Chapter 5

Where to go on the honeymoon was a problem because of the security concerns for the Vice-President. Hal had been able to go to Hawaii for the honeymoon on his first marriage but that option was now off the table. When Hal had extended an invitation to the President to attend his wedding not only did he receive his warm congratulations but the President also asked Hal along with some other questions what were his plans were for the honeymoon.

“I don’t know Sir. Because of security we probably won’t go anywhere but just stay here in Washington. If it was just the both of us there are a number of places I would like to go with Joyce who really hasn’t traveled that much. With the secret service going with us it would just be too many people to give us the privacy we would like to have.”

“Nonsense,” said the President. “There is a supporter of our party who has told me he thinks you are a breath of fresh air that our party needs. He has a house, I take that back, he has a compound in the Florida Keys that would be an ideal place to go on a honeymoon. I know because I have been there. It will give you the privacy you want and let you rest up for the primaries which will be coming up shortly. You are going to need to do some campaigning now that you have announced you want to be my replacement. Let me look into making the arrangements.”

The President’s Chief of Staff phoned the next day to say that the compound would be available for Hal’s use and they would be the only people there except for the secret service and the compound’s staff. Further there would be a Gulfstream jet leaving from Andrews AFB to take them there Sunday morning.

On the flight down Hal was appreciating more and more the perks that came with this office. If he was elected President, a trip like this one would be on Air Force One, a Boeing 747. He thought a person could get spoiled by these perks and unfortunately some apparently had.

To say that Joyce was excited about this flight and where they were going would be a slight understatement. Her excitement was infectious and only confirmed the love Hal had for her. Making her happy was making him very happy.

The President was correct when he referred to this supporter’s house as a compound. It consisted of a large house with separate servant’s quarters and separate guest quarters. It was located next to the ocean and surrounded by a tall and solid security fence. Joyce was in awe when she saw the house. She couldn’t contain her excitement when she noticed the large swimming pool with Jacuzzi. She almost went off the deep end when the thirty eight foot cabin cruiser and the twenty five foot Boston whaler boat rigged for fishing were pointed out to her.

Hal knew he was going to be for a workout tonight because of all the adrenaline that was flowing inside her. He was correct in that assessment as he was one tired puppy when she decided she was satisfied and said they should go to sleep.

The next morning Hal awoke and he put his arm out toward her. His arm didn’t make any contact with Joyce which told him that she wasn’t in bed. He turned to look and saw her head coming up and going back down. He moved over to her side of the bed and could see that she was on the floor with her feet just under the bed and her hands behind her head doing sit-ups. What was erotic about this was that she was naked as the day she was born.

She saw the desire in his eyes as he watched her and seductively said, “Do you like looking at me?”

“I love everything about you.”

He wasn’t counting but she must have done over a hundred sit-ups and she wasn’t even breathing hard. No wonder her stomach was as flat as it was. There was a slight sheen on her skin forming from her perspiration. He was getting excited watching her and judging from how it appeared her nipples were stiffening he thought that she was getting excited from him watching her.

When she was done she rose and started walking to toward the bathroom. Hal caught her wrist with his hand and pulled her toward him. She wound up sprawled lying partially across Hal.

“Oh Hal, I am sweaty and need to shower.”

Hal just said, “Later,” and proceeded to kiss her and show her the love he had for her. When his lips dropped to nibble on her nipples the stiffness told him she was very excited.

He didn’t need to come to that conclusion because she said, “I am ready for you. Make love to me my love. Make love to me now.”

Hal moved to place himself in between her spread thighs. He entered her and kept the pace slow as she had her legs and arms wrapped around him and was telling him how wonderful he was making her feel. Later they showered together as they did their bit for water conservation. They probably didn’t save that much water because of the length of their shower caused by the fooling around that they did.

The remainder of the day was spent either laying around the pool, or in the pool, or in the Jacuzzi. Joyce wasn’t wearing a bikini but the two piece bathing suit she was wearing showed her fine figure. There just was something so sexy in seeing her walk around in that bathing suit and her two inch heel shoes. He jumped at the chance to apply sun tan lotion to her. She never said anything when his hands strayed in applying this lotion.

That evening Hal had a talk with Don Miller the head of the secret service detail.

“Don, we would like to go into Key West tomorrow. I would like to avoid the public knowing that we are there. I think it’s best if we and two of your men go there by boat. Your other men if you think they are necessary can go in by car but all of your people need to be inconspicuous as possible with their firearms concealed. Joyce will be wearing a blond wig, large dark sunglasses and a straw hat. I will be wearing large dark sun glasses and a straw hat. We should both look like the typical tourist that visits there. Are there any problems with this?”

“No, I think if you do what you say you will no one will notice you. We can be like flies on the wall if we need to be.”

Joyce was bubbling with excitement as they dressed the next morning. The wig, sunglasses and hat hid her identity. She was wearing a loose white linen blouse and knee length white Bermuda shorts which couldn’t hide her magnificent body that Hal was appreciating more and more.

The boat ride to Key West was nice and uneventful. It was a bright sunny day and the seas were calm. When they left the boat they were able to blend in with the crowd and no one recognized them. Hal saw that Joyce was on the receiving end of a number of appreciative appraisals of her bottom and would have been surprised if she didn’t receive any looks. He knew that men appreciated seeing a nice butt on an attractive woman.

They acted like typical tourists visiting the various stores and shops that catered to this crowd. Joyce wanted to purchase gifts for Keith and Karen as well as her’s and Hal’s parents. She was able to make the purchases and further enhanced the disguises of the secret service men when she asked them to help in carrying the packages. She made the purchases using her credit card which didn’t alert anyone to their identity. She also bought some thank you gifts she would give the compounds’ staff when they left.

They stopped and had a cold beverage and a hamburger at an establishment Hemmingway was said to have been a frequent patron. There was time to take a guided trolley tour which pointed out all the historical sights of Key West. They were a little tired and quiet on the boat ride back to the compound.

The days just flew by. After Hal in the morning finished reading the national and world updates their activities during the day varied from fishing, to a glass bottom boat ride, to snorkeling, or to just lying around the pool. The delight on Joyce’s face when she caught her first fish was a picture perfect moment.

He was surprised at Joyce being an excellent swimmer. When he commented to her on this she said she enjoyed swimming and had always wanted to become scuba certified. Hal said he was aware that the one woman in their security detail was a certified scuba diving instructor. When another opportunity as this came along he would see that Joyce would get the necessary instruction. He said he would join her in this endeavor.

The flight back to Washington was somewhat anti-climatic. They had a great time getting to know each other as husband and wife and it was kind of a downer to be going back to the real world.

When she expressed this thought to Hal he said, “This could just be the start of what could be six plus years of travel and exciting times. I am glad you will be with me to share this.”

She gave him a very loving look and squeezed his hand telling him her marriage to him was a lifelong commitment.

Hal was only back in Washington for a few days and then he was on the road making speeches with the super primaries being in two weeks. Joyce had work to do at her office so Hal was making these trips without her. The speeches that he gave were written for him with Hal giving the writers the points he wanted to cover. The main point he talked about was America’s greatness and how this country gave every individual the opportunity to achieve the success they wanted. He said he wanted to keep the government from hindering this opportunity by eliminating unnecessary regulations, taxes and paperwork.

The announcement of Hal’s candidacy and his popularity as reflected by the tracking polls resulted in the other candidates seeing the handwriting on the wall. They reduced their spending in promoting themselves for this high office as it seemed to be a lost cause. The end result was that when the primary elections were held, Hal was his party’s winner in every State. These results surprised everyone since Hal hand not campaigned in a large number of States.

The convention in which Hal’s political party would choose its candidate was not drawing much interest since it was assured Hal would be their candidate for President. What was fueling some speculation was who would be the Vice-Presidential candidate. Hal thought long and hard about it and then made a decision that he thought was best for the country.

He asked to meet with the Secretary of Energy. The meeting was arranged and when word of this meeting leaked and speculation increased as to whom he would select as his running mate.

Hal welcomed the Secretary of Energy and thanked her for coming. He said he asked for this meeting with her so he could discuss with her who he would select to be on the ticket with him.

“I want to tell you that I think you have done an outstanding job as the Secretary of Energy. You were quick to handle that oil leak in the gulf and minimize any environmental damage.”

“I really didn’t do that much. Asking the President to waive the Jones Act so I could get foreign ships to help was just common sense. Anyone with a brain would have thought about asking for the waiver.”

“The contingency plans you developed as to deal with accidents that can happen in our pursuit of energy were needed and long overdue. Your overseeing of the new nuclear plants that will be coming on line will give us excess electric capacity for years to come. The increase in safe drilling for oil deposits on or just off our shores will go along way in meeting our ever increasing demand for petroleum products. Couple that with your suggestion of using government land or excess military bases as to where to build additional oil refineries has now resulted in five oil refineries that are now being built. No one should have any question in their mind as to your administrative or managerial skill.”

“Your debate with a former Vice-President now turned environmentalist on the merits of deep water drilling in the gulf was I think the highlight of your career as Secretary so far. You cleaned his clock when you pointed out the large houses he owns and how the amount of energy he uses compares to what the average American family uses. You then went for the jugular when you pointed out how many barrels of oil the private plane he flew around in last year used and the amount is staggering. His use of energy was grossly in excess of what the average American uses a year. When you asked him were does he think those barrels of oil are coming from and when is he going to become conservative in his use of energy as he is urging everyone else to be caught him with his pants down. All he could do was to stammer while his face turned beet red. It was a little embarrassing to watch him stumble in trying to respond.”

“Well, the Attorney General helped with his agencies supplying the information on the electric bills and on the fuel his plane used so I could make those computations.”

“It was a debate well worth seeing. So as I say you have done a fine job but... ,”

“I don’t think I like hearing the word “but.”

“Please bear with me and hear me out. The “but” means that the knock against you is that you have very little foreign policy experience. If I am elected President I am going to ask most of the cabinet heads to remain with a few exceptions. Most of them asked will remain in their present positions but there are a few who want to leave public life. One of them is the present Secretary of State who has told me he wants to retire. He was an excellent Secretary of Defense and also and effective Secretary of State. His wife is not in the best of health which is the unspoken reason that he wants to retire. I have talked with him and he said he would serve one more year in his present position but that was it.”

“I also feel that it is my job and in this nation’s best interest for me to develop people to their full potential. To that end if I am elected I would like you to remain as Secretary of Energy and when the position of Secretary of State opens up I will nominate you for that position if you want it. That would give you five years of foreign policy experience.”

“Without giving them your name I had a conversations with Henry, Jim and ‘Z’ and asked them if I was to appoint a Secretary of State who was a little short of experience could she call on them secretly and seek their counsel as to some matter or problem that had arisen. I think they knew I was talking about you. They all said they would welcome the opportunity and would give you their honest opinion on what they think should be done and maybe an insight as to the people you will be dealing with. Those three men all love this country and I think they could give you an enormous amount of vicarious experience and guidance. Of course you maybe given three different opinions and it would be up to you to decide which one was correct if any of them were.”

“After five years as Secretary of State no one could question your qualifications for higher office. I think this country is ready for its first woman President and I think that could be you. Oh, and please call me Hal.”

“Thank you for your kind words Mr. Vice-President, I mean Hal. I would be less than honest if I was to tell you I am disappointed that you didn’t choose me to be your running mate. As I think about what you have just said I can see the wisdom in it. If I ever was elected President there would be so many people who would want to see me fall flat on my face that it would really piss me off if I did. Excuse me for saying that but I that is how I feel. I will serve as you suggest and campaign for you. Can you tell me who you have selected to be your running mate?”

“You deserve to know but don’t say anything to anyone till I make the announcement”

“Of course.”

“Let me preface first by saying that the Vice-President should be somebody who has the experience to immediately step in to the job if it becomes necessary and handle it effectively. To that end I have asked a woman who was a very effective former Secretary of State. She is not anxious to leave her university and come back into public service but after some persuasion and arm twisting from me on why she is needed she said she will be my running mate. She has told me she will do it but after six years she says she is out of public life forever. She assures me and has asked me to tell you that in no way does she want to run for higher public office. Oh and she is another one you can call on for advice if you think you need any.”

“I admire her and her accomplishments. She is an excellent choice.”

“How is your family doing?”

“Overall everyone is doing okay. The oldest daughter is a little bored and wants to do something. I suggested college but she doesn’t want to do that for a number of reasons. She wants to work but not sure what type of work she wants to do.’

“Has she ever given any thought about becoming a realtor?”

“I don’t think so but she does have a nice way with her and that could be what she is looking for.”

“Well my wife told me because of our marriage her business is expanding and she is looking to hire additional people. If your daughter is interested tell her to give my wife a call and I will tell her to not to be surprised if she calls.”

Hal’s acceptance speech was well received. His choice for Vice-President shocked some people to include his opponent. His opponent was a former Secretary of State herself and the majority of the American people knew who the more accomplished Secretary of State was and it wasn’t Hal’s opponent as she had problems when she was Secretary.