Page 10 of State of Grace (First Family 2)

“Yes, it is,” he said, wheezing from laughter. “No one is listening.”

“You’ll pay for that later.”

“I’ll look forward to that. By the way, you were great on the Today show. We’re getting bombed with calls and emails and comments on the social media posts about your appearance. People think the idea for the grief group for victims of violent crime is fantastic.”

“That’s good. Doesn’t bring our people back, but it helps to know we’re not alone.” The loss of her father was still a raw wound two months after he succumbed to injuries sustained in an on-the-job shooting almost four years ago.

“You, my love, are never alone.”

“That helps. I’ll see you at home?”

“I’ll be here. Feels like I never leave these days.”

Sam vowed to remedy that by working with Brant, his lead Secret Service agent, to plan a date night soon. “We’ll have to do something about that, but for now, I need to get back to it.”

“Be careful out there, love. You’re my everything.”

“I’m always careful. Later.”

She ended the call, smiling the way she always did when she got to talk to him during her workday.

Digging through her contacts on the flip phone, she found the number for their attorney friend Andy Simone.

“Mr. Simone’s office.”

“Hi, this is Sam Cappuano calling for Mr. Simone. Is he free?” For a full ten seconds, there was dead silence. “Hello?”

“Yes, of course, Mrs. Cappuano. I’ll put you right through to him, and if I may say, I just love you and your husband.”

In the background, Sam heard Andy say, “Put the call through, Janice.”

“Sorry,” Janice said.

Sam held back laughter. “Thank you for your support, Janice.”

“Please hold for Mr. Simone.”

“Sorry about that, Sam,” Andy said when he came on the line. “She’s got a bad case of starstruck-itis.”

“It’s going around lately. Believe it or not, that very thing happens several times a day.”

“I believe it,” Andy said. “How’re things at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue?”

“Not bad, all things considering. The butlers make for easy living, and the kids love the extras, like the pool and the movie theater.”

“I’m glad you’re settling in. If you’re calling about the custody situation, I’m still waiting to hear back from the grandparents’ attorney. I sent him the documentation proving Elijah is the guardian his parents appointed. I suspect they’re trying to find a way around that, but there isn’t one.”

“Well, that’s a relief.”

“It’s not over yet, but I feel good about where we are.”

“I’m very glad to hear that, but that wasn’t the reason for my call. I wanted to tell you I’ve figured out who leaked the photos of Nick at the twins’ birthday party, and we’re interested in suing him for the breach of the NDA. We feel like we need to send a message to people on the periphery of our lives that we’ll stridently protect our privacy in this crazy new situation we’re in.”

“I’ve already got something drafted because I figured you’d find out who it was. I’ll take care of that for you today. What kind of damages are you thinking?”

“The guy is loaded, so we want to make it hurt.”

“So, a million?”