“And some potential assault charges.”

Laughing, he said, “That ought to get their attention. Hey, so maybe Scotty can come to my fundraiser tonight.”

“I bet he’d love to. I could send him home with the detail to change.”

“I’ll pick him up around five thirty so we can go together.”

“I’ll tell him.”

“See you after a while. Be careful with my family.”

“I will. And P.S., I love you too.” Sam ended the call and opened the passenger side door for Scotty. “That was Nick on the phone. He offered to beat up Nathan if you want him to.”

“That might not be good for his campaign this close to the election,” Scotty said dryly, already the politician’s son.

They walked together toward the entrance to HQ. “Maybe not, but it sure would make him feel better. It would make both of us happy to give that kid a taste of his own medicine.”

“It’s cool that you guys are so mad about it.”

“We’re beyond mad. What’s the next level after furious?”

“Um... I’m trying to think of this vocabulary word we had recently. In... Incense. Something like that.”

“Incensed. That’s a good word, but we need more umph. Something like freaking pissed sounds much better.”

“Freaking is a swear.”

“It is not!”

“Is too. Ask Mrs. L.”

Sam expelled a dramatic sigh. “Her standards are way too high for me.”

“No kidding, really?” he said, rolling his eyes at her.

“Are you making fun of me?”

“Yes, I think I am.”

As Sam shared a grin with him, she was delighted to see him snapping out of the funk he’d been in when she picked him up. “Nick thought you might like to go to his fundraiser in Arlington tonight.”

His eyes lit up with delight. He loved every second he got to spend with Nick, even if they were doing something most kids would find boring. “I’d love to.”

“You’ll have to go home to change into your work clothes,” she said of the khaki pants, blazer, dress shirts and assortment of ties they’d bought him for his appearances on the campaign trail. He had dubbed them his “work clothes,” which they found hilarious.

“That’s okay.”

“I’ll talk to the detail about getting you home to change. Nick said he’d pick you up at home at five thirty so you can ride there together.”

In the lobby, they ran into Chief Farnsworth. “Hey guys,” he said, eyeing the Secret Service agents who followed them. “How goes it?” He reached out to shake hands with Scotty.

Sam rested her hands on Scotty’s shoulders. “I’ve got a deputy for the afternoon if that’s all right with you.”

“Of course. Everything okay?”

“He wasn’t feeling too good at school, but he’s a lot better now, right, buddy?”