A Reason to Celebrate

When she had gone to sleep, Jed hadn't been there. Now, he was. She could tell by his snoring. Which was accompanied by the rattling of the windows.

Even the soft tinkle of her travel alarm clock hadn't changed the rhythm of the noise. She had stopped the ringing almost as quickly as it had begun, then she had dropped the damn thing on the night table, where it had clattered loudly before bouncing down on to the carpet.

"What?" Jed sat up, startled and still more than half asleep. "What's going on?"

She reached over and patted his shoulder. "Nothing. I must have pushed my book off the night table. Sorry. Go back to sleep. It's the middle of the night."

"No. It was the middle of the night when I finally got to come to bed."

"Well, now it's half-past the middle of the night, so go back to sleep."

She patted him again and felt him fall back on the bed. He curled up right in the middle, turned his back to her, and pulled most of the covers with him.

Abbey leaned back against her pillows and waited until his even breathing told her he had gone back to sleep. Then she turned and leaned over the side of the bed, extending her arm and patting the floor, searching for the elusive alarm clock. She had purposely used it tonight because of its soft sound, then she had to be so incredibly stupid as to drop it!

There it was.

The tiny glow-in-the-dark hands read 5:04. Abbey couldn't believe she was awake, and had actually intended to be, at 5:04 AM. The one perk of not having to make medical rounds was that she could sleep until a normal hour. She regarded 5:04 as a ridiculously not normal hour.

She felt sure Jed would sleep for quite a while longer. Hadn't he said that it had been very late when he had come to bed?

God, but it was dark at this time of the morning. Or night. It was really still night.

She could go back to sleep so easily and he would never know the difference. He didn't expect her to come to him this morning. Their stolen romantic moments always came later in the day.

The little hands had slipped around to 5:10. Show time, Abbey.

She made up her mind. She inched to the side of the bed and slipped out, terrified that Jed would be awakened by the shifting of the mattress. She held her breath until she was standing beside the bed in the darkness. She listened. He was still snoring softly.

Good.

She had a little over an hour. Charlie wouldn't call him until 6:30.

Now that she had decided to do it, Abbey was excited. She closed the bathroom door and splashed warm water on her face. She had put everything ready the night before and, with the proper motivation, she could be very quick. She glanced at the clock and hurried, but she was careful not to drop anything else. Above all, she must avoid detection.

She turned off the light and opened the door. Her footsteps made no noise at all on the soft carpet. She scarcely breathed as she moved through the bedroom.

So far, so good.

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Somewhere in the White House, 5:40 AM

The building was in semi-darkness, but Abbey knew exactly where to find him.

Only the silky swish of her garments and a light touch of perfume followed her as she went to him.

She found him asleep. Standing there, she was filled with a sudden deep yearning and she shed her clothes quickly. It was too bad that he was going to miss her new, very expensive, silk underwear, but stealth and surprise were the keys here.

The space was cramped, but she wiggled into an empty spot and lay down, pressing softly against his back. Abbey thought how lucky it was that she had chosen a lover who was so dedicated to his work that he often just called it a night and stayed in the building. And it must have been a long, hard night. He was completely out. Maybe she should just let him sleep.

And maybe not.

She reached an arm around him, placing her hand flat on his chest, feeling the slow, steady beat of his heart. Abbey bent her head and rubbed her cheek against his shoulder. He didn't move.

She pushed closer against him, rubbing her hand in gentle circles against his chest, then moving down to stroke his stomach. Abbey thought his breathing had changed. She paused, waiting for a sign of awareness, but nothing happened. She kissed his shoulder and nibbled gently, moving up his neck with warm, insistent lips.

"Hmmmmm," was all he said, but at least he was awake now.

Then he whispered in surprise, "It's been a while. I missed you."

He covered her hand with his, bringing it up to his lips to kiss the palm. She felt his lips part and his tongue brush briefly against her hand.

Abbey sighed into his shoulder. "We don't have a lot of time."

"We never do," he said softly, still holding her hand and pushing it down his body. He boldly placed it over the fly of his boxers, where he was already hardening. She heard his quick, sharp intake of breath as she let her fingers plunge inside to stroke him, gently, then more firmly, as she pulled his erection through the opening.

Abbey's breasts were beginning to ache. Completely naked, she was pressed close against his back, her nipples tightening in arousal as she rubbed against the fabric of his T-shirt. She still reached around him, gripping him tightly, and his hips had started to move as he sought more intense stimulation. As he bucked back and forth, he was bumping into her pelvis, and she could feel her desire begin to build, warm and intense. She let her hand slide over his length, stopping at the tip, where she rubbed her thumb back and forth over the slick skin.

He groaned and pushed her hand away, sitting up to remove his T-shirt and lifting his hips enough to get out of his boxers.

Abbey had more room now and she slid over onto her back. He moved over her, bringing his hands over her voluptuous, round breasts, then down to her curving waist and hips. He moved one hand between her thighs, pressing his palm against her, his fingers searching the moist folds of flesh.

He breathed deeply, "This is just so incredible."

"I have to agree," she whispered. "Completely."

He bent to find her lips for a long, sensuous kiss. She tasted of minty toothpaste and it tingled his tongue as he probed her mouth. Abbey twined her tongue with his and sucked gently, not wanting him to move away.

She reached up to stoke his chest, amazed to find that his heart was pounding and thrilled that she had caused such a response. Her hands moved farther down, searching for the thick mat of hair at the base of his erection. She pressed her fingers into his torso, delighted with his response, as he hardened further still at her touch. Bringing her fingers back, she ran them lightly over his hardness, lingering at the wet tip. She moaned against his mouth and arched upward.

She wanted this so much.

But, what time was it? Daylight must be fast approaching, and she didn't want to be caught like this.

But thinking became an impossibility as he entered her. Suddenly, all that existed was this one small corner of the universe, where they communicated only with their bodies, he with long, smooth thrusts and she with arching hips. He lowered his head to kiss each breast, his lips lingering on the hard nipples.

They were both out of control now and he was moving hard and deep inside her. Abbey was reaching for release, aching with tension, but she tried to hold back, wanting to keep pace with her lover as long as she could.

"Oh..." he groaned in pleasure. "Oh, please, Abbey, please..."

With his final thrust, she allowed herself to give in to the spasms within her. They clung together, satisfied and content, exchanging soft kisses and trying to get their breathing back to normal.

"Happy Birthday, darling," she said softy into his ear. "I have to go."

She kissed him and slid away from his grasping hands, begging her to stay. She slipped into her clothes and walked away.

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The Presidential Bedroom, 6:35 AM

Jed was sitting up in bed when she came into the bedroom.

"What are you up to, Abbey?" he asked.

"What do you mean?"

"You're doing things you never do. And you're never up this early in the morning," he sounded accusing.

"It's going to be a busy day and I had to get some personal things done."

"Like giving out birthday greetings?" his eyes were intent as he watched her fidget.

"Well, yes, that's one thing I wanted to do," she smiled. She tried to hide it by looking down and tying the belt on her silk robe, but she knew he had seen it.

"Very thoughtful," he said. "But it's not my birthday and I'm pretty sure you know that."

Abbey's smile grew into a full-fledged grin. She went over and sat on the side of the bed.

"But didn't you enjoy the present? I wanted to give you something...now, how shall I put this? Something unexpected."

"Well, you certainly succeeded. And you always pretend to be such a grouch in the morning. I usually can't get you to budge," Jed grinned back at her.

"Oh, but I am a grouch. And a sleepyhead. But I thought you deserved a treat."

"And it's not even my birthday."

"But, Jed, it's somebody's birthday today." She reached over to the night table and picked up the schedule folder that Charlie had brought in just minutes earlier. "There are so many staff in the West Wing, that every day is somebody's birthday. And their names are always listed here. Don't you ever notice?"

She handed him the folder and pointed to a line.

"See, today two people have birthdays. Paul Rogers and Angela Turner."

Abbey grinned at him. "And we just celebrated for them."

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The White House, 7:50 AM

Jed went down to the Oval Office, greeting everyone he met, and being particularly jovial with Charlie. His aide said Leo wanted to see him, but Jed asked him to hold off for a few minutes.

He sat down at his desk and pulled out paper and pen. He wrote busily, then folded two sheets of paper, placing each one in an envelope and scribbling a name on the outside. He called Charlie in.

"Would you please put these in the inter-office mail, Charlie? And you can send Leo in now."

"Thank you, Mr. President."

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The White House, 4:40 PM

Angela Turner's desk was a riot of papers as she tried to get through all the policy memos that she had to file. When the inter-office mail cart pulled up to her desk late in the afternoon, she was not in a mood for anymore paperwork.

"Please," she cried to the intern. "No more stuff today."

"Just this," he handed her a heavy white envelope with the Presidential seal in the upper left corner.

She held it for a moment, then tore open the flap and pulled out a single sheet of paper, which read, "Happy Birthday, Ms. Turner. This is a very special day and all of us at the White House join in your celebration. Best wishes and many happy returns! Jed Bartlet"

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When Jed got to the Residence that evening, he immediately went to find Abbey. She was on the phone with Ellie, and he waited impatiently for her to finish the call.

He stood there while she hung up, then he waved a folder under her nose.

"Do you know what this is?"

She shook her head.

"It's the schedule for tomorrow. And, guess what?" he puffed out his chest and grinned.

She smiled and mutely raised an eyebrow.

"It's Alan Winston's birthday!"

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Click here to read the sequel, Celebration II: More Reasons to Celebrate.