The Phoenix

Love Doesn't Discriminate

It had been a week since Emily's dad died, and a lot had already changed. Sawyer had decided to go live with their grandmother in upstate Maryland, and Lucy had used some of their dad's will money to pay for housing at Georgetown, so it was just her. Well, not exactly. Nine times out of ten, Aaron was with her. That wasn't the only difference in their relationship.

Her dad's death had made her realize how quickly people could be taken from your life, and the conversation she had had with her brother at the hospital taught her to not be afraid of love.

Every time they kissed, an intensity that hadn't been there before was now present. Emily hadn't used the four letter word yet, but she tried to express it without saying so. They found themselves kissing a lot, so she had plenty of opportunities to express her feelings. Aaron hadn't used it, either, so she didn't feel like she wasn't as committed as he was. However, Sawyer called her almost every day, and somewhere in their conversation he'd find a time to say 'Just tell him already!'. No matter how many times she tried to explain it, he still couldn't understand, even though her whole mentality about love was pretty simple.

She wasn't scared of it, it was just a huge commitment. Love was a highly overused word and Emily took it very seriously. And maybe it did make her a bit nervous, but that wasn't the point. That big four letter word would be saved for someone special, and though she might have found him, she wasn't ready to admit it just yet.

But now, no matter the circumstances, life had moved on. She had given her father's ashes to her grandmother and work was just as hectic as usual. Peter MacLeish had given his reasoning for admitting to treason. He felt guilty for his wife's death. But still, he refused to admit who he gave the files to. Seth was finding it harder and harder to keep the MacLeish investigation under wraps, but it was difficult when the newly elected Vice President and America's golden boy was being impeached.

She had to handle the job of dealing with the new VP candidate by herself since Aaron was having to assist the FBI with their investigation and Seth was handling the press. Hookstraten was next in line, but she gave it up, so the President pro tempore was about to become the Vice President. The FBI didn't have to vet her for the position since she had already been vetted for President pro tempore, but opposition research still had to be done.

This wasn't going to be fun.

It would have been easier if Aaron had been around to give her tips on how to go about it, but the MacLeish investigation was incredibly time-consuming. So far, she had only found out a little more than the basics.

Athena Haynes was the daughter of Kenyan immigrants, she was a Democratic representative from North Carolina who served in the House for three terms until her open sexuality caused her to lose favor, but the governor appointed her for the Senate. Last year she married her wife, Macie Alston, a representative from Arizona who retired to be with her after serving only a single term. After retiring from politics she became a schoolteacher. The two of them adopted their 13-year-old daughter, Zimmer, a few months after their marriage.

"So, how's your opposition research coming along? Harder than it looks, huh?" Aaron asked, walking into his office where she had been holed up all day.

"Yeah, it is. I was actually thinking that Macie Alston would be a good candidate for Secretary of Education. She served a term in the House for Arizona before she retired and became a teacher in North Carolina. She taught American History and was superintendent of her school district. During her time in the House she was on the committee for Education and The Workforce." Emily explained.

"Well, she seems like the best choice right now being that we don't have any others in mind for Education Secretary. I'll add her to the list."

"So, how's the investigation going, or is that classified?"