Thanks for reviews and feedback! I've decided to keep this as a stand-alone and finish my other fics before starting a new series. But as always, feel free to leave your thoughts and any prompts in the comments below~

Disclaimer: I don't own Designated Survivor.


2/3

Aaron and Seth managed to shake Lyor off with an excuse about reviewing a press release, which wasn't completely untrue. Aaron followed Seth into the Press Secretary's office, barely noticing as Seth shut the door firmly behind them.

"You okay man?" Seth walked around Aaron to sit down on his chair, wheeling himself closer to the desk while Aaron remained standing in the middle of the office.

"Yeah, that was… unexpected." Aaron admitted, rubbing a hand over his jaw.

Seth grimaced, "Helluva way to find out, huh?'

"What?" Aaron's hand fell away from his face and Seth looked up in alarm.

"Uh, I mean, I just assumed-," He stuttered, blinking quickly under Aaron's sharp glare.

Aaron leaned down, bracing his hands on the back of the chair in front of him, "You assumed I was sleeping with Sasha?"

"What? No man, Emily! I mean, aren't you?" Seth leaned in almost conspiratorially as Aaron pushed away, a hand on his hip, the other going to smooth his tie as he paced away from his friend, thoughts racing through his head at breakneck speed as he tried to think of a way to divert Seth off the track of the truth.

"That was Sasha's test." Aaron mumbled, ducking his head as his hand went from his tie to the bridge of his nose.

"Come on, Aaron, you actually believe that? Didn't you see the look on Emily's face? Give me a little credit, here."

Of course Aaron saw the look on her face. It was all he could picture in his mind, the image of her mortified expression seared into the back of his eyelids. No wonder she had been so dodgy this morning.

"So what are you going to do?"

Aaron spun around, "What do you mean, what am I going to do?" He asked sharply.

Seth pushed back from his desk, leaning back leisurely in his chair as he regarded his friend with a "no bullshit" look, "I mean it's yours, isn't it?"

Was it his? Aaron grimaced, of course it was his. Emily hadn't been sleeping with anyone else, how could she when she spent nearly every waking moment with him, whether that was within the walls of the White House or in bed with him?

Dear Lord.

Emily was pregnant. They were pregnant. That thought hit him like a punch to the gut. He was elated at the thought of Emily carrying their child, but he had also pictured it happening a few years down the road with a ring on her finger, a more solid definition of their relationship. Yeah, he could understand how Emily must have been feeling.

"Wait a minute, how did you know-?" Aaron walked back Seth's desk as he smirked up at the National Security Adviser, holding his arms out wide.
"Dude, please, I'm like the keeper of all things Emily and Aaron."

Aaron winced, "Don't say 'dude' when you're sitting in the chair of the White House Press Secretary."

"I mean, you drive her to work every day-,"

"Carpooling is good for the environment and it's a good way for us to go over daily briefings-,"

"-not to mention those secret looks and implicative conversations you two always seem to be having-,"

"-we work closely together, you develop a sort of shared language after a while,"

"and the sexual tension that suddenly disappeared after you two started 'carpooling'" Seth finished smugly.

There was a pause as both men stared at each other, a challenge for the truth until Aaron sighed, looking away first so not to see the triumphant grin spreading across Seth's face. Aaron's phone buzzed and he pulled it out making a move towards the door, his Blackberry pointed threateningly at his friend.

"Not a word. To anyone. That includes Emily. Do not talk to her until I get a chance to."

Seth stood as Aaron began to leave, "But what are you going to do-?'

The door slammed shut behind Aaron and Seth dropped back into his chair with a groan, understanding how the press corps must feel each time he left a room.