Title: Dark Depths

Author: Lucy Mars

Disclaimer: I don't own 'em. I'll play nice and return them when I'm done. Well...maybe not with Amy. ;]

Chapter #14

Pulling away from Donna's flushed face, Josh couldn't help mirror her silly grin. "I think that we've skipped some steps." Josh said breathlessly.

"What?" Donna asked looking up at Josh. She completely missed what he'd just said. What? It wasn't her fault. Making out with Joshua Lyman had that effect on her. Or at least now she had the proper experience to say that. Oh, she could spend the rest of her life figuring out exactly what Josh could do to her.

His grin morphing into a self satisfied smirk, Josh lightly ran his fingers over Donna's significantly swollen lips. She was still reeling from the power of his kiss. Kisses actually. Who da' man? Oh, yeah baby. He da' man.

"Get that smirk off your face." Donna laughed smacking Josh on the arm. She knew that smirk. It was his bloody, who da' man smirk.

"What?" Josh asked trying to smile innocently. It probably should be noted that he was trying unsuccessfully to stop smirking. Which only caused Donna to laugh at him.

"You are such a dork." Donna laughed rolling off of Josh and lying down on her back.

"Where are you going?" Josh asked propping his head on his hand and grinning down at Donna's still significantly flushed face.

Starring up at the ceiling, Donna tried to get her racing heart under control and clear her hazy mind. 'What were they doing?' she wondered as reality began to set in and weigh down her leaping heart.

"Donna?" Josh asked tracing invisible lines on her arm. What was she thinking about?

"What are we doing?" Donna asked turning her slowly clearing eyes at Josh.

"Donna." Josh laughed waggling his eyebrows suggestively, "If you don't know what we were doing, that means that I'm going to have to clarify. Again and again." Josh said seductively as he leaned over to kiss her again.

"Josh." Donna asked seriously putting her hand against his chest to stop him.

"What?" Josh asked looking down at Donna's wide eyes. The playfulness and eagerness that he'd seen dancing in her eyes earlier was gone. Replaced with anxiety and, maybe a little bit of fear.

"What are we doing?" Donna repeated gesturing at the little space between them. "I'm lying in bed making out with my boss. I think that somewhere, in some book, this is a no no."

"We," Josh said capturing Donna's hands in his, "are being us."

"Us?" Donna asked unconsciously lacing her fingers with Josh.

"Us." Josh repeated squeezing Donna's hands. "Josh and Donna."

"Josh and Donna?"

"Are you going to repeat everything that I say?" Josh asked pulling Donna against his chest and lying back down. This was what heaven was. Lying in bed with Donnatella Moss in his arms. This was what he'd been missing all his life.

"There's an 'us?'" Donna asked resting her head squarely over Josh's strong heart.

"There's been an us for a long time Donna." Josh chuckled.

"Yeah?" Donna asked looking up at Josh.

"Yeah." Josh said pulling Donna back up for a kiss. Or kisses actually.

Melting against Josh, Donna let her fears take a back seat for now. Making out with Josh was much more entertaining.

Oh yeah, that thing Josh did with his tongue…yeah, that effected her too.

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"What do you think that they're doing right now?" Sam asked slipping into his seat.

"If Josh hasn't professed his undying love by now," Toby muttered looking down at his watch, "then I'm out fifty bucks."

"Too early Toby," CJ sighed sipping her coffee, "too early. Your money and fifty from Sam will be sitting pretty in my hands. I've got three hours before Josh needs to do anything of the sort."

"I'm got till tonight." Sam spoke up. "I put my money down for tonight."

"Josh may be an idiot," CJ snorted, "but not that big an idiot."

"CJ's right." Toby said pretending to work, "Josh wouldn't wait until tonight to make a move. He's been itching to do something since he saw Donna lying there pale and bruised."

"Yeah." CJ sighed thinking about Donna and how scared they all were that night.

"We agree that if Josh doesn't do it by tomorrow, then we're stepping in…right?" Sam asked trying to get a look at what Toby was scribbling.

"Yeah." Toby said frowning at Sam and moving his yellow legal pad so that Sam couldn't see what he was writing.

"Who exactly is in on the original pool?" Sam asked rolling his eyes at Toby. "I can't remember, we did it so long ago."

"Leo," CJ said ticking off her fingers as she counted, "Margaret, Ginger, Ed, Larry, Carol, Ainsely, Charlie, Abby and the President. Just enough to make the pool interesting, but not enough to become common knowledge."

"I think that was shot to hell when Leo told Margaret." Toby replied.

"The President put his money down for when?" Sam asked trying to remember. If he wasn't so tired he'd pull out his laptop and check the dates for sure.

"Two weeks from now." Toby mumbled. "Ginger and Margaret are out. They said Christmas."

"And Ed put his money down for a month ago." CJ laughed.

"When Josh was thinking about taking Amy Gardner to Tahiti?" Sam asked laughing.

"Oh yeah," CJ nodded, "he wasn't too happy about being out eighty bucks."

"Did you tell him to suck it up and take it like a man?" Sam asked grinning.

"Of course." CJ laughed leaning back against Toby's sofa.

"Amy Gardner." Toby said looking up at CJ and Sam. "What is the deal with her and Josh now? They still…you know."

"I don't know." Sam said frowning. "Are she and Josh still dating?"

"Were they ever?" CJ asked, "It never really seemed like a relationship."

"It wasn't." Toby said answering CJ's question. "It was random sex, if anything."

Laughing, Sam got up. "I've still got to do the thing."

"Bye Spanky."

"CJ. CJ." Sam sighed shaking his head, "Too much coffee."

"No such thing." CJ rebutted. "You're money, along with Toby's, is going to buy my Gail something nice for her bowl later."

"Don't be so confident." Sam said leaving the room.

"You do have some work to do in your own office?" Toby asked looking up pointedly at CJ.

"Yes, actually." CJ said getting up.

"Thank god." Toby said grinning at CJ.

"I am going to go and think about what I'm going to spend your money on." CJ said smugly.

Grinning, Toby handed CJ some money. "Here."

"What's this for?" CJ asked looking at the crisp bills in her hand.

"Katie is in on the pool now." Toby said calmly turning back to his work.

"What?!" CJ asked getting right in Toby's face. "You told a reporter about the pool…and you let her in on it? Are you insane?"

"No." Toby replied unconcerned.

"Toby," CJ growled, "you're killing me here."

"I let her in on the pool CJ." Toby sighed, "Get over it. She's not going to tell anyone."

Studying Toby seriously, CJ felt a smile tug at her lips when it all fell in place. "Katie from the Times, Katie?"

"Yes." Toby grumbled.

"When did you let her in?" CJ asked.

"Yesterday."

"Ahhhh." CJ said grinning at Toby.

"Ah, what?" Toby growled looking up at CJ.

"Ah, I know what you did now."

"And what exactly do you suspect I did?" Toby asked.

Putting the money into her pocket, CJ grabbed Toby's pencil and his post-it pad. "Ah, as in I know what you did now to keep her quiet."

"I didn't do anything to keep her quiet." Toby argued.

"Then what did you do exactly?"

"Katie and I merely came to an understanding, and if letting her into a pool that she suspected existed only proved to sway her over to my side, then so be it."

"Okay." CJ laughed. "What date did Katie choose?"

"August 24th." Toby said simply.

"Why August 24th?" CJ asked writing it down.

"Her daughters birthday."

"Okay." CJ said handing Toby his pencil and sticking the little post-it inside her folder. "Does she realize that she's about to be out eighty bucks?"

"No," Toby said shaking his head. "and that's okay with me. If I'm going to lose some money, then she can lose some too."

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"Work?"

"Later."

"You said that half an hour ago."

"I like lying here with you." Josh said grinning at Donna.

"If you're lazy," Donna laughed, "just say so."

"Okay, I admit it."

"Shut up." Donna laughed hitting Josh.

"Just kidding." Josh laughed rolling over Donna and looking at the clock. Groaning, he put his head down on her chest. "No. I don't want to go to work."

"Get up." Donna said nudging Josh out of bed. "We need to get ready."

"Excuse me, we?" Josh asked sitting up.

"Yes, we." Donna said sitting up too and throwing the covers back.

"Wait." Josh said grabbing Donna's hand. "You're not going in."

"Yes, I am." Donna replied stubbornly.

"Rest." Josh said pulling her back into bed and trying to pull the covers over her.

"No," Donna whined pushing his hands away, "I did that yesterday."

"And you're going to do it today." Josh said pushing her hands away and trying to tuck her in. "You are going to spend Sunday sleeping in and yelling at the stupid Republicans on Wolf Blitzer."

"No."

"Yes."

"No."

"Yes." Josh repeated.

"Josh," Donna pouted, turning the puppy dog eyes at him, "please."

"Oh no." Josh said putting a hand up to cover his eyes. "You're not going to trick me into saying yes."

"But Josh," Donna pouted climbing into his lap, "please. I'll be so bored home all by myself."

"Home?" Josh asked his hand falling away from his eyes and grinning at Donna. "Did you just say home?" he asked eagerly.

"N…n…no." Donna stuttered climbing out of Josh's lap. "No I didn't."

"Yes, yes you did." Josh said keeping Donna in his lap so that he could look at her. "You did Donna."

"No I didn't." Donna denied feeling her face heat up.

"You did." Josh said not bothering to keep the excitement out of his voice, "You said home."

Looking up at Josh, Donna tried to think about a way to talk her way out of this. A way to deny it without looking like she was denying it, but the way Josh was grinning at her eagerly just melted her heart. "It is possible that I said home." Donna finally conceded.

"Not a possibility." Josh said stroking Donna's beautiful face. "A fact. I heard you."

"And you're not freaked out?" Donna questioned honestly surprised.

"Why would I be freaked out?" Josh asked shaking his head in disbelief. He was ecstatic. Thrilled. Positively giddy. He was going to start giggling like a schoolgirl soon he was so happy.

"Because I just said home!" Donna exclaimed, "I just called your home MY home."

"So?" Josh asked completely calm.


"You really are okay with it." Donna said awe in her voice.

"I am." Josh said holding Donna's face in his hands. "I'm not just okay with it. I'm ecstatic."

"Yeah?" Donna asked feeling her face mirroring Josh's silly grin.

"Yeah."

"Okay." Donna said running her hand through Josh's unruly hair.

"Well, maybe except for two things."

"Two things?" Donna asked feeling her stomach drop.

"Well, as much as I enjoy lying in bed with you," Josh sighed dramatically, "I would much rather be in my bed."

"Yeah?" Donna asked smirking and watching mischief dancing in Josh's eyes. He was such a dork sometimes.

"Yeah." Josh grinned, "It's much bigger."

"Bigger is good." Donna said playfully. "More room. More space. More fun."

"Great minds think alike." Josh laughed pushing Donna back down against the bed.

"The second thing?" Donna asked running her hands through Josh's silky soft hair. Oh, she could spend the rest of her life doing this.

"You living here is going to be very distracting." Josh whispered snaking his hand under Donna's cotton pajamas.

"Yeah?" Donna gasped arching her back against his amazing hands.

"Yeah." Josh whispered brushing his lips lightly over hers, "I'm always going to be late for staff."

"No you won't." Donna moaned letting her own hands slip under Josh's T-shirt. "You'll just be up earlier."

"Earlier is good." Josh moaned descending his eager lips on Donna's equally eager ones. Yes, as early as she wanted if he could do this every morning. Every morning for the rest of his life.

`~`~`~`~`~`

You like? Mushy enough for you?!? ;] Haha. Hope you enjoyed this chapter. I knew I said that Amy would be back....and she will. Eventually. You know, when I can work her into my story line. ;] Haha. Enjoy and tell me what you thought. *hint hint* ;]

-Lucy