The Reluctant First Lady (2 page)

Michael turned to the room full of expectant faces. “President Nelson has offered us full cooperation as we transition into the White House, so we can hit the ground running.

“Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’d like to look over my acceptance speech one last time.”

He wasn’t normally nervous before a speech, but the seed of reality his daughter had planted in his mind about Ashley kept nagging at him, and he wanted some time alone. He wondered, now that he’d been elected, what Ashley was thinking.

Ashley had been wonderful on the campaign trail. She had taken time away from her busy schedule at the museum to go on the road to support him. She had been magnificent, and he appreciated all of the time she’d given him. There had been several times she was unable to appear with him, but fortunately her absences hadn’t been that obvious. It was imperative that the two of them sit down as soon as possible and hash this out.

With his speech polished to his satisfaction, they headed down to the ballroom.

Ashley had the twins in tow—although at their height and age, it looked more like they were pulling her along. Ed and Jack were organizing the rest of the presidential party that would appear on stage after he’d given his acceptance speech. Everything had been choreographed for Michael’s appearance before the crowd gathered in the ballroom and for viewers watching at home.

As the elevator descended to the ballroom floor, Michael could see Ashley was deep in thought. He wished he had time to take her aside and find out what was going through that lovely head of hers. The expression on her face was extremely readable to him. She didn’t like acting a part, and the mere fact that she was appearing with him on stage was most likely the cause for her pensive expression.

Just give me tonight, he silently prayed. Then, we’ll have a chance to talk and try and work through our differences.

2

Behind the curtain, Michael waited with his family for their stage cue. The heavy brocade curtains did little to suppress the noise generated by his loyal supporters. The throng of people, so exuberant in its display of emotions, began to cheer and chant “Taylor, Taylor, Taylor.”

The First Family stepped onto the stage to thunderous applause. The sound of camera lenses snapping and lights flashing from thousands of cameras gave the stage a surreal quality reminiscent of a sixties psychedelic light show. Television crews and reporters inched forward to capture the moment for the majority of the voters who were at home watching the proceedings on television.

The next First Family worked the stage, walking first to one side and then the other. The networks used the time to continue their commentary about the president-elect and Mrs. Taylor.

NBC’s Brian Williams began. “The wait is over. Here we have our next president of the United States, Senator Michael Taylor, and his lovely wife, Ashley, accompanied by their twins, Jeremy and Juliette.

“President-elect Taylor so far has a 52 percent lead over President Nelson’s 48 percent, which is far outside the margin predicted by the polls.”

Tom Brokaw cut in. “Some interesting background about President-elect Taylor. Many of you may know he did his undergraduate work at the University of California at Davis, receiving degrees in both political science and sociology. He went on to the University of California at Berkeley’s Law School, Boalt Hall, where he graduated at the top of his class. He was promptly recruited by the San Francisco district attorney’s office.

“He’s had a meteoric rise in politics. After working for the district attorney’s office for four years, he ran for Congress and won. He served three terms as a congressman from California and would probably have been re-elected if Senator Jim Burke hadn’t died. With Burke’s Senate seat available, Governor Feinman selected Representative Taylor to serve as Burke’s replacement. He readily won the special election to fill the senator’s seat, then ran for another term, and won again.”

Savannah Guthrie added, “Mrs. Taylor is also very accomplished. She attended UC Berkeley and has a bachelor’s degree in art history and a master’s degree in museum studies. She’s worked for the Cameron Museum of Art’s chain since she was in graduate school while also giving birth to their twins. That took a lot of juggling. I’d say she’s one dedicated woman when she wants something. It’s rare to see two such high-powered careers in one family. I’d like to know their secret for keeping everything in balance.”

Brokaw added, “The twins are twenty-one. Their son, Jeremy, is in his fourth year at Berkeley. He’s majoring in criminology while Juliette attends Stanford and is an environmental studies major. I wouldn’t relish being in their home during any football games between the two rival schools. One can only imagine the competitive atmosphere that occurs during those times. Maybe that’s how President-elect Taylor became such a gifted politician. He’s had to run interference between his children all these years.”

As the president-elect kissed his wife and hugged his children before they left the stage, Fox News weighed in.

Sean Hannity announced, “President-elect Taylor comes into office with very little political experience. He’s the third youngest president to be elected. He has no executive background or foreign policy experience. This leaves our country vulnerable on many levels, despite picking a senior and experienced senator as his running mate.”

Bret Baier added, “I’m sure it was Senator Hughes’s overall experience, and specifically his leadership on the foreign relations and appropriations committees, that made him the top choice for the vice-president slot. Still, it amazes me that President-elect Taylor got elected with such little political experience. Although it’s hard to deny his charisma. I don’t think anyone would argue with that.”

Bill O’Reilly smiled and shook his head. “He’s eye candy. He got the women’s vote because of his looks. The Democratic Party is always trying to revive the Kennedy legacy of Camelot. With President-elect Taylor and his beautiful wife, Ashley, they’ve come as close to achieving that goal as possible.”

Hannity nodded in agreement. “I think it should also be noted that the newly elected president is the first president to have graduated from Berkeley’s Boalt Law School. Coming from Berkeley, does that tell us anything about the direction the future president might try to take this country?”

O’Reilly said, “Look, coming from Berkeley, which is well known for being very left of liberal, I think pretty much guarantees us that President-elect Taylor will have a strong liberal, socialist agenda.”

As Ashley and the twins left the stage, Michael approached the podium. As the newly elected president stood waiting to speak before the jubilant assembly, he reflected on the steady and deliberate path that had brought him to this particular moment in time. He’d campaigned hard on his unwavering belief in the American people and the democratic system of government. He hoped he’d conveyed his integrity each time he spoke, no matter the size or composition of his audience. He believed the timing for his place in the roll call of presidents was perfect.

The handsome president-elect smiled at the exuberant crowd and spoke his first words,

“I want to thank you all . . .”

3

Backstage, Ashley was tormented with guilt for the part she was playing in what she believed was an elaborate ruse. She hated that she’d been put in this position, hated that she was going to throw a monkey wrench into her husband’s new administration, and mostly hated that she’d allowed this deception to go on for so long.

She walked over to where Ed and Jack were standing. “I know you don’t want to deal with the position I’m taking in regards to being the First Lady, but there’s got to be some way to break it to the public. Michael convinced you if he was elected, I would change my mind. That’s not going to happen. I went along with all of you during the campaign, but now Michael’s been elected, and I really believe it’s time to let the public know.”

Ashley noted the expressions on Ed’s and Jack’s faces. They looked as if Ashley were a cobra ready to strike. It wasn’t funny. Nothing about this situation was funny, but for some reason, their facial expressions reminded her of the words from a nursery rhyme she used to read to her kids. “Run, run, as fast as you can; you can’t catch me, I’m the gingerbread man, I am, I am.” Michael had run and had won; there would be no more running.

Ashley was aware that Jeremy and Juliette had flanked her sides. They were determined to weigh in on anything their mother had to say. Good grief, you teach them to talk when they’re little, and when they grow up, they argue and become opinionated and never shut up.

“Mom,” Juliette said, “please, think about what you’re doing. Won’t you change your mind? How often does your husband get elected president? Can’t you give up your career just for a little while?”

“Do you know what you’re asking, Juliette?” Ashley said. “Would you expect your dad to give up his political career for my job? Probably not. I hope if I’ve taught you anything, it’s that as a woman you have the right to choose your own path. You don’t have to follow in a man’s footsteps. Just because I’m a woman, the first thing people assume is I should give up my career. That’s completely unfair to me. I’ve worked every bit as hard to get where I am today as your dad has worked in his career.”

Juliette tried again, “But, Mom . . .”

“No, Sis, Mom’s right.” Jeremy jumped into the fray. “Mom’s never lied. The reason this is all so convoluted is because she’s the first one to take this position. I agree with her. Just because something has always been done a certain way doesn’t mean it’s right or wrong, or good or bad; it’s just that no one’s ever challenged the status quo before.”

Ed leveled a less-than-pleased look at Ashley. “You realize that your husband was just elected president, and before he’s even sworn into office, you want the people who voted for him to deal with your news. Ashley, please reconsider. You’re not being fair to Michael.”

“I know that’s what you believe, Ed. It’s in the mind-set you grew up with. I understand where you’re coming from. I don’t want to hurt him or his administration, but this should have been dealt with from the start. Then maybe it wouldn’t be such a huge elephant in the room. Will it really be so shocking for America to hear that even the president and his wife are a two-career family? I don’t think you’re giving the American people enough credit. Unfortunately now it’s bound to become a bigger story than it needs to be. Did you all think I was going to change my mind?

“I just walked out on stage in front of most of America and acted as if we were all one big happy family; here we are, folks, the next First Family. When the news breaks regarding my decision, it’s going to make me look like a liar and a traitor to my husband. Neither of those scenarios sits well with me. We should have been up-front from the beginning.

“I don’t want to ruin this night for Michael. But, please, start trying to figure out how to deal with this. I’ll be heading back to New York in a day or two, and people are going to want to know what’s going on. I feel like we’re already behind the eight ball.”

Applause and pandemonium broke out on the other side of the curtain, indicating Michael had reached the end of his speech.

A stage manager nodded and, with Ashley and the twins leading the way, followed by the vice president-elect, his wife, and family, she stepped onto the stage and into the bright lights. The noise from the crowd grew in intensity as each of them came into view. They all walked forward to stand beside Michael, Ashley and the twins to his left; Robert Hughes, Catherine, and their children to his right.

The chaos and elation vibrating through the crowd was intoxicating. Cheers from a wildly exuberant audience and music blocked out what individuals were saying, but the camaraderie of those on the stage was evidenced by their smiles, hugs, and claps on the back. Before the world, she and Michael looked like the perfect couple. Michael pulled his family, plus Richard and his family, toward him while photographers snapped pictures of this historic event.

Amid the excitement, it almost went unnoticed that a reporter shouted a question at Ashley. She ignored him, hoping he would go away.

The reporter repeated his question. “Mrs. Taylor, what causes do you intend to champion during the next four years in the White House?”

Ashley winced inwardly, but no outward expression marred her serene expression. She had a choice. She could tell the truth or continue to go along with the lie. Damn it. She’d been dodging questions like this for months about what special causes she intended to champion if her husband were elected. In fact, she’d become a master of evasion, not something she was proud of. Unquestionably the smartest thing to do would be to give the same canned response she’d been giving throughout the campaign. It would be a lie, all of it. But then she wouldn’t be accused of rocking the boat, a boat, she might add, that she knew was taking on a lot of water.

She was tired of being evasive. She was sick to death of lying by omission. Michael’s managers had convinced her that he wouldn’t be elected if she declared her intentions. But, Michael had been elected. Was it possible that she was making more of this than necessary?

She leaned toward the reporter and his microphone and began speaking in a quiet, clear voice.

“First, I’d like to thank everyone here and at home for their incredible support throughout the campaign. I’m extremely proud of Michael and have always believed he’d be a great leader and a great president. The American people have chosen wisely and well this day. As for me, with the election over, I’ll be returning to my job as director of the Cameron Museum of Art in New York. It’s never been my intention to serve as the First Lady. Over half of the families in our country are two-career families. Our family isn’t any different. In fact . . .”

Ashley felt Michael’s hand on her elbow. “Ashley, just smile and wave. We’re getting off of the stage now.”

Michael turned to the audience and waved as cheers and applause continued to ripple through the gathered body of well-wishers.