Midnight Sun (57 page)

“
Ooh,
sexy
walk
ain't
happening,
”
she
said,
sucking
in
a
short
breath.

She
bent
over
the
suitcase,
grunting
from
the
exertion,
and
pulled
out
a
pair
of
panties,
then
took
a
step
back
and
leaned
against
the
wall,
twisting
her
leg
at the hip in order to raise her foot high enough
to
be
able
to
get
it
through
the
leg
hole.
Once
her
underpants
were
on,
she
stood
back
up
to
catch
her
breath
before
pulling
on
a
pair
of
thin
fleece
pajama
pants.
Marcus
watched
her
slide
on
a
long,
loose-fitting
cotton
T
-shirt
and
found
himself
unexpectedly
aroused
at
the
sight
of
his
fully
dressed,
and
fully
pregnant,
wife.

Early
on,
he
had
that
assumed
his
sexual
attraction
to
his
wife
would
abate
during
the
pregnancy,
but
had
been
surprised
to
find
that
he
desired
her
even
more.
He
had
been
a
poet
since
he
was
young,
always
finding
it
easier
to
express
himself
in
words
on
paper
than
he
ever
could
with
those
spoken
from
the
lips.
In
his
twenty
years
of
service
in
the
Marines,
he
had
penned
over
five
hundred
poems
specifically
for
Lonnie,
thousands
of
words
arranged
for
her
alone,
and
never
to
be
seen
by
anyone
else.
He
reached
up
and
rubbed
her
shoulders
and
neck,
drawing
another
sigh
from
her
lips
as
he
gently
squeezed
the
physical
tension
away.
 
A
knock
at
the
door
snatched
their
attention.

“
Who
is
it?
” 
Marcus
called
out.

“
It's
Mike
and
Hilde,
”
came
the
response
from
the
other
side.

Marcus
crossed
the
room
and
opened
the
door.

“
I've
been
trying
to
reach
Tonia
since
we
got
back,
”
Hilde said,
“
but
she's
not
answering.
”

“
How
about
the
FBI
office
here
in
Anchorage?
”
Lonnie asked.
“
It's
just
a
few
blocks
away.
”

“
I
tried
there
too.
Got
the
automated
attendant
that
said
to
leave
a
message
or
dial
911
for
an
emergency.
I
left
a
voice
mail,
but
it’s not
likely
that
an
agent
will
get
back
to
us
before
morning.
And
this
is
not
a
911-type
call.
Local
police
will
think
it's
a
prank.
”

“
Do
you
know
what
room
your
friend
is
in?
”
Marcus asked.
“
We
could
always
go
wake
her
up.
”

“
I
don't
know
the
room.
And
besides,
Tonia
probably won’t
to
be
back
until
after
midnight
anyway.
The
president
himself
isn’t here yet, and she's
just
on
prep
detail
and
so
she’s
probably
living
it
up
with
her
per
diem
money.
”

“
Maybe
we
should
wait
downstairs,
”
Mike suggested,
“
and
catch
her
when
she
comes
in.
”