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"Hey, you." Claire grinned, seeing Francis walk into the residence with determination on his face. It had been almost two months since he was released home, since Garrett had arrived unannounced in their house. The country had fallen in love with them, supporting Francis as President and behind Cathy's announcement that she and James would be joining the State Department as important members. They were busy, extremely busy. But, she was sure that wasn't why Francis seemed so frustrated at the moment. As he approached her, he nearly ripped off his jacket, throwing it on the couch that she wasn't on. "What's wrong?"

"The fucking negotiations with China made me forget the doctor was here to do a follow up. By the time I remembered, he was already gone." Francis seethed before dropping down into the chair, nearly laying on it. "I'm the President of the United States and I can't lift more than ten pounds. I want the doctor to clear me." He watched as Claire continued to tidy paperwork in her lap and on the coffee table. He leaned forward, moving to his knees in front of her. His hands ran up her calves, feeling the goosebumps even though she was trying to focus on her work. "You want me to be cleared."

Claire nodded. "I do." She pulled off her glasses, setting them on the coffee table with the papers from her lap. "I want you to start using the rowing machine again."

Francis groaned, dropping his head into her lap. He felt her fingers comb through his hair and knew she was smirking down at him. "Fuck the rowing machine. No," he lifted his head, looking up at her, "I want to fuck my wife."

"Francis," Claire warned. She felt his hand inch under the skirt of her dress, but she didn't make a move to stop him. "I am not risking your health. You can wait until morning for the doctor to come back." Her last word came out on a breath, eyes closing as Francis met the lace between her thighs.

Francis pecked her lips, moving against her legs. "Or, we can do what he'll do. Play doctor for me, Claire."

Claire giggled with a shake of her head. "Disgusting." She continued to laugh as Francis moved over her, causing her to lay back on the couch as he kneeled between her legs. "You must be really frustrated. Your corny side is coming out."

"Well then, I'm a corny, horny bastard." Francis grinned in full southern swing before kissing her neck, causing Claire to burst into laughter. She hummed softly when his lips traveled down to her collar bone. "You were positive the doctor was going to clear me anyway."

Claire smirked as she pulled Francis away from her skin, bringing his face up to hers. "Yes, but you were supposed to see the doctor. I can't encourage your bad behavior." She smirked even as he chuckled above her.

"Someone was cleared by their doctor." James's voice caught their attention, forcing the two to look up and see her and Doug entering the residence. He didn't even have a limp anymore, cleared weeks earlier. "As happy as I am that you two are still hot for each, please get off my mother, Daddy."

"In fact, someone wasn't cleared. Just impatient." Claire stated after Francis pushed off of her, allowing her to sit up. She smiled seeing James and Doug in what seemed to be work mode, probably very similar to how her and Francis looked in their early days. Possibly still today. "How did the meeting with Cathy go?"

James smiled, walking up to the armchair a few feet from them and leaning against the back of it. "Very well. She agreed to let me spearhead the partnerships with the missing children foundation and the No More campaign. She will join me for the first few meetings for details, but, if all goes well, I'll take it over from there with you if you're still interested."

"Of course." Claire agreed before seeing Doug walk up, a frown on his face as he stared down at the screen of his tablet. "Something wrong, Doug?"

"There's a poll online of people voting who most likely is James's fiance." Doug explained before turning the tablet towards her and Francis. "I'm not even on it. Number one choice is a guy in line to be the King of England after two hundred other people die."

James rolled her eyes and turned off the screen. "Stop searching my name on the internet." She looked back to her parents, her eyes meeting Francis's. "Cathy is hearing possible chatter about movement in Russia. She's thinking we'll need to meet with Petrov within the month to negotiate some type of peace between countries. Could be a chance for Mom and I to show we can run the State Department when Cathy is away."

Francis smirked and stood, kissing her temple. "Always the politician, darlin'." He turned back to Claire. "I think I'm going to turn myself in for the night. Do you think you'll be long?" He gestured to her paperwork that littered their coffee table.

"I'll be there in a moment." Claire answered before meeting James's eyes. Francis disappeared into their room, and Doug, seeing the two lock eyes, decided to head back to his and James's room. When both doors were closed, she stood, playing with her daughter's hair. "How do you want to play Cathy?"

"No playing." James stated with a shrug. "If we help her, make her look good, we have her endorsement in the next election. If we make her look good, her endorsement will be golden to the rest of the country."

Claire winked at her. "I'll talk to your father. Head to bed."

James walked out of her bathroom in an overly large long sleeve shirt, finding Doug sitting up in their bed with his tablet shining off his glasses. By the reflection, she knew exactly what he was reading and rolled her eyes, grabbing the tablet and tossing it in the chair in the corner. "Stop looking at that stupid poll. I'm surprised you're even looking at it. It's a stupid vote that gets peoples' minds off bigger problems."

"We could use those guys to our advantage." Doug stated as he took off his glasses. "If they think they have a chance with you, who knows what we could accomplish."

"I don't even want them to think they have a chance." James stated before crawling over Doug, straddling his thighs. She held up her left hand, showing him the engagement ring that hadn't left it since he gave it to her. "In a couple years, everyone will know you're the only one for me. All those guys on the poll will wonder how the hell you got me. They'll all be jealous of you, Doug." She leaned forward, kissing his lips. "They'll all be jealous of us, because I've got you. You've got me. The rest of the world will wonder how they can be us and how we even got together. They'll want to be us." She kissed him again, hands moving to the hem of his t-shirt. "So, forget the fucking poll."

Doug grinned, allowing her to pull off his shirt before lifting hers over her head. He moved forward, knocking her flat on her back and laying his body on top of hers. Her legs tucked into his sides, feeling him through his sweatpants between her legs as he leaned down to her ear. "How did I get you?" He kissed down her neck towards her naked chest. "It was the sex, wasn't it?"

James laughed as he moved back up to meet her lips, his hands moving to remove the rest of their clothing. "While that is very good, it was cake that sealed the deal." She wrapped her arms around his neck, feeling the skin of his thighs touch her own heated ones. "And, it was my favorite flavor."

"You really are out to torture me." Francis groaned as he walked into the bathroom, finding Claire lounging in the bathtub. She had her eyes closed, but her smirk spoke volumes as her body hid beneath the layer of suds. "At least let me join you."

"You couldn't keep your hands to yourself when we were fully clothed on the couch. What would make me believe you would behave in here when we're completely naked?" Claire chuckled even as Francis began undressing himself. Despite her words of disapproval, she opened her eyes and leaned forward.

Francis draped his clothes over the edges of his sink and the hooks on the wall, preventing the inevitable wrinkles to wreck havoc on them. He slid into the tub behind her, pulling her back against his chest when he was settled. "I'll behave." He kissed her head, his nose nudging her hair. "We've been so busy with things; I haven't even had a chance to enjoy it with you. I haven't even told you I noticed you growing your hair back out. I'll prepare myself to start finding bobby pins wherever I go."

"I haven't used those since James was a toddler." Claire chuckled. "And, it's not your fault. Between the calls for interviews and our jobs, we all have been slacking with each other." She breathed, caressing his arms under the water as they stayed wrapped around her torso. "We should make time for each other though. This power could ruin us if we let it."

"Luckily, it's not just us we worry about in this world." Francis breathed, tangling their fingers together. He smiled next to her ear. "Doug said something this morning that reminded me of us in college." He saw her eyebrow quirk up, curious. "He escorts James to work every morning after she finishes her school work for the day. He'll then go and walk her back here if you have already left for the evening. Just thought of the few times I walked you home."

Claire smiled widely, gazing up at him as she laid her head back on his shoulder. "Few? Francis, I think you're miscalculating."

Francis frowned. "Am not."

Claire chuckled, bringing their hands out of the water to place a kiss on his knuckles. "You walked me home eighteen times in one month, Francis. You waited for me outside of classes that ended hours later than yours, even sat by me with your homework while I studied in the library just to take me back."

"It was on my way home." Francis stated, trying to blow it off. He didn't know why he always felt embarrassed for the traditional things he did for her. She was the only one who could ever call him out on something so mundane, so wildly out of character for him. He'd do anything for her, showed her that time and time again, but never liked to admit that he did anything so obvious for everyone to see his intentions. He stroked her skin in the water. Even naked as the day he was born and pressed against her, he couldn't admit it. "It was just on my way home."

"No," Claire called him out again, "you went out of your way to try to take me to the museum of fine arts. It was closed. It was freezing that day. At that point, we were closer to your place than mine. We ended up there and our movie was on. The movie that has our superstitions high when it comes to elections. The movie we can quote by heart without skipping a beat."

Francis smirked at that last part. "How could I know that murder can sometimes smell like honeysuckle?" He skimmed his lips along her cheek. "It was on that afternoon."

Claire continued, feeling the goosebumps breaking out where his lips touched her. "And, I asked you to kiss me." She inhaled sharply when he hand brushed over her breast in the water. "I made you kiss me."

"You didn't make me kiss you. I wanted to kiss you." Francis stated quietly, almost in a pout. "I knew long before then that we would spend the rest of our lives together." He glided his fingers along her stomach, grazing the top of her thigh back of forth. "I just didn't want to risk breaking whatever we had between us. You know I know you could do better than me. It makes me ashamed that I can't be good enough for you, but I'm beyond grateful that you decided to be with me. Luckily, you saw in me something I couldn't see."

Claire squeezed the hand still tangled with hers across her chest. She leaned up, kissing the corner of his jaw before he craned his neck to meet her lips with his. "I only wanted you, Francis. You're the only one who truly knows me." She hummed softly when his fingers moved to her inner thigh, fanning the flame between her legs steadily. "I thought it was cute how shy you were though." She giggled when his eyes rolled but moaned when he showed her just how confident he was.

"Hey, darlin'," Francis smiled as James walked in with files stacked on top of her text book. He sat behind his desk, waiting for the doctor to be done testing his blood pressure. It was the last thing on his list to do. "How's the homework coming along?"

"Almost done." James smirked before sitting down across from him. Since her discovery after the kidnapping, the school had allowed James to stay home for school, sending work with one of the teachers she was closer to so they could discuss the curriculum. "Just a paper left to write and then I'll be done with this year's work." She glanced at the doctor briefly. "You know how I am about my literature class."

Francis chuckled before the doctor cleared his throat, snapping the velcro off of his arm. "That will do it, Mr. President. Continue to work on your exercises to build that muscle back up, but I am giving you a clean bill of health."

"Thank you, Dr. Crawford. I'll be sure to do that." Francis smiled, standing up and escorting him to the door. "And, give those details to Nancy. I'm sure we can figure out something to help raise funds for treatment research." He let Dr. Crawford step outside to Nancy before closing the door. Turning back to sit behind his desk, he watched James toss a file across the desk towards his spot. "What's this?"

"Doug did some research. Talked to a lawyer, hypothetically of course." James explained, crossing one leg over the other. "We have every right to sue the school since I was kidnapped on their grounds. I spoke with Mom about it this morning before she left for a meeting with Cathy. Garrett's mission was to have an education bill passed within the first hundred days of his Presidency. You drafted that bill. We can use that for you."

Francis rubbed his chin, jumping on the train his daughter was driving his way. "What good is education if our children aren't safe? More money for security measures. School shootings seem to be happening all the time. That segways into gun control, another close topic to home for us."

James nodded, tucking her hair behind her ear. "Gun control is touchy, something to plan for the campaign. I think with the recent events, most people won't speak against a little more safety."

Francis saw the slight tremor in his daughter's hand. He knew from Claire and Doug that she struggled more than she let on after watching both Doug and himself get shot, after she was trapped in a room with Garrett. He didn't blame her. He put up with the pain and discomfort of his injuries just to hold her and Claire close in the hospital. He crooked his finger at her, motioning her to come closer. She stood and walked around to him before he pulled her down to sit with him, pulling her fully into his lap. "James, we are safe here." He kissed her forehead, remembering many times those words seemed to ease his daughter away from emotional distress.

"James, sweetheart, it's okay." Claire breathed into her three-year-old's hair even as her tiny body trembled in her arms. It was late, way past the time she would've laid her daughter down for bed. But, James became a sobbing mess whenever Claire tried to leave her office with her. She had picked James up earlier from daycare and brought her to the office just to finish up a few things and ended up finding a protest outside. A neighboring apartment building housed a man accused and acquitted of murder charges, but the public came to crucify him at his front steps anyway. The moment she had stepped out of the car, James's body tensed hearing the crowd scream things like 'murderer' and 'kill him'. Luckily as she was trying to calm her frightened child, Francis walked into her empty office, seeing everyone had left except for her. "Shh, hey, look who's here."

Francis felt his heart break when James's lifted her head, peering at him with puffy red eyes and tear-stained cheeks. It looked like she had been crying since she and Claire arrived nearly five hours ago. Seeing him though caused James's arms to shoot out for him, and he was happy to relieve Claire and tend to their upset daughter. The moment he had her in his arms, she wrapped her small ones around his neck and tucked her face against his. "No need for all those tears, darlin'. I know they frightened you, but they weren't yelling at you."

James's breath was labored as she tried to fight back the sniffles that came every time she cried. "They wanted to kill him." She wiped at her eyes with a fist. "Why?"

"They think he got away with doing a bad thing to somebody else." Francis explained, glancing at Claire to see her in obvious guilt. They both hated when their daughter was upset, and he couldn't imagine how awful she felt after trying to calm her down for this long and not really getting anywhere. "You don't have to worry about that. We're safe here. Do you think I would ever let anything or anyone hurt you?" He gently urged her to pull back so she could see his eyes.

"No," James croaked out, rubbing her tired eyes. She was nearing emotional and physical exhaustion.

"Do you think your mother would ever let anything or anyone hurt you?" He asked, brushing her curls back from her face.

James looked over at Claire who forced out a small smile to reassure her. Her little head shook. "No."

"Then, what makes you think anything bad is going to happen out there?" Francis questioned her before kissing her cheek. "Let's head home." He turned to leave the office, but immediately stopped when James started squirming against him.

"No, no, no," she repeated, her voice getting higher as the fear crept in. When Francis stopped, she clung to his labels, sobbing into his shoulder.

Francis held James tightly, cupping the back of her head to try and comfort her, as he turned back to Claire. The fight was getting to her as well, her eyes filling with tears listening to their daughter's cries in fear of the world. "My God, she's breaking my heart." He breathed.

Claire nodded, wiping her cheeks. She motioned for his jacket hanging over his forearm, taking it when he offered and covering James with it. "Let's just get this over with."

Francis sighed before moving his arms over the jacket to secure it to his daughter and continue to hold her close to his chest. Claire collected her purse and jacket from a nearby desk and followed behind him as they started walking out of the building. Her cries and sobs only wracked her body harder as they got close to the exit. "James, I need you to calm down. We are safe, darlin'." When Claire opened the door, James fought him her hardest to try and make him put her down. He gritted his teeth and spoke a little harsher than what he intended. "Stop!"

James stilled against him, fists still white on his labels. Her body continued to tremble, but she stopped fighting him. Once she felt the cool night air, she closed her eyes tightly and buried her face in the crook of Francis's neck, whimpering only when the sound of the car door startled her.

Francis gestured for Claire to climb in first before joining her in the backseat. He could see the need all over her face. Her eyes failing to contain the welling tears and the slight tremor in her shoulders, fingers fidgeting with her bag. He quickly settled in, pulling the jacket off of James. "Take her."

Claire didn't waste a second before her arms were bringing James into her lap and holding her tightly to her frame. As much as he wanted to soothe his terrified daughter, he knew Claire needed the moment more after everything she had endured. His gruff command to James would need to settle with his three year old before he could have his moment, and he was glad it was that same night.

He stood in the kitchen, nursing a whisky, when Claire walked down with James. Both were in their pajamas, and James was fresh from a bath. Her eyes looked exhausted, and he could see she was barely staying awake on Claire's hip. "We are heading to bed. How long do you think you'll be?"

"I should be up shortly." Francis leaned against the doorframe. He polished off his glass, setting it down beside him. "She'll be with us tonight." He stated more than assumed, but Claire's nod confirmed it. "Goodnight then."

Claire leaned down, setting James down on her feet. "Go say goodnight to your father." James looked up at her with big blue eyes, but Claire motioned her forward again. "Go on. Give him a kiss before we head up."

James's gaze turned to Francis as she walked forward to him almost cautiously. He crouched down, hugging her small frame and kissing her cheek when she asked. "Are you mad at me, Daddy?"

"Why on Earth would I be mad at you?" Francis asked, pulling back to meet her eyes. He brushed back her damp hair, resting his other hand on her waist. "I know you were scared, and I don't blame you for that. I just don't like to see you so upset." He tapped her nose with his finger. "It makes me sad when you cry."

James nodded, seeming to take the answer. "Does it make you sad cause you love me?"

"Absolutely." Francis breathed. "Just like I love Mommy and Mommy loves the two of us. You don't like it when Mommy cries." She shook her head. "I love you more than anything in the world, darlin'. I'd do anything to keep you from crying."

"I love you too, Daddy." James smiled as she hugged him again, tighter this time. She pulled back, beaming at him despite her lack of sleep. He had a feeling she'd get a second wind soon if they didn't wrap this up. "And, we love Mommy."

Francis grinned, holding James close to his chest, nearly cheek to cheek, so they could both look at Claire smirking by the couch. "Of course, we love Mommy. She's the best Mommy in the world. Now," he turned her slightly towards him, tapping his finger against her chest to make his point, "we are all safe. Know that. If you ever feel scared, you tell yourself that. If you need me to tell you or Mommy to tell you, we will. But, we are all safe, darlin'. Nothing to be scared of right now."

The night was brutal, holding his trembling daughter like that. But, his words to her seemed to work. Every time after that, if she got scared, she would always come to Claire or himself to reassure her that they were safe, and she powered through every time. Now, holding his sixteen year old, he was happy he could have a moment to hold her where she wasn't trembling, she wasn't crying, she was perfectly content. She already knew they were safe, but he could always reassure her.

"Thank you, Claire. I don't know what I did before you and James joined the team." Cathy gushed again as she sat down at her desk.

Claire chuckled sitting across from her, shaking her head. "Not a problem, Cathy. I enjoy this, and James couldn't be more excited to finish her schoolwork and be here all day." She relaxed back in the cushioned chair, brushing her hair behind her ear. "She's going to run circles around all of us."

Cathy laughed. "Resilient, that one." She was quiet a moment, almost contemplating her next words. "How are you and Francis doing? I'm sure the stress of all this has changed things. I've known a few Presidents. Not saying that you are like any of them, but those relationships can break very easily when in the White House."

Claire smiled, clasping her hands together in her lap. "Actually, everything has brought us closer to each other. We've always thrived together as a team, and that's how we've been handling the move, the new job, James, everything like you said." She smirked, gazing up towards the ceiling. "His patience is running thin though on the healing process. He's never had much of it to begin with though when it comes to things like that." She laughed to herself. "I remember when he tried to get James to say 'Dada' for the first time. He was home for a few days. She was ten, maybe eleven months old. He spent countless hours on the floor playing with her just trying to get her to say it."

"I can't even picture that." Cathy grinned. "Did she end up saying it?"

With a nod, Claire continued. "The third night, I finally told Francis to let up on her. She would say it when she was ready, and he'll just have to wait until then. He read somewhere that giving a baby peanut butter helps them exercise their mouth in different ways. I went upstairs for five minutes and came down to see James's face and hands covered in peanut butter. It did work. She said it, and the moment Francis picked her up she threw up all the way down his back." She huffed through a smile. "I was so mad at him for making her sick, but he was thrilled she had finally said it. He felt bad for making her throw up, but he made sure she felt better before putting her down for the night."

"Nobody really knows that side of Francis." Claire murmured. "Those who respect him know him as a leader and former house whip. Those who hate him see him as the man who knows their secrets, their weaknesses. The truest form of himself is what happened in the Oval office the night Garrett broke in - a man who would take a bullet for his wife and child." She glanced down at her hands before meeting Cathy's eyes. "He's not just known for his career, and I've never seen him happier."

Claire smirked, quirking an eyebrow up at Francis from her textbook as they sat in the grass under a tree near one of Francis's classes. He'd been going over notes, talking out loud, and failing to hide his accent. He'd stop every few words, trying to sound less like a southern hillbilly as he liked to call it. "Are you having trouble reading, Francis?"

He glared up at her, but his expression softened almost immediately seeing she was teasing him. "No one is going to take me seriously if I sound like a country boy in the city. I sound like I'm ready to call the hogs in for feeding time."

"Not in the slightest," Claire chuckled before taking his notecards from him, "you know what you're talking about, Francis. As long as you are confident and know the answers to their questions, they'll take you seriously. Besides, I like your accent."

"My accent will be part of my first impression." Francis countered back, reaching for his notes. She held them out of his reach though, making his hand drop. "Claire, I need those. I need to work on how I say what I need to say."

Claire shook her head. "You are relying on them. If you go in that meeting more worried about how you sound than what you're talking about, there's not even a point. You might as well walk in there with overalls and a worn out baseball cap." She leaned forward, pecking his lips. "You know this, Francis. You show up in your best suit. You charm the pants off of them with that southern accent. Then, you surprise them all. Don't lock yourself in a box, Francis. They won't take you out if you don't allow yourself to step out." She slid the notes into her textbook, slapping the cover closed on them. "You are not just a country boy. You are not just a law student. Be the person you want to be in the future. If you do that, they'll see you the way you want to be seen."

Francis smirked at her, pecking her lips again. "Will I see you after the meeting? I'll need you to celebrate with me."

"I have plans that night," she smiled, her lips grazing his as she spoke, "but I won't be far. I'll call you when I'm on my way over. It won't be until late though. I have some business of my own to take care of."

Francis winked at her before leaning back against the tree, interlocking his fingers behind his head when he frowned. "Which suit is my best suit?"

Claire glanced back up at him from her textbook, a small smile gracing her lips. "The one you wore to meet Momma and Daddy - the navy blue."

Doug closed the door and turned back to see Francis rubbing his temples, obviously tired and annoyed by the news he had just received. "I can get the ambassador on the phone, Sir. The time difference would make it morning there."

"I'm done working today," Francis sighed before opening his eyes to peer over at his friend, "I don't even think I've seen you eat tonight. Why don't you head back to the residence? James is probably waiting up for you."

"She and Claire went for a run around the mall about twenty minutes ago, but I'm sure all of us could use a meal after today." Doug informed him with a smirk. "I did promise James I would make her favorite when the day was done."

Francis smirked. "Well, I'm officially calling it." He waited until Doug left the office before pulling out his phone and dialing Claire's number. He smiled hearing her slightly labored breathing when she answered. "Your body is adjusting, huh? Been a while since you've gone for a run."

Claire chuckled despite her breathing. "Shut up. I'm in better shape than you." She glanced over to see James bounding up and down one of the flights of stairs. "How was your day? I was sure I would hear from you around lunch."

"Things got busy and then got worse." Francis's voice was gruff, but his southern drawl was on full display for her. "Are you two on your way back? Doug is apparently making dinner. I'm sure you two will need it after your run."

Claire smiled, sitting down on the brick below her. "It's actually quite beautiful out here. Why don't you come join us? The fresh air will do you good." She stretched out her legs, glancing around at the agents who were stationed around the entire structure. "C'mon, you don't even need to get a train ticket to get me here with you this time."

Francis chuckled, knocking his ring twice on his desk as he stood. "I'll be right there."

Francis jogged up the last few steps to join Claire, sitting down beside her a little more winded than she had been on the phone. "Not a word." He warned her, earning a chuckle. He swallowed hard, furrowing his brows together. "I was just shot."

"You didn't run before. You're out of shape anyway." Claire chided him before James came jogging down the steps again. "Sweetheart, sit down for a few minutes. I know you're amped up now, but you need to relax. We can't carry you back like we used to when you were little."

James smiled before sitting down between Claire''s legs on the step below her. Claire's arms wrapped around her shoulders, lips pressing to her scalp in a kiss as James spoke. "The moment we relax is the moment someone else takes our place. We don't relax. We push forward."

Francis nodded. "Very true, but it's a marathon. Not a sprint." He glanced up at Claire as she gazed down at their daughter. "Make them all think you're the Underdog."

Claire smiled. "We're Underwoods. . .kind of like underdogs."

"Exactly like underdogs. Nobody expects what we have coming for them." Francis smirked. He brushed back his daughter's hair. "You two look like you were up to something. What should I be preparing for?"

"Nothing." James sighed before Claire pulled her closer, nearly cradling her in her lap. "We were talking about my older siblings." Francis noticed Claire was nearly clinging to James. "Actually, we were talking about why Mom couldn't go through with the procedure to get rid of me."

Francis ran a hand down his face. "I remember it plain as day. Never felt worse in my life seeing your mother that upset. She ran out of the room stating that she couldn't give you up. Would even leave me if I disagreed."

Claire stroked Francis's cheek. "I don't know what stopped me that day. It could've been hormones or maybe something else was trying to tell my body you were meant to be in this world. But, your father was nothing but supportive. He didn't say another word about it. He sent the doctor on their way and was there for me through every rough day of morning sickness, every back ache." She grinned, resting her cheek on her daughter's head as her eyes held Francis's. "Even he got excited to meet you. You were just different than the others."

James smiled when Claire held her tighter. "Do you regret having me?"

"Everyday." Claire nodded. "Even the day you were born and the nurse had to stick a needle in you. You cried and cried, and I just wanted to take it all back so you didn't have to feel that pain."

Francis tapped his daughter's nose. "Every bump, bruise, and bully made us remember why we didn't want kids in the first place. We didn't want to mess up a child the way we had been. We knew that our life would affect yours. You are a political pawn. Have been since you were born. I remember someone tried to threaten me into signing a bill so they could get you into this school we had our heart set on. He learned that I don't make deals with the devil, because I am the devil."

Claire started rocking slowly. "But, we wouldn't trade you back for anything. Your pain is our pain, and it is sometimes unbearable. But not having you... that's not a life we would ever want to live now."

"We're selfish parents." Francis stated. "We had you, knew you would face pains like ours, but we wouldn't give you up." He kissed her forehead. "You're not going anywhere, James Underwood."

James giggled, feeling her mother's fingers tickling her sides. "I don't want to go anywhere." She squeezed her father's hand. "I love you, Daddy."

Francis smiled. "C'mere, darlin'." He wrapped his daughter up in his arms before pressing his nose into her hair. "I love you too." He felt Claire scoot closer to them. "We both do." He kissed her hairline before patting her back. "Now, don't you have a fiance waiting up for you or something."

"I almost forgot. Doug's making dinner." James jumped up, rushing down the stairs. "We'll put leftovers in the fridge for you."

Claire chuckled, leaning into Francis's side when he moved to wrap his arm around her. She wrapped her own around his torso, staring out at the mall at their feet. "I knew you'd do amazing things here, Francis."

"We've done amazing things here, and we've still got plenty more to accomplish." Francis reminded her, kissing her head before enjoying the view with her. "I hope you aren't bored with me yet."

"That's impossible." Claire laughed, "you've always got something up your sleeve. We know about stories before journalists are typing on their laptops."

Francis smirked. "Speaking of news, I have some of my own." He rubbed her side, slowly moved down to her hip. "I had my follow up with Dr. Crawford today before lunch." He grinned seeing Claire's smirk out of the corner of his eye. "What do you say we make Honest Abe a little less honest?"

Claire chuckled, shaking her head. "Absolutely disgusting." She glanced around at the security team, knowing they cleared the area before any of them had shown up. Intertwining her fingers with his, she stood and tugged him up on his feet. Standing on the step above him, she leaned down and pressed her lips to his with a grin, resting her forehead against his. "I love you, Francis." She pecked his lips again before pulling back, cupping his face in her hands. "You already know my answer though."

"Well, I could only assume. I'm not risking one of the agents seeing us like that." Francis said, defending his use of the secret service to clear the area for more than just security purposes. He squeezed her hips in his hands. "I would like to hear you say it though this time." He took it another step further when she rolled her eyes, a blush creeping to her cheeks. "Mrs. President, may I fuck you in the Lincoln Memorial?" He chuckled when she cringed through another fit of giggles. "That came out far creepier than I intended."

She placed another kiss to his lips nonetheless. "It was, and you wondered if I could ever get bored of you, Mr. President." Her giggles died down as he held her close, eyes gleaming up at her. "Yes, Francis."

Please review! And, that's the last of this story. I tried to incorporate as much of the show into his as possible while also making it my own, so hopefully you guys caught all the references I made. If you liked this story and think I should write more Francis and Claire stories, let me know in a review. If you want more stories with James from earlier years, you can also let me know with a review. Otherwise, let me know if there is something else about these two you want me to write. Thanks for reading, and hopefully you all of a love with someone that has no bounds. xoxo