"What the hell happened to you?"
"What do you mean?"
"I
mean," John said, from the doorway, "I go out of town for a
week
and I come back and you're…you're…you're HUGE!"
"Gee
thanks, John," CJ frowned, placing her hand on her
stomach,
"That's exactly what a pregnant woman wants to
hear. You're
HUGE'! You couldn't have said You've blossomed and
you're
positively glowing' or I've never seen you look
more
beautiful'?"
"You do look beautiful, CJ. I
just got a bit of a surprise that's
all. I mean, he's really
growing isn't he?" John reached out
hesitantly, waiting for
CJ's permission before he touched his palm
to her round
belly.
"Don't you mean she'?" CJ challenged
good-naturedly, moving his
hand to the left side of her stomach
where the baby was kicking.
"If you say so," John
laughed, too amazed by the fluttering beneath
his fingers to react
to her teasing. "Can you believe in a little
over a month
we're going to be meeting this little one?"
"I know,
it'll be incredible," CJ smiled, absently covering John's
hand
with her own as the baby's kicks became more frequent. "On
the
other hand, I'm not sure how much more of this pregnancy I can
take
if I get any bigger. Josh has already taken it upon himself
to
change my Secret Service code name to Moby Dick."
John
laughed but stopped quickly when he saw CJ's pout. "He
didn't
really, did he?"
"Well, no, he didn't," CJ admitted, "but he threatened to."
"Well,
that's just not nice, is it?" John mocked, finding it hard
to
keep a straight face.
"Don't mess with me, John,
you're not exactly in my good books,
remember?" CJ warned,
narrowing her eyes and glaring at him. "And
anyway, it's
thanks to you that I presently resemble an Orca."
"Hey!
Not only did I help in the conception of this already much
loved
baby, but as far as I can tell, I gave you a real good time!"
"Don't remind me," CJ groaned.
"Was it that terrible?"
John asked, feeling more than a little
wounded.
"No, I
mean, seriously don't remind me! It's been 8 months and I'm
at,
and have been for some time, a particular period in my
pregnancy
where…well, you know," her words trailed off as
the blush rose in
her cheeks.
"I don't…what are you talking about?" John asked, perplexed.
CJ muttered something and John had to ask her to repeat herself.
"I'm
horny, dammit!" CJ announced, rather more loudly than she
had
intended.
John found himself at a loss for words but he
was saved by a knock
on the door as Josh burst in.
"CJ,
Leo needs us in his office in five minutes," he said,
nodding
his head in acknowledgement of John. "Mr
Vice-President."
"Josh," John mirrored his gesture.
"Well, I'll meet you there," Josh said,
sensing the tension in the
room. "Oh, and CJ?"
CJ
paused from gathering together her notes and turned to face
Josh.
"Yeah?"
"If you need to satisfy your need, you
know where I am," he grinned
as it took CJ a few moments to
realize that he had heard her
outburst.
"Get out, NOW!"
John watched as Josh disappeared and the door shut
behind him.
Turning to CJ, he grimaced.
"Wow! That was embarrassing."
CJ could only nod, unsure as to
whether he was referring to Josh's
words or to her own little
blush-inducing outburst. She was having
a hard time coming to
terms with the fact that she had just
announced her sexual
frustrations to not only John, but it would
appear everyone in the
outer offices heard also.
"Anyway," CJ began,
breaking her silence but not the tension, "I'd
better get to
that meeting and you," she said, pointing at
John, "had
better go do some Vice-Presidential things before someone
puts two
and two together."
"You mean it's not the
Vice-President's duty to knock-up the
President's Press
Secretary," John deadpanned, "They really should
outline
that in the handbook."
"Oh, I wouldn't worry, I'm
sure the book will be well and truly
rewritten as soon as our
little scenario becomes public knowledge,"
CJ sighed.
John
nodded, only too aware of the situation. They stood in silence
for
a moment before CJ snapped out of her worries and began to shoo
him
out of her office.
"Scram, I've got to get to that
meeting before Josh tells everyone I
propositioned him," CJ
said as they reached the door.
"You know he's told them already," John assured her.
"Yeah, I know, but Josh
has a tendency to elaborate so God only
knows what he's told them
I was up to."
John laughed. "Good luck," he
whispered before making his way down
the corridor.
CJ
watched him as he walked away and instantly scolded herself
for
admiring what she saw. That was one mistake she wouldn't
–
couldn't - repeat.
"Hello?"
"So,
I've been thinking," the voice on the other end of the
phone
paused before continuing, "about this condition' you
mentioned
earlier,"
CJ felt the blush rise in her cheeks.
"Yes?" CJ asked cautiously.
"I've got a proposition for you,"
"Oh John," she
groaned, "please don't say you're going to offer to
rectify
the situation for me,"
"God no!" John answered quickly.
A little too quickly for CJ's liking.
"Are you saying you find me repulsive because let me tell you, pal…"
John
cut her off in the middle of her tirade. "No, I didn't mean
that
I don't want to….well, I don't want to…but not for the reason
you
think. It's the last thing we need, right?"
CJ mumbled in
agreement, only slightly satisfied that he wasn't
inferring that
she was unattractive in her current condition.
"So, I was
thinking," he continued, "you're taking maternity leave
in
two weeks, am I right?"
"Yeah,"
"Well,
why don't you come out to the ranch for a few days? You can
relax
by the pool, read a few books, generally just pamper
yourself.
It's going to be your last chance for a long time once
this little
one arrives. And," John added, lowering his voice, "it
might
just take your mind off of….well, you know…what you were
talking
about."
CJ sat and thought about it for a moment. It
would be nice to get
out of DC for a while and she could do with
recharging her batteries
a little before she launched herself into
motherhood.
"Ok," CJ said, beginning to nod. "I'll
get Carol to look into
flights."
They ended their
phone call and CJ sank back into her chair. As
appealing as a
break sounded she couldn't help thinking this was
pushing the
boundaries too far. She and John seemed to have just
reached a
happy medium and the last thing she wanted to do was mess
it up
with her raging hormones.