She can't seem to wipe the smile off of her face as she makes her way back to the bullpen. It had been one of her little projects. She loves her job. She loves working in the White House, but sometimes she wishes she had a chance to help more people. That her position held a little more weight.
Today it did. Mrs. Morello had been so excited to hear from her, and she'd gone toe-to-toe with President Bartlet about Twelfth Night. Tonight Donna is happier than she's ever been to work in the White House. She made a difference in the life of a teacher who had shaped her life. All thanks to Joshua Lyman.
Donna moves to Josh's office. He's not there, but she knows he hasn't left yet. His coat is still hanging on the coat rack in the bullpen, and his briefcase sits by the desk. She takes a deep breath. It's been a struggle not to cry ever since the President read her that memo.
She looks at his computer. She teases him about his inability to work a computer all the time, but when she looks at the screen, there are pages open about Mrs. Morello. Taking a deep breath, Donna tries to calm her emotions.
"Hey."
The blonde turns her head to see Josh standing in the doorway of his office, hands stuffed in his pockets. "Hi," she breathes, wiping an escaped tear from her cheek.
Concern suddenly finds his features, and he jumps into action, closing the door and moving toward her. "Hey," he coos. "Hey, what's wrong?" he asks, stepping forward and placing his hands on her shoulders.
She feels his thumbs stroking her shoulders over her sweater, and she laughs through the tears. "You wrote a memo," she tells him after a moment. "You wrote a memo and the President spent twenty minutes on the phone debating Twelfth Night with my AP English teacher."
"It… wasn't supposed to make you cry," he replies sheepishly, slipping his hands down to her elbows. "You know I don't know what to do when you cry…"
"I know…this is a good kind of cry," she chokes out with a quiet laugh as she looks up at him. "Josh," she whimpers after a long moment. "Sometimes you can be so sweet." She wraps her arms around his neck, hugging him tightly. "You have no idea what that meant to me," she whispers as his arms slip around her waist, holding her tightly to him. "Thank you."
Josh turns his head and kisses her hair. "You're welcome," he murmurs, one hand rubbing her back soothingly.
She takes a deep breath and exhales on a hum as she pulls away from Josh, her arms still wrapped loosely around his neck as she looks up at him. His hair is wild, undoubtedly from the frustration of the meeting he was in before this. Lifting her hand, she brushes the hair at his temple back with delicate fingers. His eyes stay on her face the whole time, his hands on her waist. Then she cups his jaw and tilts her head, kissing him softly.
It's a risk, she knows. This is her boss. They are in their place of work. She's been so good at restraining herself up to this moment, but now she can't, not when he does something like this. When she kisses him, she expects hesitation on his end. Hell, she wouldn't have been surprised if he pushed her away. But he almost immediately pulls her closer, and she can't help smiling against his lips.
It's been a pretty good day.