Obviously I own nothing. I'm just playing with someone else's great ideas for a little while... Hope you enjoy! I apologize for any type-o's and errors.
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"DONNA!" Josh's bellowing was becoming increasingly louder as I made my way across the makeshift office towards him.
"Oh, Donna!" CJ snagged me on my way, grabbing my arm and pulling me aside. "I've been looking for you. Wrap it up for the daily pretty soon. We're going out," she told me, rather than asked. "It's been a long couple of months and we're in New Orleans for the night," her smile widened to a full on mischievous grin. "Let's see what kind of trouble a couple of girls can dig up."
"DONNA!"
CJ rolled her eyes. "Not to mention it sounds like you could use a drink," she nodded her head towards Josh's shouting, "What's his deal lately, anyway?"
Donna sighed, not knowing what to say, but C.J.'s question was mostly rhetorical.
"Anyway," she grinned like a Cheshire cat and filled Donna in on the specifics of her plan. "See you later," she shouted over her shoulder as Donna started off towards Josh.
"DONNA!"
"WHAT?" That caught him off guard. Sure, he bellows for her about 412 times a day but rarely does she have the golden opportunity to yell back from just a few inches infront of him.
He startled a bit, jumping back a tiny distance. "Oh, I didn't see you there. Do you have the numbers on the thing…"
"Right here," she interrupted, handing him a folder. "You've got the guy at the place in ten minutes."
"mmpfh," he grunted, going back to what he was doing.
"Do you need anything else from me tonight?" Donna put her hand on her hip. They'd been on the road for a week visiting different parts of the country regarding the President's new economic policy and to begin to gear up for the mid terms.
Josh looked up at her, somewhat taken aback by her candor. "I guess not. Why, do you have a hot date? We've only been in town for 16 hours and you've scoped out a Republican gomer," he joked. He gave a smug smile and she rolled her eyes.
"Some of us are going out," she told him, ignoring the quip about her dating life and placing the files he wouldn't need into his backpack while tidying up for the day. They were headed back to DC the next afternoon.
"Who, uh, who is some of us?" Josh shifted his weight back and forth, now intrigued by Donna's plans for the night in a town notorious for partying.
She shrugged her shoulders, somewhat brushing him off. "Mostly everyone, I suppose. Leo told us all to pack up early tonight and blow off a little steam before we get back." She zipped his backpack and handed it to him. "You're going to be late for your meeting and I've got to get back to the hotel to change." She scribbled something down on a post it and handed it to him. "This is where we'll be when you're done with the Senator. You could use a night off to relax, too."
Josh shot her a grin and put the note in his pocket as he swaggered out the door.
oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo
"Another round," Toby instructed the waitress, motioning at their table. They'd just finished dinner and were all well on their way to relaxing in The Big Easy. Everyone at the table was broken off into small side conversations; Will and Toby arguing over the specifics of a speech, Ginger talking to a guy who'd just bought her a beer and C.J. and Donna just catching up.
"So," she leaned in a little closer. "What's the deal with you and Josh lately?"
"There's no deal," Donna stated flatly.
"Yeah. That's what I'm talking about. You guys are always so-" C.J paused to flail her hand about in the air, "so you about everything and now you're just… not."
Donna nodded. 'Tell me about it,' she thought. "It's nothing. I'm just still trying to get back into the swing of things. I mean I've only been back at work for a few weeks and my PT keeps me exhausted. We'll get back into the swing of things." She added a silent 'I hope' in her head.
"Did something happen in Germany, Donna," C.J. asked, but didn't pry. Donna was able to tell when she was talking to the press secretary and when she was talking to her dear friend and tonight she knew she was speaking to the latter of the options.
"No," Donna lightly twirled the liquid in her whiskey sour and stared into the glass. "I mean, he was great, don't get me wrong," she quickly amended, looking up at her friend who wore a skeptical face. "It's just- I guess I thought that since he flew all the way over there…" Donna trailed off but C.J. continued to stare at her intently.
"That there was more to it," C.J. surmised.
"It's stupid, I know." Donna sat up and plastered a fake smile on her face. "I mean, we're just friends. We work together. That's all. Anyway, what's the deal with you and Danny?" Donna was a master at changing the subject.
C.J. began to fill her in on the red haired reporter but Donna found it difficult to concentrate. Something had shifted after Gaza. Something she couldn't exactly put her finger on. The man had flown halfway around the world to be by her side but… that's where it stopped. He'd never made any kind of move, any kind of statement. At first she blamed it on Collin's presence, but Donna had asked him in no uncertain terms to go, wanting nothing more than to just have Josh at her side but that didn't change things. Donna was to the point where she'd chalked the whole thing up to a combination of Josh's unrelenting guilt and Leo's orders to send a White House liaison.
And when she'd returned from Germany things just seemed so strained. He'd had a rough time professionally but Donna knew that wasn't the extent of it. They were just… off. And she hated it.
C.J. eventually became distracted telling Will a story and Donna stood with her drink, finding her legs to be more wobbly than she anticipated, to head to the ladies room. She straightened her dress, a new impulse purchase from a shop window on her way back to her hotel, and confidently shook her hair over her shoulders. Her look this evening was a far cry from her usual White House ensemble. The dress was skimpy, her hair was full and tossed and she was wearing considerably more eye makeup than normal. She looked good and she knew it. Maybe she'd even meet someone tonight. Get a little lucky…
She made her way through the crowded bar, passing in front of the entrance just as he walked in. He looked defeated- exhausted with a loosened tie and rolled up shirt sleeves. He looked around the bar, skeptical, in search of his friends, questioning why he even bothered to come out after the disaster of the day, week- hell, months, he'd had lately.
"Joshua." Donna was immediately at his side.
He smiled at her. "How do you do that?"
"I'm tuned to you," she told him, cocking her head to the side and staring at him. He looked uneasy. She knew he was on somewhat of a rough footing with everyone right now and she had just enough liquid courage to put all of their recent issues aside and just act like their old selves.
"Everyone is over there," she pointed at the booth in the corner, shoving her whiskey into his hand. "You're behind. Drink this and catch up. I'll be back to join you guys in a minute."
Before she knew what was happening she stood on her tiptoes and gave him a quick peck on the cheek.
"I'm glad you came," she told him before sauntering off to the ladies room.
oOoOoOoOoOoOoOo
The drinks flowed liberally and Donna soon found herself at the bar, with Josh's credit card, ordering 6 more drinks for their table. She'd been getting excellent service all evening and more than a few pick up lines. The dress was really doing it's job. She was currently waiting for someone behind the busy bar to take her order while she chatted with a guy who could easily be confused for a Calvin Klein underwear model.
They were laughing and flirting but as Donna continued to turn on the charm his face slowly changed.
"Donna," she heard a very drunk Josh almost slur from right over her shoulder. "We're leaving."
She furrowed her brow and looked over, noticing the glare Josh was giving underwear guy. "Josh," she warned through gritted teeth.
"C.J. wants to go somewhere else. They're getting a cab. C'mon."
"Hey, you don't have to go with him. You can stay here, you know" the guy said, flashing her a smile. What was his name? Brad? Brett? Brian? 'Who really cares,' Donna thought.
Donna didn't even have time to respond before Josh edged infront of her, getting aggressively close to Brad/Brett/Brian.
"Yeah, she really does have to go," Josh spat at him. "She's not that kind of girl." For reasons she couldn't seem to come up with Donna let Josh lead her out of the bar to meet up with the rest of the group, noticing his hand guiding her on the small of her back. It was a simple gesture, one he'd extended to her countless times before, but it had been noticeably absent over the past few months. Donna stood a little taller as she walked and hoped they really were moving in the right direction again.
The six of them piled into a cab and rode a few minutes to a different bar, meeting up with a few additional staffers on the trip and a couple of members of the press corps at their second stop. Everyone was on fairly equal footing as far as inebriation went and after a loud declaration of 'everyone is off the record' was agreed to the crowd really began to loosen up.
Will was telling Jokes, Toby was relaxed and enjoying a cigar and C.J.'s laugh was ringing above the music. A couple members of the press corps brought over tequila shots and they'd all indulged.
Donna wasn't sure who suggested piling onto the dance floor but they all did and the next thing that she knew she was laughing and dancing. A jazzy sounding New Orleans version of Sexual Healing came over the speakers and her dance partner Will passed her to Toby who spun her around a few times. Everyone began to sing along to the iconic song. Toby passed her over to Danny who danced a few funny, over exaggerated steps with her when she felt a hand around her waist. Josh pulled her over and smiled, singing along to the music as Danny continued across the floor with Ginger.
Josh spun her a few times during the instrumental, then taking both of her hands in his and moved them around as he sang off key and at the top of his lungs with the rest of the bar.
"Baby, I'm hot just like an oven/ I need some lovin'"
He pulled her close to his body and wrapped his arms around her waist. She ran her hands up his chest and around his neck, her fingers gently twisting into his curls. They were pressed against each other, a far cry from the way that they'd danced together at state functions, but nobody seemed to notice or care.
"And baby, I can't hold it much longer/ It's getting stronger and stronger"
Their eyes locked and stayed that way for the rest of the song. With all the liquor and music and people nobody even noticed when Josh leaned down and whispered in Donna's ear.
"Come on, baby, Let's get out of here," he told her grabbing her by the hand and slipping out the door into the night.
oOoOoOoOoOo
Donna let out a deep, content sigh as she lay in the tangled sheets, gently running her hands across Josh's chest. She couldn't help the smile on her face. This, she thought, is what people meant by 'afterglow.'
They'd stumbled back to the hotel and up to Josh's room, getting increasingly handsy on the way and fumbling the door open, locked at the lips. Josh made quick work of finding the zipper on the back of her dress as she unbuttoned his shirt and slipped his tie off.
He broke their embrace momentarily and though he wobbled a bit on his own legs his glossy eyes looked at hers and he became completely serious. "You know, right," he asked her, searching her face as he spoke. "How I- How I feel. That I-"
"Yeah," she interrupted him, the corners of her mouth quirking up in a smile. "Me too."
He nodded his head and gave her a full dimpled grin before picking her up and carrying her to the bed.
The sex, Donna thought, was beyond fantastic. It was, well, it was beyond what she'd imagined. And she certainly had imagined it. Even for all the awkward moments and missteps in the last few months combined with the copious amount of liquor they immediately found their rhythm. Donna's mental replay was interrupted by a knock on their door.
"Room service!"
She hopped up and threw on his undershirt, stepping over their discarded clothing that littered the floor. She cracked the door, signing the slip and telling the bellman to leave the tray. Once he was gone she peeked out and picked up the plate of breakfast they'd ordered as a middle of the night snack as Josh raided the mini bar again.
She turned to say something to him and started giggling for no reason when she tripped over her previously discarded shoes, dumping the plate onto their clothes. After the initial startle and making sure she was okay Josh laughed too. They sat there, on the floor of a hotel room, drinking Jack Daniels out of a couple tiny bottles.
"Donnatella," Josh began, pulling her onto his lap, his head resting against the wall with his eyes closed. "Donna tomorrow's going to come and-"
"Stop." She cut him off, the serious drunk coming out in here.
"I'm just saying. It's not fair. They'll, you know... It'll be…"
"I think you're lying about your SAT verbal score," she teased him about his inability to articulate well, anything, on this subject..
"I'm bad at this, Donnatella. You know that." He grabbed her hand and brought it to his lips, gently kissing the inside of her wrist. "There's so much to lose right now. And I'm not going to do that to you."
"Or to the President," Donna added with a nod, showing her understanding.
"Someday," he told her, "we'll be together." He kissed her shoulder and nodded off, right there against the wall, and she followed right behind him.
TBC...
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So, this is my first step hot at one of these. I would be grateful for any feedback on this... it's going to be a journey and I hope to improve in the process.
If you're interested this version of the song is 'Hot 8 Brass Band- Sexual Healing.'
