"So then what happened?" Donna asked from her position on the loveseat snuggled at Josh's side.
CJ leaned forward from her seat on the couch across from Josh and Donna and refilled all four wine glasses before answering. "We got over to Kate's place and Toby's got Noah sitting in the kitchen pouring coffee into him," she said.
"He inherited your sensitive system," Donna smirked at her husband.
Josh had long ago given up protesting his so called 'sensitive system' to Donna and the rest of their family and friends, and so he simply shrugged. The gesture and the expression on his face clearly said 'yeah, whatever'.
CJ didn't miss the exchange between them, but continued with her story. "They stood there staring at one another for what seemed like forever," CJ told them before wetting her throat with a sip of wine. "Then Kate grabbed his hand and pulled him over to the couch. She told him she was hitting the reset button."
"Then what?" Josh asked clearly amused at his son's romantic fumblings. CJ had already told them in gleeful detail what she'd said to Kate about their own courtship, and Josh had to agree. So far Noah and Kate's courtship was fairly normal when compared with his and Donna's or Matt and Jodi's for that matter. Matt had fought his attraction for Jodi for a long time fearing the conflict of interest with his job. Danny had finally stepped in and spoken to the younger man. As Matt's boss he'd cleared the way for the younger man to be able to pursue his interest in the young Representative from the state of Connecticut.
"Oh for the love of God, Joshua! They kissed," Toby growled.
"And boy was it a kiss!" CJ added.
"'Gone with the Wind' type kiss?" Donna asked.
"Oh yeah," CJ agreed. "I thought I was going to melt."
"I can't believe we're sitting here discussing our children's love life!" Toby groused.
"Oh, come on, Toby," Josh cajoled the other man. "They're grown ups."
Toby grumbled quietly to himself but made no further comments as his wife leaned forward towards the other couple before continuing her story.
"They finally broke the kiss, and he says 'I love you, Kate'" CJ said. "And Kate got this look in her eyes and said she loved him too."
Toby guffawed as he added, "Then your son said 'wait here' and got up and left the room."
Donna laughed as she poked Josh in the ribs and said, "Yeah, he's got your dating skills alright."
"Hey!" Josh protested. "Let's not forget your gomers. He didn't get it all from me."
"Tell me you didn't just call my daughter a gomer, Josh" Toby growled earning him a jab in the ribs from his own wife.
"Behave, Tobus" CJ commanded. "Josh didn't mean it that way, and you know it."
"So?" Donna asked. "Did he come back?"
"YES!" CJ said going back to her story. "He came back carrying a little velvet box."
"He didn't!" Donna gasped. "After one kiss he didn't..."
"Oh yes, he did," Toby replied. "Right then and there."
"Got down on one knee and did it properly too," CJ added with some satisfaction as she gave Toby a glare which he ignored. Their courtship hadn't been an easy one either, after all. He allowed himself a little grin however remembering the argument which had turned into a marriage proposal shouted at the top of his lungs and her acceptance screamed at an even louder volume.
"What did she say?" Donna demanded. "Did she say yes? What did the ring look like?"
"It's Mom's ring," Josh revealed.
"You knew?" Donna said. "You knew and didn't tell me?"
Josh looked to Toby and CJ for help but they just shook their heads. "You're on your own on this one, mi amour" CJ said.
"He just asked for it," Josh said. "I didn't know what he wanted it for."
"I told you why he was going down there to work for Toby," Donna argued.
"I didn't think he'd do anything that stupid," Josh retorted. "I figured he just wanted to have it for when the time was right."
"Apparently the time was right," Toby mumbled quietly.
"What?" Donna gasped forgetting for the moment her anger with her husband. "She said yes?"
"No," CJ said glaring once more at her own husband. "She said 'eventually'."
"She's wearing the ring," Toby refuted. "I'd say that means she said yes."
"She's making him court her before they get married," CJ explained. "So that's why they're not here tonight. He's taking her for a romantic dinner and then for a walk on the Mall."
Josh smirked to himself remembering that he'd more than once taken Donna on just such an outing. He met Toby's gaze and realized the other man was remembering similar stolen evenings with CJ just before the end of Bartlet's second term in office.
"They're so like us it's scary," Donna commented.
"So what about Sara and Billy?" CJ asked remembering one of the other courtships taking place in the family.
"Fighting," Josh said simply.
"About what?" CJ asked curiously. "When we were here a month ago they were hardly out of each other's sight."
"Billy's having a hard time dealing with Sara's job," Donna explained. "He thinks its too dangerous."
"Well that had to have gone over well," Toby remarked facetiously. "The Sisterhood is alive and well in Sara."
Donna and CJ both smiled with pride at that comment before the smile slipped from Donna's face. "He's right to be worried," she said. "But he's going to have to learn to live with it just like we have."
"Speak for yourself," Josh growled.
"Oh stop it, Joshua" she growled back. "You've won. She's not going overseas anymore. She's going to be a feature writer."
"Yeah and her first feature is an expose on WVWP!" Josh fumed as he subconsciously rubbed the scar on his chest.
"She knows how to handle herself, Josh" Toby reminded his friend quietly as he noted Josh's action. "Or do you need me to get the CNN video out to remind you."
Josh couldn't help smiling at the memory. "She did good there," he agreed. "But that doesn't mean she'll get out of it next time."
"She got out of the thing in China," CJ reminded him.
"With three broken ribs," he retorted. "Not even the Secret Service gets it right every time."
Donna had to bite the inside of her lip to keep herself from revealing just what had caused Sara's broken ribs. She knew she'd pay for keeping Sara's secret if he ever found out, but she worried how he'd react to their youngest being shot. The episodes of PTSD didn't happen often any more, but they had never completely gone away. The night Sara had interviewed them for the Post the nightmares had returned for both of them and had lasted for about a week. She knew too that Josh had experienced at least one flashback since then.
"Alright, change of subject," CJ ordered knowing they were beating a dead horse when it came to Sara and her job. "How are Matt and Jodi handling parenthood?"
"They're adjusting well to the lack of sleep," Josh smirked.
"They set a crib up in her office for him," Donna added.
"What a novel concept," CJ remarked sarcastically. "I wonder where they got that idea from."
They all knew that there had been a crib almost constantly set up in the Lyman Congressional offices. It had been used not just for Josh and Donna's own children, but for the infants of their staff as well. It was one of many reasons why both Lymans had attracted such loyalty in their staff over the years. Not that they had their own mini-day care facility in their office. Staff members were allowed to keep their infants in the office with them but were expected to arrange other care once the child was walking.
When Josh had first instituted the policy his fellow members of Congress had thought he was either insane, pulling a publicity stunt, or cowed by the wishes of his assistant cum wife. The second and third opinions were certainly valid, but they weren't the only reasons behind his decision. In reality it was just plain practical good sense. New parents came back to work quicker when they could bring the child with them. Away from the germ factories of child care, the infants were less likely to be plagued with illnesses necessitating their parents taking time off work for them. The parents also weren't in a rush to get home each night to the baby. In short, they were more productive. They built a family friendly atmosphere within their offices, and because of it, the Bartlet dynasty continued to expand as Josh and Donna 'adopted' others as Jed and Leo had adopted them.
Josh and Donna pulled out the latest pictures of baby Jed. CJ and Toby dutifully oohed and aahed over the pictures for several minutes before CJ decided to change the subject slightly. "How is Dee?" she asked.
"Since she's moving out to the Windy City, she let her lease expire on her apartment and moved back in with Danny and Margaret," Donna explained.
"So she's being mothered to death," Toby interpreted.
"Pretty much," Josh agreed.
"It can't be easy starting out their marriage living halfway across the country from one another," CJ murmured.
"She flew out to Chicago for the weekend last week. She and Joe closed on a house. Matt and Nora helped him find it," Donna remarked.
"Nora helped?" CJ asked in astonishment.
"Well I don't know how much help she was," Donna amended. "Matthew's been great though. The house is pretty much a handyman special. He's helping Joe fix it up."
"Gives him something to do with his time," Josh said. "Away from Nora."
Toby opened his mouth to make some no doubt pithy comment, but was interrupted by the ringing of the phone. Josh reached over the arm of the loveseat and grabbed the offending instrument. "Lyman's," he said answering the phone. He listened for a moment before urgently asking of whoever was on the other end, "Are you sure?" The intensity in his voice caused the others to sit up and focus from long ago habit. Josh covered the receiver with his hand and said quietly to Donna, "CNN." before turning his attention back to the phone.
She grabbed the remote control and turned on the television. As the picture on the screen came to life they watched as a familiar map appeared over the shoulder of the CNN correspondent.
"Repeating what we know so far," she said. "U.S. naval forces from the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Nimitz are reportedly engaged in an air battle over the Indian Ocean. At least one U.S. fighter has been downed. There is so far no word on the pilot or rear instrument officer of the fighter."
"Leo..." CJ whispered.
