Reappearance of Summmer Read online

  Once in the room, Summer started the shower. As she began to undress, a myriad of thoughts flooded her brain, most of them centering on old demons she tried to repress or forget. None of them had anything to do with the woman who occupied the room down the hall, though; Summer’s issues were all her own.

  The thoughts and troubling emotions that came with being back at the White House had begun two years ago, after her jet had gone down during a rescue mission. The mission had been one she’d done numerous times, and Summer had felt no stress about it. Providing aerial support to a rescue plane was a job Summer could have done in her sleep, but an hour into the mission things had taken a turn for the worse. They had rescued the envoys, but on the return flight insurgents in the area had begun to fire missiles at them—missiles that hadn’t been reported in any of the intelligence reports—and Summer tried to do the task she had been assigned to do which was protect the rescue plane. In the span of fifteen minutes the mission became a complete disaster and a total failure.

  During those tense, devastating minutes the small rescue plane had been obliterated, and none of the individuals on the craft, including the envoys, survived. The two other jets that had also been providing aerial support had gone down over the Persian Gulf, and the pilots of them still hadn’t been found. They were classified as “killed in action, body not retrieved” or KIA/BNR. Summer knew the bodies would never be found.

  Her own jet had been hit before it reached the gulf, but Summer had been able to make final maneuvers to ensure her plane crashed on land, however, the mountainous terrain had been rough and dangerous. The last thing Summer remembered was the sound of metal hitting the rocks and thinking of Val. She woke up a week later and found her leg had been amputated above the knee.

  The loss of her leg and failing the mission had put Summer in a bad place mentally and instead of seeking help, she had taken it out on those around her. For six months after the crash, Summer had vilified anyone who tried to help her, but the person who had felt the brunt of her anger and nastiness had been Val. Not once during those long, painful months did Val retaliate and tell Summer to get over herself, but they had also been in the middle of her first term as president and appearances had to be maintained.

  The day before an important state dinner, Summer had run away from the White House and her marriage without saying a single word to Val. Months after she had left D.C., Summer had her lawyers draw up divorce papers and send them to Val, and she had signed them, putting up no fight.

  The two of them hadn’t spoken to each other in two years, and despite Summer wanting a clean break, it wasn’t possible. Their divorce became fodder for the news outlets and tabloids, and Summer still had to have protection. Once her lawyers and the Secret Service had come up with an agreement, she began to live a life that allowed her to bury the damaging emotions that threatened to render her useless.

  Nothing but bad memories and unresolved issues haunted Summer as she got into the shower. She showered quickly, and as she got out of the tub, she heard a knock on the room’s main door. After putting on her robe and getting her crutches situated, Summer exited the bathroom to answer it. As soon as the door opened and she saw who stood in front of it, her eyes instantly narrowed. Considering how her day had been going, along with where she had been taken, Summer had had her fill of dealing with anyone attached to Val and the federal government. “Oh, fuck no,” she exclaimed. Summer tried to close the door, but the person on the other side didn’t let her. “Are you fucking kidding me right now?” Her eyes bore into green ones that held as much anger as her own. “What do you want, Addison?”

  Val’s chief of staff, Addison Connors, pushed her away from the door and retorted, “It’s nice to fucking see you too, Summer. I see Val was able to pull you away from all the whoring you were doing in Europe.”

  “As if I had a choice,” Summer countered. Her arm still hurt from where the dart had landed, and a nice bruise had formed around it. “Your fucking boss ordered her lackeys to haul me in and they shot me with a tranquilizer dart.” She scowled. “Then she had the nerve to tell me ‘my country needs me to serve again’,” Summer said, imitating Val with a sneer. “It sounds like a load of horse shit to me. I don’t fucking—"

  “Are you fucking done yet?” Addison interrupted, and unrestrained anger blazed in her eyes. “You owe her this, you selfish asshole.”

  “I don’t owe her shit,” Summer shouted.

  Addison took a step towards her. “Yes, you fucking do. You embarrassed her, and you continue to do so by not using discretion when you’re being a whore.” She paused for a second. “You fucking abandoned her, Summer. In the middle of her first term as leader of the free world, you abandoned her. Do you even think about what the hell you did to her?” Addison let out an angry huff. “I’m certain you don’t. Val couldn’t do anything. She still had to be president while trying to recover from all the shit you put her through.” Addison stepped away from Summer and began to pace in front of her. “While you were off gallivanting around the damn world, claiming to do work for you parents, which we know is a lie; Val had to deal with the massive blowout from your bullshit.”

  Summer didn’t care. She had done what she did for herself, and for Val, if she were honest with herself. Summer pinned Addison down with a hard gaze. “Are you done?”

  For a full second, Addison gaped at her, but then her anger returned in full force. She charged over to Summer, and before she knew what was happening, the palm of Addison’s hand struck her cheek hard. “Are you so cold and heartless that you truly do not care about Val?”

  Summer slipped her right arm out of the cuff of her crutch and rubbed her cheek. “What is there for me to fucking care about, Addison?” she asked as she glowered at her. “I’m not the same fucking person I was two years ago, and it’s not like Val was alone.” Summer gestured towards Addison. “She had you and I’m certain you were there to comfort her after I supposedly abandoned her,” she said, adding a slight innuendo to her words.

  Addison let out a brief sarcastic chuckle and gave her head a slight shake. “You’re a piece of work.” With that, she left the room, slamming the door closed behind her. Summer stared at it, and after a long minute, she sighed. A long time ago, Addison had been her best friend, but not any longer. Their relationship crumbled the moment she came back from the hospital after the crash, and once the divorce had been finalized, Addison had chosen Val’s side. Something Summer honestly couldn’t blame her for. Before her thoughts were able to take her down darker avenues, Summer went to the closet and got some clothes. She would keep herself busy until she found a way to corner Val and find out why she was at the White House.

  ~~~~

  Val stared out the window behind her desk in the Oval Office, barely registering the freshly planted flowers in the Rose Garden. Thoughts of Summer filled her mind, and her feelings were as scattered as they were. Seeing Summer for the first time in two years had kicked up the maelstrom of emotions Val had managed to repress. It seemed like she was seconds away from crying, but at the same time she wanted to find Summer and hand her her ass. Val took a sip of the whiskey floating in the glass in her hand. She thought she would have been able to compartmentalize her feelings and ignore the reactions she had upon seeing Summer again, but that was far from the case.

  No matter how she felt about her, seeing her walk into the conference room earlier had caused Val’s breathing to stop. Her ex-wife was as gorgeous as ever; even more so since growing her hair out, and her blue eyes held the same fire they always possessed, except their intensity had grown, fueled by Summer’s anger. Val sighed and took another drink from her glass, then pressed the edge of it to her lips. For what seemed like the thousandth time, she second-guessed her decision to involve Summer in something as delicate as this.

  Bringing in Summer hadn’t been her idea. The chief of staff for the Air Force had suggested to Val, and the other chiefs of staff, that Summer be considered since she had been
one of the best pilots the Air Force had seen in the last decade or so. The general had included Summer’s fearlessness along with her ability to remain calm under stressful situations as reasons to bring her in. Considering the situation the country currently found itself in, those were needed attributes in whoever they chose.

  Val hadn’t disagreed with the general’s assessment. Summer was a natural pilot, and flying and navigating planes and jets came intuitively to her. There was a reason why she had reached colonel at such a young age, and it wasn’t because she looked good in the uniform, but due to her raw talent as a pilot.

  At some point, logic should have kicked in, and Val should have told General Archambault Summer wasn’t an option and ended the conversation there, but sheer stupidity had gotten in the way. Expecting her to fail, Val had told the general if she found a way to get Summer back to the states so they could discuss the matter at hand, then she would be considered along with the other pilots.

  Val softly grunted to herself. What a brilliant idea that had been. She finished off the whiskey in her glass and made her way to the small liquor cabinet standing against the wall to right of her desk. Though she was tempted to drown her tumultuous emotions with more whiskey, she poured herself a glass of water. Having Summer back in the White House threatened her ability to maintain the political veneer that hid her anger, resentment, and hurt from the rest of the world. Val went back to her desk and sat down in the leather office chair.

  Processing the end of her marriage and working through the pain Summer had caused was a luxury she couldn’t afford, and Val still had emotions and feelings she needed to work through, but there was nothing she could do about them. She was the president and there were certain ways she was supposed to conduct herself. Unfortunately, having a mental breakdown and going off on her wayward ex-wife wasn’t becoming of a sitting president.

  A soft knock on the Oval Office door brought Val back to the present, and she cleared her throat before calling out, “Come in.” It opened, and her administrative assistant, Emanuel, walked in. She smiled at him. “What’s going on, Manny?”

  “Ms. Connors is requesting to see you,” he replied.

  Val gave him a slight nod. “Send Addison in.”

  Manny moved out of the doorway, and Addison walked in behind him. They waited for the door to close behind him, then Addison moved closer to the desk, a sympathetic smile on her face. “How are you doing?”

  Val forced out a short breath, but then it turned into a half-hearted chuckle. “My ex-wife thinks I’m using the Secret Service to stalk her, and she is so angry.” Val blew out a long breath and added, “I’m not even certain if it’s all directed at me, and if it is, I have no idea where it’s coming from.”

  “You know how Summer is,” Addison started as she sat down in one of the chairs in front of Val’s desk. “She’s full of anger and swears and no one ever knows what the hell she’s pissed about.”

  “I know,” Val said with a small sigh. “But this goes beyond Summer being Summer, she’s pissed at me for some reason, and all I can do is fall in love with her again despite the shit we are in.” She smiled at Addison. “Did you see her hair? She grew it out.”

  Addison pointed at Val as a stern and piercing gaze stared at her. “No, you are not allowed to do this.” She got up and walked around the desk, leaning against it once she stood next to Val’s chair. “You cannot fall back in love with the selfish asshole who abandoned you.”

  “Addison, you can’t call her selfish. Everything Summer went through—”

  “And now you’re making excuses for her,” Addison interjected. “Val, you have to be kidding me right now.”

  Val pressed her lips together, and the two of them fell silent for a moment. She couldn’t help it; protecting and caring about Summer was something that came as easy as breathing did.

  Addison sighed. “I slapped her.”

  Val’s eyes widened upon hearing the admission, but after a few seconds she began to chuckle softly. Eventually, it devolved into full-blown laughter with Addison joining her. As they caught their breaths, Val chuckled and asked, “Why?”

  Addison let out a small laugh, then exclaimed, “She pissed me off. The way she spoke about you while not showing a shred of remorse for leaving infuriated me. She was so uncaring, and I couldn’t believe it was Summer, but hearing her talk the way she did…I couldn’t stop myself.” She exhaled a forceful breath and looked down at her hands which rested in her lap. “I thought I would be able to smack some sense into her, but we see how well that worked out.” Addison’s eyes met Val’s. “I honestly think she doesn’t care about you anymore.”

  The confession felt like a knife through Val’s heart. The sympathy reflected in Addison’s eyes told her she didn’t want to hurt her, but the truth needed to be said. If Val were using her head, and not her heart, she would have agreed with Addison. Summer’s behavior over the last two years proved she didn’t care, and not just about Val, but about most things in her life. Over time Summer had turned into a completely different person, but Val’s heart still held on and continued to believe, perhaps one day, her Summer would return.

  “The crash had a tremendous effect on her, Addy,” Val pointed out before releasing a deep sigh. “Summer was a damn good pilot who had a bright career ahead of her, and it was taken from her in a blink of an eye.”

  “Are you saying it excuses her behavior for the last two years and explains why she left you in the middle of your first term?” Addison asked, completely flabbergasted by the excuse.

  A slight grimace crossed Val’s face, and she shrugged. “I don’t know.” The frown quickly turned into a grin. “Hey, Summer may not have had the best timing in leaving me, but we did get a silver lining out of it.”

  “Which is…?” Addison wondered. Val’s smile grew when she heard the skepticism in her voice.

  “It probably had a hand in me winning the presidency for a second term,” Val answered.

  Addison chuckled and nodded. “You’re probably right, so I’ll give you this one.”

  The two of them shared a laugh, and as they calmed down Val said, “You slapping Summer isn’t the worst thing to happen to her today. I, of course, beat you hands down in being an ass towards her.”

  “Oh, goodness, what did you do?”

  Val’s face scrunched up as she reluctantly replied, “I may have insinuated that patriotism wasn’t the reason why she went into the academy.”

  Addison sucked in a deep breath through her teeth. “Damn, Val. Summer may be the world’s biggest asshole, but you know that was a low blow, right?”

  Val nodded. “I do, but she pissed me off so much a part of me wanted to make her hurt, even just a little bit.” She knew her resentment had gotten the best of her at the time, and it was the reason why the insult had come from flying out her mouth.

  A reassuring smile came to Addison’s face. “You don’t have to explain yourself to me. I know what you’ve been through, and I know what you’ve had to hold back on. You will get no judgment from me.”

  “Thank you,” Val said with a gracious nod. She did feel a little guilty about the implication now, but it would be another thing for her to repress. She drew in a deep breath and asked, “How is our esteemed guest by the way?”

  Addison waved her hand dismissively. “I don’t know. After I left the Residence, I went to my office to cool down.”

  “Does she know why she’s here?” Val asked. She still hadn’t figured out the best way to tell Summer the reason why she had been brought back to D.C. Considering what had happened down in the conference room, she was tempted to tell her in private and deal with the backlash alone.

  “No, she doesn’t,” Addison answered with a small laugh. “That is a task I have reserved especially for you.” She grinned at Val. “She’s your ex-wife.”

  “But she’s your best friend.”

  Addison clicked her tongue and pointed at Val. “But I chose you in the divorce.”


  Val glared at her playfully. “Only because I’m your boss.”

  “And the president.”

  Val and Addison shared another laugh, and after they caught their breaths, Val said, “I’m going to wait until we have more intelligence before telling her. It’s only been twenty-four hours and I don’t want to get ahead of myself.”

  Addison nodded in agreement. “I’ll get you an update.” She pushed off the desk and stood up straight. “In the meantime, the second draft of the budget has landed on my desk. I’ll bring it to you.”

  Val groaned. The first draft of the bill had been a horrendous mess, and she hadn’t been able to get through the first five pages.

  “Oh, and the legislation for restructuring the education system has finally been written up. I’ve got that for you as well.”

  Val glowered at her chief of staff. “Do you have any good news?”

  Addison glanced at the watch on her wrist and grinned. “I do actually; the school tour should be entering the White House in about thirty minutes.”

  Val gasped, and a huge smile broke out on her face. She loved surprising the school tours. The kids were always so excited to see and talk to her. But before she could plan where she wanted to sneak up on the tour group, a thought came to her. “Have we heard anything from the Alliance about the situation?”

  Addison gave a hesitant nod before replying, “Everyone is waiting to see what happens in the coming day, and then a plan will be formulated.”

  Val gave her a pointed look. “I know we are in a precarious situation, but we need to start planning now in case things go south quickly, which is quite common in these situations.”

  “I know, and so do some of the leaders on the Alliance, but there are some conservative leaders who think taking action too soon may be uncalled for.”