I feel myself coming awake as the room gets lighter. I wrap my arm around Donna's waist and massage the little bump. Our baby. My eyes are a little misty. Two years ago I almost lost this opportunity. What kind of miserable man would I be if Donna hadn't survived? Just the thought brings such despair, even while I'm holding her. Would I have made it two years? I honestly don't think so. If she had been killed after I sent her on the CODEL, I couldn't have forgiven myself.
Stop. Take a deep breath. Don't go there. She's right here. She's healthy. She's having my baby. I'd like to wake her up and make love but it was pretty late by the time she fell asleep last night. After the campfire, we spent almost two hours in the pool, floating and talking with Matt and Helen. It was really a great time to just be two couples. Matt told us some really funny stories about growing up in Houston. I'm actually looking forward to meeting some of his family. Then we came back here and made love for a long time. She wasn't wrong about the second trimester, she's definitely got more stamina. But even though she has more energy now, she still needs her rest. Six hours sleep really isn't enough for her. Plus, I made a promise that I'd keep myself as healthy as possible, so a morning run would be a good idea.
I lean down and whisper in her ear. "I love you. You are smart. You are strong. You are infinitely valuable. You are a survivor." Then I scoot down the bed a little and whisper to her belly. "I love you, little bean. Daddy will be back soon."
Once I have my running stuff on I leave a note for Donna, just in case, but I really doubt that she'll be awake before I'm back.
I nod to the agent as I leave the cabin. Even though we aren't being directly shadowed, there is still an agent posted near our cabin. And several patroling around Aspen. I know there are military personnel stationed through out the camp as well.
"Just a minute, please, Mr. Lyman." He says, surprising me.
"Okay." I stretch as I see him talk into his wrist for a moment.
"Would you mind stay on the road between here and Laurel Lodge until an agent can join you? We'd rather not have you run through the trails on your own."
"Sure." I hadn't really decided where I was going to run anyway. Just as I break into my run, which really isn't much more than a slow jog, a golf cart with two agents comes up behind me and follows along. My ego gets the better of me and I pick up my pace a little. I'm about half way to Laurel Lodge when another golf cart zips up and an agent in running gear hops out.
"I'm Rick. Mind if I join you?"
"Not at all, but I'm not very fast and I'm not much for talking while I run. I'm too busy trying not to pass out."
"Not a problem, sir. We'll go at your pace. Just let me know if you are having any pain or difficulty."
That's when it hits me. They don't want me to run alone on the trail because it's where Leo had his first heart attack. Oh god. He was laying out there and we left him. It was a miracle he survived.
"Rick, I'm just going to stick with the road around camp. I'm really not used to running on trails."
I don't think I'm ready to be out on the nature trail. I'm not sure how I'm going to react emotionally. Already, I'm finding that just being back here at Camp David has made me kind of introspective. I know Donna is looking forward to some nature walks. I'll just wait for her and we'll face the nature trails together. Since she wasn't here before, I doubt they'll trigger anything for her, but just the date on the calendar is traumatic enough.
In the mean time, I'll try to just concentrate on the sound of my shoes hitting the pavement and my heart pulsing in my ears. With every beat I promise not to follow in Leo's footsteps. I'm going to take time for my wife, and time for my children, and time for my health. Ultimately, I know it's what he would have wanted. For as hard as he pushed me in my career, he also had given me permission to take a vacation with Amy. I didn't because Amy wasn't more important than work. But Donna is.
I think Leo knew how I felt about Donna. I mean he saw how I was when I heard about the bombing. He gave me permission to leave, in the middle of a crisis, no less. He had to know. But I can't help but wish I'd actually told him. I never had the chance to tell my Father because I hadn't figured it out, but I missed the chance with Leo because I was worried about his reaction. I shouldn't have worried. And now I can't tell either of them that we are having a baby. My Dad would have been the greatest grandfather ever. Without him around, Leo would have stepped up. And being Vice-President, he'd have been the one close by that sees the kid all the time. I think he would have been great at it. He was so proud of Mallory's little boy. Maybe I'd be giving him the granddaughter to dote over.
Well, I'm not sure avoiding the trail did me any good. I'm still spending this entire run thinking about Leo. And I have no idea how long I've been running or how far I've gone. I guess it's a really good thing I've got an agent next to me.
"So how far is it around the camp?" I ask Rick.
"If we take just the main loop around the camp it's just about a mile. We can add another couple miles by going around by each of the buildings. How far do you normally run?"
"I usually just run on the treadmill for about 30 minutes. It ends up being around 3-4 miles."
"How often do you run, sir?"
"I usually end up hitting 5 days a week. I had gotten out of the habit for a while. But once Donna and I got married, I had more incentive to get back in shape. And now . . . I'm gonna be a Dad." I tell him with a grin. It's still such a great feeling to tell people that.
"Congratulations! Well, I've got a Garmin watch here, so it will let us know how far you've gone. You might find that you'll get a bit more mileage in outside. Most people do."
"Okay, thanks" I end up deciding to run in and out of each area so that I don't have to make as many circuits. As I run down by the water works and make the loop near the staff pool I spot a trampoline. I wonder if Peter and Miranda know about that.
As we get back to the front of Aspen, I ask Rick how far we've gone.
"Just shy of 3 miles. You've been running an 8:30 pace. That's pretty good. How are you feeling? Got a couple more in you?"
"What time is it?" I'm feeling pretty good. I could run some more but I want to be back when Donna wakes up.
"7:30"
"Okay, lets just do the main loop."
I'm feeling pretty good about myself when we finish the main loop.
"Nice run Mr. Lyman."
"Please call me Josh."
"Sure thing, Josh. We should cool down a little. Let's walk for a few minutes."
"Okay." As we start walking toward Laurel Lodge I have an idea. I probably should have thought about this last night. The dining room will be open during set hours while everyone is here, but people won't be arriving for a few more hours. I'd rather just have something delivered to the cabin so we can have breakfast in bed.
"Hey Rick, I'm going to walk down to the Lodge and make some arrangements for breakfast."
"Yes, sir."
"So Rick, are you married?"
"No, sir."
"Well, if you ever get married, just remember you can't go wrong with breakfast in bed. Chicks really dig it."
"I'll remember that."
When we are almost to the lodge, Rick says "Would you like to run again tomorrow?"
"Yeah. I'd like that. This was kind of fun." Maybe I should think about getting a personal trainer.
"What time would you like to go? I'll be at your cabin."
Tomorrow's Sunday so I definitely want to be back and showered before Donna wakes up.
"6:30 okay with you?"
"Yes, sir."
"Okay, thanks Rick. See you tomorrow." He grins at me and runs off at a much faster pace. I think this might have just been a warm up for him.
I'm just getting out of the shower when I hear the tapping on the screen door. I timed that a little too closely, I guess. I quickly throw on shorts and greet the porter. He puts the trays down on the table near the small kitchenette. It feels weird not to tip him, but it's strictly prohibited.
Taking Donna's tray, I slowly open the door to the bedroom. If she's is still sleeping, I'm not going to wake her. But I think she's probably close. It looks like she got up and brushed her teeth while I was out on the run. So even if she fell back to sleep she probably heard me in the shower. If the bathroom wasn't so tiny she probably would have joined me.
Sure enough, she's rolls over and smiles at me as I open the door.
"Hey good lookin'. Whatcha got there?"
"Breakfast in bed for my beautiful wife. . . . Have you seen her around?" I tease.
"Josh!" But she's grinning at me. I bring her the tray and get a kiss before taking the covers off the plates. A spinach omelet, a bowl of fruit, a bagel with cream cheese and a glass of orange juice. A great breakfast for a preganant woman.
"Are we sharing this?" She asks me, diving in to the omelet.
"No, I've got my own tray out there. I"ll grab it and join you."
I set the tray on the end of the of the bed and start to climb in.
"Hold on a second, mister. Lose the shorts."
"What? Why?"
"I just think we should be wearing the same thing. You know, equality."
"And you're wearing?" I ask hoping that I'm understanding correctly.
"Nothing but this smile." She grins dropping the sheet.
"Well, I gotta say, I like your style Mrs. Lyman."
"So what's on the agenda today?" I ask her as we finish breakfast. I've got a pretty good idea about the first thing on the agenda, but sometimes she just likes to get me really ramped up all day long. And truthfully, I don't mind at all. When she teases me all day it makes the pay off all that much more sweet. Maybe it's because we spent so much of our relationship in a state of sexual tension
I get out of bed and take my tray and set it on the dresser. She takes a moment to look me over appreciatively, then launches into spokesperson mode, like she hasn't seen anything that interests her.
"Well, the schedule is mostly fluid. Really it's just a list of available activities and times they are being offered. Helen doesn't want to try to wrangle so many people into doing the same thing at the same time. She is hoping that everyone will come to the campfire tonight, then tomorrow for dinner they are having a BBQ Pool Party, so she expects everyone for that. Then another campfire tomorrow night. Then really nothing planned for the group on Monday. They'll pretty much all be gone on Monday by 3pm to head home."
She looks done with her tray, so I take hers away too.
"So what about us? What do you want to do today?" I ask in a husky voice as I climb back into bed.
"I'd like to go for a walk. Maybe go swimming again. It doesn't really matter what. I'd just like to be with you." Then she pauses and looks at me intently. "What do you want to do?"
"I just want to be with you too." I let my hand slowly wander across her stomach. It's like a test of my will not to immediately turn this sexual, but it's always been worth the wait with Donna. And if she's not in the mood yet, I can wait.
Donna chuckles. "So we going to spend the entire weekend in this cabin and just be together?"
I wiggle my eyebrows at her. "Doesn't sound that bad to me."
"Me neither," she says rolling over on top of me and kissing me passionately while her hands thread through my hair. Yes, absolutely worth the wait.