AUTHOR: EMP
TITLE: Rose is a Rose
CHARACTER: CJ Cregg, Kate Harper
CATEGORY: Romance
PAIRING: CJ/Kate
RATING: PG
SUMMARY: Deputy NSA meets Press Secretary.
Kate Harper liked to work out. The rhythm of her feet in a run, the flow of blood to her legs, the elevation in her heart rate, the sweat down her spine, the rush of adrenaline, all of it. She valued her workouts and guarded them jealously, and she wouldn't have given them up for anything—except the White House. Kate's assignment as Deputy NSA had pretty much turned her daily routine upside down, and she hadn't managed to claim a workout in weeks. So, when the opportunity arose for her to avail herself of the White House gym for a couple of hours early that Friday evening, she seized it.
And so it was that Kate Harper was contentedly, almost blissfully, pushing herself toward mile 3 on the treadmill, her mind focusing on nothing but the next 7 miles ahead. Her blue sky soon dimmed, however, by the newly- noticed cloud in her peripheral vision—a woman with chestnut hair in a ponytail, wearing a white tank top and navy track pants, and apparently coveting the treadmill Kate was using. Kate was not about to yield. "I'm gonna be a while, sorry," she called over her shoulder.
"That's okay, I just wanted to say hi."
Kate's eyes flew wide and her head jerked upright at the sound of the unmistakable voice of CJ Cregg. Quickly, she steadied herself from a near misstep and her fingers ordered the happily whirring treadmill into the protesting groan of a cooldown pace. "I'm sorry, ma'am—I'll be right with you."
Kate downshifted to long, walking strides as the machine slowed. She grabbed her towel and wiped the matted blonde bangs from her face, hoping, by the gesture, to regain some semblance of composure for the unexpected circumstance under which she was about to meet the Press Secretary. The treadmill came to a stop and she hopped off, flipping the towel over her shoulder. "I apologize, ma'am, for keeping you waiting," she said breathlessly, extending her hand. "Kate Harper. Good to meet you."
The formality amused CJ, given the setting and the agent's cut-off sleeveless tee shirt and spandex shorts, but she dutifully met Kate's firm handshake. "You, too. And that's the last time you get to call me 'ma'am.' It's CJ."
"CJ." Kate stifled a hiccup and managed a smile.
CJ pretended not to notice and smiled back. "How do you like the White House gym?"
Kate looked around approvingly. "It's fantastic. I'm just sorry I haven't had a chance to see it before now." Her gaze settled again on the woman in front of her. "I'm also sorry that I haven't had a chance to meet you before now, with everything—"
"Don't worry about all that." CJ dismissed the thought with a wave of her hand. "It's been an unusually crazy time. As opposed to, you know, all the other unusually crazy times we have. And now that's the third time you've apologized to me in the two minutes since we met."
"I'm sorry." Wince.
"Seriously, you need to stop that. It doesn't bode well for our relationship." CJ's fingers unscrewed the cap from the Evian bottle in her hand, and Kate watched as she took a swallow of water. "So, you went to the Naval Academy?"
"Yes, ma'—. Yes." Kate sighed at having avoided another minor gaffe. Wanting to move the conversation forward, she ventured to add, "Commander Davis told me to be sure to extend her regards to you when I saw you. Of course, she didn't think it would take this long for me to actually meet you, but—"
"Oh, you know Joanne?"
"She was one of my instructors. I ended up working with her afterward, and we became friends. She's, ah—she's great. She thinks you're great." Kate tried very hard not to roll her eyes at her inability to come up with anything better than "great." Next, she thought, you'll tell her that you think the White House is "neat."
"Great." Kate couldn't tell if CJ was being sarcastic in repeating the word. Sensing her confusion, CJ brightened. "Yeah, Joanne is terrific. I haven't talked to her in ages, though. How's she doing?" She asked the question into the water bottle.
Momentarily mesmerized by a bead of sweat traveling down CJ's long neck and past her collarbone, Kate blinked twice to avoid seeing its destination and answered quickly. "She's doing well, actually. Still teaching. Still trying to singlehandedly stave off female attrition at the Academy. Still trying to develop the perfect hybrid tea rose."
"She still working on a cross between the Ingrid Bergman and the Dolly Parton?"
"No, she gave that one up," Kate chuckled. "She was pretty happy with one of her experiments, though—a spectacular peach rose on a long stem. Long- lasting blooms, delicate fragrance, gorgeous foliage, and the most wicked thorns I've ever seen. You barely notice them until you realize that they've drawn blood. Commander Davis said it was fitting, considering..."
"Considering?"
"She named it after an ex."
"So what did she call this botanical triumph?"
"She named it the—" Kate's voice slowed as the realization crested. "—Claudia Jean."
CJ raised her eyebrows, and Kate felt the crimson sting her cheeks. Pausing a moment, CJ took another long, deliberate drink as Kate stood there in clumsy silence, avoiding eye contact and hoping for a trapdoor to open beneath her feet to allow her to escape. When the trapdoor didn't materialize, Kate uneasily looked back up. CJ's chin was lifted and her lips were pressed together, and slowly she began to nod as if understanding were now dawning upon her.
"So what you're telling me," CJ reasoned, her head still keeping time, "is that I've been outed by a flower."
"I wouldn't say that."
"You just did."
"Not at all."
"And how do you figure that?"
"Well, technically, the species rosa is a shrub."
The resounding heartiness of CJ's laugh at Kate's matter-of-fact delivery echoed through the gym, immediately and completely dissipating the awkwardness of the moment and leaving Kate tremendously pleased with herself, if not a little weak in the knees with relief. Kate couldn't help but smile as CJ burst into another wave of giggles. "All right, Harper, I'll give you that one."
"Thank you, ma'am." She was pardoned, and she sighed thankfully.
"Tell me, are there any other flora—or any fauna, for that matter—that have anything else to reveal about my personal life?"
"Not that I'm aware of, ma'am."
"You'll tell me if you hear of anything, right?" CJ's tone was teasingly conspiratorial, with a note of flirtation.
"Yes, ma'am."
"Good." She looked at Kate a moment as if to contemplate her next move, decided, and leaned down and picked up her gym bag. "I'm gonna go shower now."
"Yes, ma'am."
"You coming?" She gestured toward the locker room with her thumb.
"Not yet, ma'am. I've still got a few miles to go—"
"—before you sleep?"
"Yes, ma'am."
"Very well, Commander. Carry on." Kate nodded once, pulled the towel down from her shoulder, and slung it effortlessly over the treadmill's black handlebar. CJ took a few steps toward the locker room, then spun back around to see Kate standing with her feet apart on either side of the belt, programming a grueling but satisfying next half hour. "Oh, and Harper?" she called.
Kate turned her head. "Ma'am?"
"Much as I like the power thing, that really is the last time you get to call me 'ma'am.'"
Kate beamed. "Have a good night, CJ."
"Good night, Harper."
And with that, Kate turned back to the task at hand, hopping on the machine's rumbling belt and quickly establishing a broad stride. Looking up at the mirror on the far end of the room, she saw CJ standing there, watching her, completely unaware that she was being observed in return. Kate couldn't read CJ's expression from that distance, but as she broke into a jog, she thought she saw an almost wistful smile as CJ turned and headed toward the locker room. Kate couldn't help but smile herself. And it had nothing to do with the workout.
TITLE: Rose is a Rose
CHARACTER: CJ Cregg, Kate Harper
CATEGORY: Romance
PAIRING: CJ/Kate
RATING: PG
SUMMARY: Deputy NSA meets Press Secretary.
Kate Harper liked to work out. The rhythm of her feet in a run, the flow of blood to her legs, the elevation in her heart rate, the sweat down her spine, the rush of adrenaline, all of it. She valued her workouts and guarded them jealously, and she wouldn't have given them up for anything—except the White House. Kate's assignment as Deputy NSA had pretty much turned her daily routine upside down, and she hadn't managed to claim a workout in weeks. So, when the opportunity arose for her to avail herself of the White House gym for a couple of hours early that Friday evening, she seized it.
And so it was that Kate Harper was contentedly, almost blissfully, pushing herself toward mile 3 on the treadmill, her mind focusing on nothing but the next 7 miles ahead. Her blue sky soon dimmed, however, by the newly- noticed cloud in her peripheral vision—a woman with chestnut hair in a ponytail, wearing a white tank top and navy track pants, and apparently coveting the treadmill Kate was using. Kate was not about to yield. "I'm gonna be a while, sorry," she called over her shoulder.
"That's okay, I just wanted to say hi."
Kate's eyes flew wide and her head jerked upright at the sound of the unmistakable voice of CJ Cregg. Quickly, she steadied herself from a near misstep and her fingers ordered the happily whirring treadmill into the protesting groan of a cooldown pace. "I'm sorry, ma'am—I'll be right with you."
Kate downshifted to long, walking strides as the machine slowed. She grabbed her towel and wiped the matted blonde bangs from her face, hoping, by the gesture, to regain some semblance of composure for the unexpected circumstance under which she was about to meet the Press Secretary. The treadmill came to a stop and she hopped off, flipping the towel over her shoulder. "I apologize, ma'am, for keeping you waiting," she said breathlessly, extending her hand. "Kate Harper. Good to meet you."
The formality amused CJ, given the setting and the agent's cut-off sleeveless tee shirt and spandex shorts, but she dutifully met Kate's firm handshake. "You, too. And that's the last time you get to call me 'ma'am.' It's CJ."
"CJ." Kate stifled a hiccup and managed a smile.
CJ pretended not to notice and smiled back. "How do you like the White House gym?"
Kate looked around approvingly. "It's fantastic. I'm just sorry I haven't had a chance to see it before now." Her gaze settled again on the woman in front of her. "I'm also sorry that I haven't had a chance to meet you before now, with everything—"
"Don't worry about all that." CJ dismissed the thought with a wave of her hand. "It's been an unusually crazy time. As opposed to, you know, all the other unusually crazy times we have. And now that's the third time you've apologized to me in the two minutes since we met."
"I'm sorry." Wince.
"Seriously, you need to stop that. It doesn't bode well for our relationship." CJ's fingers unscrewed the cap from the Evian bottle in her hand, and Kate watched as she took a swallow of water. "So, you went to the Naval Academy?"
"Yes, ma'—. Yes." Kate sighed at having avoided another minor gaffe. Wanting to move the conversation forward, she ventured to add, "Commander Davis told me to be sure to extend her regards to you when I saw you. Of course, she didn't think it would take this long for me to actually meet you, but—"
"Oh, you know Joanne?"
"She was one of my instructors. I ended up working with her afterward, and we became friends. She's, ah—she's great. She thinks you're great." Kate tried very hard not to roll her eyes at her inability to come up with anything better than "great." Next, she thought, you'll tell her that you think the White House is "neat."
"Great." Kate couldn't tell if CJ was being sarcastic in repeating the word. Sensing her confusion, CJ brightened. "Yeah, Joanne is terrific. I haven't talked to her in ages, though. How's she doing?" She asked the question into the water bottle.
Momentarily mesmerized by a bead of sweat traveling down CJ's long neck and past her collarbone, Kate blinked twice to avoid seeing its destination and answered quickly. "She's doing well, actually. Still teaching. Still trying to singlehandedly stave off female attrition at the Academy. Still trying to develop the perfect hybrid tea rose."
"She still working on a cross between the Ingrid Bergman and the Dolly Parton?"
"No, she gave that one up," Kate chuckled. "She was pretty happy with one of her experiments, though—a spectacular peach rose on a long stem. Long- lasting blooms, delicate fragrance, gorgeous foliage, and the most wicked thorns I've ever seen. You barely notice them until you realize that they've drawn blood. Commander Davis said it was fitting, considering..."
"Considering?"
"She named it after an ex."
"So what did she call this botanical triumph?"
"She named it the—" Kate's voice slowed as the realization crested. "—Claudia Jean."
CJ raised her eyebrows, and Kate felt the crimson sting her cheeks. Pausing a moment, CJ took another long, deliberate drink as Kate stood there in clumsy silence, avoiding eye contact and hoping for a trapdoor to open beneath her feet to allow her to escape. When the trapdoor didn't materialize, Kate uneasily looked back up. CJ's chin was lifted and her lips were pressed together, and slowly she began to nod as if understanding were now dawning upon her.
"So what you're telling me," CJ reasoned, her head still keeping time, "is that I've been outed by a flower."
"I wouldn't say that."
"You just did."
"Not at all."
"And how do you figure that?"
"Well, technically, the species rosa is a shrub."
The resounding heartiness of CJ's laugh at Kate's matter-of-fact delivery echoed through the gym, immediately and completely dissipating the awkwardness of the moment and leaving Kate tremendously pleased with herself, if not a little weak in the knees with relief. Kate couldn't help but smile as CJ burst into another wave of giggles. "All right, Harper, I'll give you that one."
"Thank you, ma'am." She was pardoned, and she sighed thankfully.
"Tell me, are there any other flora—or any fauna, for that matter—that have anything else to reveal about my personal life?"
"Not that I'm aware of, ma'am."
"You'll tell me if you hear of anything, right?" CJ's tone was teasingly conspiratorial, with a note of flirtation.
"Yes, ma'am."
"Good." She looked at Kate a moment as if to contemplate her next move, decided, and leaned down and picked up her gym bag. "I'm gonna go shower now."
"Yes, ma'am."
"You coming?" She gestured toward the locker room with her thumb.
"Not yet, ma'am. I've still got a few miles to go—"
"—before you sleep?"
"Yes, ma'am."
"Very well, Commander. Carry on." Kate nodded once, pulled the towel down from her shoulder, and slung it effortlessly over the treadmill's black handlebar. CJ took a few steps toward the locker room, then spun back around to see Kate standing with her feet apart on either side of the belt, programming a grueling but satisfying next half hour. "Oh, and Harper?" she called.
Kate turned her head. "Ma'am?"
"Much as I like the power thing, that really is the last time you get to call me 'ma'am.'"
Kate beamed. "Have a good night, CJ."
"Good night, Harper."
And with that, Kate turned back to the task at hand, hopping on the machine's rumbling belt and quickly establishing a broad stride. Looking up at the mirror on the far end of the room, she saw CJ standing there, watching her, completely unaware that she was being observed in return. Kate couldn't read CJ's expression from that distance, but as she broke into a jog, she thought she saw an almost wistful smile as CJ turned and headed toward the locker room. Kate couldn't help but smile herself. And it had nothing to do with the workout.