Chapter 2

After spending a few days on the West Coast with his former wingman, then drinking with Elizabeth last night, Henry woke up Saturday morning feeling like a truck had hit him. Between the jet lag and the alcohol, he was exhausted with a horrible headache. He rolled over hoping to pull Elizabeth into him for comfort, but the sheets were cold. He laid back and stared at the ceiling for a minute thinking she had been called downstairs.

Her voice surprised him as it bellowed into the room, "Would you like two aspirin with your breakfast, Captain?"

She was carrying a tray which held two plates of scrambled eggs, bacon, toast and two mugs of coffee. The same breakfast he brought her that Sunday morning, Pensacola 1995. He also had asked her the same question she just asked him.

He chuckled, "Well played, Madam President. Well-played."

She furrowed her brow.

"I told you now that you won AGAIN, same agreement. It will only come out of my mouth a few times, over your second term. Today's one of them." he pleaded.

She dropped her shoulders and sulked at him.

"You called me Captain," making his case.

She beamed back at him, "I always call you Captain," as she placed the tray down on the nightstand next to him, leaned over and kissed him on the lips.

He pulled her into the bed, answering "And I love it!"

She put her hand on his chest as he attempted to roll her over, "No way. Our breakfast will get cold. I have a job to do and then we have a couple of Christmas trees to pick out! So they can get decorating while we are away for Thanksgiving."

He handed her one of the plates off the tray.

She sat next to him, in her pajamas from the night before, bare feet touching his, chewing on a piece of bacon. "Ok so…this might be a bit unfair because we both know that I don't remember all of this memory." They both chuckled together.

"But, Pensacola, 1995. You returned that Thursday from deployment and were going right into training on a new F-18 Hornet. I returned the week before from a mission in Europe,' she said.

"The one you still don't talk about…" he clarified.

"It's classified and you know that," she said, pointing half of the bacon back at him.

"We had been separated for a little over six months. I drove down on Friday. We spent that whole night at your apartment. I don't think we had dinner?" she asked trying to recall.

He put his arms around her waist, "That's because I had you for dinner."

"Oh God, Henry!" she laughed and dug into her eggs. "It was also the night we made our first baby." She was smiling back at him, he leaned over to kiss her gently.

She then emphasized, "Saturday…we went to beach with Craig, Elana, Jeff and Val. All day…in the hot sun, drinking beers, playing football."

"Making out in the water…" Henry interrupted her.

"That too," she nudged him with her foot.

"Pretty sure you remember almost losing your bikini bottoms in the Gulf," he laughed at her.

"Again, not my fault, you pushed them down too far!" she furrowed her brow and pointed her fork at him. "Maybe that is when we conceived Stevie?"

They both laughed.

"Anyways, we went back to your apartment and crashed all sun-kissed and naked in the bed for several hours, sleeping off the day." she winked at him.

"We woke up and went down to the base pub for dinner, more drinks, singing (your part) and dancing (my part) up on the tables. But, for clarity Elana, Val and bunch of other girls were on tables as well. See I remember most of it," she gave him a confident look.

"Oh yeah… what happened after that?" he laughed.

"We walked drunk to the beach," she said looking out the window avoiding his gaze.

"Elizabeth," his tone almost admonishing her for lying.

She looked at him over her shoulder her hair catching on her shoulder. It was the look that gave him all the feels and she knew it.

"I'm not lying!" she argued.

"Okay?" he said taking a bite of his eggs.

"Okay…okay…I walked drunk to the beach. I passed out while we walked along the water somewhere along the way and you had to carry me home!" She said that last sentence so fast he just smiled proudly at her.

"The first time….first time you admitted that you were the only one who was drunk that night! I'm proud of you, Babe!" He leaned up to kiss her on the lips.

She didn't let go as she moved her plate off the bed and rolled herself on top of him.

"What time is your briefing?" he asked while still kissing her.

"10." She glanced at the clock. "It's 9:15. We have time if I leave my hair down." She kneeled up as he slid his hands in her pants moving them down over her hips. She took his face in her hands, the scruff of his morning shadow making her want him more, she leaned down and kissed him. Her golden hair falling beside of their faces.

She moved off of him as he lifted his hips and slid his boxers down, exposing his eagerness to have her.

Her Frampton t-shirt hung over her but he could see her nipples rising underneath. He reached under and took the left one in his hand. Bringing herself back up to straddle him she tucked into his neck and began kissing and sucking on him there.

She was riding on top of him with such ease. He opened his eyes to meet the intensity of hers. He pulled her shirt off her as a chill ran down her and she responded to him.

They made their way through the bed, legs, arms and sheets tangled up. Sheets eventually kicked off when it got too hot. Henry eventually made his way over her laying himself beside her at first. Her hand running up and down his back, he stared into her beautiful baby blues, "In all these years, every morning I wake up to you and every night we lay down beside each other I love you more."

She beamed back up at him, "I know in this world especially with the campaign we have been hamsters running on a wheel, but we made a commitment to begin every day with us and end every night with us whether we are apart or together. Thank you for always being the man beside the woman. I wouldn't be here without you. I love you, Henry."

He moved over her as they made love, slowing it down and cherishing each other.