President's Girlfriend 06 - The Sins of the Fathers by Mallory Monroe

“What can I do you
for?”
    “Dinner is
served,” she said.
    Dutch looked at that apron, and then back
into Gina’s dark brown, anxious-looking face.
    “Dinner cooked by you or brought in by the White House Chef?”
    “Cooked by me,” Gina said with a
smile.   Then she frowned.   “Oh, Dutch, don’t look so
    terrified .   Chef Grady has taught me a lot.   I
can cook now.”
    Dutch still
looked doubtful.   He loved Gina but she
was the worse cook he’d ever encountered.   Just awful.   Just thinking about some of those dishes she cooked up in the past made
him nauseous.
    “Just come
on,” she said, walking around the desk and pulling him up by the hand.   “You’ll see.”
    Dutch
allowed himself to be dragged away from his work, down the corridor, and into
    the spacious dining room.   The candles were lit, the food was already on
the table, and Gina was anxious.   To his
relief the food at least looked edible.
    He pulled her chair out and then took
a seat at the head of the table.   “It
certainly looks
    good ,” he said as he placed the napkin
onto his lap.   “What is it?”
    “Risotto and lamb.”
    They bowed heads, said their prayers,
and then Dutch took a bite.   Gina stared
at him as he
    did .   He chewed, nodding his head.  
    “Wow,” he
said.
    Gina began
to smile.   “Is it good?”
    “That’s the thing,” Dutch said
between bites.   “It’s even worse than the
way you used to
    cook .”
    Gina’s heart
plunged.
    Then Dutch smiled.   “ Psych! ”
he said with a grin.
    “No, you didn’t,” Gina said, happy
that he liked it, but angry that he fooled her.   She took
    her glass of wine and flung it at him.
    But Dutch, still laughing, moved his
body just enough that he only endured a glancing blow.   And when she stood up, to come after him
again, he took off running.   She grabbed
his
    glass of wine and took off after him.
    Dutch had never laughed harder in his
life as Gina chased him through the dining hall,
    through the living room, and out onto the
lanai.   When he ran out of real estate,
and was backed up to the massive pool, she kept coming.
    “I’ve got
you now,” she said, laughing too.   “You
crafty little---”
    But she threw the wine and missed,
because Dutch jumped into the pool, splashing her.   He laughed so hard
as she stood there, her arms flailed out as she withstood the chill of
    suddenly being drenched.   She looked at him.   He was laughing hysterically and pointing as
if he got her good.
    But then, to his surprise, she jumped
into the pool, too.   “You forgot you
taught me
    how to swim,” she said to him, and gave
chase.
    Dutch took
off swimming around the massive pool too.   And lap after lap they swam, Gina chasing Dutch, laughing like kids.
    Dutch dived
underwater, to avoid her, and she didn’t realize he had swam near her until she felt a firm slap against her bottom.
    She laughed
and took off.   The hunter was now the
hunted, as they swam around the pool until their arms hurt.   And when they agreed on a truce and came
together, Dutch, happy beyond measure, moved to kiss his lovely wife.   And she moved to kiss her lovely
husband.   But she turned her head as soon
as their lips were to meet.   “ Psych! ” she said, laughing, and swam off
again.  
    Dutch shook
his head in amazement.   He really had him
a dynamo on his hands.   But he should
have seen that one coming.
    He didn’t
dwell on it, however.   He was having too
much fun.   He gave chase again.

 
    That night,
in the library, Dutch sat on the floor with his back against the chair, and
Gina lay prone on that floor, her head on his lap.   Dutch sipped wine, stroked his wife’s hair,
and read over some documents that couldn’t wait.   Gina understood that world events waited for
no man, so she didn’t complain too much.   A little, but not too much.   They were both in bathrobes now, after
showering together and then finishing their dinner, and now all