “Come sit down. We are about to eat.”
Mark was almost overwhelmed by the chatter that followed. Still, there was a joy that made it intriguing. The conversation was as likely to be in French, which his sister June could speak, as it was in English. Max, Jodi, and Tiffany went back and forth in German. Matt, Michael, Inez, and Susan had some debate going in Spanish. Sharon kept up with all of the conversations, no matter which language.
After the meal was finished, it was a race to the kitchen to get it cleaned up. Mark held back, only to pretend that he didn’t know as well as Sharon did where everything went. But then, after cleanup, the family ended up in the living room. Michael, Robert, and Sharon got out their guitars, and there was singing as well as more talking.
Mark found himself next to Madeleine in a corner.
“You are enjoying yourself?” Madeleine asked him, smiling.
“Yeah. It’s been a nice day,” Mark said.
Madeleine chuckled. “There are those who think we can be a little hard to take.”
“I’m don’t doubt.” Mark shrugged. “You’ve got a lot of different conversations going in different languages. I can see where some people might find that a little intimidating.”
“And you do not?”
Mark chuckled. “Maybe a little. But I’ve been on enough foreign trips these past couple years that I’m getting used to it.”
“That’s a good thing.” Madeleine’s smile was more than a little on the knowing side.
Mark shifted. “I suppose so.”
She looked at him directly. “You like Sharon.”
“Yes.”
“You are good for each other. I’m glad you finally got together.”
“But…” Mark gaped as Madeleine walked away.
Shocked and worried, he looked over at Sharon, who was laughing at something her brother was saying. Mark sighed. Some minutes later, he found a chance to speak to her alone and unheard.
“Did you tell your mother about us?” he asked.
Sharon gaped. “No! Why?”
Mark repeated what Madeleine had said.
“Oh, great.” Sharon blinked. “I didn’t say anything. I promise.”
“I believe you.” Mark shook his head. “Your sister keeps saying she’s psychic.”
Sharon shook her head. “She’s not. Just really, really perceptive.”
The afternoon wore on. Mark left shortly before dark, feeling very alone.
Rose Clarke Jerguessen Miller smiled at the video playing on her laptop. It was going to take some time to build some steam, but her social media campaign was well on its way, and soon, that little witch, Sharon Wheatly, would get what was coming to her.
There had been a dust up the previous fall, with Wheatly showing Rose up in a blatant display of insubordination. Rose shook her head. If her son, President Mark Jerguessen, would not discipline his staff, then it was up to Rose.
Still, it had to be done carefully. She did not want Mark hounded out of the office lest she lose the prestige that came with being his mother. On the other hand, he seldom knew what was best for him, and she’d had to intervene more than once when he’d found someone inappropriate. Wheatly was definitely inappropriate.
The biggest trouble was that she needed something that would tip the balance away from her. Something that would utterly ruin her reputation. Even the video couldn’t do that, although it would pave the way. But that elusive something would not be easy to find. Wheatly was damned good at covering her tracks.
But Rose would find something. She always did.
Text Conversation:
Doug – Hey, June. Had a great time in Saigon. Lots to see and try. How are you?
June – Doing well. Missing you, though.
Doug: Miss you, too. I’m on a plane to Paris, so won’t be back for a while.
June – What a coincidence. That’s where I am. What flight are you on?
Doug – It gets in really late and I’m only changing planes, too.
June – I see. Well, I’ll see you when I see you.