The ability to move around freely outside was such a gift after being under lock and key at the White House. Most days, his outdoor time consisted of the one-minute walk to and from work on the West Colonnade. That was often the only fresh air he got all day as he passed the Rose Garden on the way to the Oval Office. In comparison to that, Camp David was paradise.

He’d known, of course, that being president would be confining. Being vice president had been confining, but this was even more so. The intense confines of the presidency had to be experienced to be truly understood. There were days when he wondered what would happen if he simply stood up, walked out the doors of the Oval Office and headed for the gates to freedom.

The Secret Service wouldn’t let him get far before they’d be on him, redirecting him back to the gilded cage where he belonged, like a cockatoo who’d staged a naughty escape. He was entertained by the fantasies of the many ways he might escape, walk away and never look back. Except he’d never leave his beloved wife and children. Escaping with a party of six plus a crazy dog would be far more complicated than a solo mission.

Sam came up behind him and slipped her arms around him, resting her head on his back. “What’re you thinking about out here in the cold all by yourself?”

The hug and the question reminded him of the first week they’d been back together after her ex-husband had tried to blow them up. “I like it here. I can breathe here.”

“It is pretty.”

Someone who didn’t know her as well as he did wouldn’t have heard it, but to him, her anxiety came through loud and clear. He turned to face her. “What’s wrong?”

“What? Nothing. We’re on vacation. What could be wrong?”

“Samantha, you might be able to get away with that with anyone else, but not with me. I can feel distress coming from you.”

She scowled at him. “Knock that off. I don’t like it when you know me too well.”

“Tough shit,” he said, smiling. “I know you better than anyone, so tell me what’s wrong.”

“I just have this odd feeling right here.” She rubbed her chest. “Came on when I realized how hard it would be to get back to the District if I need to.”

“Why would you need to? You’re on vacation.”

“Right, but you know… Always on duty, like you are. But unlike you, I can’t just hop aboard Marine One and get back to town in forty-five minutes. It would take a motorcade and coordination and time.”