The Sum of All Fears.pdf - Delta Force

had in mind, but he didn't really care all that much either. After dropping his
dinner jacket atop his wife's mink, he peeled the foil off the champagne, then
twisted off the wire, and gently worked the cork free. He poured two glasses,
and set the bottle back in the silver bucket. He decided to trust the wine
untasted, then walked to look out the window at the White House. Jack didn't
hear her come back into the room. He felt it, felt the air change somehow. When
he turned she was standing there in the doorway.
It was the second time she'd worn it, the floor-length gown of white silk. The
first time had been their honeymoon. Cathy walked barefoot across the carpet to
her husband, gliding through space like an apparition.
'Your headache must have gone away.'
'I'm still thirsty, though,' Cathy said, smiling up at Jack's face.
'I think I can handle that.' Jack lifted the glass and held it to her lips. She
took a single sip, then moved it to his.
'Hungry?'
'No. '
She leaned against him, taking both his hands in hers. 'I love you, Jack. Shall
we?'
Jack turned her around, and walked behind, his hands at her waist. The bed, he
saw, was turned down, and the light out, though the glare from the flood-lit
White House washed in through the windows.
'Remember the first time, the first night we were married?'
Jack chuckled. 'I remember both, Cathy.'
'This is going to be another first time, Jack.' She reached behind him and
flipped off the cummerbund. Her husband took the cue. When he was naked, she
embraced him as fiercely as she could manage, and the silk of her nightgown
rustled against his skin. 'Lie down.'
'You're more beautiful than ever, Cathy.'
'I wouldn't want anyone to steal you from me.' Cathy joined him on the bed. He
was ready, and so was she. Caroline pulled the nightgown up to her waist and
mounted him, then let it fall down around her. His hands found her breasts. She
held them in place, rocking up and down on him, knowing that he couldn't last
very long, but neither could she.
No man should be so lucky, Jack told himself, straining, trying to control
himself, and though he failed miserably, he was rewarded with a smile that
nearly broke his heart.
'Not bad,' Cathy said a minute later, kissing his hands.
'Out of practice.'
'The night is young,' she said, as she lay down beside him, 'and that's the best
I've had in a while, too. Now, are you hungry?'
Ryan looked around the room. 'I, uh . . .'
Wait.' She left the bed and returned with a bathrobe with the hotel monogram. 'I
want you to stay warm.'
Dinner passed in silence. There was nothing that needed to be said, and for the
following hour they silently pretended that they were both in their twenties
again, young enough to experiment in love, to explore it like a new and
wonderful place where every turn in the road revealed something never before