The door slammed and Amy jumped from surprise. She hadn’t been expecting Josh to
come home at 5:30. The White House wasn’t exactly a 9-5 job as she had recently found
out for herself. She got up from her desk and walked out into the kitchen to find Josh
taking a long swig from a beer.
“Hi honey, you’re home.” She joked, but he didn’t respond at all. “We talked about this.
We knew it would be a rough day.”
“Yeah.” Josh agreed.
Amy put her arms around him. “This will blow over and things will get better.”
“I sincerely doubt it.”
“What happened?”
“Donna quit and Leo gave my legislative portfolio to Toby and Angela Blake.” Josh told
her as he took another drink of the beer. The order of his list was not lost on Amy.
“Maybe it’s for the best.” Amy said and Josh nearly bobbled his drink. “Donna, I mean,
not the legislative portfolio.”
“She went behind my back to help Toby prep for a cap gains meeting with Singer.” Now
more than ever, Josh was glad to be with Amy who understood exactly what all of this
meant.
“This is what I’m saying, Josh. She’s ready to move on to other things. She’s bright and
ambitious; why would you expect anything else from her?”
“Because that’s not how we are!”
Amy blinked at the adamant tone from Josh. “Okay, just how are you?”
“Don’t be like that.” He shook his head in exhaustion from the women in his life.
“I’m not being like anything, J. You just said that’s not how you and Donna are and I’m
asking you to clarify that statement for me.”
“I really can’t.”
“Yes, I can see that.” Amy said as she left the kitchen.
“Damn it, you’re doing this on purpose.” Josh accused her.
“Doing what on purpose?”
“You’re trying to make me feel guilty about my relationship with Donna.”
“Do you have something to feel guilty about in your relationship with Donna?”
“Of course not. I wouldn’t be with you if there was something between me and Donna.”
“Then I guess I’m puzzled about how I can make you feel guilty about it.”
“Look, I don’t need this right now. Everything is going to hell!”
“Everything?” Amy questioned and Josh caught her tone.
“No, not everything.” Josh told her, but his tone and expression must not have been too
convincing because she shook off his hand.
“When you came here Friday night, I thought that was because you had decided what
you wanted.”
“It was. It is.” Josh corrected himself.
“Then maybe it’s time to leave the White House. It’s obvious that you’re not appreciated
there right now.” Amy stated and Josh heard the echo of Leo’s voice from earlier in the
office; ‘No one wants you here’. “You could write your own ticket in the private sector. In
fact, we could do that together.”
Josh looked back up into her eyes and suddenly nothing about this felt right to him. Amy
read his face and knew what it meant. Despite Donna’s assertion; sometimes Amy did
‘get Josh’.
“But that has to be because it’s what you want to do, just like I have to be who you want
to spend your life with.” She moved away from him and sat on the couch. “It can’t be
because you’re desperately trying to hang on to something that makes you feel
successful while you’re at a low point. We both deserve better than that.”
“Amy…”
“I think you’d better go now, Joshua.”
“You’re kicking me out? Now? After the day I’ve had?”
“I think we both need a little time to cool off; think.” Amy answered. “And I don’t feel like
being your consolation prize.”
“Fine. I appreciate your support here, Amy.” Josh told her and she watched him storm
out in search of the nearest bar.
********************************************
Donna’s phone was ringing and it was 3 in the morning. As if that wasn’t bad enough,
Donna had only been able to get to sleep 3 hours earlier when she finally gave in and
took a Tylenol PM. She tried to focus on the number displayed by caller ID, but she was
groggy because of the pill and she soon realized that the number was unfamiliar anyway.
“Hello?” Donna swore if this was a crank call she was going to reach through the cord
and kill whoever was at the other end. “Hello? Who is this?”
“Donna! Thank God. Can you bring your key over to Josh’s? We’re locked out.” Matt
Skinner answered.
Donna closed her eyes and wished it had been a crank call. She started to fall back
asleep again thanks to the Tylenol PM.
“Donna?” Matt called to her again. “Are you there?” Donna could hear Josh’s drunken
voice in the background.
“I told you not to call that faithless wench.” Josh said.
“Tell him he can go to hell.” Donna said and started to hang up.
“Donna! Donna, wait!” Matt begged her. “Don’t hang up. The police have his keys and I
don’t have any cash to get a cab. My place is too far to walk-“
“The police have his keys?” Donna asked waking up a bit.
“Yes. He tried to get in his car and the police- Look, in the time I can take to explain it to
you, you could be on your way here with your key. I know you’re pissed at him right now,
but I’m literally on his front stoop and an article about a drunken Deputy Chief of Staff
won’t help anyone. Donna, please…”
“I have to get a cab.” She told him. “I took a sleeping pill so I can’t drive.”
“Please hurry; he’s out of control and very loud.”
“I don’t need her damn help.” Josh blustered on. “Tell her to go unlock Toby’s damn
door.”
“Toby isn’t sitting drunk on his doorstep with his keys taken away from him by the cops.”
Matt reminded him. “Hurry.” Matt reminded Donna.
Donna called for a cab and within minutes, she was outside Josh’s brownstone. She took
Josh’s keys off her ring as she got out of the cab, fully prepared to hand them to Matt
and get back in the cab to go home. One glance at the steps changed her plans. Josh
was passed out in the corner at the top of the steps and Matt was leaning up against the
opposite corner looking very tired and sad. She paid the cab and walked slowly up the
stairs.
“We should really just leave him right there.” Donna suggested. “Wearing a button that
says, “I voted for Ritchie.” Matt gave a short laugh and took her hand.
“Thanks for coming Donna. You’re a classy dame.” Donna’s lips twitched. “If my best
friend wasn’t in love with you and I wasn’t, you know, gay, I’d be hitting on you right now.”
Donna’s head shot up at the first part of his statement.
“Don’t say that.” She warned him. “I’m already passed the- Look, Josh is engaged to
Amy and I’m transferring to Toby’s department, so all bets are off.”
“Well I agree about the betting part. None of us seriously thought you two would screw
things up THIS badly.” Matt noted and Donna glared at him.
“It’s not funny, Matt.”
“It certainly isn’t.” Matt agreed and leaned down to hoist Josh up with one shoulder.
Donna pulled up on his other arm and he jostled awake.
“Donna?” Josh closed his eyes again. “I need you to…(Josh makes a typing motion with
his hands) for me.”
“In the morning Josh.” Donna told him.
“No, now!” his eyes snapped open. “I need a letter to resign from the thing…then I need
a letter to ‘nounce I’m joinin’ the ‘publican party. I’m gonna join my good friend….?” Josh
looked up at Matt with a puzzled expression.
“Matt.” Matt told him.
“Right; Matt. Donna can come too, right Matt?”
“Donna’s always welcome.” Matt agreed.
“You are so going to hate yourself in the morning.” Donna told him as they took the last
step and she unlocked the front door.
“I hate m’self now.” Josh informed them. The trip up to Josh’s apartment was slow and
they had a couple false alarms, when they though Josh was going to get sick. They
finally got inside Josh’s apartment and deposited Josh on his couch. Donna, familiar with
this routine, took off his shoes and placed a small trash can next to him before going into
the kitchen to make some coffee and find some Advil. Matt joined her shortly.
“I meant what I said before, Donna. Coming over here was above and beyond the call. I
don’t know exactly what happened between you, but I take it must have been pretty ugly.”
“It doesn’t matter. He has Amy now and he’s just irked that I left him before he left me.”
“For what it’s worth, I don’t think he has Amy anymore. She was my first call, given the
circumstances, and she hung up on us. I think they’re done.”
“No.” Donna shook her head. “He stood in his office and told me how Amy told him all
these about when Amy and I talked…right before Zoey was kidnapped. He said all these
things…”
“He was fishing.” Matt told her.
“Matt…”
“He was fishing, Donna. I was with him after he had that argument with Amy. She told him
she asked you point blank if you were in love with Josh, and she told him that you
refused to answer her. He was fishing.”
‘That doesn’t make any sense.”
“This IS Josh Lyman we’re talking about.”
“He asked her to marry him.” Donna said quietly.
“He made a mistake. We all make them; don’t we?” Donna winced inwardly as she
thought about Cliff Calley and what Josh risked for her after she made that mistake.
“We said some horrible things to each other.” Donna admitted.
“No one brings the verbal fighting the way you two do.” Matt smiled.
“This wasn’t…It was different. HE’S been different.”
“His whole world has folded in on him. Leo has hung him out to dry and he’s lost
everything in his life that means anything to him; his job, you…”
“There’s still Amy.”
“There’s really not.
”Matt, every time I think we have things worked out between us that…woman gets her
hooks in him again and I’m dumped on the side of the road. Just watch; he’ll be hung
over and apologetic tomorrow. Then he’ll ‘make it up to her’ with some pseudo trip to
Tahiti or something and they’ll be snuggled together in bed by tomorrow night.”
“I don’t think so.” Matt sing-songed. “But I understand why you’d be cautious.” Matt
peeked out to make sure Josh was still breathing. “You want me to call you a cab to get
home or would you rather crash in his guest room?”
“I’d rather hear the story about Josh losing his keys to the cops.” Donna smiled.
“When I got to the bar, he was well and truly toasted. His big idea at the time was
resigning from the Democratic Party and working in my office.”
“Don’t you wish you had a witness?” Donna laughed.
“I can do you one better…” Matt pulled out his cell phone. “It’s all permanently recorded
on my trusty cell. After recording the pertinent information, the idea was for me to drive
him home in his car. But once we got outside, he decided he could get home by himself.
He was a little stymied, however, by getting the key into the door lock.”
“Why didn’t he just use his remote to unlock the doors?”
“Honestly? I don’t think it ever occurred to him.” Matt laughed. “As he was struggling with
the keys, who should pass by but one of D.C.’s finest. The Officer gives him a choice
between handing the keys to me or to the Officer. Josh chose none of the above and
started going into his ‘I write the laws, I am the laws’ speech…”
“Oh, God…”
“Fortunately, the Officer has a good sense of humor and I think he might have
recognized Josh. The Officer ends up taking his keys and telling him he can come by the
station tomorrow to pick them up.”
“That could have been a disaster.” Donna mused.
“He’s had a few very bad days.” Matt noted.
“I’m going to call a cab.” Donna told him and picked up the phone in Josh’s kitchen.
“You sure?”
“Yeah.” Donna assured him and gave the cab company the address. Matt went back into
the living room and surveyed his unconscious friend. ‘What a mess.’ Matt mused. ‘What
a horribly complicated, heartbreaking mess.’
*****************************************
Josh missed senior staff the next morning, and although he didn’t show it, Leo McGarry
was worried about it. It was a worry that was compounded by Toby’s request to bring
Donna onto his team. Since he couldn’t question his Deputy about it, he chose to
interrogate Donna instead.
“Josh missed senior staff.” Leo began as soon as Donna stepped into his office.
“That’s what I heard.” Donna replied.
“Where the hell is he?” Leo demanded but Donna just shrugged.
“You have no idea what going on with him? I find that very hard to believe, Donna.”
“Maybe he took you seriously when you said nobody wanted him here.” She opined and
Leo literally blinked in surprise at the tone and the content of her answer.
“I am the only thing standing between Josh Lyman and unemployment.” Leo told her
heatedly.
“He’s lucky to have such loyal friends.” Donna noted with more than a bit of sarcasm. “It
was stupid of him to go out on a limb with Senator Carrick. If he wanted to run that kind
of play, he should have run it by you first; that way, he would have had some political
cover if it all went bad.”
Leo looked at her carefully, but she didn’t so much as bat an eye. It took a great deal of
guts to stand up to the White House Chief of Staff. A guy from Chicago had to respect
that.
“What’s going on with this transfer business?”
“I want to get some different experience. Toby said he could use me.”
“Josh, if he ever shows up, will have several farm animals in my office when he hears
about this.”
“No, he won’t.” Donna assured him. “We’ve already discussed this. We’re both on board.”
“You’re sure?”
“Positive.”
“Okay. Effective immediately?” Leo asked.
“Better give us a few days to find someone to replace me in Josh’s office.”
“I think it’s going to take far more than a few days, but…Effective on Monday, then?”
Donna nodded and quickly moved to leave the room.
“Donna?” Leo stopped her.
“You were right about one thing…he is lucky to have such loyal friends.” Leo told her
and she realized that was probably as close as anyone was going to get to an apology
for letting Josh take the fall for the Carrick party switch.
********************************************
When she entered his office later that day, she wasn’t surprised to see him slumped on
his desk; his head in his hands.
She dropped several files on his desk and he jumped, then winced in pain from the
sudden movement.
“MUST you do that?” he asked quietly. “Shouldn’t you be in Toby’s office making HIS life
miserable?”
“My transfer isn’t effective until Monday and you need to pick a replacement first.”
Josh dropped his head back down. He had prayed, literally prayed, that she would
change her mind, but he had no one but himself to blame for the fact that she hadn’t. He
just had to open his big mouth about Amy’s confrontation with her. That was the last
straw.
“It doesn’t matter. Just send someone up from the temp pool.”
“It certainly does matter. Look at these.” She set several resumes in front of him. “You
need to have someone competent outside your office; you’re the Deputy Chief of Staff.”
Josh laughed derisively. “Right; a Deputy Chief of Staff with no legislative portfolio and
who isn’t allowed to take meetings or make phone calls. What exactly will this stellar
assistant do? Take my lunch order?”
“Maybe you could start with this.” She dropped yet another file on his desk with a bang.
“It's my ‘What a Shame’ folder. All the stuff we never have time for. The stuff we thought
we'd fix when we got here, but we never did. Foreign adoption policy. Hybrid energy
partnerships. Extending the roadless conservation plan. Okay this one's not a shame, I
just didn't want to deal with it. Funding special education for kids with disabilities.
Ammunition control. What's a gun without bullets?”
Josh rolled his eyes and laid his head back down. Donna picked the folder back up and
turned to leave the room. “Look at the resumes and tell me which ones you want to
meet.”
“Sure, what else have I got to do…Donna?”
“Yes?”
“Leave the other folder, too.” He directed and Donna allowed herself a small smile and
gently set it back on his desk.
**********************************************
“DONNA!”
“Did you need something Mr. Lyman?” the temp asked timidly. She had learned the hard
way to stay out of Josh’s way, but the summons seemed important.
“Yes, I need Donna.” Josh said exasperated. “She’s supposed to still be working for me.
Where the hell is she?”
“She’s in the budget negotiations with Angela Blake.” Jody told him. “She said I can page
her if it’s urgent. Is it urgent?”
“She’s IN the budget negotiations?”
“Uh-huh.” Jody confirmed. “Can I help you, Mr. Lyman?”
“Yes. You can start by calling me Josh. I hate Mr. Lyman.” Jody nodded quickly. “Then I
need the numbers on foreign adoption.”
“Sure.” Jody said agreeably. “What kind of numbers? Are they in a file somewhere I
should pull?”
Josh, halfway back to his desk, turned and ran a hand over his face; trying to find some
patience. “No, you’re going to have to generate these numbers. I need to know how
many foreign adoptions take place annually; go back for the last ten years. I need to
know what the regulations are concerning foreign adoption. I need to know how many
Americans are on adoption waiting lists both foreign and domestic, and anything else
you think is relevant to the topic of foreign adoption. Got it?”
“Got it.” Jody told him, writing notes furiously on her pad. Josh again turned toward his
desk, before again, stopping.
“And put it all on note cards.”
“Sir?” Jody asked puzzled.
“Josh, not sir, and put all the information on note cards. I’m…used to looking at this stuff
on note cards.” He finished lamely and instead of going back to his desk, decided to
walk to Leo’s office.
When he arrived there, he heard the raised voices of Angela Blake and Leo McGarry.
The door was standing open, and he was still the Deputy Chief of Staff, so Josh took it
as an invitation.
“What’s going on?”
“They’ve stepped away from the table. All they’re willing to offer right now is a continuing
resolution, until Christmas this time.” Angela told him.
“You’ve got to be kidding me! Who does Haffley think he is? Prime Minister?” Josh
scoffed.
“It gets worse.” Donna explained. “They’re not willing to continue funding at current
levels. They want a 1% cut across the board.”
“Tell them they can take their C.R. and shove it up their-“
“Josh…” Leo growled a warning.
“The President would never-“
“Yes, he would.” Leo corrected. “We have to play ‘make a deal’ to keep all the Federal
employees coming to work and make the lights go on.”
“We can eat the 1% on the C.R. until Christmas. Then we’ll be in a stronger position to
bargain.”
“Stronger? What planet do you live on?” Josh asked her incredulously.
“Don’t yell at her!” Donna snapped. “You know the hand she was dealt.”
“You’re saying it was me?” Josh asked Donna directly.
“No, but while we may have won re-election in a landslide, we didn’t take Congress with
us. And now it looks like we’re not taking the Congress with us and the Republicans
know it!” Donna ended her speech toe to toe with Josh.
“Alright.” Leo ran interference. “Get the C.R. done with the 1% cut. I’ll brief the
President.” Donna nodded and stomped out of the office. Angela began to follow her but
turned to add one last comment for Josh.
“You know all this time she’s been fighting for you; you and your plan to send everyone
to college.”
“It’s a good plan.” Josh insisted.
“Yes, it is. Now I’ve got you ‘til Christmas to find a way to make it work.” She grimaced
and followed Donna back to the mural room.
“Leo…” Josh started to make his case, but was cut off.
“Don’t start. We do what we have to do to get by right now. That’s all.” Leo dismissed
him and Josh walked back to his office feeling ever more impotent than he had
beforehand; if that was actually possible.
****************************************
“There's no agreement.” Donna said quietly
“How far apart are we?” Josh asked.
“They're leaving the building.” She pointed out.
“Without a continuing resolution?” Will, who had been waiting in the hallway with Josh
and Toby, piped up.
“Haffley said the only way he could see it was with a three percent cut.” Donna answered
Will but was looking at Josh.
“We had a deal at one percent!” Toby complained.
Bob Russell walked up to the group.
“He's bluffing.” Josh maintained eye contact with Donna.
“We'll never know because the President ended the meeting. Will?”
Russell and Will left together.
“It's only 8:30. We'll get a deal before midnight.” Josh offered.
“I don't know.” She shook her slowly.
**************************************
“You’re going to need to cancel everything he has on his calendar for tomorrow before
you go.” Donna instructed Jody.
“How will I know when to come back?” Jody asked and Donna paused in what she was
doing. Not the brightest bulb on the tree, this one.
“Well, you could watch the news, I guess.” Donna suggested and Jody nodded again.
No, this one was lucky she had lasted the day. Josh came out of his office and Donna
started handing him things.
“You need to go home, Donna.” He said quietly.
“I know, I know.” Donna answered. “I’m taking the budget files, note cards, and colored
pens.”
“Donna, you don’t have to…It’s not your job anymore.” Josh said and took the files back
from her without meeting her eye.
“It is until Monday.” She stated taking the files back. Jody just stood watching the
interplay between them. “What else to you need?” Finally, Josh looked up and saw the
determination in her face; determination and something else he couldn’t quite put his
finger on.
“Get me a tally of all the programs affected by the shut down and email it to me as soon
as you’re done.” He said quickly in case she changed her mind.
“Done. Let’s go Jody.” Donna ordered and Jody followed meekly behind her. Josh
thought it was almost worth a Federal shut down to get rid of Jody. Her note cards might
have been legible, but they were a joke.
**********************************************
“Is this your way of getting out of taking me to the State dinner with the British Prime
Minister?” Amy asked him on the phone.
“We haven’t cancelled the dinner.” Josh informed her.
“Yet.” Amy qualified.
“Yet.” He agreed. “I’m…sorry about last night, or I guess it was this morning. I told Matt
not to call you.”
“I’m surprised you could form complete sentences.” She told him. “I know now isn’t a
good time, but maybe after you re-start the Government we could have dinner and talk.”
“Sure. Talk.” Josh couldn’t explain the reluctance he felt at the mere suggestion of
dinner and talking with Amy, but he couldn’t deny it either.
“So what’s the plan for the budget?” Amy asked changing the subject.
“I couldn’t tell you.”
“Is it some super secret plan or are you afraid your phones being bugged?”
“Neither actually. I honestly couldn’t tell you because I haven’t been in the war room.”
There was silence at the other end of the line while Amy digested that information. “Leo’
s cut you out of it completely?”
“Nobody’s calling my number here, Amy.” Josh snapped as he heard Leo’s words again,
‘Nobody wants you here’.
“You need to go down there, J.” Amy advised. “Make them listen to you.”
“They know where I am.” Josh responded and his cell phone rang, the caller ID said
Donna Moss. “Gotta go. I’ll call you later.” Josh hung up his office line unceremoniously
and answered his cell.
“What have you got?” he hated the anxiousness in his voice.
“I don’t suppose you’re terribly concerned about elk over-population?” Donna began.
“Elk or elf?”
“Ha, ha. Elk; we’ve stopped issuing hunting licenses.”
“Even C.J. would have a hard time spinning that into anything I’d care about. What else?”
“I think we need to get right on Social Security.”
“It’s an entitlement. It’s not affected.”
“It is when you consider that the people who cut and mail the checks have all been sent
home.”
“Holy shit, seriously? No one is going to get their Social Security checks?” Josh sat
straight up at his desk.
“Eleven million people will NOT get their checks unless you get to the GAO to issue a
ruling that gets those people back in.”
“Who do I talk to over there?” he asked her.
“Jim Arnold is in charge, but you’ll want to talk to Sara Fielding. She’s his-“
“Assistant?” Josh guessed. “Is that how all assistants talk? ‘Yeah, Lyman is Deputy Chief
of Staff, but who you really want to talk to is Donna Moss’.”
“Pretty much; yeah.” Donna replied without missing a beat. “While you’re on the phone
with her, do you think you could get me assigned to their department so I can go back to
work?”
“This won’t last much longer.” He assured her.
“Really? You’ve got a plan?” Donna inquired.
“Well not me so much as…”
“As?”
“No; no plan that I know of, but I’m sure the President is on it.”
“Damn it Josh, will you just go down there? They need you.” Donna stated.
“They know where I am.” Josh realized he was having the same conversation that he had
with Amy, but it felt different.
“And you know where they are. Stop being a stubborn toddler and get your ass into the
war room.” Donna raised her voice. “I want to get back to work and I know you can make
it happen.”
Josh didn’t know how to respond to her declaration, so he stayed silent.
“Did you hear me, Joshua? Are you going down there now?” Donna asked again.
“Well, right now I’m sitting in my office.” He replied dryly.
“You’re on a cell phone, you idiot, start walking.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Josh laughed nervously and got up to slowly walk toward the war room.
“You could walk a little faster, Joshua. A lot of people have been laid off, you know.”
“Yeah, I know that, Donnatella; and just how do you know how fast I’m walking anyway?”
“I can tell.” Donna said.
“You’re like watching me from across the street, right?” Josh teased. “I always said you
had a future as a stalker.”
“No, I’m just tuned to you.” Donna told him seriously and Josh stopped in the middle of
the hallway.
“Keep walking Joshua.” Donna really freaked him out with that one, but he started
walking again.
“Okay, I’m checking this place for your secret cameras.” he told her and had the
pleasure of hearing her laugh. He hadn’t heard that in awhile. When he got to the door
of the war room he paused.
“Do good in there.” Donna instructed him quietly.
“Yeah.” He responded and hung up the phone as he pushed the door open.
************************************************
“Where’s what’s her name?” Josh asked Donna when he saw her sitting outside his
office.
“Since you did the heavy lifting on the budget deal, I decided to relieve you of Jody’s
presence.”
“She doesn’t know she’s supposed to come back, does she?” Josh quipped.
“Probably not.” Donna admitted. “On the other hand, I have two promising interviews for
you this morning, and three more this afternoon. I’m sure among the five candidates that
I have personally pre-screened, I’m sure you can choose one of them to be your new
assistant.”
“I thought I was supposed to pick the ones I wanted to interview?”
“That was more of an honorary thing. I have a better idea of what you need than you do.”
“You know I’d fight you about that if it wasn’t absolutely true.”
“Yep.”
“As long as we both understand that.” Josh noted. “The President said to tell you that
you did a great job on the Social Security thing.”
“He did?”
“It was quite a save.” Josh admitted. “I did, however tell him I taught you everything you
know.”
“Of course.” Donna smirked as she shut his office door behind her and left him alone in
his office. There was a package on his desk. He noted the return address and saw that
is was the item he had asked his Mom to send last weekend. He opened the package
and fingered the ring box. He had been anxious then for it to arrive, but now that is sat
on his desk, he felt decidedly sick to his stomach. And until he figured out why that was
true, he was putting the package in a drawer, literally.
**************************************
Donna was waiting for Josh to get back from his meeting with Leo and Senator Corbin.
He had one last interview coming in 10 minutes and his office looked like a bomb had
exploded inside it. Donna started shifting piles and pulling things he no longer needed.
She sighed at the damage he had done in just the few days that the shut down had
lasted.
She sat in his chair and organized all his papers. She was about to add the newest pile
of papers to his top drawer when she noticed the ring box. She knew she shouldn’t so
much as touch it, but she found her hand moving toward it just the same. She didn’t
even look up to make sure nobody was watching her; that’s how far gone she was. She
slowly opened the lid of the box and gasped at the ring nestled inside.
It was obviously old, and breathtakingly beautiful. This was it then, he was giving her a
ring, a family heirloom no less. Donna had felt herself wavering about the transfer all
day. Things with her and Josh had been so good; back to normal, and she could almost
swear this whole thing had strengthened the bond between them. But here in her hand
sat the proof that she could never have what she wanted most from Josh; his love.
She broke out of her stupor when she heard his voice coming down the hallway. She
hastily closed the lid of the box and slid the drawer quietly shut. She had just moved
from his chair when he walked in, still talking over his shoulder to Ed about something.
“Everything go okay with Corbin?” she asked trying to cover her discomfort.
“I handled it.” Josh said smugly. “The man knows when he has been bested.”
“Of course he does.” Donna placated him. “You’ve got your last interview in 5 minutes.”
“Hey, is it my imagination, or are all the applicants you’ve sent me eligible for Social
Security?” he smirked.
“You need someone with maturity, who isn’t going to fold every time you raise your
voice.”
“You seemed to do just fine, and you don’t need a walker yet.”
“I have an old soul.” She explained and went to her desk. Today was Thursday; only one
more day of Donna sitting outside his office. He might as well throw a dart at the
resumes on his desk. It didn’t matter who came next, because none of them would be
Donna.
“Josh?” Donna knocked lightly and Josh looked up. “Elizabeth Waverly is here for her
interview. Are you ready for her?”
“As I’ll ever be.” Josh muttered and stood up to greet the last applicant of the day. “Ms.
Waverly? I’m Josh Lyman. Please have a seat.”
“Thank you. Please call me Liz.”
“Okay, Liz, tell me about why you’re job hunting?”
“I recently re-located from New York.” Liz explained. “I just got through a rather messy
divorce and decided to move back here to be closer to family. I heard about the position
through a friend of a friend and since I’ve managed to avoid committing a felony during
my lifetime, I was cleared to come meet you.”
“I’m sorry about the divorce. I’ve never been married, but I imagine that’s an emotionally
draining experience.”
“It was in my case, I’m afraid.” Liz grimaced. “I had a great job as a para-legal in a
prestigious law firm, and I quit once he graduated from medical school. He didn’t want
me to work outside the home; that way I was available to be at his beck and call and get
ready for when the babies came…only the babies never came. It was never the right
time for him, at least not with me; his mistress was 5 months pregnant by the time I found
out about her.” Liz stopped her rambling and looked up at Josh with shocked eyes.
“God, I’m so sorry, I’m just completely rambling.”
“Tell me about your para-legal experience.”
“I worked on research and witness prep for commercial litigation cases. I think my
strongest area is research, but my former boss said it was witness prep. He said he’s
never met anyone who’s faster on their feet. I included his letter of reference with my
resume.”
“I see that. He was very complimentary about your work performance. Is he still there?”
“I know, it was almost 5 years ago, but I can hit the ground running I assure you. If you’ll
give me a chance to prove myself, I promise you that you won’t regret it.”
Josh chuckled as the sense of déjà vu rained down on him. “Can you start tomorrow?”
“Tomorrow? Donna said the position didn’t start until Monday.”
“Yeah, but Donna’s last day is tomorrow and if you have half as good a brain as I think
you do, you’re going to want to spend every minute of the day picking her brain about
everything and everyone she knows in the White House.”
“Okay, what time does she come in?” Liz asked.
“No one knows for sure, there are even rumors that she sleeps in a coffin in the
basement, but it you’re here by 7, you should be okay. After you leave here, go straight
to HR, they’ll get you started on the paperwork and get you a temporary pass for
tomorrow.”
Josh stood up to indicate the interview was over.
“That’s it? This interview is over and I’ve got the job as assistant to the Deputy Chief of
Staff?”
“What can I say, things move fast around here. Have Donna bring you to H.R. and I’ll
see you tomorrow morning.” He held out hand to shake hers goodbye and he could see
the excitement and gratitude in her eyes. Yeah…déjà vu.
************************************************
“Is there any particular reason you chose to tell your new assistant I sleep in a coffin in
the basement?”
“I said there were RUMORS about that; not that it was true. Put that on your to do list
with her tomorrow: learning to differentiate fact from fiction.”
“Right. What’s next?”
“Next you go home.”
“Home?” Donna repeated.
“Comments like that are how the coffin rumors got started. Home; the place you
sometimes eat and sleep in. You know, you pay rent for it.”
“But it’s only 7.” Donna protested,
“I’m leaving and so should you.” Josh told her as he filled his backpack.
“Who are you and what have you done with Josh Lyman?”
“If there’s one thing I’ve learned in the last week, it’s that you need to have balance in
your life.”
“I need balance?” Donna questioned.
“We all do.” Josh confirmed. “We have spent the last 5, almost 6 years reallly, eating,
sleeping, and breathing the White House. Some day soon it will be gone and I, for one,
intend to have something else in my life when it does. Maybe then it won’t hit me like a
two by four when something goes wrong at work.”
“Do you even know what a two by four is?” Donna asked.
“I’ve seen pictures.” Josh grinned. “Go home. Go out. Do something that has nothing to
do with the White House.”
“And that’s what you’re going to do?”
“Amy and I are going out for dinner someplace where nobody knows who either of us
are.” Josh explained. “Seriously, go Donna.”
Donna had no choice but to leave for the night. She got in her car and drove home,
fighting the urge for the rest of the night to run back to the office for ‘something’ and
check to see if the ring was still there.
When she returned early the next morning, she finally lost the battle with herself and saw
that the ring box was gone.
**************************************************
“Where did you hear about this place?” Amy asked taking a seat across from Josh in the
out of the way place he had selected.
“I didn’t. I’ve just passed by it a hundred times and thought we’d try it tonight.”
“Okay. How goes the search for a new assistant?” Amy tested the waters of Donna Moss
without actually bringing up her name.
“I hired one today.” Josh told her with a smile.
“Where did she come from?”
“New York.” Josh answered simply.
“No, I mean where was she working before this?”
“Uh, she’s been out of work awhile, but she had a lot of great experience as a para-legal
before that.
“An unemployed para-legal?” Amy questioned. “Is your plan to hire the most
incompetent person you can find so Donna will realize you can’t live without her and
decide to stay?”
“Liz is going to be fine…great. I can tell.”
“Uh-huh.” Amy went along with him. “I heard you’ve got you’re portfolio back.”
“Where’d you hear that?” Leo had only told him this morning.
“Not from you.” Amy noted. “I was also surprised to see your quote on the shutdown in
the Post this morning. ‘It was a team effort that enabled us to execute the President’s
plan and bring about the new budget’? What happened to ‘Who da man’?”
“He’s sitting right here with you.” Josh merely smiled and took a drink. He was anxious to
order and get something to eat. He caught sight of a couple in their 60’s, maybe even in
their 70’s, eating next to them. They each had different pasta dishes, but were helping
themselves to one another’s plates while they talked animatedly about who knows what.
Josh found himself captivated by the couple.
“Josh? Are you listening to me?”
“I’m sorry, I got lost in thought there for a minute. What did you say?”
“I said this place doesn’t have much of a menu. Maybe we should go someplace else for
dinner?”
“It’ll be fine.” Josh assured her. “Besides, it’s quiet here and no one is bothering us.”
“That’s because we’re the only customers in the place.” Amy said derisively.
“Nah-uh.” Josh shook his head. “There’s another couple right there.” He indicated the
couple sharing the dining room with them.
“Okay, we’re the only customers under 80.” Amy amended. “When you invited me to
dinner I had something a little different than this in mind.”
“Candlelight, red wine, and me. What else could you possibly want?” Josh teased.
“Decent service, a menu longer than one page, and red wine that’s as old as I am.” Amy
sneered.
“Ah-kay.” Josh sighed and took another drink. The wine tasted fine to him.
“Have you given any more thought to working in the private sector?” Amy asked when
she realized her complaints were going nowhere.
“Some.” Josh admitted. “It’s just with the shutdown and the budget deal…”
“You fell on the sword for them…again, and don’t tell me they wouldn’t put you in that
position again.”
“That’s the cost of doing business at the White House.” Josh argued. “You know what it’s
like.”
“I know exactly what it’s like, that’s why I think we should strike out on our own.”
“We should, huh?” Josh asked, amused at her sales pitch.
“Between your contacts and mine, we could run the table.” She leaned in toward him
invitingly.
Josh had once told Toby he was ensorcelled by Amy; and looking at her now with a fire
in her eyes he could see why. She was passionate and exciting, dynamic and beautiful,
smart and savvy…so he couldn’t for the life of him figure out why he knew in his heart
that this wasn’t the woman he would be spending the rest of his life with. He gave her a
sort of sad smile. On paper, they were the perfect Washington power couple, but in
reality something important was missing.
“I lost you somewhere along the line, didn’t I?” Amy inquired and Josh didn’t pretend she
was talking about her proposed business venture, but he didn’t answer her verbally
either. He shrugged his shoulders and looked over at the older couple in the corner.
“I think I asked you the wrong question in my office that night.” Amy mused. “Instead of
asking if you were dating your assistant, I should have asked it you WANTED to date
your assistant.” Josh started to protest, but she cut him off. “Don’t. Maybe you don’t see
it, but I promise you that you’re the only one in the District who doesn’t.”
Josh looked her squarely in the eye. “I swear to you, Donna and I have never-“
“Do you think I would have been with you if I thought you were involved with Donna too?”
Amy scoffed. “Look, you came to me last week and said you were ready to make a
commitment.”
“I wasn’t lying to you Amy.”
“I’m not saying you were, Josh.” Amy reasoned. “But you had just had the rug pulled out
from under you and then you thought I’d been fired…you didn’t know if you were going
to be fired. There’s a reason psychologists tell people not to make important decisions
during times of great stress.”
“You think I came to you out of some misguided sense of self-preservation?”
“I think you were feeling overwhelmed and desperate to have some control over some
part of your life.” Amy corrected. “I had quite the week myself. All I’m saying is that if it
was a matter of having a temporary life preserver…”
“That’s not what-“
“I deserve better than that; we both do.” Amy’s phone rang. “Hi…no that’s okay I’m just
getting something to eat, I think…(she shot a look at Josh to indicate her displeasure
that they hadn’t even ordered yet)…no, the menu didn’t look to promising anyway.
Where do they want to meet?...Give me 30 minutes…Okay, bye.” Amy shut her phone
and picked up her purse.
“Janet Stanton wants to meet with me to discuss a position.”
“From N.O.W.?” Josh asked.
“Yeah, I’m meeting her in 30 minutes.”
“So I heard.” Josh replied.
“It’s not like we’ve even ordered yet.” Amy continued. “I’ll go meet with Janet and then we
can go to a real restaurant. It will just be a late dinner. It’s not like we aren’t used to that,
right?”
“Right.” Josh agreed as she kissed him and left to get across town for her meeting. He
watched for several minutes while the older couple finished their meal and then the
restaurant staff came out with a cake and sang ‘Happy Anniversary”. He tried to imagine
himself in that picture. He closed his eyes and immediately one picture popped into his
head. He pulled out his own cell and hit # 1 on his speed dial.
“Hey, have you had dinner yet?”
****************************************************
“What are you doing here?”
“I brought you some dinner.”
“I told you I ate already.” Donna told him.
“Yeah, but you lied. I brought chicken parmigiana and fettucine alfredo.”
“Josh…”
“There’s even some Tiramisu if you eat your dinner.”
“I don’t want any Tiramisu.”
“You always want Tiramisu…at least when it’s on my plate you do.” He set the bags
down and noticed that Donna hadn’t moved from her spot by the door. “Some
silverware? A couple plates?”
“Did you and Amy fight?” she asked, still not moving.
“No. She had to leave. Janet Stanton wanted to meet with her about a job.”
“Josh, you shouldn’t be here. Amy wouldn’t like it.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” Josh looked at her like she was crazy. “We’ve had
dinner together a million times. Would you feel better about it if we discussed work?”
“I’d feel better if you left.” Donna said and Josh looked like she’d slapped him.
“Donna?”
“I can’t DO this anymore, Josh. I just can’t. I’m sorry Amy cancelled your dinner, but I’m
not your substitute dinner companion.”
“Are you crazy? Who said you were?”
“You did!” Donna snapped. “Got some time to kill and your girlfriend ditch you? Call
Donna. She doesn’t have a life. You’ve made sure of that didn’t you?”
“What does that mean?”
“Sabotaging my dates and keeping me in the office days, nights and weekends; how
could I possibly have a personal life?”
“That didn’t seem to stop you from hooking up with Cliff Calley and I, myself, set you up
with Jack Reese.”
“God, when are you going to stop rubbing Cliff in my face?”
“I don’t know Donna, maybe when the statute of limitations expires on conspiracy to
obstruct justice…oh, that’s right, there IS no statute of limitations on conspiracy to
obstruct justice.”
“I didn’t ask you to go to Cliff.” Donna stressed.
“And I didn’t ask you to lie to the Congressional Committee.” Josh shouted back.
“I did it to protect you!” Donna said as she came toe to toe with Josh.
“So did I!”
“Damn it, Joshua.” Donna exclaimed and Josh took her face in his hands. Without giving
either of them a second to think about it, Josh closed the distance between them and
kissed her soundly.
He kissed her with all the pent up emotion and confusion that was churning up inside of
him. He would have stopped except that she had twined her arms around his neck and
was pulling him closer. The shrill ring of Josh’s cell phone caused them to jump guiltily
apart and it took Josh a second to calm his breathing enough to answer the phone.
“Josh Lyman…no, I took some food to go…yeah?..That’s great…(Josh turned away from
Donna and Donna could feel her face flushing; it had to be Amy). Sure, I can do
that…Where?...Okay, I’ll meet you there in a few.” He promised before he hung up the
phone.
“That was Amy.” He said unnecessarily.
“So I gathered.” Donna replied quietly. “She calls and you jump? You’re right, Josh, it’s
inconceivable that I would think you treat me like a substitute.”
“I need to see her, Donna.” Josh refused to take that particular bait. “I can’t tell her we’re
through over the phone.”
“What? You’re going to break up with your fiancé because we…” Donna waved her arms
in the air as if searching for a word.
“Kissed, Donna. The word you’re looking for is ‘kissed’; although it’s a pretty tame word
for what I just experienced.”
“Don’t say that. Don’t even think that. It was just a momentary…thing! We’ll just pretend
it never happened. Amy never has to know.”
“You think?” Josh asked her with an eyebrow raised in doubt.
“Yes, you go see her now and I’ll go back to…whatever, and tomorrow I’ll train in your
new assistant and we’ll act like normal.” Donna said a little desperately.
“Normal being a relative term for us.” Josh quipped.
“Stop it. This is not a joke. You aren’t going to blow this relationship because of me.”
“Because of ‘us’.” Josh corrected.
“There is no us. After tomorrow, we won’t even be working together.”
“Lucky break, that.” Josh smirked and moved closer to her.
“Stop. Stop right there. You are going to see Amy and we’re going to forget that ever
happened.”
“And by ‘that’ you mean the mind blowing kiss?” he pulled her hands away from her face.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. There was no mind blowing kiss. There was no
kiss at all. Understand?”
“Is that what you want?” Josh asked her seriously.
“Yes!” said Donna adamantly. Josh nodded his head and moved past her to the door.
Without another word he opened it and left. Donna stood frozen in place. She could
literally hear her heartbeat in an urgent rhythm. She rushed to the door and flung it
open to find Josh leaning against the door jamb. He pushed her back into her
apartment, kicking the door shut behind him. He trapped her against the wall and kissed
her until he felt his knees start to buckle.
“Pretend THAT never happened.” He challenged her and kissed his way down her throat.
“God, Josh, you’re very good at that.” Donna moaned.
“WE are very good at that.” Josh contradicted her and reluctantly pulled away from her.
“I have to go.”
Donna looked down and nodded.
“I HAVE to go. I don’t want to go, but I owe her that much.”
Donna nodded again. Josh kissed her forehead and once again exited her apartment.
************************************************
“Here, have a drink!” Amy commanded and handed Josh a beer.
“You got the job?”
“I did.” She smiled and clinked her beer bottle against Josh’s. “You are looking at the
new Recruiting Director for N.O.W.!”
“Congratulations.” He said sincerely, but something in his tone alerted her to a change
in his attitude.
“I’ll office in New York, but that’s a quick jump from here and I’m sure I’ll spend plenty of
time in D.C. too.” She tried to assure him, incorrectly guessing the reason for his sudden
coolness. When he still didn’t respond, she set down her beer and stood in front of him.
“It’s not going to matter where I office or how often I get to the District, is it?” Josh looked
her in the eye and shook his head ‘no’. “You went to see her after I left?”
“I just…it wasn’t planned; I just brought some dinner over.” Josh rushed through his
explanation.
“The other night, when Congressman Skinner called, it was Donna that came to the
rescue wasn’t it?” Josh nodded again. ”She always comes through for you, doesn’t
she?” Amy laughed humorlessly. “I have a confession to make.”
“YOU have a confession?”
“The night of the shut down, when we were on the phone and you said you had to go?
You didn’t put the phone back into the receiver all the way. I heard your conversation
with Donna.”
Josh replayed the conversation in his head but he couldn’t remember saying anything
particularly damning.
“It wasn’t what you said so much as how you said it. Your tone of voice; your whole
demeanor changed as soon as you got on the phone with her.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t intend to hurt you or deceive you, I swear.”
“I think you were far too busy deceiving yourself to make plans to deceive me, J.” she
smirked.
“You may be right.” He smirked back.
“I usually am.” She bragged.
“Ah-kay. I’m going to go now.” He set his beer down and kissed Amy’s cheek.
“Congratulations on the new job.”
“Thanks.” Amy smiled at him. “Say ‘hi’ to Donna for me.”
“No…I don’t think I will.” Josh shook his head and Amy laughed.
“Yeah…probably not a good idea.” Amy agreed.
*****************************************
Donna stewed in the office and told herself that the anxiety she was experiencing was
her entirely her own fault. She just had to open his drawer and look for the ring. Once
she realized it wasn’t there, you better believe she emptied the entire drawer looking for
it, all the old insecurities surfaced.
She was a college drop out who had fast talked her way into the White House. Why
would anyone, let alone Josh Lyman, pick her over someone like Amy Gardner who was
polished, confident, and a political heavy weight herself. Yes, Josh had kissed her; he
was right about the fact that she wouldn’t be able to ignore it or pretend it never
happened. And MAYBE she could acknowledge that Josh was physically attracted to
her. The kiss sure seemed to indicate that; alright the kisses, plural, indicated that.
However, this was about Josh and Amy, and he had a bad history of reconciling with her.
Maybe once he met with her, she talked him out breaking up with her. That would
certainly explain why he neither called nor came back to her apartment later. They got
back together and he gave her the ring and once again Donna would be left on the side
of the road like yesterday’s trash.
She tried to shake off the negative thoughts, but they were coming fast and furious now.
Maybe he put the ring in a different drawer? She decided to look, just to be on the safe
side.
She had emptied one whole side of the desk when she heard her name being called. It
was Liz.
“Good morning, Donna. It looks like you lost something. Can I help?”
“NO!...I mean no, I didn’t lose anything. I was just cleaning out Josh’s desk. He’s such a
pack rat you know. Well, I guess you don’t know yet, but you will soon. In fact, I’ll just put
these things back and you can organize them yourself. Because it’s your job now right?
Well, not officially since I am still assigned her until Monday, but then you’ve already
signed a contract and my transfer has already been approved, so unless you’ve
committed some kind of felony since yesterday-“
“Donna?” Liz broke in, a little concerned with the fervor and pitch of Donna’s speech. “Is
everything okay?”
“Sure. What could be wrong?” Donna asked in return. ‘Except for the fact that Josh
finally kissed me, then went to Amy’s WITH and engagement ring’ Donna thought to
herself.
“You seem a little frazzled.” Liz noted.
“I just have a lot of loose ends to tie up before the end of the day and I’m afraid I’ll forget
something.”
“But won’t you just be down the hall? I mean, if you forget something, you can always
come back right?”
‘Not if Josh has given Amy a ring’ Donna thought. ‘Then I’ll be unable to stomach being
in the same building with Josh’
“Yes, yes of course I’ll just be…down the hall.” Thankfully, she was interrupted by Josh’s
arrival before she could go on another rant. Josh entered his office reading a memo that
Carol had handed to him as he had entered the building. He didn’t even look up as he
addressed Donna and Liz.
“Donna, I need the latest copy of the stimulus package. Liz, I need some coffee before I
go to senior staff. I didn’t get much sleep last night.” If he had been looking up at all he
couldn’t have missed Donna’s head snap over to him at that statement, but he was
engrossed in the memo.
Liz moved toward the door to go in search for coffee, when Donna blocked her way out.
“No; no coffee.” Donna said sternly.
“Donna!” Josh protested.
“He’s not allowed to have coffee?” Liz asked.
“He can have all the coffee he wants; although he should limit his intake for health
reasons.” She risked a glance at Josh and saw he was watching her, but she couldn’t
read anything in his face that gave a clue as to what he did last night; with Amy or with
her.
“Then why did you tell me ‘no coffee’? Liz asked, understandably confused.
“It is not your job to get him coffee. If he’s going to drink that liquid poison, then he has
to get up off his butt and get it himself.” Donna instructed. Liz looked from Donna to Josh
and back to Donna again. She then decided to listen to Donna.
“What should I be doing then?” she asked.
“We’re going to start with the filing system and once we get done with that-“
“Right!” Josh said sarcastically. “Because it’s so logical and orderly.”
“Have I ever been unable to produce a document or information that I have filed,
Joshua?”
“Well, no…but you’re the only one who can find it.” Josh complained.
“Job security.” Donna quipped. “Now as I was saying, when we are finished going over
the filing system, Josh should be back from senior staff and we can go over his schedule
and his phone sheet with him.”
“Let’s do it.” Liz said confidently as she walked out to the bull pen. Donna took another
look at Josh, but his head was down again, studying some other document now, and she
couldn’t exactly ask him about last night standing in his office with the door wide open.
Plus, Liz was waiting for her. Shit.
**************************************************
Donna’s frustration continued and grew throughout the day. Josh was doing a very good
impression of someone who hadn’t kissed her senseless last night, and she felt that was
a very bad sign.
When she went in his office to remind him of his 6:00 meeting with Congressman O’
Halloran on the hill, he still hadn’t broached any topic that was even remotely personal.
While it was true that Liz had been shadowing her all day, he could have easily excused
her to have a private word if he had wanted to.
“You’re going to be late.” She told him at 5:45.
“No, I won’t. Or at least not significantly late.” He amended. “Liz seems to be working out
okay.”
“Yes, I think she’ll be just fine and I’ll just be, you know, down the hall.”
“Mmmm-hmmm.” Josh replied. “I don’t know how long I’ll be on the hill, but I’m all set for
Monday, so you and Liz can take off as soon as I’m gone.”
“Ooookay.” Donna responded and relayed the message to Liz. Once Josh left the office,
she and Liz walked out together. Liz, was full of energy and excitement about her fist day
in the White House. Donna was exhausted; mentally and emotionally tired. She politely
refused Liz’s offer to treat for dinner and chose instead to go home and crash.
************************************************
Chapter 11
“Hello?” Donna said warily into the phone. This couldn’t be good.
“I want you to take note of the time.” Josh told her.
“Believe me I am. Are you drunk again?”
“I am not. And I’d like to point out that I didn’t call you drunk last time either. That was all
Matt.”
“Yes, but Matt was only calling because you were drunk and needed help.”
“Fair point.”
“Josh…”
“I’m just saying it is 12:01, well now it’s 12:02 and I am not drunk.”
“Well as long as we’ve established that, can I go back to sleep?”
“No.”
“No? Why not?”
“Because you have to open the door and let me in.”
Donna sat up in her bed. “You’re here?”
“Yes, and I want my Tiramisu.”
“You came to my apartment and woke me up after midnight for MY Tiramisu?”
“Well, yes, and because I promised C.J.” Josh explained
“What?!”
“Open the damn door, will you?” Josh shouted, his patience spent. Donna slammed the
phone down and marched to the door. When she opened it, she found a very casually
dressed Josh Lyman holding 2 coffees from Starbuck’s. He came in and set them on the
living room table.
“Coffee? Oh God, you need me to go into work?!” Donna moaned.
“No, but even if I did need my assistant to go into work, I would be calling Liz now, not
you, remember?”
All of a sudden, she did remember and it made her a bit sad to think of his rushing
around the office bellowing someone else’s name.
“Oh…yeah.”
“As of 12:00, you no longer work for me.” He pointed out and stepped closer to her.
Bells were going off in her head. “I promised C.J. I would wait until you no longer worked
for me.” he told her quietly and brushed her hair out of her eyes with his hand. “I think
this may have been the longest day of my life.”
Donna’s eyes grew wide with the comprehension of what he was telling her. She drew
back her arm and slugged him in the stomach as hard as she could.
“The Hell?!”
“All day you let me…you couldn’t say a word to me about…You idiot!”
“Jesus, when did you learn to hit like that?”
“Do you have any idea what was going on in my head all day?”
“No, but that’s not unusual is it?” Josh asked moving away from her.
“You kiss me, not once, but twice, then you leave to go see Amy and I never hear from
you again.”
“What are you talking about? I saw you first thing this morning and throughout most of
the day.”
“Professionally, we saw each other, but you didn’t say a word to me personally.”
“I promised C.J.!”
“You couldn’t even talk to me about it?”
“No, because if we started talking about it, then I really wouldn’t have been able to keep
my hands off you. It was hard enough the way it was.” Josh admitted while still rubbing
the spot where Donna had punched him. Donna’s anger slipped significantly as his
words sunk in.
“You could have written a note or something.” Donna muttered.
“Why was it such a big deal? I told you I was only going to see Amy to tell her it was over
between us.”
“I can’t count all the times you were going to tell Amy you were through, but then on top
of that you didn’t call me and the ring was gone and-“ Donna stopped mid sentence as
she realized what she’d just admitted. Josh’s eyebrows rose in silent question.
“Okay, what you need to keep in mind here is-“
“You went through my desk?”
“I ALWAYS go through your desk, Joshua, that’s what you need to keep in mind. If you
didn’t want me to see it, perhaps you should have kept it somewhere else.” Josh’s lips
twitched before his expression turned more serious.
“How do always turn it around so it’s my fault?”
“It’s a talent.”
“I guess…I asked Mom to send it on impulse. Amy never saw it…not even in a box in my
desk.”
“You were going to give it to her, though.”
“Luckily, I came to my senses before I did.” Josh countered. “I think I felt like such a
failure that day; failure as a boyfriend, failure as a Deputy COS, and seeing my failure in
Leo’s eyes might have been the worst blow of all. I wanted to prove to myself that I could
do something right and Amy was right there.”
“How did you leave things between you last night?”
“I think she figured out my motivations and the fault in my logic before I did. She’s taking
a job with N.O.W. in New York and we ended things amicably enough. She won’t come
between us ever again, I promise.” Donna relented a little more at his sincere tone.
“Yeah?”
“Yeah. So that whole thing took about 10 minutes and I was on my way back here, when
I remembered that C.J. would kill me if I did. So I detoured to her place and we talked for
about an hour. That’s when she made me promise to wait until you longer worked for
me; which occurred just a few short minutes ago.”
“I still say you could have mentioned SOMETHING.” Donna stressed.
“I didn’t know there was any reason for you to be concerned. If someone hadn’t been
snooping…“
“Organizing!”
“…then no one would have been freaked by the lights.” Josh finished. “Are we done with
this now?”
“It looks that way.”
“Good because I’ve been thinking about getting my hands on you for the past 24 hours
and it’s killing me over here.” Josh again moved close to her, but watched for her right
hook. “I’m not sure how you managed to do it, but you’ve turned one of the worst weeks
of my adult life into something wonderful.” He cupped her face and rained kisses across
it while Donna closed her eyes and allowed herself to revel in the sensations he was
creating in her. She was so glad it was her and not Amy who was receiving his
attention…
“Wait!” Donna extricated herself and Josh moaned in protest. “Just slow down a minute. I
need to breathe. I need to think.”
“Thinking is highly overrated, but maybe you would breathe easier lying on some flat
surface…like a bed.” Josh suggested.
“No, no, no.” Donna countered. “You just broke up with someone you were talking about
marrying last night. We’re not just jumping into this.”
“Apparently we are NOT done with this.” Josh backed off and ran a hand through his
hair causing it to stick up in all manner of directions.
“That’s not fair Josh.” Donna said calmly.
“I’m sorry.” Josh said sincerely. “It’s just been a rather tumultuous week; my birthday,
Carrick, Amy, your transfer-“
“Exactly my point.” Donna noted. “It’s been an emotional roller coaster for both of us. I
don’t want to wake up tomorrow and find that you think you made another mistake.”
“That’s not what this is. It’s different.” Josh assured her. “I was in panic mode last week. I’
m not there anymore.”
“I understand that Josh, but I need a little more time.”
“It’s been years Donna, how much time do you feel you need?”
“Joshua!”
“What? Okay, we’ll…slow things down. Do I have to leave now?” he sounded so much
like a crabby toddler asking if he had to eat his vegetables that Donna laughed.
“I hope not. I’ve got this great coffee and my Netflix DVD’s came today, plus I don’t have
to be in to work tomorrow at all.” Donna informed him.
“Are they girly movies?”
“Does it really matter at this point?”
“I guess not.” Josh groused a bit as Donna put a movie in the DVD player and pulled
Josh with her to the couch. Since Josh found Donna infinitely more interesting than the
movie. He concentrated on her; kissing her, touching her, but they were both exhausted
from the long week they’d had so before the movie was finished they were wrapped
around one another sound asleep.
********************************************
Main Page All Bets 3
come home at 5:30. The White House wasn’t exactly a 9-5 job as she had recently found
out for herself. She got up from her desk and walked out into the kitchen to find Josh
taking a long swig from a beer.
“Hi honey, you’re home.” She joked, but he didn’t respond at all. “We talked about this.
We knew it would be a rough day.”
“Yeah.” Josh agreed.
Amy put her arms around him. “This will blow over and things will get better.”
“I sincerely doubt it.”
“What happened?”
“Donna quit and Leo gave my legislative portfolio to Toby and Angela Blake.” Josh told
her as he took another drink of the beer. The order of his list was not lost on Amy.
“Maybe it’s for the best.” Amy said and Josh nearly bobbled his drink. “Donna, I mean,
not the legislative portfolio.”
“She went behind my back to help Toby prep for a cap gains meeting with Singer.” Now
more than ever, Josh was glad to be with Amy who understood exactly what all of this
meant.
“This is what I’m saying, Josh. She’s ready to move on to other things. She’s bright and
ambitious; why would you expect anything else from her?”
“Because that’s not how we are!”
Amy blinked at the adamant tone from Josh. “Okay, just how are you?”
“Don’t be like that.” He shook his head in exhaustion from the women in his life.
“I’m not being like anything, J. You just said that’s not how you and Donna are and I’m
asking you to clarify that statement for me.”
“I really can’t.”
“Yes, I can see that.” Amy said as she left the kitchen.
“Damn it, you’re doing this on purpose.” Josh accused her.
“Doing what on purpose?”
“You’re trying to make me feel guilty about my relationship with Donna.”
“Do you have something to feel guilty about in your relationship with Donna?”
“Of course not. I wouldn’t be with you if there was something between me and Donna.”
“Then I guess I’m puzzled about how I can make you feel guilty about it.”
“Look, I don’t need this right now. Everything is going to hell!”
“Everything?” Amy questioned and Josh caught her tone.
“No, not everything.” Josh told her, but his tone and expression must not have been too
convincing because she shook off his hand.
“When you came here Friday night, I thought that was because you had decided what
you wanted.”
“It was. It is.” Josh corrected himself.
“Then maybe it’s time to leave the White House. It’s obvious that you’re not appreciated
there right now.” Amy stated and Josh heard the echo of Leo’s voice from earlier in the
office; ‘No one wants you here’. “You could write your own ticket in the private sector. In
fact, we could do that together.”
Josh looked back up into her eyes and suddenly nothing about this felt right to him. Amy
read his face and knew what it meant. Despite Donna’s assertion; sometimes Amy did
‘get Josh’.
“But that has to be because it’s what you want to do, just like I have to be who you want
to spend your life with.” She moved away from him and sat on the couch. “It can’t be
because you’re desperately trying to hang on to something that makes you feel
successful while you’re at a low point. We both deserve better than that.”
“Amy…”
“I think you’d better go now, Joshua.”
“You’re kicking me out? Now? After the day I’ve had?”
“I think we both need a little time to cool off; think.” Amy answered. “And I don’t feel like
being your consolation prize.”
“Fine. I appreciate your support here, Amy.” Josh told her and she watched him storm
out in search of the nearest bar.
********************************************
Donna’s phone was ringing and it was 3 in the morning. As if that wasn’t bad enough,
Donna had only been able to get to sleep 3 hours earlier when she finally gave in and
took a Tylenol PM. She tried to focus on the number displayed by caller ID, but she was
groggy because of the pill and she soon realized that the number was unfamiliar anyway.
“Hello?” Donna swore if this was a crank call she was going to reach through the cord
and kill whoever was at the other end. “Hello? Who is this?”
“Donna! Thank God. Can you bring your key over to Josh’s? We’re locked out.” Matt
Skinner answered.
Donna closed her eyes and wished it had been a crank call. She started to fall back
asleep again thanks to the Tylenol PM.
“Donna?” Matt called to her again. “Are you there?” Donna could hear Josh’s drunken
voice in the background.
“I told you not to call that faithless wench.” Josh said.
“Tell him he can go to hell.” Donna said and started to hang up.
“Donna! Donna, wait!” Matt begged her. “Don’t hang up. The police have his keys and I
don’t have any cash to get a cab. My place is too far to walk-“
“The police have his keys?” Donna asked waking up a bit.
“Yes. He tried to get in his car and the police- Look, in the time I can take to explain it to
you, you could be on your way here with your key. I know you’re pissed at him right now,
but I’m literally on his front stoop and an article about a drunken Deputy Chief of Staff
won’t help anyone. Donna, please…”
“I have to get a cab.” She told him. “I took a sleeping pill so I can’t drive.”
“Please hurry; he’s out of control and very loud.”
“I don’t need her damn help.” Josh blustered on. “Tell her to go unlock Toby’s damn
door.”
“Toby isn’t sitting drunk on his doorstep with his keys taken away from him by the cops.”
Matt reminded him. “Hurry.” Matt reminded Donna.
Donna called for a cab and within minutes, she was outside Josh’s brownstone. She took
Josh’s keys off her ring as she got out of the cab, fully prepared to hand them to Matt
and get back in the cab to go home. One glance at the steps changed her plans. Josh
was passed out in the corner at the top of the steps and Matt was leaning up against the
opposite corner looking very tired and sad. She paid the cab and walked slowly up the
stairs.
“We should really just leave him right there.” Donna suggested. “Wearing a button that
says, “I voted for Ritchie.” Matt gave a short laugh and took her hand.
“Thanks for coming Donna. You’re a classy dame.” Donna’s lips twitched. “If my best
friend wasn’t in love with you and I wasn’t, you know, gay, I’d be hitting on you right now.”
Donna’s head shot up at the first part of his statement.
“Don’t say that.” She warned him. “I’m already passed the- Look, Josh is engaged to
Amy and I’m transferring to Toby’s department, so all bets are off.”
“Well I agree about the betting part. None of us seriously thought you two would screw
things up THIS badly.” Matt noted and Donna glared at him.
“It’s not funny, Matt.”
“It certainly isn’t.” Matt agreed and leaned down to hoist Josh up with one shoulder.
Donna pulled up on his other arm and he jostled awake.
“Donna?” Josh closed his eyes again. “I need you to…(Josh makes a typing motion with
his hands) for me.”
“In the morning Josh.” Donna told him.
“No, now!” his eyes snapped open. “I need a letter to resign from the thing…then I need
a letter to ‘nounce I’m joinin’ the ‘publican party. I’m gonna join my good friend….?” Josh
looked up at Matt with a puzzled expression.
“Matt.” Matt told him.
“Right; Matt. Donna can come too, right Matt?”
“Donna’s always welcome.” Matt agreed.
“You are so going to hate yourself in the morning.” Donna told him as they took the last
step and she unlocked the front door.
“I hate m’self now.” Josh informed them. The trip up to Josh’s apartment was slow and
they had a couple false alarms, when they though Josh was going to get sick. They
finally got inside Josh’s apartment and deposited Josh on his couch. Donna, familiar with
this routine, took off his shoes and placed a small trash can next to him before going into
the kitchen to make some coffee and find some Advil. Matt joined her shortly.
“I meant what I said before, Donna. Coming over here was above and beyond the call. I
don’t know exactly what happened between you, but I take it must have been pretty ugly.”
“It doesn’t matter. He has Amy now and he’s just irked that I left him before he left me.”
“For what it’s worth, I don’t think he has Amy anymore. She was my first call, given the
circumstances, and she hung up on us. I think they’re done.”
“No.” Donna shook her head. “He stood in his office and told me how Amy told him all
these about when Amy and I talked…right before Zoey was kidnapped. He said all these
things…”
“He was fishing.” Matt told her.
“Matt…”
“He was fishing, Donna. I was with him after he had that argument with Amy. She told him
she asked you point blank if you were in love with Josh, and she told him that you
refused to answer her. He was fishing.”
‘That doesn’t make any sense.”
“This IS Josh Lyman we’re talking about.”
“He asked her to marry him.” Donna said quietly.
“He made a mistake. We all make them; don’t we?” Donna winced inwardly as she
thought about Cliff Calley and what Josh risked for her after she made that mistake.
“We said some horrible things to each other.” Donna admitted.
“No one brings the verbal fighting the way you two do.” Matt smiled.
“This wasn’t…It was different. HE’S been different.”
“His whole world has folded in on him. Leo has hung him out to dry and he’s lost
everything in his life that means anything to him; his job, you…”
“There’s still Amy.”
“There’s really not.
”Matt, every time I think we have things worked out between us that…woman gets her
hooks in him again and I’m dumped on the side of the road. Just watch; he’ll be hung
over and apologetic tomorrow. Then he’ll ‘make it up to her’ with some pseudo trip to
Tahiti or something and they’ll be snuggled together in bed by tomorrow night.”
“I don’t think so.” Matt sing-songed. “But I understand why you’d be cautious.” Matt
peeked out to make sure Josh was still breathing. “You want me to call you a cab to get
home or would you rather crash in his guest room?”
“I’d rather hear the story about Josh losing his keys to the cops.” Donna smiled.
“When I got to the bar, he was well and truly toasted. His big idea at the time was
resigning from the Democratic Party and working in my office.”
“Don’t you wish you had a witness?” Donna laughed.
“I can do you one better…” Matt pulled out his cell phone. “It’s all permanently recorded
on my trusty cell. After recording the pertinent information, the idea was for me to drive
him home in his car. But once we got outside, he decided he could get home by himself.
He was a little stymied, however, by getting the key into the door lock.”
“Why didn’t he just use his remote to unlock the doors?”
“Honestly? I don’t think it ever occurred to him.” Matt laughed. “As he was struggling with
the keys, who should pass by but one of D.C.’s finest. The Officer gives him a choice
between handing the keys to me or to the Officer. Josh chose none of the above and
started going into his ‘I write the laws, I am the laws’ speech…”
“Oh, God…”
“Fortunately, the Officer has a good sense of humor and I think he might have
recognized Josh. The Officer ends up taking his keys and telling him he can come by the
station tomorrow to pick them up.”
“That could have been a disaster.” Donna mused.
“He’s had a few very bad days.” Matt noted.
“I’m going to call a cab.” Donna told him and picked up the phone in Josh’s kitchen.
“You sure?”
“Yeah.” Donna assured him and gave the cab company the address. Matt went back into
the living room and surveyed his unconscious friend. ‘What a mess.’ Matt mused. ‘What
a horribly complicated, heartbreaking mess.’
*****************************************
Josh missed senior staff the next morning, and although he didn’t show it, Leo McGarry
was worried about it. It was a worry that was compounded by Toby’s request to bring
Donna onto his team. Since he couldn’t question his Deputy about it, he chose to
interrogate Donna instead.
“Josh missed senior staff.” Leo began as soon as Donna stepped into his office.
“That’s what I heard.” Donna replied.
“Where the hell is he?” Leo demanded but Donna just shrugged.
“You have no idea what going on with him? I find that very hard to believe, Donna.”
“Maybe he took you seriously when you said nobody wanted him here.” She opined and
Leo literally blinked in surprise at the tone and the content of her answer.
“I am the only thing standing between Josh Lyman and unemployment.” Leo told her
heatedly.
“He’s lucky to have such loyal friends.” Donna noted with more than a bit of sarcasm. “It
was stupid of him to go out on a limb with Senator Carrick. If he wanted to run that kind
of play, he should have run it by you first; that way, he would have had some political
cover if it all went bad.”
Leo looked at her carefully, but she didn’t so much as bat an eye. It took a great deal of
guts to stand up to the White House Chief of Staff. A guy from Chicago had to respect
that.
“What’s going on with this transfer business?”
“I want to get some different experience. Toby said he could use me.”
“Josh, if he ever shows up, will have several farm animals in my office when he hears
about this.”
“No, he won’t.” Donna assured him. “We’ve already discussed this. We’re both on board.”
“You’re sure?”
“Positive.”
“Okay. Effective immediately?” Leo asked.
“Better give us a few days to find someone to replace me in Josh’s office.”
“I think it’s going to take far more than a few days, but…Effective on Monday, then?”
Donna nodded and quickly moved to leave the room.
“Donna?” Leo stopped her.
“You were right about one thing…he is lucky to have such loyal friends.” Leo told her
and she realized that was probably as close as anyone was going to get to an apology
for letting Josh take the fall for the Carrick party switch.
********************************************
When she entered his office later that day, she wasn’t surprised to see him slumped on
his desk; his head in his hands.
She dropped several files on his desk and he jumped, then winced in pain from the
sudden movement.
“MUST you do that?” he asked quietly. “Shouldn’t you be in Toby’s office making HIS life
miserable?”
“My transfer isn’t effective until Monday and you need to pick a replacement first.”
Josh dropped his head back down. He had prayed, literally prayed, that she would
change her mind, but he had no one but himself to blame for the fact that she hadn’t. He
just had to open his big mouth about Amy’s confrontation with her. That was the last
straw.
“It doesn’t matter. Just send someone up from the temp pool.”
“It certainly does matter. Look at these.” She set several resumes in front of him. “You
need to have someone competent outside your office; you’re the Deputy Chief of Staff.”
Josh laughed derisively. “Right; a Deputy Chief of Staff with no legislative portfolio and
who isn’t allowed to take meetings or make phone calls. What exactly will this stellar
assistant do? Take my lunch order?”
“Maybe you could start with this.” She dropped yet another file on his desk with a bang.
“It's my ‘What a Shame’ folder. All the stuff we never have time for. The stuff we thought
we'd fix when we got here, but we never did. Foreign adoption policy. Hybrid energy
partnerships. Extending the roadless conservation plan. Okay this one's not a shame, I
just didn't want to deal with it. Funding special education for kids with disabilities.
Ammunition control. What's a gun without bullets?”
Josh rolled his eyes and laid his head back down. Donna picked the folder back up and
turned to leave the room. “Look at the resumes and tell me which ones you want to
meet.”
“Sure, what else have I got to do…Donna?”
“Yes?”
“Leave the other folder, too.” He directed and Donna allowed herself a small smile and
gently set it back on his desk.
**********************************************
“DONNA!”
“Did you need something Mr. Lyman?” the temp asked timidly. She had learned the hard
way to stay out of Josh’s way, but the summons seemed important.
“Yes, I need Donna.” Josh said exasperated. “She’s supposed to still be working for me.
Where the hell is she?”
“She’s in the budget negotiations with Angela Blake.” Jody told him. “She said I can page
her if it’s urgent. Is it urgent?”
“She’s IN the budget negotiations?”
“Uh-huh.” Jody confirmed. “Can I help you, Mr. Lyman?”
“Yes. You can start by calling me Josh. I hate Mr. Lyman.” Jody nodded quickly. “Then I
need the numbers on foreign adoption.”
“Sure.” Jody said agreeably. “What kind of numbers? Are they in a file somewhere I
should pull?”
Josh, halfway back to his desk, turned and ran a hand over his face; trying to find some
patience. “No, you’re going to have to generate these numbers. I need to know how
many foreign adoptions take place annually; go back for the last ten years. I need to
know what the regulations are concerning foreign adoption. I need to know how many
Americans are on adoption waiting lists both foreign and domestic, and anything else
you think is relevant to the topic of foreign adoption. Got it?”
“Got it.” Jody told him, writing notes furiously on her pad. Josh again turned toward his
desk, before again, stopping.
“And put it all on note cards.”
“Sir?” Jody asked puzzled.
“Josh, not sir, and put all the information on note cards. I’m…used to looking at this stuff
on note cards.” He finished lamely and instead of going back to his desk, decided to
walk to Leo’s office.
When he arrived there, he heard the raised voices of Angela Blake and Leo McGarry.
The door was standing open, and he was still the Deputy Chief of Staff, so Josh took it
as an invitation.
“What’s going on?”
“They’ve stepped away from the table. All they’re willing to offer right now is a continuing
resolution, until Christmas this time.” Angela told him.
“You’ve got to be kidding me! Who does Haffley think he is? Prime Minister?” Josh
scoffed.
“It gets worse.” Donna explained. “They’re not willing to continue funding at current
levels. They want a 1% cut across the board.”
“Tell them they can take their C.R. and shove it up their-“
“Josh…” Leo growled a warning.
“The President would never-“
“Yes, he would.” Leo corrected. “We have to play ‘make a deal’ to keep all the Federal
employees coming to work and make the lights go on.”
“We can eat the 1% on the C.R. until Christmas. Then we’ll be in a stronger position to
bargain.”
“Stronger? What planet do you live on?” Josh asked her incredulously.
“Don’t yell at her!” Donna snapped. “You know the hand she was dealt.”
“You’re saying it was me?” Josh asked Donna directly.
“No, but while we may have won re-election in a landslide, we didn’t take Congress with
us. And now it looks like we’re not taking the Congress with us and the Republicans
know it!” Donna ended her speech toe to toe with Josh.
“Alright.” Leo ran interference. “Get the C.R. done with the 1% cut. I’ll brief the
President.” Donna nodded and stomped out of the office. Angela began to follow her but
turned to add one last comment for Josh.
“You know all this time she’s been fighting for you; you and your plan to send everyone
to college.”
“It’s a good plan.” Josh insisted.
“Yes, it is. Now I’ve got you ‘til Christmas to find a way to make it work.” She grimaced
and followed Donna back to the mural room.
“Leo…” Josh started to make his case, but was cut off.
“Don’t start. We do what we have to do to get by right now. That’s all.” Leo dismissed
him and Josh walked back to his office feeling ever more impotent than he had
beforehand; if that was actually possible.
****************************************
“There's no agreement.” Donna said quietly
“How far apart are we?” Josh asked.
“They're leaving the building.” She pointed out.
“Without a continuing resolution?” Will, who had been waiting in the hallway with Josh
and Toby, piped up.
“Haffley said the only way he could see it was with a three percent cut.” Donna answered
Will but was looking at Josh.
“We had a deal at one percent!” Toby complained.
Bob Russell walked up to the group.
“He's bluffing.” Josh maintained eye contact with Donna.
“We'll never know because the President ended the meeting. Will?”
Russell and Will left together.
“It's only 8:30. We'll get a deal before midnight.” Josh offered.
“I don't know.” She shook her slowly.
**************************************
“You’re going to need to cancel everything he has on his calendar for tomorrow before
you go.” Donna instructed Jody.
“How will I know when to come back?” Jody asked and Donna paused in what she was
doing. Not the brightest bulb on the tree, this one.
“Well, you could watch the news, I guess.” Donna suggested and Jody nodded again.
No, this one was lucky she had lasted the day. Josh came out of his office and Donna
started handing him things.
“You need to go home, Donna.” He said quietly.
“I know, I know.” Donna answered. “I’m taking the budget files, note cards, and colored
pens.”
“Donna, you don’t have to…It’s not your job anymore.” Josh said and took the files back
from her without meeting her eye.
“It is until Monday.” She stated taking the files back. Jody just stood watching the
interplay between them. “What else to you need?” Finally, Josh looked up and saw the
determination in her face; determination and something else he couldn’t quite put his
finger on.
“Get me a tally of all the programs affected by the shut down and email it to me as soon
as you’re done.” He said quickly in case she changed her mind.
“Done. Let’s go Jody.” Donna ordered and Jody followed meekly behind her. Josh
thought it was almost worth a Federal shut down to get rid of Jody. Her note cards might
have been legible, but they were a joke.
**********************************************
“Is this your way of getting out of taking me to the State dinner with the British Prime
Minister?” Amy asked him on the phone.
“We haven’t cancelled the dinner.” Josh informed her.
“Yet.” Amy qualified.
“Yet.” He agreed. “I’m…sorry about last night, or I guess it was this morning. I told Matt
not to call you.”
“I’m surprised you could form complete sentences.” She told him. “I know now isn’t a
good time, but maybe after you re-start the Government we could have dinner and talk.”
“Sure. Talk.” Josh couldn’t explain the reluctance he felt at the mere suggestion of
dinner and talking with Amy, but he couldn’t deny it either.
“So what’s the plan for the budget?” Amy asked changing the subject.
“I couldn’t tell you.”
“Is it some super secret plan or are you afraid your phones being bugged?”
“Neither actually. I honestly couldn’t tell you because I haven’t been in the war room.”
There was silence at the other end of the line while Amy digested that information. “Leo’
s cut you out of it completely?”
“Nobody’s calling my number here, Amy.” Josh snapped as he heard Leo’s words again,
‘Nobody wants you here’.
“You need to go down there, J.” Amy advised. “Make them listen to you.”
“They know where I am.” Josh responded and his cell phone rang, the caller ID said
Donna Moss. “Gotta go. I’ll call you later.” Josh hung up his office line unceremoniously
and answered his cell.
“What have you got?” he hated the anxiousness in his voice.
“I don’t suppose you’re terribly concerned about elk over-population?” Donna began.
“Elk or elf?”
“Ha, ha. Elk; we’ve stopped issuing hunting licenses.”
“Even C.J. would have a hard time spinning that into anything I’d care about. What else?”
“I think we need to get right on Social Security.”
“It’s an entitlement. It’s not affected.”
“It is when you consider that the people who cut and mail the checks have all been sent
home.”
“Holy shit, seriously? No one is going to get their Social Security checks?” Josh sat
straight up at his desk.
“Eleven million people will NOT get their checks unless you get to the GAO to issue a
ruling that gets those people back in.”
“Who do I talk to over there?” he asked her.
“Jim Arnold is in charge, but you’ll want to talk to Sara Fielding. She’s his-“
“Assistant?” Josh guessed. “Is that how all assistants talk? ‘Yeah, Lyman is Deputy Chief
of Staff, but who you really want to talk to is Donna Moss’.”
“Pretty much; yeah.” Donna replied without missing a beat. “While you’re on the phone
with her, do you think you could get me assigned to their department so I can go back to
work?”
“This won’t last much longer.” He assured her.
“Really? You’ve got a plan?” Donna inquired.
“Well not me so much as…”
“As?”
“No; no plan that I know of, but I’m sure the President is on it.”
“Damn it Josh, will you just go down there? They need you.” Donna stated.
“They know where I am.” Josh realized he was having the same conversation that he had
with Amy, but it felt different.
“And you know where they are. Stop being a stubborn toddler and get your ass into the
war room.” Donna raised her voice. “I want to get back to work and I know you can make
it happen.”
Josh didn’t know how to respond to her declaration, so he stayed silent.
“Did you hear me, Joshua? Are you going down there now?” Donna asked again.
“Well, right now I’m sitting in my office.” He replied dryly.
“You’re on a cell phone, you idiot, start walking.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Josh laughed nervously and got up to slowly walk toward the war room.
“You could walk a little faster, Joshua. A lot of people have been laid off, you know.”
“Yeah, I know that, Donnatella; and just how do you know how fast I’m walking anyway?”
“I can tell.” Donna said.
“You’re like watching me from across the street, right?” Josh teased. “I always said you
had a future as a stalker.”
“No, I’m just tuned to you.” Donna told him seriously and Josh stopped in the middle of
the hallway.
“Keep walking Joshua.” Donna really freaked him out with that one, but he started
walking again.
“Okay, I’m checking this place for your secret cameras.” he told her and had the
pleasure of hearing her laugh. He hadn’t heard that in awhile. When he got to the door
of the war room he paused.
“Do good in there.” Donna instructed him quietly.
“Yeah.” He responded and hung up the phone as he pushed the door open.
************************************************
“Where’s what’s her name?” Josh asked Donna when he saw her sitting outside his
office.
“Since you did the heavy lifting on the budget deal, I decided to relieve you of Jody’s
presence.”
“She doesn’t know she’s supposed to come back, does she?” Josh quipped.
“Probably not.” Donna admitted. “On the other hand, I have two promising interviews for
you this morning, and three more this afternoon. I’m sure among the five candidates that
I have personally pre-screened, I’m sure you can choose one of them to be your new
assistant.”
“I thought I was supposed to pick the ones I wanted to interview?”
“That was more of an honorary thing. I have a better idea of what you need than you do.”
“You know I’d fight you about that if it wasn’t absolutely true.”
“Yep.”
“As long as we both understand that.” Josh noted. “The President said to tell you that
you did a great job on the Social Security thing.”
“He did?”
“It was quite a save.” Josh admitted. “I did, however tell him I taught you everything you
know.”
“Of course.” Donna smirked as she shut his office door behind her and left him alone in
his office. There was a package on his desk. He noted the return address and saw that
is was the item he had asked his Mom to send last weekend. He opened the package
and fingered the ring box. He had been anxious then for it to arrive, but now that is sat
on his desk, he felt decidedly sick to his stomach. And until he figured out why that was
true, he was putting the package in a drawer, literally.
**************************************
Donna was waiting for Josh to get back from his meeting with Leo and Senator Corbin.
He had one last interview coming in 10 minutes and his office looked like a bomb had
exploded inside it. Donna started shifting piles and pulling things he no longer needed.
She sighed at the damage he had done in just the few days that the shut down had
lasted.
She sat in his chair and organized all his papers. She was about to add the newest pile
of papers to his top drawer when she noticed the ring box. She knew she shouldn’t so
much as touch it, but she found her hand moving toward it just the same. She didn’t
even look up to make sure nobody was watching her; that’s how far gone she was. She
slowly opened the lid of the box and gasped at the ring nestled inside.
It was obviously old, and breathtakingly beautiful. This was it then, he was giving her a
ring, a family heirloom no less. Donna had felt herself wavering about the transfer all
day. Things with her and Josh had been so good; back to normal, and she could almost
swear this whole thing had strengthened the bond between them. But here in her hand
sat the proof that she could never have what she wanted most from Josh; his love.
She broke out of her stupor when she heard his voice coming down the hallway. She
hastily closed the lid of the box and slid the drawer quietly shut. She had just moved
from his chair when he walked in, still talking over his shoulder to Ed about something.
“Everything go okay with Corbin?” she asked trying to cover her discomfort.
“I handled it.” Josh said smugly. “The man knows when he has been bested.”
“Of course he does.” Donna placated him. “You’ve got your last interview in 5 minutes.”
“Hey, is it my imagination, or are all the applicants you’ve sent me eligible for Social
Security?” he smirked.
“You need someone with maturity, who isn’t going to fold every time you raise your
voice.”
“You seemed to do just fine, and you don’t need a walker yet.”
“I have an old soul.” She explained and went to her desk. Today was Thursday; only one
more day of Donna sitting outside his office. He might as well throw a dart at the
resumes on his desk. It didn’t matter who came next, because none of them would be
Donna.
“Josh?” Donna knocked lightly and Josh looked up. “Elizabeth Waverly is here for her
interview. Are you ready for her?”
“As I’ll ever be.” Josh muttered and stood up to greet the last applicant of the day. “Ms.
Waverly? I’m Josh Lyman. Please have a seat.”
“Thank you. Please call me Liz.”
“Okay, Liz, tell me about why you’re job hunting?”
“I recently re-located from New York.” Liz explained. “I just got through a rather messy
divorce and decided to move back here to be closer to family. I heard about the position
through a friend of a friend and since I’ve managed to avoid committing a felony during
my lifetime, I was cleared to come meet you.”
“I’m sorry about the divorce. I’ve never been married, but I imagine that’s an emotionally
draining experience.”
“It was in my case, I’m afraid.” Liz grimaced. “I had a great job as a para-legal in a
prestigious law firm, and I quit once he graduated from medical school. He didn’t want
me to work outside the home; that way I was available to be at his beck and call and get
ready for when the babies came…only the babies never came. It was never the right
time for him, at least not with me; his mistress was 5 months pregnant by the time I found
out about her.” Liz stopped her rambling and looked up at Josh with shocked eyes.
“God, I’m so sorry, I’m just completely rambling.”
“Tell me about your para-legal experience.”
“I worked on research and witness prep for commercial litigation cases. I think my
strongest area is research, but my former boss said it was witness prep. He said he’s
never met anyone who’s faster on their feet. I included his letter of reference with my
resume.”
“I see that. He was very complimentary about your work performance. Is he still there?”
“I know, it was almost 5 years ago, but I can hit the ground running I assure you. If you’ll
give me a chance to prove myself, I promise you that you won’t regret it.”
Josh chuckled as the sense of déjà vu rained down on him. “Can you start tomorrow?”
“Tomorrow? Donna said the position didn’t start until Monday.”
“Yeah, but Donna’s last day is tomorrow and if you have half as good a brain as I think
you do, you’re going to want to spend every minute of the day picking her brain about
everything and everyone she knows in the White House.”
“Okay, what time does she come in?” Liz asked.
“No one knows for sure, there are even rumors that she sleeps in a coffin in the
basement, but it you’re here by 7, you should be okay. After you leave here, go straight
to HR, they’ll get you started on the paperwork and get you a temporary pass for
tomorrow.”
Josh stood up to indicate the interview was over.
“That’s it? This interview is over and I’ve got the job as assistant to the Deputy Chief of
Staff?”
“What can I say, things move fast around here. Have Donna bring you to H.R. and I’ll
see you tomorrow morning.” He held out hand to shake hers goodbye and he could see
the excitement and gratitude in her eyes. Yeah…déjà vu.
************************************************
“Is there any particular reason you chose to tell your new assistant I sleep in a coffin in
the basement?”
“I said there were RUMORS about that; not that it was true. Put that on your to do list
with her tomorrow: learning to differentiate fact from fiction.”
“Right. What’s next?”
“Next you go home.”
“Home?” Donna repeated.
“Comments like that are how the coffin rumors got started. Home; the place you
sometimes eat and sleep in. You know, you pay rent for it.”
“But it’s only 7.” Donna protested,
“I’m leaving and so should you.” Josh told her as he filled his backpack.
“Who are you and what have you done with Josh Lyman?”
“If there’s one thing I’ve learned in the last week, it’s that you need to have balance in
your life.”
“I need balance?” Donna questioned.
“We all do.” Josh confirmed. “We have spent the last 5, almost 6 years reallly, eating,
sleeping, and breathing the White House. Some day soon it will be gone and I, for one,
intend to have something else in my life when it does. Maybe then it won’t hit me like a
two by four when something goes wrong at work.”
“Do you even know what a two by four is?” Donna asked.
“I’ve seen pictures.” Josh grinned. “Go home. Go out. Do something that has nothing to
do with the White House.”
“And that’s what you’re going to do?”
“Amy and I are going out for dinner someplace where nobody knows who either of us
are.” Josh explained. “Seriously, go Donna.”
Donna had no choice but to leave for the night. She got in her car and drove home,
fighting the urge for the rest of the night to run back to the office for ‘something’ and
check to see if the ring was still there.
When she returned early the next morning, she finally lost the battle with herself and saw
that the ring box was gone.
**************************************************
“Where did you hear about this place?” Amy asked taking a seat across from Josh in the
out of the way place he had selected.
“I didn’t. I’ve just passed by it a hundred times and thought we’d try it tonight.”
“Okay. How goes the search for a new assistant?” Amy tested the waters of Donna Moss
without actually bringing up her name.
“I hired one today.” Josh told her with a smile.
“Where did she come from?”
“New York.” Josh answered simply.
“No, I mean where was she working before this?”
“Uh, she’s been out of work awhile, but she had a lot of great experience as a para-legal
before that.
“An unemployed para-legal?” Amy questioned. “Is your plan to hire the most
incompetent person you can find so Donna will realize you can’t live without her and
decide to stay?”
“Liz is going to be fine…great. I can tell.”
“Uh-huh.” Amy went along with him. “I heard you’ve got you’re portfolio back.”
“Where’d you hear that?” Leo had only told him this morning.
“Not from you.” Amy noted. “I was also surprised to see your quote on the shutdown in
the Post this morning. ‘It was a team effort that enabled us to execute the President’s
plan and bring about the new budget’? What happened to ‘Who da man’?”
“He’s sitting right here with you.” Josh merely smiled and took a drink. He was anxious to
order and get something to eat. He caught sight of a couple in their 60’s, maybe even in
their 70’s, eating next to them. They each had different pasta dishes, but were helping
themselves to one another’s plates while they talked animatedly about who knows what.
Josh found himself captivated by the couple.
“Josh? Are you listening to me?”
“I’m sorry, I got lost in thought there for a minute. What did you say?”
“I said this place doesn’t have much of a menu. Maybe we should go someplace else for
dinner?”
“It’ll be fine.” Josh assured her. “Besides, it’s quiet here and no one is bothering us.”
“That’s because we’re the only customers in the place.” Amy said derisively.
“Nah-uh.” Josh shook his head. “There’s another couple right there.” He indicated the
couple sharing the dining room with them.
“Okay, we’re the only customers under 80.” Amy amended. “When you invited me to
dinner I had something a little different than this in mind.”
“Candlelight, red wine, and me. What else could you possibly want?” Josh teased.
“Decent service, a menu longer than one page, and red wine that’s as old as I am.” Amy
sneered.
“Ah-kay.” Josh sighed and took another drink. The wine tasted fine to him.
“Have you given any more thought to working in the private sector?” Amy asked when
she realized her complaints were going nowhere.
“Some.” Josh admitted. “It’s just with the shutdown and the budget deal…”
“You fell on the sword for them…again, and don’t tell me they wouldn’t put you in that
position again.”
“That’s the cost of doing business at the White House.” Josh argued. “You know what it’s
like.”
“I know exactly what it’s like, that’s why I think we should strike out on our own.”
“We should, huh?” Josh asked, amused at her sales pitch.
“Between your contacts and mine, we could run the table.” She leaned in toward him
invitingly.
Josh had once told Toby he was ensorcelled by Amy; and looking at her now with a fire
in her eyes he could see why. She was passionate and exciting, dynamic and beautiful,
smart and savvy…so he couldn’t for the life of him figure out why he knew in his heart
that this wasn’t the woman he would be spending the rest of his life with. He gave her a
sort of sad smile. On paper, they were the perfect Washington power couple, but in
reality something important was missing.
“I lost you somewhere along the line, didn’t I?” Amy inquired and Josh didn’t pretend she
was talking about her proposed business venture, but he didn’t answer her verbally
either. He shrugged his shoulders and looked over at the older couple in the corner.
“I think I asked you the wrong question in my office that night.” Amy mused. “Instead of
asking if you were dating your assistant, I should have asked it you WANTED to date
your assistant.” Josh started to protest, but she cut him off. “Don’t. Maybe you don’t see
it, but I promise you that you’re the only one in the District who doesn’t.”
Josh looked her squarely in the eye. “I swear to you, Donna and I have never-“
“Do you think I would have been with you if I thought you were involved with Donna too?”
Amy scoffed. “Look, you came to me last week and said you were ready to make a
commitment.”
“I wasn’t lying to you Amy.”
“I’m not saying you were, Josh.” Amy reasoned. “But you had just had the rug pulled out
from under you and then you thought I’d been fired…you didn’t know if you were going
to be fired. There’s a reason psychologists tell people not to make important decisions
during times of great stress.”
“You think I came to you out of some misguided sense of self-preservation?”
“I think you were feeling overwhelmed and desperate to have some control over some
part of your life.” Amy corrected. “I had quite the week myself. All I’m saying is that if it
was a matter of having a temporary life preserver…”
“That’s not what-“
“I deserve better than that; we both do.” Amy’s phone rang. “Hi…no that’s okay I’m just
getting something to eat, I think…(she shot a look at Josh to indicate her displeasure
that they hadn’t even ordered yet)…no, the menu didn’t look to promising anyway.
Where do they want to meet?...Give me 30 minutes…Okay, bye.” Amy shut her phone
and picked up her purse.
“Janet Stanton wants to meet with me to discuss a position.”
“From N.O.W.?” Josh asked.
“Yeah, I’m meeting her in 30 minutes.”
“So I heard.” Josh replied.
“It’s not like we’ve even ordered yet.” Amy continued. “I’ll go meet with Janet and then we
can go to a real restaurant. It will just be a late dinner. It’s not like we aren’t used to that,
right?”
“Right.” Josh agreed as she kissed him and left to get across town for her meeting. He
watched for several minutes while the older couple finished their meal and then the
restaurant staff came out with a cake and sang ‘Happy Anniversary”. He tried to imagine
himself in that picture. He closed his eyes and immediately one picture popped into his
head. He pulled out his own cell and hit # 1 on his speed dial.
“Hey, have you had dinner yet?”
****************************************************
“What are you doing here?”
“I brought you some dinner.”
“I told you I ate already.” Donna told him.
“Yeah, but you lied. I brought chicken parmigiana and fettucine alfredo.”
“Josh…”
“There’s even some Tiramisu if you eat your dinner.”
“I don’t want any Tiramisu.”
“You always want Tiramisu…at least when it’s on my plate you do.” He set the bags
down and noticed that Donna hadn’t moved from her spot by the door. “Some
silverware? A couple plates?”
“Did you and Amy fight?” she asked, still not moving.
“No. She had to leave. Janet Stanton wanted to meet with her about a job.”
“Josh, you shouldn’t be here. Amy wouldn’t like it.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” Josh looked at her like she was crazy. “We’ve had
dinner together a million times. Would you feel better about it if we discussed work?”
“I’d feel better if you left.” Donna said and Josh looked like she’d slapped him.
“Donna?”
“I can’t DO this anymore, Josh. I just can’t. I’m sorry Amy cancelled your dinner, but I’m
not your substitute dinner companion.”
“Are you crazy? Who said you were?”
“You did!” Donna snapped. “Got some time to kill and your girlfriend ditch you? Call
Donna. She doesn’t have a life. You’ve made sure of that didn’t you?”
“What does that mean?”
“Sabotaging my dates and keeping me in the office days, nights and weekends; how
could I possibly have a personal life?”
“That didn’t seem to stop you from hooking up with Cliff Calley and I, myself, set you up
with Jack Reese.”
“God, when are you going to stop rubbing Cliff in my face?”
“I don’t know Donna, maybe when the statute of limitations expires on conspiracy to
obstruct justice…oh, that’s right, there IS no statute of limitations on conspiracy to
obstruct justice.”
“I didn’t ask you to go to Cliff.” Donna stressed.
“And I didn’t ask you to lie to the Congressional Committee.” Josh shouted back.
“I did it to protect you!” Donna said as she came toe to toe with Josh.
“So did I!”
“Damn it, Joshua.” Donna exclaimed and Josh took her face in his hands. Without giving
either of them a second to think about it, Josh closed the distance between them and
kissed her soundly.
He kissed her with all the pent up emotion and confusion that was churning up inside of
him. He would have stopped except that she had twined her arms around his neck and
was pulling him closer. The shrill ring of Josh’s cell phone caused them to jump guiltily
apart and it took Josh a second to calm his breathing enough to answer the phone.
“Josh Lyman…no, I took some food to go…yeah?..That’s great…(Josh turned away from
Donna and Donna could feel her face flushing; it had to be Amy). Sure, I can do
that…Where?...Okay, I’ll meet you there in a few.” He promised before he hung up the
phone.
“That was Amy.” He said unnecessarily.
“So I gathered.” Donna replied quietly. “She calls and you jump? You’re right, Josh, it’s
inconceivable that I would think you treat me like a substitute.”
“I need to see her, Donna.” Josh refused to take that particular bait. “I can’t tell her we’re
through over the phone.”
“What? You’re going to break up with your fiancé because we…” Donna waved her arms
in the air as if searching for a word.
“Kissed, Donna. The word you’re looking for is ‘kissed’; although it’s a pretty tame word
for what I just experienced.”
“Don’t say that. Don’t even think that. It was just a momentary…thing! We’ll just pretend
it never happened. Amy never has to know.”
“You think?” Josh asked her with an eyebrow raised in doubt.
“Yes, you go see her now and I’ll go back to…whatever, and tomorrow I’ll train in your
new assistant and we’ll act like normal.” Donna said a little desperately.
“Normal being a relative term for us.” Josh quipped.
“Stop it. This is not a joke. You aren’t going to blow this relationship because of me.”
“Because of ‘us’.” Josh corrected.
“There is no us. After tomorrow, we won’t even be working together.”
“Lucky break, that.” Josh smirked and moved closer to her.
“Stop. Stop right there. You are going to see Amy and we’re going to forget that ever
happened.”
“And by ‘that’ you mean the mind blowing kiss?” he pulled her hands away from her face.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. There was no mind blowing kiss. There was no
kiss at all. Understand?”
“Is that what you want?” Josh asked her seriously.
“Yes!” said Donna adamantly. Josh nodded his head and moved past her to the door.
Without another word he opened it and left. Donna stood frozen in place. She could
literally hear her heartbeat in an urgent rhythm. She rushed to the door and flung it
open to find Josh leaning against the door jamb. He pushed her back into her
apartment, kicking the door shut behind him. He trapped her against the wall and kissed
her until he felt his knees start to buckle.
“Pretend THAT never happened.” He challenged her and kissed his way down her throat.
“God, Josh, you’re very good at that.” Donna moaned.
“WE are very good at that.” Josh contradicted her and reluctantly pulled away from her.
“I have to go.”
Donna looked down and nodded.
“I HAVE to go. I don’t want to go, but I owe her that much.”
Donna nodded again. Josh kissed her forehead and once again exited her apartment.
************************************************
“Here, have a drink!” Amy commanded and handed Josh a beer.
“You got the job?”
“I did.” She smiled and clinked her beer bottle against Josh’s. “You are looking at the
new Recruiting Director for N.O.W.!”
“Congratulations.” He said sincerely, but something in his tone alerted her to a change
in his attitude.
“I’ll office in New York, but that’s a quick jump from here and I’m sure I’ll spend plenty of
time in D.C. too.” She tried to assure him, incorrectly guessing the reason for his sudden
coolness. When he still didn’t respond, she set down her beer and stood in front of him.
“It’s not going to matter where I office or how often I get to the District, is it?” Josh looked
her in the eye and shook his head ‘no’. “You went to see her after I left?”
“I just…it wasn’t planned; I just brought some dinner over.” Josh rushed through his
explanation.
“The other night, when Congressman Skinner called, it was Donna that came to the
rescue wasn’t it?” Josh nodded again. ”She always comes through for you, doesn’t
she?” Amy laughed humorlessly. “I have a confession to make.”
“YOU have a confession?”
“The night of the shut down, when we were on the phone and you said you had to go?
You didn’t put the phone back into the receiver all the way. I heard your conversation
with Donna.”
Josh replayed the conversation in his head but he couldn’t remember saying anything
particularly damning.
“It wasn’t what you said so much as how you said it. Your tone of voice; your whole
demeanor changed as soon as you got on the phone with her.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t intend to hurt you or deceive you, I swear.”
“I think you were far too busy deceiving yourself to make plans to deceive me, J.” she
smirked.
“You may be right.” He smirked back.
“I usually am.” She bragged.
“Ah-kay. I’m going to go now.” He set his beer down and kissed Amy’s cheek.
“Congratulations on the new job.”
“Thanks.” Amy smiled at him. “Say ‘hi’ to Donna for me.”
“No…I don’t think I will.” Josh shook his head and Amy laughed.
“Yeah…probably not a good idea.” Amy agreed.
*****************************************
Donna stewed in the office and told herself that the anxiety she was experiencing was
her entirely her own fault. She just had to open his drawer and look for the ring. Once
she realized it wasn’t there, you better believe she emptied the entire drawer looking for
it, all the old insecurities surfaced.
She was a college drop out who had fast talked her way into the White House. Why
would anyone, let alone Josh Lyman, pick her over someone like Amy Gardner who was
polished, confident, and a political heavy weight herself. Yes, Josh had kissed her; he
was right about the fact that she wouldn’t be able to ignore it or pretend it never
happened. And MAYBE she could acknowledge that Josh was physically attracted to
her. The kiss sure seemed to indicate that; alright the kisses, plural, indicated that.
However, this was about Josh and Amy, and he had a bad history of reconciling with her.
Maybe once he met with her, she talked him out breaking up with her. That would
certainly explain why he neither called nor came back to her apartment later. They got
back together and he gave her the ring and once again Donna would be left on the side
of the road like yesterday’s trash.
She tried to shake off the negative thoughts, but they were coming fast and furious now.
Maybe he put the ring in a different drawer? She decided to look, just to be on the safe
side.
She had emptied one whole side of the desk when she heard her name being called. It
was Liz.
“Good morning, Donna. It looks like you lost something. Can I help?”
“NO!...I mean no, I didn’t lose anything. I was just cleaning out Josh’s desk. He’s such a
pack rat you know. Well, I guess you don’t know yet, but you will soon. In fact, I’ll just put
these things back and you can organize them yourself. Because it’s your job now right?
Well, not officially since I am still assigned her until Monday, but then you’ve already
signed a contract and my transfer has already been approved, so unless you’ve
committed some kind of felony since yesterday-“
“Donna?” Liz broke in, a little concerned with the fervor and pitch of Donna’s speech. “Is
everything okay?”
“Sure. What could be wrong?” Donna asked in return. ‘Except for the fact that Josh
finally kissed me, then went to Amy’s WITH and engagement ring’ Donna thought to
herself.
“You seem a little frazzled.” Liz noted.
“I just have a lot of loose ends to tie up before the end of the day and I’m afraid I’ll forget
something.”
“But won’t you just be down the hall? I mean, if you forget something, you can always
come back right?”
‘Not if Josh has given Amy a ring’ Donna thought. ‘Then I’ll be unable to stomach being
in the same building with Josh’
“Yes, yes of course I’ll just be…down the hall.” Thankfully, she was interrupted by Josh’s
arrival before she could go on another rant. Josh entered his office reading a memo that
Carol had handed to him as he had entered the building. He didn’t even look up as he
addressed Donna and Liz.
“Donna, I need the latest copy of the stimulus package. Liz, I need some coffee before I
go to senior staff. I didn’t get much sleep last night.” If he had been looking up at all he
couldn’t have missed Donna’s head snap over to him at that statement, but he was
engrossed in the memo.
Liz moved toward the door to go in search for coffee, when Donna blocked her way out.
“No; no coffee.” Donna said sternly.
“Donna!” Josh protested.
“He’s not allowed to have coffee?” Liz asked.
“He can have all the coffee he wants; although he should limit his intake for health
reasons.” She risked a glance at Josh and saw he was watching her, but she couldn’t
read anything in his face that gave a clue as to what he did last night; with Amy or with
her.
“Then why did you tell me ‘no coffee’? Liz asked, understandably confused.
“It is not your job to get him coffee. If he’s going to drink that liquid poison, then he has
to get up off his butt and get it himself.” Donna instructed. Liz looked from Donna to Josh
and back to Donna again. She then decided to listen to Donna.
“What should I be doing then?” she asked.
“We’re going to start with the filing system and once we get done with that-“
“Right!” Josh said sarcastically. “Because it’s so logical and orderly.”
“Have I ever been unable to produce a document or information that I have filed,
Joshua?”
“Well, no…but you’re the only one who can find it.” Josh complained.
“Job security.” Donna quipped. “Now as I was saying, when we are finished going over
the filing system, Josh should be back from senior staff and we can go over his schedule
and his phone sheet with him.”
“Let’s do it.” Liz said confidently as she walked out to the bull pen. Donna took another
look at Josh, but his head was down again, studying some other document now, and she
couldn’t exactly ask him about last night standing in his office with the door wide open.
Plus, Liz was waiting for her. Shit.
**************************************************
Donna’s frustration continued and grew throughout the day. Josh was doing a very good
impression of someone who hadn’t kissed her senseless last night, and she felt that was
a very bad sign.
When she went in his office to remind him of his 6:00 meeting with Congressman O’
Halloran on the hill, he still hadn’t broached any topic that was even remotely personal.
While it was true that Liz had been shadowing her all day, he could have easily excused
her to have a private word if he had wanted to.
“You’re going to be late.” She told him at 5:45.
“No, I won’t. Or at least not significantly late.” He amended. “Liz seems to be working out
okay.”
“Yes, I think she’ll be just fine and I’ll just be, you know, down the hall.”
“Mmmm-hmmm.” Josh replied. “I don’t know how long I’ll be on the hill, but I’m all set for
Monday, so you and Liz can take off as soon as I’m gone.”
“Ooookay.” Donna responded and relayed the message to Liz. Once Josh left the office,
she and Liz walked out together. Liz, was full of energy and excitement about her fist day
in the White House. Donna was exhausted; mentally and emotionally tired. She politely
refused Liz’s offer to treat for dinner and chose instead to go home and crash.
************************************************
Chapter 11
“Hello?” Donna said warily into the phone. This couldn’t be good.
“I want you to take note of the time.” Josh told her.
“Believe me I am. Are you drunk again?”
“I am not. And I’d like to point out that I didn’t call you drunk last time either. That was all
Matt.”
“Yes, but Matt was only calling because you were drunk and needed help.”
“Fair point.”
“Josh…”
“I’m just saying it is 12:01, well now it’s 12:02 and I am not drunk.”
“Well as long as we’ve established that, can I go back to sleep?”
“No.”
“No? Why not?”
“Because you have to open the door and let me in.”
Donna sat up in her bed. “You’re here?”
“Yes, and I want my Tiramisu.”
“You came to my apartment and woke me up after midnight for MY Tiramisu?”
“Well, yes, and because I promised C.J.” Josh explained
“What?!”
“Open the damn door, will you?” Josh shouted, his patience spent. Donna slammed the
phone down and marched to the door. When she opened it, she found a very casually
dressed Josh Lyman holding 2 coffees from Starbuck’s. He came in and set them on the
living room table.
“Coffee? Oh God, you need me to go into work?!” Donna moaned.
“No, but even if I did need my assistant to go into work, I would be calling Liz now, not
you, remember?”
All of a sudden, she did remember and it made her a bit sad to think of his rushing
around the office bellowing someone else’s name.
“Oh…yeah.”
“As of 12:00, you no longer work for me.” He pointed out and stepped closer to her.
Bells were going off in her head. “I promised C.J. I would wait until you no longer worked
for me.” he told her quietly and brushed her hair out of her eyes with his hand. “I think
this may have been the longest day of my life.”
Donna’s eyes grew wide with the comprehension of what he was telling her. She drew
back her arm and slugged him in the stomach as hard as she could.
“The Hell?!”
“All day you let me…you couldn’t say a word to me about…You idiot!”
“Jesus, when did you learn to hit like that?”
“Do you have any idea what was going on in my head all day?”
“No, but that’s not unusual is it?” Josh asked moving away from her.
“You kiss me, not once, but twice, then you leave to go see Amy and I never hear from
you again.”
“What are you talking about? I saw you first thing this morning and throughout most of
the day.”
“Professionally, we saw each other, but you didn’t say a word to me personally.”
“I promised C.J.!”
“You couldn’t even talk to me about it?”
“No, because if we started talking about it, then I really wouldn’t have been able to keep
my hands off you. It was hard enough the way it was.” Josh admitted while still rubbing
the spot where Donna had punched him. Donna’s anger slipped significantly as his
words sunk in.
“You could have written a note or something.” Donna muttered.
“Why was it such a big deal? I told you I was only going to see Amy to tell her it was over
between us.”
“I can’t count all the times you were going to tell Amy you were through, but then on top
of that you didn’t call me and the ring was gone and-“ Donna stopped mid sentence as
she realized what she’d just admitted. Josh’s eyebrows rose in silent question.
“Okay, what you need to keep in mind here is-“
“You went through my desk?”
“I ALWAYS go through your desk, Joshua, that’s what you need to keep in mind. If you
didn’t want me to see it, perhaps you should have kept it somewhere else.” Josh’s lips
twitched before his expression turned more serious.
“How do always turn it around so it’s my fault?”
“It’s a talent.”
“I guess…I asked Mom to send it on impulse. Amy never saw it…not even in a box in my
desk.”
“You were going to give it to her, though.”
“Luckily, I came to my senses before I did.” Josh countered. “I think I felt like such a
failure that day; failure as a boyfriend, failure as a Deputy COS, and seeing my failure in
Leo’s eyes might have been the worst blow of all. I wanted to prove to myself that I could
do something right and Amy was right there.”
“How did you leave things between you last night?”
“I think she figured out my motivations and the fault in my logic before I did. She’s taking
a job with N.O.W. in New York and we ended things amicably enough. She won’t come
between us ever again, I promise.” Donna relented a little more at his sincere tone.
“Yeah?”
“Yeah. So that whole thing took about 10 minutes and I was on my way back here, when
I remembered that C.J. would kill me if I did. So I detoured to her place and we talked for
about an hour. That’s when she made me promise to wait until you longer worked for
me; which occurred just a few short minutes ago.”
“I still say you could have mentioned SOMETHING.” Donna stressed.
“I didn’t know there was any reason for you to be concerned. If someone hadn’t been
snooping…“
“Organizing!”
“…then no one would have been freaked by the lights.” Josh finished. “Are we done with
this now?”
“It looks that way.”
“Good because I’ve been thinking about getting my hands on you for the past 24 hours
and it’s killing me over here.” Josh again moved close to her, but watched for her right
hook. “I’m not sure how you managed to do it, but you’ve turned one of the worst weeks
of my adult life into something wonderful.” He cupped her face and rained kisses across
it while Donna closed her eyes and allowed herself to revel in the sensations he was
creating in her. She was so glad it was her and not Amy who was receiving his
attention…
“Wait!” Donna extricated herself and Josh moaned in protest. “Just slow down a minute. I
need to breathe. I need to think.”
“Thinking is highly overrated, but maybe you would breathe easier lying on some flat
surface…like a bed.” Josh suggested.
“No, no, no.” Donna countered. “You just broke up with someone you were talking about
marrying last night. We’re not just jumping into this.”
“Apparently we are NOT done with this.” Josh backed off and ran a hand through his
hair causing it to stick up in all manner of directions.
“That’s not fair Josh.” Donna said calmly.
“I’m sorry.” Josh said sincerely. “It’s just been a rather tumultuous week; my birthday,
Carrick, Amy, your transfer-“
“Exactly my point.” Donna noted. “It’s been an emotional roller coaster for both of us. I
don’t want to wake up tomorrow and find that you think you made another mistake.”
“That’s not what this is. It’s different.” Josh assured her. “I was in panic mode last week. I’
m not there anymore.”
“I understand that Josh, but I need a little more time.”
“It’s been years Donna, how much time do you feel you need?”
“Joshua!”
“What? Okay, we’ll…slow things down. Do I have to leave now?” he sounded so much
like a crabby toddler asking if he had to eat his vegetables that Donna laughed.
“I hope not. I’ve got this great coffee and my Netflix DVD’s came today, plus I don’t have
to be in to work tomorrow at all.” Donna informed him.
“Are they girly movies?”
“Does it really matter at this point?”
“I guess not.” Josh groused a bit as Donna put a movie in the DVD player and pulled
Josh with her to the couch. Since Josh found Donna infinitely more interesting than the
movie. He concentrated on her; kissing her, touching her, but they were both exhausted
from the long week they’d had so before the movie was finished they were wrapped
around one another sound asleep.
********************************************
Main Page All Bets 3
All Bets are Off part 1
All Bets are Off part 2
All Bets are Off part 3
All Bets are Off part 4
All Bets are Off part 5
All Bets are Off part 6
All Bets are Off part 2
All Bets are Off part 3
All Bets are Off part 4
All Bets are Off part 5
All Bets are Off part 6
