"It's not a problem, Mr. Rockwell."
"Just for the record, I normally don't do this. But I wasn't sure how I was going to get home on the Metro carrying Adam *and* pizza."
"I know, sir. It's really not a problem. Would you like me to fetch the pizza or watch Adam for you?"
He glanced down at Adam who was still sleeping with his head in Kent's lap, then jerked his head at the pizza joint. "Would you mind?"
"Not at all, sir," accepting the money he passed her. "Be right back."
True to her word, it only took a few minutes and she was back asking for more money. "I'm sorry, sir. Evidently the Senator ordered more than one because of your unexpectedly early return." Kent simply nodded and handed over a wad of bills. In short order, they were headed back to Charisma's house with the pizzas in hand.
Charisma had the gate opened waiting on them, and Turq pulled into the driveway without hesitation. When she reached the portico, she pulled up to the door before shutting the car off. Then she raced around to open the door for Kent who had scooped Adam into his arms once more. Before Turq could ask Kent for his keys to unlock the door for him, Charisma pulled the door open wide and motioned him in.
"Kent? Is everything all right?
"Br'anna?" Adam murmured. Charisma met Kent's eyes with a cross between fear and consternation in her own. She turned her attention to Turq, who had grabbed the stack of pizza boxes from the car.
"Let's get those into the kitchen," Charisma instructed. Kent took Adam and walked upstairs; Turq just nodded and followed Charisma, placing them on the table before stepping back.
"Will there be anything else, Senator?"
"Would you like to stay and share lunch with us Turq?"
"Oh no ma'am... thank you. I had already eaten by the time Mr. Rockwell called."
"Well, thank you for picking him and my son up. I know you're supposed to be off today."
"It wasn't a problem ma'am... really. I'll pick you up at the regular time tomorrow?" Charisma nodded. "See you in the morning then, Senator."
"Thank you Turq - drive safely."
Turq touched her fingertips to her hair in salute and fled back down the steps to the warmth of the big car. In another moment, she and it were disappearing down the drive and out the gates. Charisma's shiver brought her back to an awareness of her surroundings, and she shut the door and remotely closed the gates. Then she went to retrieve her staff from her office.
************
They were almost done with their impromptu lunch when Adam wandered downstairs rubbing his eyes. Kent, being closest to the door and only peripherally involved in the conversation, heard him first. He stood without ceremony and moved into the hallway to pick Adam up. Adam wrapped his arms around Kent's neck and held on tightly. Kent hugged him back and kissed his head, then headed back into the kitchen.
"You want some pizza, Boy?" Kent asked as they crossed the threshold, only just noticing Adam tightening his grip even as he looked around the room.
"There's Mama's big boy," Charisma smiled even as she signaled to her staff to leave the room. They took the hint, being long schooled in reading Charisma's nonverbal cues, and in less than a minute of Adam's arrival, the kitchen was cleared of everyone but him and his parental units.
Adam reached for Charisma and she took him as a matter of course when Kent released him. Then Kent went to pour Adam some milk while Charisma put a slice of pizza on a plate and set it in front of him. Adam grabbed the slice in both hands and lifted it to his mouth. When he had a mouthful, he looked at Charisma.
"Mammma, 'ere's Bana?"
She frowned as she tried to filter out the food in his speech, even as she chided, "Don't talk with your mouth full, son."
He glowered and spit out the half-chewed bite of pizza, then poked out his lip. "Where's Br'anna?" he asked again before shoving the bite back into his mouth. Charisma and Kent made grossed out faces at one another, then turned back to Adam when he screeched, "MAMA!"
"Adam Rockwell!! That's enough from you... now settle down," biting her lip when he teared up at her severe tone. Charisma took a deep breath and softened her voice. "We don't act that way at the table, son. Now I don't know where Brianna is; I haven't seen her."
"Adam saw. And Pa."
"Well that at least explains why he's asking about her," Charisma muttered to herself, though Kent heard her words clearly. She took a deep breath and looked at him. "Should I even ask?"
"It was all perfectly innocent, Charisma. We were walking down the Mall towards the Natural History Museum when Adam spotted her sitting on a bench outside the National Gallery. He took off like a shot." Kent frowned. "We may have to reconsider that whole leash idea - honestly, Charisma... he was gone before I realized what had happened."
"Have you noticed it mostly happens when Brianna is around - specifically when he is trying to get to her?"
"BR'ANNA!!" Adam yelled with a giggle, continuing to stuff pizza into his mouth. Charisma pinched her nose between her thumb and forefinger to avoid looking at his chipmunk-cheeked face. Kent just shook his head and tried to wipe Adam's face while the child squirmed to get away from him.
"I can't say that I have, although now that you mention it...." He let his voice trail off as his mind traced back the times he'd seen Adam run away from him or Charisma in recent days. "I think you're right," he agreed. "I wonder what is so fascinating about her to him."
"Love Br'anna," Adam stated with an emphatic nod of her head. "Br'anna good."
Kent and Charisma exchanged a look. "Well... I guess that explains that." Kent sighed. "I know she's got some kind of powerful magic - he climbed right up into her lap and fell asleep. It's why we ended up back here so early. After discussing mundane things like the museums and the weather, Brianna pointed out that a visit to see the dinosaurs would have been a wasted effort while he was asleep."
"That was the extent of your conversation?"
"Pretty much. She must've been an actor in another life, though."
"What makes you say that?"
"Because I know she's uneasy around me, but I don't think anyone else would be able to pick it up from her actions or her attitude." A beat. "I don't think *I* would be able to tell if I didn't already know."
"Well, she did double major in theatre and the law." Kent's eyebrows went into his hairline and he whistled low in his throat at Charisma's words.
"That would explain a lot. I'd like to hear about it some day. I'd like to hear about a lot of things, actually. Maybe one day we can sit down and talk about some of the things we've missed in each other's lives along the way. In the meantime," he continued before she could formulate a response, "I'll take Adam upstairs and get him cleaned up so you can get back to work."
Charisma sighed. "Thanks. You wouldn't believe the work I should really get done before going back to work tomorrow."
"Yes I would. I've seen this every time you get ready to start a new session."
"Yes, I guess you have," Charisma chuckled. "But I'm about done for the day. Everything else can wait until tomorrow at this point. What time is your train back?"
"Not til late. I wasn't sure how the day was going to turn out, so I gave myself plenty of time to cover all kinds of possibilities."
"Would you... you're welcome to stay in your room."
"No," came the whip shot answer. "Not that I don't appreciate the offer, but we're not going to fall into old patterns if we're going to do this right. I would like to try and spend more time with Adam, but I'm not going to share living space with you when we're separated. It just wouldn't be right."
"If you think it's best...."
"Charisma, I know it is, and so do you. Everything is going to be pretty much like it has been, except that I will be living in Manhattan and visiting DC occasionally, and not the other way around. Oh... that reminds me - I need to get some movers in here to pack up and move the rest of my stuff from upstairs. So if I could keep my key until that's done...?"