Page 106 of State of Affairs (First Family 1)

Sam wasn’t so sure, but she kept the thought to herself.

“The White House is beautifully run by ninety-six full-time and two hundred fifty part-time staff of dedicated ushers, butlers, housekeepers, photographers, florists, chefs, carpenters, plumbers, electricians, gardeners, calligraphers, engineers, maids and doormen, all of them overseen by the chief usher, whom you’ll meet shortly.”

“Holy moly,” Sam said, her mind spinning. “In all my years of living a few blocks from here, I’ve never given much thought to what goes into running this place.”

“You’ll find the staff is a well-oiled machine made up of wonderful people, many of them like Roland, the second or third generation of their family to work here. Many will become lifelong friends to your family.” She gestured to a small kitchen. “This is the family kitchen Jacqueline Kennedy had installed so the family could cook for themselves if they so desired. She also established this dining room on the residence level and is largely credited with making the residence feel more like a home. The old family dining room is tucked in next to the State Dining Room downstairs. There are sixteen rooms and six bathrooms on this floor as well as twenty rooms and nine more bathrooms on the third floor, all of which are for your use, along with a wet bar and second kitchen on the third floor.”

“After hearing that, Sam, aren’t you glad the residence comes with a staff?” Angela asked.

“For sure,” Sam said. “All the houses I’ve ever lived in could fit into the two floors we’ll live in here.”

“People are always amazed by how much bigger the White House is than it appears from the outside. I should warn you that you’ll receive a grocery bill at the end of every month, to cover your family’s needs as well as any personal entertaining you may do.”

“That’s good to know.”

“People don’t realize that the first family pays for their own food.” As Gloria opened a door, Sam was aware of the photographer following them to document the moment for history. “This will be your bedroom.”

Sam stepped into the spacious room that included a huge four-poster bed, a sitting area and a fireplace. “This is beautiful.”

“You’ll be welcome to redecorate the residence to your taste. The chief usher will help you with that as well as redecorating the Oval Office in conjunction with the director of Oval Office Operations.”

Sam gulped at the thought of redecorating. That was so not her thing. “Nick is better at that stuff than I am. Since he won’t have anything better to do, I’ll put him in charge of that.”

The others laughed as Gloria showed them bedrooms that would work for Scotty, Eli and the twins and then led them to another room at the end of the hallway. “This is the famous Lincoln Bedroom, which was actually President Lincoln’s office when he was president. Presidents have lived in the White House through moments of great personal celebration, including the weddings of children, and great tragedy, such as when the Lincolns lost their son Willie to typhoid fever at the age of eleven. He died in that very bed, although it wasn’t in this room at that time.”

“That’s so sad,” Tracy said.

“It’s believed that he—and his brother, who survived—contracted typhoid from the contaminated water in the White House,” Gloria said.

“Oh God, that’s awful,” Sam said.

“Things have come a long way since then.” Gloria showed them the famous Truman Balcony before leading them to another flight of stairs. “I want you to see the solarium on the third floor.”

As they followed her up the stairs, Sam thought about the house parties they could host for family and friends with all those bedrooms and bathrooms and a wonderful staff to handle the cooking.

“This is one of my favorite rooms in the house,” Gloria said of the solarium that boasted a sweeping view of Washington. “It has an amazing history—it was FDR’s favorite place to take a lunch break. President Eisenhower liked to have barbecues on the parapet. It also served as Caroline Kennedy’s preschool and the Bush twins’ high school hangout. We had some of our best times as a family here.”

“This is incredible.” Angela moved to the wall of windows to take in the view. “I had no idea this was even here.”

“It’s a hidden gem.” Gloria cast a wistful glance around the room, probably thinking of happier times. “We’ll take the elevator down to the main floor.”

Over the next half hour, they toured the public spaces, which included the Red, Green and Blue Rooms, the East Room and the State Dining Room. Then they went down another floor, where Sam met chefs, florists, calligraphers and other staffers whose names flew by in a whirlwind. Gloria knew every one of them by name and asked after their families and parents. She was obviously well loved by the staff, some of whom were emotional as they expressed their condolences to her.

Sam couldn’t help but wonder what the staff would think of her. It was probably better not to speculate about that. Their tour ended in the office of the chief usher, Gideon Lawson, a handsome man of about forty-five years old, who stood to greet her with a warm handshake.

“Gideon is basically the general manager of the entire White House,” Gloria said.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, ma’am.” He had short-cropped light blond hair and kind brown eyes that twinkled when he smiled.

“Gideon will be your very best friend in this place,” Gloria said. “He knows everything about everything and can get anything done on a moment’s notice. He’s your go-to guy for all things White House.”

“You flatter me, ma’am,” Gideon said with obvious affection for the outgoing first lady.

“I’ll try not to make your life too difficult,” Sam said.

“Nonsense,” Gideon said. “My job is to make your life as easy as possible.”

“She’s a handful,” Tracy said bluntly. “You’ll have your job cut out for you.”