Page 35 of Incisive

“No,wedid it.” I hug his wife, too. I know Ciro’s told her about our triad and I’m okay with that, now that I know his own secret. Ily can help us run interference from time to time. Hopefully in eight years she’ll be the First Lady and keeping all sorts of secrets that are far more important than three guys consensually fucking each other.

If she can’t keep our secret I think Ciro’s more fucked than I am because it means a lonely tenure for him not being able to rely on her as a confidante.

I endure walking the parade, the reviewing stand nonsense, all of the pomp and circumstance that wears me down because if it were up to me we wouldn’t be doing it at all. But I’ve been told it would look weird to eschew the events and I don’t want to start my first day with a dip in the polls because I’m antisocial.

Finally, during a brief respite back at the White House, in our new bedroom where Jordan’s helping me change clothes before meeting with my parents to show them around, I stare at myself in the mirror and process just how badly I’ve screwed up my life.

Worse, now I’ve screwed up Jordan and Leo’s lives.

I mean, I’m certain they don’t look at it like that. They’ve completely structured their lives around me and I’m not even sure I deserve it.

Their love. Their loyalty.

I meet his gaze in the mirror where he wraps his arms around me from behind, peeking over my shoulder. “Breathe. We’re halfway through today. You’ve got this.”

“Do you think I’m ever going to get over this imposter syndrome?”

He turns me to face him and adjusts my tie. “Knowing you, probably not.” His lips curl in a playful smirk. “But that’s okay because it’s why you’ve got me and Leo.”

I catch his hands in mine and bring them to my lips to kiss them. “Thank you, Sir. For everything you do for me. For putting up with me.”

“I wish Mimi was here to meet you. She’d be the one person I know I could tell the truth to and who’d keep our secret for us. She’d be shoving me out of her way to give you a loving kick in the butt and tell you that you’ve got this.”

“You think so?”

“I know so.” He glances at his watch. “Time for me to get moving.” He pecks me on the lips and heads for the bedroom door. “You’ve got five minutes, then you need to be out there waiting on the landing when we come up.”

“Yes, Sir.”

He drops me a playful wink before ducking out the bedroom door.

I turn back to the mirror and…

Yeah. Still don’t feel like I have this under control.

Guess I need to keep faking it for at least the next four years.

CHAPTERELEVEN

I’m therewhen Jordan leads Stella and my parents out of the elevator. Bless him, Jordan’s doing his best to hold a conversation with my father.

Dad’s not exactly a chatty guy, either. Especially when he’s stressed and out of his element.

I completely sympathize with my father about that. Even after spending as many years as I have in DC, today I feel overwhelmed and out of my element.

Mom immediately steps in for a hug. Dad, of course, settles on a handshake. Stella drifts over to a portrait of George Washington hanging on the wall of the Center Hall.

“I’m so proud of you, sweetie!” Mom says as she looks around, eyes wide behind her glasses. “I cannot believe we’re…here!”

Tell me about it.“That makes two of us,” I say. “Where would you like to start our tour?”

My dad shrugs. “Don’t you have better things to do than show us around? Can’t he do it?” He points at Jordan. “I’m certain the president is a busy guy.”

I swallow back my pain even as I keep the smile on my face. “Today I get a little leeway, Dad. Please let me show you around, huh?”

“Which room is mine, bro? Lincoln Bedroom, I hope.” Stella doesn’t turn from the portrait. There’s zero teasing in her tone. She’s deadly serious.

I’m aware of Jordan waving the detail back because he senses this is going to turn into athingwith Stella. The household staff and I chatted earlier this morning when I stopped by for the traditional morning coffee social with Shae and Chris. Not to mention I’ve known most of the staff for eight years already. So Jordan cleared them out earlier to allow me a little privacy with my family.