Chapter 10

The air changed nearly immediately and he was grateful for it as they barely moved to the music. It had taken no time at all to relax into her, and once he had, he'd felt her relax as well. He held her hand out to the side for a few minutes, but by the time the song had changed to Bryan Adams, he'd pulled them in to rest close to their bodies. The hand on her waist moved ever so slightly up to her bare back where his thumb moved slowly back and forth, and her fingers toyed with the curls in the hair he always thought he'd been cursed with. He was beginning to rethink that.

Neither of them spoke for a few minutes, but it wasn't the awkward silence that had followed them from the steps of her apartment into the restaurant. Instead, it was easy and natural and he found himself picturing them lying in bed reading, him on his back wearing boxers shorts, her perpendicular to him with her head on his stomach wearing one of his t-shirts. It was, he thought, the perfect picture.

"I'm sorry you had a bad day," she whispered into his ear, her breath dancing across his skin.

He strengthened his hold on her, pulling her even closer to him and whispered back, "It's not bad anymore." He could feel her smile against his cheek and then she laid her head on his shoulder. Neither said anything else.

They continued dancing until their server came into the bar and motioned to him that their food had been delivered. Reluctantly, he pulled back from Donna and nodded towards the restaurant. She smiled and they made their way into the dining room, his hand still on her back.

He wondered again how it was she affected him so much. When he'd first seen her in July, he'd tried so hard to stay distant, but watching her across the table as she ate her risotto and smiled at him with those ocean blue eyes, he was so thankful he'd failed. That talks of the Mets and watermelon had sucked him in and captured him again.

And when he took her home that night, the sight of the door didn't bother him. But standing there while she dug her keys out of her purse made his stomach flutter and when she had unlocked the door and turned to say goodbye to him he quietly and without fanfare leaned in and kissed her softly.

He pulled back and looked at her closed eyes and the smallest of smiles on her face. She opened them and looked at him, the smile getting bigger, and he thought it matched the one that he couldn't quite control on his own face. "I meant to wait on that," he said softly.

She looked at him curiously. "Why?"

He leaned on the building then, hands in his pockets, dimples out, and shrugged just a little while grinning at her. "I've got a busy ten days ahead of me. I didn't want … I don't know."

She wiped lipstick from his mouth. "Well I've got midterms coming up. I might be pretty busy."

His smile got bigger and he kissed her thumb as it passed over his lips. "Yeah?"

She nodded. "So I hope you won't be offended if I can't spend too much time with you for the next week or so."

He shook his head and his smile widened. "No. Not at all. I might have to kiss you again once more before I leave though."

She pretended to ponder his statement. "I'm ok with that."

He leaned in and watched as she closed her eyes, waiting for him. She was breathtaking and he skimmed his fingers over her mouth before closing his own eyes and kissing her.

That time he let his lips linger on hers. He'd thought about kissing her for years, and standing there, he tried to memorize every detail of it. Her lips, soft and warm and slightly wet from their first kiss, with a hint of wine on them. Her fingernails tracing patterns up and down his forearm as he held her with one hand at her waist. Her skin, like silk under the fingers he had on her face, her shiver when they danced across to her neck. The sound of her sigh, so quiet and beautiful, meant only for him. It was infinitely better than any dream or fantasy he'd had.

He nearly ached with desire to taste her tongue, her collarbone, her earlobe, but he ended the kiss, laying smaller ones on the corners of her mouth before completely pulling back and looking at her again. Her cheeks were flushed and her breathing quickened.

He pulled his hand from her waist and tangled his fingers with hers as he backed away. "I'll call you," he said as their arms stretched out, holding their connection as long as possible. When he had to let go, he almost hopped down the steps, then turned around and faced her as he walked backwards down the sidewalk towards his car, grinning at the way she smiled brilliantly at him.

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

The following Wednesday morning, a tapping sound woke him. He rubbed his eyes and sat up, groaning before looking around to see that he was in Toby's office. He sat there a few more seconds before looking to his right and seeing Sam standing outside the office looking at him.

He got off the couch and went to the door. "What time is it?"

"Almost six. You slept here?"

"You slept here?"

"I told you I would. It wasn't a big deal."

"You slept on the floor?"

"Yes. It was like… camping."

"Get your things ready, we're going toBuffalo today."

"I thought you said we weren't going this time."

"We are now. Tell Margaret we need two more rooms at the hotel."

"Josh…"

"And pack enough for all week. We're going to Lansing after Buffalo. Tell her to request adjoining rooms; we're going to be working late."

"I was working late. It was easier than going home."

Sam shook his head. "You slept here Sunday and last night too. What's going on?"

Josh turned around and grabbed some files he was reading at around two o'clock, before falling asleep on Toby's couch. "I'm trying to get the President re-elected," he said dismissively as he walked towards his office.

Sam followed him. "Me too. I still manage to get home and shower occasionally. What is it?"

"Nothing."

"Did you get in a fight with Donna?"

He kept walking but turned his head towards Sam, looking at him strangely. "No."

"Josh…"

He sighed. "I'm just not sleeping all that well, so I thought I might as well get some work done." He went into his office then as Sam continued following him. Josh closed the door behind them and looked on the hook on which he'd been keeping a few clean outfits. "Uh oh," he said opening the door again.

"What?" Sam asked, sitting down.

"I'm out of clean clothes."

"It's so bad you're keeping clothes here?" Josh ignored him and grabbed two bottles of orange juice from his refrigerator, tossing one to Sam before sitting down. "And food?"

"It's not a big deal."

Sam looked at him and opened the juice. "You weren't sleeping all that great in September and…"

Josh cut him off. "I'm fine," he said in a tone that said he didn't want to discuss it.

"Nightmares?"

Josh looked at him while he took a drink of his juice, considering lying to him. Finally, he sat the bottle on the desk and nodded. "A few."

"Do you need to call Dr. Miller?"

"No. I just need to get past this…thing I have that she's gonna leave again. When my brain comes to terms with it, everything will be great." Sam looked at him skeptically. "Really," he said, grinning. "Amazingly great."

Sam studied Josh for a minute. "Maybe you should talk to her about it," he offered after the stretch of silence.

"And say what? 'When you quit your job four years ago, you broke my heart into a million tiny pieces. Do you plan on doing that again?' Cause I've only kissed her once, Sam. Ok twice, but still, that might scare her off."

"You don't know that Josh. Wait..." He sat up straighter and looked at him. "You kissed her? I mean, kissed her kissed her. Like on the lips?"

Josh's eyes widened. "Where do you think I'd kiss her, the elbow?"

"I don't know, the cheek maybe."

Josh shook his head and grinned smugly at his friend, thankful the conversation had turned from his lack of sleep. "Nope. Skipped that and went straight for the lips."

"And…" Sam said, gesturing for him to continue.

Josh stared at him a second. "The planets realigned themselves. What do you want me to say?"

Sam stood up and started pacing. "You don't have to get snippy. You liked it?"

"I've been waiting for it for four years, of course I liked it," Josh answered before taking another drink of his juice.

"But I mean…" he stopped walking and looked at Josh. "Did it live up to the hype?"

He smirked. "The hype?"

"You know what I mean."

He nodded and thought for a few seconds. "It was everything and more. It was… perfect."

Sam smiled at him then. "So, did you…"

"No details, Sam."

"You're no fun."

"You're a woman."

"Who's a woman?" April asked, popping her head inside.

Josh looked at her, happy for yet another distraction. "Sam is. I need a clean shirt."

"Ok…" she said, uninterested.

He gestured to the door. "I'm out."

She looked at him like he was crazy. "Yeah…"

"April," he whined.

"Don't whine at me. I'm your assistant, not your mother."

"What was that?"

"What was what?"

"Were you just whining?"

"No."

"Yes you were."

"I was not."

"Ok."

"Donna…"

"Right there, that was whining."

"Donna, I need the polling data."

"You're like a child."

"Please…"

"Do you really think whining is going to work with me?"

"Donna, I need it."

"God help me, it is working. I'll see what I can do."

"The whining doesn't work with me, Josh. You took a clean shirt off that door yesterday. Why didn't it occur to you to bring in more?"

"I hate you."

"You're no picnic yourself," she said before turning around and walking away.

"So," Sam asked once she was gone. "Is she gonna get you a shirt?"

Josh shook his head. "Nope."