White House Rhapsody

The next day, Karen made a point of seeking the president out, which got her invited to the meeting with Gus and Jean that afternoon. “This could be a real problem,” Mark told them. “I know Sharon is great PR, but I can’t afford her losing credibility because everyone sees her as my arm candy. We’ve

Early Monday afternoon, June called Sharon from New York. Barely missing a beat as she typed furiously on her laptop, Sharon hit her the button on her headset. “Hey, June, what’s up?” “Just checking in,” said June. “Five o’clock okay for your make up and hair for tonight?” “Not even.” Sharon sighed

In California, Cameron Dykstra was trying to hold onto her temper with both hands. “Toby, you can wait until after you finish college,” she said through gritted teeth. “Hollywood will still be there.” Cameron was a tall woman, almost as tall as her ex-husband, Michael Wheatly. She had the same blond

As that afternoon turned into evening, Sharon realized with a start that she had a date. Avoiding Gus Guerrero’s office, she hurried out of the White House and onto the Metro, getting off at Foggy Bottom and the Georgetown district. The bar was nothing exceptional – the normal wood and brass kind o

It wasn’t the mean-spirited nature of the emails that flummoxed Sharon. It was the sheer number of them. “They’re all the same,” she told Gwen McKelvey over the phone Thursday. “You’re a manipulative witch and stay away from him, whoever he is. But there’s thousands and thousands of them.” “Are they

IM Session Swheatly531: Got a minute? Gloryhg: Yep. What can I do for you? Swheatly531: Nothing much. I just wanted to let you know that I picked up your groceries. Had to substitute shitakes for the chanterelles. But the produce guy said morels should be in season soon. Gloryhg: Cool. Thanks. Now,

Matt Jerguessen thought he heard the doorbell ring as he flipped through the channels on the TV in his room. It was late afternoon and there wasn’t much on. Several channels had the news on, most of them showing his dad talking to the press about some bill the state legislature was supposed to be pa

There were those who said Major Clive Willis had served at the White House since Ulysses S. Grant. That the man was old and an old school Southern gentleman there was no doubt. He was of medium height with bright white hair, faded blue eyes and the ramrod straight spine one associated with dancers o

“Sharon, I hate to ask you, but I’m not sure who else to call,” June said, somewhat anxiously. “Johnnie won’t touch it and Karen would totally blow up.” “What?” said Sharon. “It’s Solly, the chef.” June sighed. “She’s having another hissy fit and I’m stuck in New York. Can you go down and find out w

When Sharon first saw the vicious email, she knew she should have reported it to security. But since it didn’t actually threaten her with anything, she chalked it up as yet another disadvantage to fame, although in retrospect, she’d come to realize it was more her own denial operating at that point.