Caught Up in His Shirt Tale

by adoreleo

Leo receives some disturbing news and it causes him to confront some old demons with a little help from his friends.

1. Part One

Title: Caught Up in His Shirt Tale (1/2)

By: adoreleo

Rating: PG13 - Contains some language and sexual innuendo.

Characters: Leo, Margaret, Jed and Josh

Spoilers: Anything up to and including An Kne.

Disclaimer: The characters are from the NBC, WB, TV show The West Wing; they do

not belong to me.

Beta & Additional Ideas By: Lynn, who always goes above and beyond the call.

THANKS!!!!

Feedback: I would love it hear your opinion! Suggestions are welcome too!

Summary: Leo receives some disturbing news and it causes him to confront some

old demons with a little help from his friends.

Tuesday Morning DC:

Margaret arrives at the White House even earlier than her normal starting time this morning. She's technically not supposed to be at work until eight, but she's usually arrives closer to seven in the morning, but this morning she's at her desk by six. Leo's only scheduled to be in the office until noon today, so Margaret knows that he will come in even earlier than he usually does, hence, her premature arrival as well. She works very hard at trying to stay one-step a head of her excessively determined boss, which is something that is getting more difficult to do with each passing year that President Bartlet is in office. In the past few months, Leo practically lived in the West Wing. He just keeps gets more driven with each passing national, world or personal crisis.

Margaret's expecting today to be the first light day that either she or Leo has had in months. Leo is flying to Chicago this afternoon to be a guest speaker at Ken O'Neal's Humanitarian Award Ceremony. When Margaret made the reservations for his trip, she booked him a room at the Chicago Hilton and a return flight for the day after the event even though Leo requested a return flight on the same night as the event. When Leo finally gets around to checking his itinerary this morning, he summons his assistant into his office.

"Margaret!" Leo bellows, as he throws his objectionable schedule on his desk in disgust.

Margaret quickly appears in his office, notebook in hand and ready for his instructions. "Leo?"

"Margaret," Leo says, in a rough voice, as he stands behind his desk pointing at the paper on top of it. "What the hell is this?"

Margaret arches an eyebrow and walks over to his desk and picks up the item that Leo's so adamantly pointing at. "Leo, it's your itinerary for your trip to Chicago." Her voice is tinted with sarcasm.

"I can see that," Leo growls waving at the paper in frustration. "My return flight isn't until the next day. I can't stay there over night."

"Yes you can," she says, as she lays the paper back down on his desk and turns to walk out of his office. "I booked you a room at the Chicago Hilton." She tells him over her shoulder. "You should be used to hotels by now since you'd lived in one for almost four years," she smirks.

"Margaret," Leo thunders in a deep voice. "I don't care about staying at a damn hotel! I have to be back here tomorrow morning. My schedule has..."

"Leo," Margaret interrupts him before he can launch his spiel. "I think I should *know* your schedule. There's nothing on it for tomorrow morning that Josh or Angela can't handle for you. You need to have some time away from the West Wing." Margaret surprises herself by being so forward with her boss, but she has nearly had in with his grumpiness and bad temper lately.

"Margaret, I don't have time to stand here and argue with you about this." Leo growls, as he rubs the back of his neck. "Last time I checked, you still worked for me, so fix this!"

Margaret stands there in his doorway with her eyes narrowed and her hand on the doorknob, "I'll cancel your room and change your flight, but I still say you need some time away from this place." Margaret closes the door none too softly as she softly mumbles, "I know I sure could use some time away from the cantankerous person you have become. That man's going to have a breakdown if he continues at this pace." She says to herself as she heads back to her desk. She picks up the phone and calls the hotel to cancel his room. Next, she calls the airlines and changes his flight. He won't get back to DC until two in the morning now. She doesn't like that he will get back that late, but there's nothing she can do about it. She waits for the fax from the airlines and then takes his new itinerary to him.

Margaret walks back into Leo's office and lays his new schedule down on his desk. She stands there until he looks up at her. "Leo, can I just say that I was only thinking that you might get tired and you haven't been away from here in months and... well... I'm sorry." She gives him a heavy sigh and folds her arms over her chest.

"Don't worry about," Leo says, as he picks up the fax and looks at.

"That was the last flight available. Is that okay?" Margaret bites on her bottom lip to keep from telling him that he really shouldn't be flying back that late and that it really wasn't any good for him. That he needs to eat better, get more sleep and quite smoking again.

"It's fine, thanks." Leo looks back down at the briefing book he was looking at before she came into the room. Margaret still is hovering by his desk. He looks back up at her. "Yeah?" He asks, as he breathes out a sigh. He knows she's going to comment on his welfare.

"It's just that... well I worry and ... you haven't been... yourself lately. I just thought that... maybe... some time away would be nice." Margaret lowers her head and waits for his temper to flare. She knows that she has stepped over the line of their boss and assistant relationship.

"Margaret," Leo breathes out a sigh. "I'm fine." He knows what she's saying is true. He really could use some time away, but he just doesn't have the time to spare right now. It's been nothing, but one crisis after another these pasts few months and this last one with Israeli's nuclear test has really drained him. The only reason he's going to Chicago is because the ceremony is for Kenny. If it had been for any other reason, he would have found a way out of it. "You shouldn't worry."

"Well... I do," she softly replies, as she bobs her head, quickly turns and heads for the door.

"Margaret," he reverently calls, stopping her and causing her turn around. Leo has finally completely calmed down and feels bad that he yelled at her earlier about his itinerary. He gives her an impish grin and nods his head.

Margaret bobs her head in return and leaves. Sometimes mere words aren't necessary between them. She knows that he just apologized with his eyes and his lopsided grin. She smiles as she sits back down at her desk. That boyish grin of his drives her crazy. She tries to push those types of thoughts out of her head. She has a lot to do before Leo leaves for the day. She quickly pulls up his schedule on her computer and checks to see what's next.

Leo sits there and watches her leave. He can't help but frown at her admission. She must really be worried about him to have been so bold about trying to pull a fast one on him about his schedule. He thought he was doing a better job of hiding his stress and tiredness. But, then he remembers that this is Margaret he's thinking about. He's never been able to hide anything from her. Well there's one thing, he hopes he's been able to hide. As soon as this thought enters his head, he tries to push it away again. It's getting harder to deny what he's been feeling lately. He needs to stop this. He leans back in his chair, winces his eyes closed and wills his mind and other parts of his body to stop. He's still like this when Margaret comes back into his office.

"Leo, are you okay?" She asks with concern, as she moves over to the side of his desk. "Do you have a headache?"

The sound and closeness of her voice startles him. His eyes fly open, and he jumps in his chair a little. "Damnit, why are you so intent on scaring me all the time?" He growls, as he tries to regain his composure. He scoots his chair further under his desk to hide the problem that he has been unsuccessful at keeping from developing. "I'm fine. I was... just thinking."

"Okay," she agrees even though she knows he's trying to cover up something. "I just came in to remind you that you have senior staff in ten minutes, and the President would like you to see you before you leave today."

"Okay," Leo hesitates, as he stares at her.

"Leo, I'm sorry I didn't mean to scare you." She offers, as her hands fidget in front of her.

"Don't wor..." he starts to say, then stops. He knows that there's nothing that will keep her from worrying about him after the way he's been acting this morning. "Check the President's schedule and see when he has a couple of minutes so he can torment me before I leave for Chicago." He smirks, as he motions for her to leave his office.

Margaret smiles at his comment about the President. She knows it true and wishes that those two had more time to spend together as friends instead of President and Chief of Staff. But, she knows that's not going to happen for at least another three years. She leaves Leo's office and decides to walk over and check with Charlie about the President's schedule for the morning.

Today is the first reality easy day that Margaret's had at work in months. This was Leo's first day, well in reality only a partial day, which he's been away from the White House in months. The only reason he agreed to go was that it was for his good friend Kenny. Between the President and Ken, he would walk though fire for either one of them. Margaret knows why Leo would do this for the President, but she doesn't know much about Leo's friendship with Ken. She knows that they are both from Chicago, served together in the war and worked together at Mueller-Wright years before she came along as his assistant. She's just happy that he was at least getting out of the West Wing for a few hours.

With Leo out of the office for a few hours, Margaret finally has the chance to catch up on a few things, because when he's there she's constantly doing this and that for him. That man can really keep her busy during the workday. She spends most of the early afternoon completing the tasks he left for her from the few short hours he had been in the office this morning. After completing those, she quickly moves on to clearing out her in basket, catching up on email, reading and signing off on the numerous memo for records that are piled on her desk, straightening up her files, clearing off and reorganizing her desk.

When she's satisfied that her area is in order, she moves on to Leo's office. She cleans up the mess he left behind, straightens up the piles of files on his desk that never seem to go away or shrink in size. She grabs his coffee cup and heads off to the kitchenette to clean it. When she gets back to his office, she looks around for more to clean and organize. It's been forever since she's been able to try to put his office back into shape.

The last thing on her list to clean out is the small closet in the corner of his office. She opens the door and starts going though it. There really isn't much in there. There are some boxes of extra supplies that she keeps in there. Leo has a couple of personal boxes that she leaves alone. That just leaves his toiletries and garment bag. She opens his old leather toiletries bag and is surprised to find it to be well stocked. He has finally remembered to restock it after several notes left by her on the subject. She moves on to his garment bag and unzips it to check on his supply of extra clothes. When she opens it, his scent overwhelms the small closet, causing her to sigh as she breaths it in. She loves the smell of his cologne that he wears. She affectionately brushes her hand down the front of his double-breasted suit coat. Leo's handmade suits are cut from the finest materials, and she loves the way it feels against her hand. Her mind drifts as she imagines Leo being inside the suit as she gently caresses it. She sighs contentedly as she moves the suit out of the way to check if he has an extra shirt and tie. She pulls one of his shirtsleeves to her face and tenderly embraces it. She revels in the soft feel of it against her cheek. After a few seconds of daydreaming, she places the sleeve back inside the garment bag and as she runs her fingers down the shirt's sleeve to smooth it back into place, she discovers that a seam came unraveled. She pulls it back out and carefully inspects it and decides that it's something that even her minuscule sewing skills can easily repair. So she slips the shirt off its hanger and neatly folds it. She knows that if Leo finds the undone seam, he will just throw the shirt away and buy a new one. She shakes her head at the thought of how much money he spends as she walks back to her area and places his shirt inside her bag.

Tuesday night DC:

Margaret leaves the West Wing shortly after seven o'clock that cold winter's night, even though Leo told her to make sure that she was out of the office by five. She smiles to herself, as she thinks that he isn't the only workaholic in the office. She quickly departs the White House grounds by the Northwest egress and heads for the McPherson Square Metro station.

Margaret arrives at her apartment a little after seven-thirty. It's still an early evening for her, compared to most. She removes her coat, lays down her bag on her hallway table and heads to the kitchen. She rummages though the freezer and finds something to throw into the microwave. Margaret then makes her way to her bedroom and changes into pair of Bartlet for America sweat pants and matching sweatshirt. By the time she's done changing her clothes her dinner is ready. She grabs it from the microwave, walks to her living room, sits down on her couch and turns on the TV. She watches CNN for a while, and then starts to flip though the channels. She pauses and laughs when she comes across the cooking show that Leo loves to watch. She just doesn't understand what Leo sees in that show, but she loves pulling his chain by referring to it as a soft porn show. She soon tires of the program, switches off the TV, picks up the book that she has been trying to read for weeks and heads off to her bedroom.

Margaret reads for about a half an hour, but she can't seem to stay focused on what she's reading. All of a sudden she remembers that she bought had home Leo's shirt to mend. She puts down the book and goes to her hallway and grabs her bag. She pulls out Leo's shirt and is surprised to find that it isn't wrinkled. She caresses the shirt against her face and breaths in the scent of his cologne that it has picked up from hanging next to his suit in the garment bag. She stands there for a few seconds enjoys the feel of his shirt alongside her face. She can't help but wonder what it would feel like if she tried it on. Her face flushes at the thought of wearing Leo's shirt. She goes to her bedroom, removes her sweatshirt and slowly slips his shirt just over her shoulders. A shiver runs though her body. She gets even braver and decides to put it all the way on. She buttons up the shirt but leaves a couple of them undone at the top and then slides out of her sweatpants. Leo's shirt feels so good against her skin. She goes into the bathroom to look at herself in the mirror. She can't help but wonder if Leo would find her appealing like this. She goes back into her bedroom and lies down on her bed. She starts to romanticize that Leo's in bed with her and she soon gives into her desires and loses herself in one of her favorite fantasies.

Tuesday night Chicago:

After all those years on the lecture circuit, you'd think that Leo would be used to talking in front of a large audience and not be prone to amateur mistakes. But during his lengthy and heart felt introduction of Kenny, Leo gets a little sidetracked and introduces Kenny as 'the finest man that he has ever had the privilege to call his friend.' Man, this isn't going to go over well back at the White House. Jed is going to torment the crap out of him; he's sure of it. Leo had meant to say 'one of the finest,' but it's too late now. If he weren't the Chief of Staff, there wouldn't be so much press covering this event and it would be a non-story. But now, it's probably going to be one of the first questions that CJ gets in the morning press briefing. He needs to remember to call her after the event is over and give her a heads up.

Other than Leo's misspeaking, the event turns out to be very nice. Leo really does have a good time. It's truly great to see Kenny and Sally again. He still can't believe that they're grandparents. Leo thinks about Mallory and wonders if she'll ever find that special someone, settle down and have a family. Leo actually has some time to spend with Kenny and Sally after the event is over. They sit in the hotel lobby catching up with each other lives. But before he knows it, Leo needs to leave and catch his plane. He hugs them goodbye and gets in his limo.

The ride to O'Hare is uneventful. Leo is still in a fairly decent mood. He thinks about Kenny's invitation. He really would like to go to Hilton Head this summer and spend some time with Kenny and Sally, but he knows that the visit would be bitter sweet. Its times like these that Leo really misses being married and having someone to share things with. Maybe someday, his life will slow down and he'll find that special person to share his life with. Just as soon as this thought crosses his mind an image of a certain red head's face appears in his mind. He quickly closes his eyes and wills it to go away. He knows that this relationship can never be. He's sure that she doesn't feel the same way about him.

Leo boards the plane and heads for his seat in first-class. He sits down and waits for take off. He almost wishes he had stayed overnight, because he's suddenly very tired. He smiles when he realizes that Margaret had been right, he should have stayed, but he's never going to admit that to her. The flight attendant brings him a pillow and blanket. Leo gets comfortable and to his surprise, he soon falls sound asleep.

Leo has been asleep for about an hour, when he awakes with a start. He bolts upright in his seat and gasps for air. 'What the hell?' he thinks to himself as he tries to figure out where he's at.

A flight attendant rushes to his side. "Are you okay Mr. McGarry?"

"Yeah, um... I'm fine. I... must have been dreaming." He tells her. He starts to wake up more and becomes aware of a certain problem that has arisen. He's thankful for the blanket on his lap. He tries to control his breathing. "Could I have some water please?" He asks, trying to get her to leave his side. He watches her walk away and rearranges the blanket on him to better conceal his predicament. He sits there willing himself to calm down. The attendant comes back with his water. "Thank you," he says in a much calmer voice. "How much longer before we land?"

"We're about forty-five minutes out, Sir."

"Okay, thanks," he tells her, as he gives her a small grin. He doesn't need a concerned flight attendant hovering over him for the rest of the flight.

Leo's finally starts to come down from his dream. It had been so intense, so real and yet so strange. After a couple more minutes, he thinks it safe for him to get up and he heads for the bathroom. When he gets there he immediately splashes water on his face and stares at himself in the mirror. The face looking back at him is haggard. He needs to get some rest, but he's afraid to try to sleep on the plane again. He doesn't want to take a chance of that dream recurring. He closes his eyes and images from the dream overwhelm his mind.

Leo is in his hotel bed, and he's not alone. He's making love to someone. There is something very familiar about this person in bed with him, but it's dark in his room he can't make out her face. His hands are roaming her long slender body as he moves on top of her. She willingly opens for him and wraps her long legs around him as he crosses her threshold. They soon find a comfortable rhythm as they both moan with pleasure. They are close to the edge when a voice makes Leo jump off her and out of bed. "Leo, why must you keep your office so dark?" The President says, as he flips on a light. Leo looks around, and he finds himself in the middle of his office standing naked next to his hotel bed. The person on the bed giggles, and he looks at her. It's Margaret.

Leo shakes his heads as he tries to clear it of those images. He opens his eyes and looks into the mirror again. That has to be one of the strangest dreams he's ever had. What was his bed doing in his office? He splashed more water on his face. "Get a grip McGarry, as if she'd ever have everything to do with an old man like you." He tells the face that's staring back at him from the mirror. He wipes his face and steadies himself against the sink. He takes a few deep breaths and then heads back to his seat.

The dream won't leave his thoughts. What did Jed's presence in it mean? Was he afraid that if he were involved with Margaret that it would embarrass the President? He can't stop thinking about the feel of Margaret soft skin under his fingers. The way they fit together and her scent that was so sweet. He starts to get a problem again. 'Damnit, I need to stop thinking about this dream,' he thinks to himself, as he places the blanket back over his lap. He knows, from past thoughts like this about Margaret that there's really only one thing that is going to help him, but he can't do anything about it now. He'll have to wait until he gets back to his hotel tonight to be able relieve his situation. He sits back and tries to relax.

"Mr. McGarry," the attendant says, as she lays a hand on his shoulder. "We're getting ready to land. You need to put you seat back up in an upright position."

Leo rouses from a light sleep. He can't believe he fell asleep again. He adjusts his seat and notices that he no longer has a problem. He removes the blanket and adjusts his tie. As soon as the airplane stops, he gets up and heads for the door. He's in a hurry to get back to his hotel. He exits the plane and finds a Secret Service Agent waiting for him.

"Mr. McGarry," the familiar agent says, as he walks up to him.

"Yeah," he cautiously answers. 'Doesn't look like I will be heading back to my hotel tonight' he thinks to himself.

"You're needed at the White House, Sir."

Leo's first thought is that something is wrong with the President, but before he can even voice his concern the agent informs him he's needed in the Situation Room. Leo breathes a sigh of temporary relief and follows the agent to his service car.

Wednesday Morning DC:

Margaret awakes the next morning at the sound of the alarm going off, she's somewhat disoriented at first. Then the memory of last night comes rushing back. She jumps up out of bed when she realizes that she slept in Leo's shirt. She swiftly takes it off and looks at the shirt that is now full of wrinkles. "Damnit," she softly curses. She decides that she will just have to deal with it tonight after work. She heads to the bathroom to grab a quick shower. As she's putting on makeup and getting ready for work, she prays that Leo doesn't spill anything on himself today at work.

Margaret arrives at work at her normal starting time and finds the office just as she had left it yesterday evening. Lights off, doors closed and totally organized. She smiles at the fact that she actually beat Leo into work today, a feat that is getting harder and harder these past few months. The long hours were starting to really take their toll on him. He's losing weight and looks haggard most of the time. Margaret really is starting to worry about him, even more than she usually does. So she was really glad that the trip to Chicago came along. Hopefully seeing his old friend has put him in a better mood.

Margaret enters her office, turns on her light and opens Leo's door. She stops short in her tracks when she realizes that Leo's in his office.

"You're already here?" She's unable to hide her discontent.

"Came in straight from Dulles." He informs her.

"At *two* in the morning?" She says in an astonished voice.

"I need a clean shirt." He says, as walks from behind his desk. "What happened to the one I bought in the other day?"

Margaret's heart skips a beat. "It had a hole in it, so I took it home." She blurts out, as she watches him walk out of his office.

"To do what with it?" He questions her, as he heads for her desk.

"Sew up the hole." She innocently offers, as she follows him and stands beside him at her desk.

"Now you're mending my clothes?" He smirks, as he's rifling though some files on the corner of her desk.

"You want breakfast?" She tries to change the subject.

"I want a clean shirt." He says in his gravelly voice.

Before he can say anything else about her taking his shirt home, Josh walks into her area and Leo turns his attention to him. Then Leo gets a call from the Situation Room, and he's gone. Margaret takes her overcoat off and hangs it on her coat tree. She goes back to her desk and sits down in her chair and breathes a sigh of relief. She hopes that when Leo comes back to the office, that he doesn't say anymore about his shirt. She never planned on him finding out about her taking it home with her. If she hadn't of put the *damn* thing on last night she wouldn't be in this mess, she thinks to herself.

Leo really didn't want to have to go back down to the Situation Room right now, he would prefer to stay in his office and torment Margaret about his shirt or even eat the breakfast that she offered to get him, because either one of those things would be so much more fun than going back down to the Situation Room. Since his visit to the Situation Room this morning it was getting more difficult to suppress his own memories of when he was on the ground in enemy territory. He heads off down the hallway and down to the stairs that would lead him to the room where he will privately battle his own demons again.

Leo walks into his office from the hallway door. He's been down in the Situation Room for the past hour and a half. "Margaret," Leo yells, as he goes to his desk and looks for messages.

Margaret walks into the office and says, "Yes, Leo."

"Could you run over to my hotel and get me a change of clothes since you decided to play little Miss Mary Homemaker and sew up my shirt?" Leo smirks, as he sits down in his chair.

"Leo, I already did," she sighs, as she walks over to his closet and opens the door to reveal a fresh suit and shirt hanging there.

"Thanks," Leo says, as he gets up and heads for his closet.

"I'm sorry about the shirt, its... well... I know you, if you would have found it you would have thrown it away."

"Yeah," he replies, as he rolls his eyes. "I probably would have."

"See, I still say you spend way too much money," she smirks, as she turns quickly and leaves his office.

Leo grabs his clothes from the closet and heads out thought Margaret's area. "Margaret, I'll be back in a few, I'm going to shower and change."

Leo hangs up his suit in the locker room. When he does this he gets a whiff of Margaret's perfume. He loves that her scent has mingled with his clothes. He takes a second to breath in her scent and then he undresses and heads for the shower stall. The smell of Margaret's perfume and the fact that she has touched his clothes sends his mind into overdrive. Images from the dream, he had on the plane, come rushing back. He curses to himself as has problem shows up again. He's getting really bad about this lately. He wishes that he weren't at the White House, so that he could alleviate his condition. He stands there for a few seconds under the warm spray of the shower enjoying the sensation in his lower region. Then he remembers the downed crew and the rescue mission. He feels terribly guilty that he's let personal thoughts and pleasure interfere with work. He realizes that there is only one thing to do. He shakes his head at what is about to do and waits in anticipation as he reaches for the knob. He twists it hard and fast. Knowing that it'll be over soon. "Damnit," he cries out, as the now icy cold water from the shower hits his body and causes his problem to quickly deflate on its own.

Leo spends most of Wednesday morning in and out of the Situation Room. Margaret detests that there's a need for that room, and she hates what it does to Leo. She worries that he loses a small piece of himself each time he has to go there and deal with some crises. She knows that something dire is brewing, but as usual, Margaret doesn't have a clue as to what's going on. She's afraid that whatever's happening is going to cause Leo personal grief. Leo's been very quiet and somber this morning and his eyes seem dark and troubled. Margaret's caught him a couple of times just sitting in his chair, lost in thought and staring out his window behind his desk.

When Josh comes back from his meeting with Senator Hunt, Leo gets very upset with what transpired in Josh's meeting. Margaret's sitting at her desk, but is able to hear everything that's going on inside Leo's office since Leo's so disturbed. Leo angrily calls for Margaret. He tells her to call the senator and tell him he's on his way over to his office now. After she gets off the phone, Margaret overhears Leo tell Josh that he's not going to impede anything and that he would take care of it now. Leo's standing in Margaret's area when Josh asks whether he served with the senator in the war. Leo tells him no and that in was a big war. Leo walks out of the office in a huff and leaves a bewildered Josh standing there.

Josh walks out of Leo's office and stops by Margaret's desk. "How's he been today?" He asks.

Margaret looks up at Josh and shakes her head. "Not good," she says, as her hands fidget on her desk. "Josh... um... nothing."

"What?" He requests.

"I know I shouldn't ask," she says in a worried voice, "but what's going on with him?"

"I'm not really sure," Josh admits, as he picks at the corner of her desk. Josh is troubled about Leo too, only for different reasons. Josh is mostly concerned about Leo's career and Margaret's worried about the man.

"He's been... a darker shade of gray since getting back from the Situation Room this morning." She informs him, as her nervous hands straighten some files on her desk. "I've caught him, in a trance like state, staring out his window a couple of times today." She confides, as she stills her hands and glances up at Josh. "I had to call his name a couple of times to get his attention. It was as though he wasn't even in the same room with me."

"Yeah," Josh says, as he lowers his eyes. "He was like that when I walked into his office." Josh raises his eyes back up to Margaret. "I think... he was experiencing a flashback."

"Damnit," Margaret says, as her face contorts. Why didn't she see it? Of course, that's what's been going on with him. It's been years since she's seen Leo like this. Why didn't she see it before this? What's clouding her judgment about Leo lately? Then it dawns on her, the last time that Leo was having flashbacks. She hadn't been in love with him. Her stomach turns nervously at the thought that he might be having flashbacks again.

"Margaret, are you okay?" Josh asks.

"Um... yeah. I'm fine." She tells her boss's deputy.

Josh can't help but smile at Margaret's use of one of Leo's patented lines. "Okay, keep an eye on him, okay?"

Margaret bobs her head. "Don't I always?"

"Yeah... yeah you do." Josh softly says, as he walks away from her desk and heads off for the bullpen. He needs to gather some more information surrounding the Ramses contract.

Wednesday Afternoon DC:

When Leo gets back from his meeting with Senator Hunt, Margaret can tell that he's furious. He storms into his office and immediately yells, "Margaret!"

Margaret scurries from behind her desk, grabs her notebook and Leo's phone messages, and then practically runs into Leo's office. "Yes, Sir." She says deciding that now's not the time to be anything but proper. She'll have to work extra hard at keeping her quirkiness at bay. She doesn't want to upset him anymore than he already is. She walks over and lays his messages on his desk, where Leo's sitting, and takes a discreet step back.

Leo looks at the pile of messages on his desk and throws his hands up in disgust. "Did I ask you for my messages?" He bellows.

Margaret shakes her head and utters a soft, "no," as she takes a step towards his desk and starts to reach for them.

Leo waves her off. "Leave'em," he huffs, as he gets up and slams the palm of his hand onto his desk with a vengeance, the sound of flesh hitting wood echoes through his office.

Margaret physically flinches and lets out a stifled gasp, as she takes another step back. It's been years since she's seen Leo this upset, and then he was usually drunk. "Leo," she says, as she bites her bottom lip. "You need to calm down." She softly tells him.

"I'm perfectly calm." He shouts back at her. "Why does everyone keep telling me to calm down today?" He questions, as he runs his hand through his hair.

"Leo," she offers quietly, afraid to try and get him back on track. "Did you umm... need something?"

"I called you in here didn't, so I guess I musta needed something, don't ya think." He fumes, as he drops back down into his chair.

Margaret timidly bobs her head. Deciding that speaking is not going to help the situation and it will probably give away her emotional state, too. She can feel a tear start to build up in her right eye. She slightly tilts her head back and quietly sniffs to keep it from flowing from her eye. She can't believe that he can get her this unsettled so quickly after all they've been through. Leo's coming apart at the seams right in front of her. She sniffs again, only this time Leo hears it and he quickly whips his eyes to hers. She swiftly turns and leaves his office as fast as her high heels will let her.

Rolling his eyes, Leo growls. "Oh, for the love of..." Leo stands up and calls after her, "Margaret!" Leo walks from behind his desk and out into Margaret's area. She's nowhere in sight, so he turns and goes back to his office. He walks behind his desk and sits down. He finally starts to compose himself and realizes that he has just been a real SOB to Margaret. The one person who's never left his side through all his crap. The one person he can't survive without. The one person he lov.... His heart sinks as he recalls the look on Margaret's face. He hasn't seen that anxious look from her in years, not since... not since he was... drinking. "Shit!" Leo crossly breathes out between clinched teeth. "Damnit to hell!" He shouts, as his outburst continues. He slams a hand onto his desk, then whips his chair around and faces the window. He closes his eyes and rubs his aching head with both hands.

Margaret leaves Leo's office and heads straight for the bathroom. She needs to get her emotions under control. She hates letting anyone see her cry, especially Leo. She hides in a bathroom stall for a few minutes, while she puts herself back together. She still can't believe how she lost control of her emotions. It had to be the shock of seeing Leo act like that. She hasn't witnessed one of those in years. His outbreaks in the past were due to his drinking problem and they would more than likely occur the day after an all night bender. Leo's actions today, brought back some terrible memories for Margaret. Memories, she would rather forget about.

Margaret's stomach growls as she looks at her watch and discovers that it's two o'clock already. She hasn't had a chance to have lunch yet and she knows that Leo didn't stop on his way back from Senator Hunt's office to get something to eat, either. She often speculates that Leo might starve if she ever actually got to take a whole week off. She walks over to the row of sinks and looks at herself in the mirror. She splashes some water on her face and pats it dry. It's a good thing that she doesn't wear a lot of makeup, because if she did, her face would be a complete mess right now. The redness around her eyes is almost gone, so she deems herself ready and heads off to the mess.

Since it's past the normal lunchtime, the mess is nearly empty. Margaret grabs a tray and walks to the food line. She picks up two turkey sandwiches, two yogurts, two apples and two sodas. She heads for the register but stops when she passes the candy area. She decides that she could use some chocolate after the day she's had. She pays for the items and then heads back up to the office. She stops by her desk and grabs a couple of aspirins for Leo. She figures that he probably has a headache after his fit of temper. She peeks her head into Leo's office and sees that he's in his chair, behind his desk, facing the window again. She silently makes her way across to his couch and sets the tray down on the coffee table.

Leo's staring out the window and trying to figure out a way to apologize to Margaret, when he senses that she's in his office. He slowly turns his chair around to face her. He almost smiles when he sees that she's brought him food. His assistant is always hell bent on him eating and taking better care of himself. He waits for her to realize that he's aware that she's there. When she finally looks at him he sighs, "Ya know," Leo pauses to take a deep breathe, "I'm not drinking again." He explains with a tender voice.

"I know that," Margaret softly replies, as she sits down on his couch. "It was just... that... well it reminded me of some of the times... when you were..." She reluctantly divulges, as she lowers her eyes and stares at her hands that are uncharacteristically still on her lap.

"Yeah, me too," Leo sorrowfully agrees, as he gets up from his chair and gradually moves over to the couch. He sits down beside her and lays a compassionate hand on hers. "I'm sorry about earlier," he pauses, as he looks off to his left and then back at her. "Its just... that.... well I... there's really no excuse for me treating you like that. I'm truly very sorry." Leo's voice is raw with emotion, as he gazes at her, his eyes pleading for forgiveness.

Margaret raises her eyes to meet his. She sees so much pain and anguish in his hazel eyes. She wishes that she could make it all go away, but she doesn't even know where to begin or what's going on with him, lately. She knows that something's going on with the company, Mueller-Wright that he used to work for, but that was way before the time that she started working for him at the Labor Department. She decides now it not the time to try to get him to talk about it. 'Like he would talk with her anyway,' she thinks to herself. She forgivingly bobs her head in acknowledgement of his apology. She decides to leave it alone for now. "I brought us some lunch," she cheerfully tells him.

"I can see that," Leo tells her, as he regrettably removes his hand from hers. He instantly misses the softness of her hand and the way it makes him feel inside when he touches her.

"You don't eat enough," she enlightens him, as she starts dividing up the food and drinks on the tray.

"I think I've heard that before somewhere," he chortles, as he gives her one of his best impish grins. He really enjoys the fact that she loves taking care of him.

"Whoever said it, must be very intelligent," she smirks, as she takes a bite out of her sandwich.

"I like to think so," he admits to her, as he opens his soda and inwardly grins at the fact that she got him one. Normally, she tries to get him to drink something healthier. He picks up his apple and scrunches his face up at it. "This doesn't look like the normal type of chips I like to have with my sandwich." He tells her, as he rolls it around in his hand.

"Really?" she smirks. "Sorry, my mistake. But... since you've touched it, I can't take it back, so you might as well eat it." She teases him, as she opens her yogurt and stirs it.

"Okay," Leo says, as he flashes her a grin right before he takes a bite of his apple. He still feels bad that he yelled at her earlier, but he's happy that she's forgiven him. He enjoys it when they get a chance to eat together or share some time alone. Most of the time, she's already eaten by the time he finally gets around to it or should he say by the time Margaret forces him to eat.

Margaret smiles back at Leo's grin. That grin, she thinks that it could melt butter, because it sure does make her melt. She loves being able to spend some quiet time with him. It's so rare, anymore, that they get a chance to sit down and eat together. She reaches for her apple and sees the aspirin on the tray. "Leo, I thought you might have a headache, so I brought you some aspirin," she informs him, as she picks it up and offers it to him.

"I did earlier," he concedes, as he waves off her offer. "But, it seems better now." He wants to tell her that just her presence alone has made him feel much better, but he's too afraid to.

"Okay," she tells him, as she puts the aspirin back on the tray and picks up her candy bar.

Leo notices that she has a candy bar. "Hey, where's mine?" He asks, as he gives her his best pouty face.

Margaret smirks at Leo's puppy dog face. She realizes he must really feel bad about earlier to be this jovially with her now. "Stop pouting, I'll share." She informs him, as she opens the bar and breaks it into two pieces and hands him one. "Here, you can even have the bigger half. I need to watch my weight."

Leo takes the candy from her and frowns. "You don't need to lose any weight." He lets slip from his mouth before he can stop it. He face lightly flushes at his bold statement. He's never made a personal comment like that to her before now.

Margaret blushes at his statement. "Thank you, Leo." She tells him, as she takes a bite from her half of the candy bar.

"Um... yeah... well... thanks for the candy," he says, as he takes a bite of his half. He quickly changes the subject. "This is one of my favorites."

"Great minds think alike," she says between bites of sweet milk chocolate. "Because, it's one of favorites, too." She can't help but wish that he also felt the same way about her as she does about him.

"Yes, they do," he confirms. He wishes that she thought of him the same way that he thinks of her.

Margaret finishes off her candy bar and starts to clean up their mess from their late lunch. "Well, I'd better get back to work."

"Yeah, I hear your boss is a real pain to work for," he chuckles, as he wipes off some chocolate from his mouth.

"Sometimes," she relents. "But, sometimes he can be really sweet too." She says, as she lays a gentle hand on his leg.

Leo places a hand on top of hers and gets her attention with his eyes. "About earlier, I really am sorry." He expresses heartfelt regret again. His heart beats a little faster at the feel of her soft skin under his hand.

"I know you are," she sweetly replies, as shiver runs up her leg from his light touch. She slowly removes her hand from his leg, stands up and then picks up the tray. "Did you get a chance to look at your messages?"

"No, I haven't," Leo says, as he stands and walks over to his desk. "I'll look at them now."

Margaret moves across the room and then stops in the doorway and turns to him. "Do you want to go through your correspondence after you return your calls?" She asks him.

"Yeah, that'll be fine," he says, as he picks up the stack of messages on his desk. "Margaret, thanks for lunch."

"You're welcome," she says, as she turns and leaves his office. She inwardly smiles to herself. She's gotten a couple of 'I'm sorrys' and a couple of 'thank yous' from Leo today. It's been a banner day so far, now if he would just utter those three little words she longs to hear from him.

Thursday Morning DC:

Leo blankly stares into the abandoned space where the President had been standing only a moment ago. After a few seconds he drops his eyes and slowly descends into his chair. He moves some papers around on his desk trying to get back into the flow of what he was doing before the President came in to see him. After a few moments, Leo gives up on trying to get any work done and swivels his chair around until he's glaring out into the courtyard from his office window. He brings his hand to his chin and contemplates what he has just informed the President that he was willing to do.

Jed Bartlet and Kenny O'Neal were the two people that Leo owed his life to. Both of them had saved him from certain death. One of them picked him up off a motel parking lot, and the other carried him though a Vietnam jungle to safety. He has known both of these men for years and would gladly lay down his own life for either one of them. Neither one of them has ever abandoned him, but now here he is thinking about deserting one for the sake of the other.

Leo has attempted to resign twice before for the sake of saving Jed Bartlet from embarrassment and scandal. The first time happened after Leo fell off the wagon in Saint Louis, on the night of the last debate, during the first campaign. The second time occurred after the press got a hold of his records from rehab for his treatment of alcohol and drug abuse. Jed refused to allow his resignation either time. But, this time it would be different. Leo knows that if he goes though with his plan to testify on behalf of Kenny, there will be no turning back and this time the President will be forced to accept his resignation.

A shiver of guilt runs though Leo's body at the realization that he's very willing to give up the job that he loves so much and was born to do, for a friend. But, he never considered or offered to resign to save his marriage of over thirty years. Now, he's willing to sacrifice himself and his job again, with no questions asked, for one of his two best friends, but he wouldn't and couldn't do that for Jenny.

Thursday late afternoon DC:

Senator Hunt has just left Josh's office. Josh quickly gets up and heads for Leo's office. He needs to tell Leo what he's just found out about Leo's friend, Kenny. Josh enters Margaret's area. "Where is he?"

"Out of the building." Margaret tells him without looking away from her computer scene.

Josh continues on into Leo's office as he asks, "where out of the building?" He stops, turns around in Leo's doorway and waits for an answer.

"Ken O'Neal called him, Leo went to meet him," she tells him.

Josh walks to the side of her desk. "Did he take his cell phone?"

Margaret gives Josh a look of disbelief. "Have you ever know Leo *not* to take his cell phone with him when he leaves this place?"

"Margaret, it's important," Josh hisses.

"Yes, he has his cell phone," she relents, as she finally stops typing and looks up at him. She realizes by the desperate look on Josh's face, that something serious has happened. "Josh, what's going on?"

"I need to talk with Leo. I need to... umm... tell him..." Josh doesn't finish. He pulls his cell phone out of his suit coat pocket, presses the speed dial button for Leo's cell phone and heads off to his office.

"Josh!" Margaret calls after him.

Leo is still standing near the frozen water's edge of the Tidal Basin, staring at the Jefferson Memorial. He hasn't moved from this spot since Kenny walked away from him. This memorial is one of Leo's favorite places in DC, but now it's been tarnished with Kenny's confession of wrongdoing. He'll never be able to come here again, to gaze upon one of his beloved heroes, and not be reminded of how one of his biggest heroes fell. Leo slowly turns and walks over to the cold bench that they had been sitting on earlier and takes a seat. He still can't believe what he's just been told. Jed had once told him, years ago, that 'you put a lot of faith in people' and that he didn't want to see Leo get hurt because of it. Just like before, someone who he trusts has disappointed and hurt him. It had all came down to a matter of money, not right or wrong, but just money.

Leo has been sitting on the bench for a long while now and has lost all track of time. His body is chilled to the bone, but he has no desire to move. His mind keeps replaying the same scene over and over in his head. The cell phone in his pocket rang several times, but he's ignored it. He just keeps staring at the Jefferson Monument like he's waiting for some divine intervention.

Leo's Secret Service agent walks up to him. The agent has just conferred with Ron Butterfield. Ron instructed him to get Leo out of the Arctic cold temperatures and into his service car. Leo's agent had called Ron because he was concerned about Leo. Since the agent is relatively new to the White House detail, he wasn't sure of his responsibility in this type of situation. There's no real immanent threat to his protectee, but it's just too damn cold for Leo to be sitting out here for this length of a time. Even though the agent has only been assigned to Leo a few times, he's already grown to respect and like the man.

"Sir," the agent says, as he waits for Leo to realize he's there. When Leo doesn't acknowledge his presence, he tries again. "Sir."

The young agent's voice finally cuts through the haze that surrounds Leo, and he finally responds, "Yeah."

"Sir... it's really too cold for you out here." The agent reverentially informs him. "Are you ready to leave, Sir?" The young agent inquires as he takes a step closer to the bench.

Leo looks up at his agent, nods his head and starts to stand. His right leg gives out from under him, and he starts to go down, but the quick thinking agent grabs a hold of him and helps him to his feet.

"Mr. McGarry, are you alright?"

"Yeah... I'm fine. I... was just ...umm... sitting too long, I guess... it's okay now." Leo exclaims, as he halfheartedly tries to pull from the agents strong grasp, but the agent holds tight.

Leo starts to slowly walk towards the car. The agent holds onto Leo's arm for the first few steps, until the agent's sure that his protectee is capable of walking on his own. The agent finally drops Leo's arm, but stays close by his side. He notices that Leo's normal intermittent limp has turned constant. The agent whispers into his wrist mic and informs the driver that they are on their way to the car. Leo's service car is parked out on West Basin Drive and is a little over a hundred yards away. The agent looks at Leo's face and is stunned by the look of despondency on it. The agent wishes that the car were parked closer.

"Mr. McGarry, do you want to go back to your hotel?" His concerned agent asks, as he slows his pace down even more.

"Naah... just take me back to the White House. I... there's... things that need to be done. I really shouldn't have... left... I need to get back down to the Situation Room." Leo slowly breathes out. Leo looks at the agent walking next to him. "Could you find out the location of the President?" Leo mentally kicks himself for forgetting about the rescue mission for the downed crew in North Korea.

His agent speaks into his mic then listens to his earpiece. "Mr. McGarry, the President is in the Oval."

"Okay, thanks," he tells his agent. They are finally at the car, and the agent opens the door for him. The agent notices Leo's face contorts in pain, as he drags his right leg behind him when he gets into the back seat of the car.

"Mr. McGarry, are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, it's... it's just an old... um... football injury, and it just acts up from time to time." Leo lies to his agent.

The agent nods his head. He doesn't buy Leo's story, but he doesn't question him. He closes the door and then speaks into his mike, "Thunderchief is in route to the White House."

Jed is waiting in the Oval Office for Leo's return. He positions himself in the middle of the room, so that he can see when Leo gets back. Ron called and told him that Leo was on his way back to the White House. Jed had started looking for Leo after he didn't show up in the Situation Room for the end of the downed crew's rescue mission. Leo's always there by his side in the Situation Room. The General Alexander was surprised by Leo's absence, too. Jed thinks back to their conversation down in the Situation Room a couple of hours ago.

****************************************

"Mr. President, is Leo okay?" The General asks. He's aware that Leo had been shot down in Vietnam and has noticed that the last couple of times that Leo has been in the Situation Room that he's been very quiet and distracted.

"Yeah," the President pauses as he thinks about what's been going on with Leo for the past couple of days. "I think so."

"I'm just surprised that he's not here." The General has never seen the President in the Situation Room without Leo.

"Yeah, me too." The President agrees.

"Do you think he might be having flashbacks?" The General asks, because he knows that the current situation is similar to what Leo went though.

"How did you know about this?" the President asks.

"Fitz and I had a long talk before he retired. He filled me in on some details that he thought I should to know. Mostly, he told me how to handle the two of you. But, he did mention that Leo had been in Vietnam and well... I got curious about Leo's war experience and looked at his service record."

"I'm really not sure how this is affecting Leo. He's been distant because of another situation." The President confesses. He's not sure how Leo has been dealing with the downed pilots. He mentally kicks himself for being so wrapped up in the testifying thing that he never even considered what Leo has been going through. He needs to talk with Margaret. She would most certainly know if he was having flashbacks, nothing gets by her when it comes to Leo.

"I'd bet this would be hitting pretty close to home with him." The General suggests.

"Yeah, it could be. I need to get back to the Oval." The President turns and starts to walk out of the room.

"Mr. President, if Leo is having problems... he could probably use some professional help. Let me know if that's the case, because I know someone who specifically deals with these problems."

"I'll keep that in mind," the President pauses. "But, you don't know Leo, he doesn't ask people for help or like it when you offer either." The President turns and walks out of the room. He needs to call Ron and find out where Leo is.

****************************************

Leo slowly limps to his office. His leg is really bothering him. He wonders if maybe some of the pain is just in his head. Because, all he's thought about these last couple of days is the memory of being dragged through the jungle. Even though he was delirious, from his broken leg and blood loss, for most of those three days, he still vividly remembers the overbearing pain.

Leo stops in his office doorway off of the hallway. He glances across the room at his desk. It seems so far away, and it has piles of folders on it. He has no desire to work, and he's not even sure he can make the trek across the room. He's drained from the pain in his leg and his heavy heart. He heads for the nearest chair in the room and he wearily slumps into it and despairingly stares out his office window at the orange sunset.

Jed watches, from the Oval, as Leo limps back into his office and collapses into his chair. Jed gives Leo a couple of minutes to settle, and then he hurries to his side. Jed is shocked by Leo's physical appearance, but is even more shaken by the fact that Leo didn't even attempt to stand up when he walked into the room. Not that Jed cares. It just means that Leo's in really terrible shape if he doesn't follow protocol.

Thursday early evening DC:

Margaret stands in the doorway of Leo's office and watches him talk with the President. She knows that she shouldn't eavesdrop on them, but she can't help herself. Leo has been sitting in that chair since he got back from meeting with Kenny. He had slowly limped into his office from the hallway door and sat down without even taking his coat off. She wouldn't have known he was back if she hadn't had been standing by her bookcase when he got back. When she first saw him she was about to give him his messages, but she saw the lost look on his face and knew she should just leave him alone. She was hovering by the door, trying to figure out what to do, when she saw the President walk though the connecting door. Margaret was shocked by what she didn't see next. Leo noticed the President there and didn't even offer to stand. He must be devastated for him to ignore the protocol that he normally thrives on.

She only overhears a few of Leo's words. He's softly speaking. She hears him tell the President that Kenny did it. Then something about three days and he was delirious from all the blood he lost. Margaret breath hitches in her chest when Leo says this. She never has heard Leo talk about his war injury before. She leans in closer trying to catch more. Leo tells the President that he never left him, but he should have left him. Then Leo breaks down and sobs. Margaret had to grip the doorway to keep herself from rushing to his side and grabbing a hold of him. The tears that she was holding inside now make their way down her face. When would this man ever catch a break? She doesn't catch the rest of what Leo says but hears the President tell him that he has more that his share to honor their sacrifice and that he's proud to know him. 'Damn straight' Margaret thinks to herself. She watches the President leave Leo's side and walk back into the Oval Office.

Leo sinks further back into his chair and stares off into the distance. Margaret's unsure of what to do. Should she act as if she isn't aware of what's going on and bound into his office with his messages? Or go to his side and try to comfort him? Oh, how she wants to comfort him. But, she's only his assistant, no matter how much she wishes that there were more between them, there never will or can be. She knows that, but isn't sure if she can accept that anymore. Should she try? How would he react?

Leo turns his head slightly and notices a shadow at the door. He slowly focuses his eyes and discovers that Margaret's hovering there. Tears are flowing freely down her face. She quickly turns to leave when Leo's eyes meet hers. "Margaret?" He softly murmurs.

Margaret stops and slowly turns around, but doesn't move towards his office. "Yes, Sir," she quietly replies, as she wrings her hands.

"Did you need me?" Leo's voice quivers.

"No, Leo," she whispers, "at least not for anything work related." She adds, as an afterthought without really thinking. A look a sheer panic crosses her face when she realizes that she just said that last part out loud. She quickly heads for her coat tree. She needs to get out of there now.

It takes a second for Margaret's words to make it though the fog he that surrounds him. He pushes himself up and out of the chair. Then he starts towards her, momentarily forgetting about the pain in his leg. "Margaret?" She has her coat on by the time he reaches her. He reaches for her arm to stop her from leaving. "Margaret." He repeats, as he tries to get her to look at him.

Margaret's face is flushed, and the tears are streaming down her face. "Leo," she sobs, "I'm sorry... I have to go." She pulls her arm from his grasp and runs from the office.

Leo stands in the doorway and watches her run down the hall. Tears are threatening to flow from his eyes as he turns to go back into his office. He doesn't know what to think about what just happened. What did Margaret mean when she said that? He thinks about yesterday, when she blushed when he found out that she had taken his shirt home to mend. He starts remembering some of the many the acts of kindness and how she has taken care of him these past few years. She was constantly on him to eat, get more sleep, and lately to stop smoking again. She nags him more than Jenny ever did. But then again, she takes better care of him than Jenny ever did, too. What did this all mean? How does he really feel about her? He's sure doesn't like the feeling he still has in the pit of his stomach from when she ran out of here. He picks up the phone on his desk and calls for his driver.

Margaret goes straight to her apartment after she ran out of the White House. She really has nowhere else to go. When she gets inside her apartment, the tears are falling down her face as she quickly runs to her bed and falls onto it. She can't believe she just said that to Leo. Especially now, he doesn't need his quirky assistant fawning all over him when he's in so much pain. She continues to berate herself as she sobs uncontrollably into her pillow.

She hasn't been home for very long before her practical side takes over. She gets up and takes off her work clothes. She figures there's no reason to get them all wrinkled. She hangs them up in her closet and then goes over to her chair to get her sweatpants. She notices Leo's shirt lying there. She picks it up and breathes in his cologne. She puts it on and wraps her arms around herself and feels the softness of his shirt. She starts to cry again when she realizes that she will never hold this shirt with him inside it. She plummets back onto her bed and starts to cry hysterically again.

Leo has no idea where Margaret lives and has to look up her address in her personnel file. He leaves the White House and heads for his service car. He hands the address to his driver and sits back and wonders why he's following her. He spends the entire ride over to her place in a daze. His mind wonders between what he has learned today about his good friend and what Margaret said to him earlier in his office. He's not really sure why he's even going to Margaret's or what he's going to say to her when he sees her. All he knows is that he needs to make sure that she's okay.

When his service car arrives to her apartment, Leo's shocked at the poor condition of her apartment building and its surrounding neighborhood. Leo tells his driver to leave even though he's not sure that she's there or if she'll even let him into her apartment. Leo has an uneasiness in his stomach as he gets out of the car and stands in front of her building for a few seconds in the cold and speculates if he's doing the right thing. Finally, the question of her safety outweighs his doubts and he makes his way up the steps and into the building.

Leo finds her apartment on the third floor and knocks on the door. He waits a few seconds and knocks again. Leo starts to get a little bit concerned. He was sure that she would come straight home since she was so upset when she ran from him. He knocks on the door again, still no answer. He gets desperate and reaches for the doorknob and turns it slowly. It's not locked, and the door opens. "Margaret," he calls out, as he enters her apartment and then closes the door. No one answers, but he thinks he hears muffled crying from across the room. "Margaret," he calls again, as he makes his way across her living room and towards what he assumes is her bedroom. The closer he gets to her closed bedroom door the more nervous he becomes, because he knows that he has stepped over the line by entering her apartment uninvited.

Leo stops at her closed bedroom door. "Margaret," he calls again, but still no answer. He hesitates and thinks about turning around and fleeing her apartment, but he doesn't. He raises his hand to knock on her door. His hands hovers there and then he knocks. "Margaret," he says in a soft voice.

Margaret raises her head off her tear soaked pillow. At first, she thinks that she's just hearing things. She swears that she just heard Leo call her name, but she decides that it's wishful thinking. The only time Margaret ever hears Leo articulate her name is when he wants something and then he bellows it. She lays her head back down on her pillow. After a few seconds, she thinks she hears her name again. Then she hears a knock, at first she's sure that it's coming from her apartment door, but then she realizes it isn't when she hears Leo's voice. He's inside her apartment. She hastily sits up and looks at her doorway. "Leo," she screeches, as she jumps up off her bed.

"Yeah," he replies with a heavy sigh. "Margaret, I... need to talk with you." He weakly admits.

Margaret's so shocked that he's here inside her apartment. She quickly makes her way to the door and pulls it open. "How did you get in here?"

"Margaret, your door was unlocked. I... umm... let myself in, I'm sorry I shouldn't..." he starts to say but then stops at the sight of her in his shirt and her bare legs. He can't stop his eyes from looking at her long legs. They have a mind of their own as they follow his shirttail downward to the top of her feet. He quickly regains control and pulls his eyes back up to her face. Leo's about ready to turn around and run from her apartment, but finds the strength to stay. "I wanted to make sure you were okay." He relents.

"Oh," she breathes out, as she follows the path of Leo's eyes and realizes that all she has on is his shirt. With a quick intake of breath, she quickly shuts the door in Leo's face. "Oh my God," she squeaks, as she stands on the other side of the closed bedroom door. Her whole body quivers.

It's a good thing that Leo hadn't stepped into the doorway or he would have gotten nailed by the door. "Margaret, open the door."

"Leo, please go away," she pleads between her sobs.

"No, not until I talk to you," he insists, leaning a hand on the doorframe. "Please, talk to me." He pleads with her.

Margaret's surprised at the softness of Leo's voice. She starts to feel even worse about everything when she remembers how distraught Leo was earlier in his office tonight. He doesn't need any more pain or suffering. She has tried for years to shield him, and now here she's adding to his anguish. "Okay, just a second," she softly relents. She looks down at the shirt that she's wearing and shakes her head as she removes it. She quickly goes to her chair and picks up her sweatpants and sweatshirt and hurriedly dresses. She walks over to the door, takes a deep breath, and then timidly opens it.

As soon as the door starts to open, Leo takes a step back. Margaret's tear stained face appears in the doorway and her swollen eyes and blotchy cheeks take Leo aback. He notices that she has abandoned his shirt.

"Margaret," he says, as he takes a step towards her then hesitates, "I... umm are you okay?" He asks gently in an effort to calm her.

Margaret gives him a sorrowful look and bobs her head.

"Margaret, about what you said in the office tonight..." Leo puts a hand in his pocket, glances off to his left and then back at her.

"I'm sorry," she murmurs, as he watches her drop her eyes away from his. "Could we please forget I said it?" She desperately pleads with her boss.

"Margaret, there's no..." he stops, as her aggrieved eyes glance back up at him.

Margaret cuts him off before he can finish his sentence. "Leo, could we please forget what I said," she requests with tears in her voice. "It was... stupid. I... don't know why I said it." Margaret pleads, as small glints of hurt wash over her features.

"No," Leo mellifluously replies, as he shakes his head. "I want to know what you meant by it."

Margaret gazes at Leo standing there in her living room. He's in his normal stance of one hand in his pocket, eyes pleading, head titled to one side and looking so incredibly handsome and sexy. Without a word, she walks over to the couch and sits down. Leo follows her and sits on the opposite end of the couch. She slumps back into the couch and drops her ever-fidgety hands into her lap. She slowly looks over at him. "Leo, I... I'm sorry. I don't want to be the cause of any more pain and suffering for you today or any other day. So I think that... I umm... maybe you should leave," she arduously reveals, as she lowers her head and stares at her hands.

The uneasiness in Leo's stomach just increased ten fold. "Leave?" He asked with a lump in his throat.

"Yeah." Margaret nods her head without looking up at him. She reaches for a tissue on the coffee table and wipes her face.

"I don't want to leave. I... need you," he confesses, as he moves over to her.

"You don't need a quirky assistant with unrealistic dreams causing you trouble." She rationalizes, as she looks up at him, and her hands fidget in her lap.

"Did you really mean what you implied in the office?" He queries in a hushed tone, as he moves closer to her.

"Leo, please don't," she begs for him to drop the subject, as she lowers her head in embarrassment.

"Did ya?" Leo implores for her to tell him the truth.

Margaret raises her head to meet his eyes. She knows that he at least deserves this much. "Yes," she states hesitantly, as she turns her head away from him, not knowing how he's going to react.

"Then, I don't want to forget it," he murmurs slowly, blinking his eyes down and back up again. Leo reaches out and places a hand on top of her nervous hands to calm them. "No, Margaret, you don't understand. I need you too." He softly admits, as he reaches out with his other hand and gently turns her face towards his. "I want ...for us... to explore our feelings for one another."

"Really?"

"Yeah," Leo pauses. "When you ran away from me today it hit me. I think I've known for a while, but I guess I was afraid to admit it to myself or even let myself feel anything towards you." Leo traces his fingertips under her chin. "And I didn't think you'd be interested."

A shiver runs though Margaret's body from his slight touch. Her hands calm as her whole body relaxes. She nibbles on her bottom lip, trying to figure out what his admission means and what she should say. She decides that actions speak best. So she slowly gets up and stands in front of him. She reaches out her hand to him, and he slowly takes it. She pulls him up off the couch. His puzzled face stares at her as she does this. She unbuttons his overcoat, slides it off his shoulders and then lays it over the chair that sits next to the couch. She turns back to face Leo and places a hand on his shoulder and gently presses down on it. Leo takes the hint and slumps back down onto the corner of the couch. Leo gazes up at her and she shudders at the sadness in his eyes. She eases her body down next to him. He turns sideways and pulls her into his arms. She lays her head on his shoulder. Leo breathes a heavy sigh as dips his head and kissed the side of her face softly, then pushes his cheek against hers. They stay like this for several minutes enjoying being this close for the first time, both of them afraid to speak or proceed any further.

"Leo?" Margaret breaks the silence with a whispered voice.

"Hmm," he weakly responds, as he shifts and pulls her closer into his arms.

"Are you okay?" She asks, as she turns her head and tries to look into his eyes that have never been able to hide the truth from her. She's still worried about him limping. She noticed earlier that he's not limping as bad as he was in the office, but she's unsure of the cause for his more pronounced limp. She's also worried about his mental state. He seemed so despondent in his office when he was talking to the President.

"I'm fine," he lies, his eyes giving him away.

"Leo, when will you ever learn that you can't hide things from me?" She mumbles into his shirt. "What happened today?"

Leo's body involuntarily flinches at her question.

"Do you want to talk about why you were so... upset earlier in your office?" She lets out in a rush of breath.

"Margaret," he pleads.

"Leo," she mimics. "I know it has something to do with Kenny, but I don't understand why you feel that you have to protect him. Why you would choose to squander your job over this." She pauses and berates herself. She shouldn't be forcing the issue. He's obviously been through enough today. "Leo, I'm... sorry I asked." She reaches over and gently strokes his face. "It's okay. You don't have to tell me," she says, as she continues to caress his face. She leans over and shyly places a kiss on his cheek and then buries her face into his neck and sighs, "I'm just so glad that you're here."

Leo leans his head against Margaret's and sighs slightly. He's never told her anything about his war experiences, well for that matter, he's never really talked about it with anybody, even Jenny doesn't know what happened to him in the war or how he got injured. All most people know is that he was shot down, broke his leg and was rescued after three days. The President knew that Kenny was with him when he was shot down, but Leo has never gone into any details about it -- until tonight. Leo sighs and decides that maybe it's time to tell Margaret about what happened.

"Margaret," he slowly breathes out. "I owe Kenny... my life."

Margaret raises her head off his shoulder and looks into his sad eyes. "Leo, it's okay you don't..."

Leo places a finger to her lips. "I know I don't, but I want you to understand." Leo watches Margaret bob her head. He looks up at the ceiling, takes a deep breath and then continues. "Kenny and I were on a mission, and we were shot down. He made it down safety in a clearing, but I landed near the tree line." A ripple of pain crosses Leo's face at this memory. "My chute got caught up in a tree and ripped. I came down too fast and landed hard on the ground. My right leg snapped below the knee, the bone... it umm... it came through... Kenny quickly found me and dragged me into the woods." Tears threaten to leave his eyes. Margaret reaches over and gently touches his face. "We were in the jungle for three days. He carried me on his back. I was delirious; I'd lost a lot of blood. He coulda left me... he shoulda left me, but he didn't. He never deserted me. I pleaded with him to save himself, but he wouldn't. On the third day we were rescued. Two helicopters came down to pick us up, they... they were under heavy fire. Men... died... for us. They deserved better than what they got from me in return and now... Kenny, too." Leo starts to get up, but Margaret places a hand on his arm.

"Leo, what do you mean by what they got from you?" She shifts her position and sits on the edge of the couch.

"I'm an alcoholic and a drug addict, how did *that* honor their memory?" His eyes still rimmed with tears.

"Oh Leo," She pulls him into her arms. "You have done so much to honor their memory. You've severed your country for years and sacrificed so much for this job..." She chokes out between her tears as she holds his head against her chest. "Leo, I've worked for you for years, you have always put your country first and I'm so afraid that it's going to destroy you one of these days." She kisses the top of his head. "I won't let you think that you've not honored them." She gently takes a hold of his face in her hands and brushes a gentle kiss to his lips. "I won't let you," she repeats, as she leans in and kisses his lips again. This time he responds and kisses her back. They rest their foreheads against one another.

"Margaret," Leo sighs. "I... you don't..."

"Shhh, you've talked enough for tonight," she informs him, as she gets up off the couch and reaches a hand out to him.

Leo has a puzzled look on his face, but he obediently takes her hand.

Margaret leads him into her bedroom. She stops by her bed and turns to him. She takes his cell phone, pager, wallet and keys and sets them on the bedside table, and then loosens and then removes his tie. She undoes a couple buttons on his shirt. She slides his suit coat off his shoulders and then points to his shoes. He slips out of them. Margaret pulls back the comforter and motions for Leo to get into bed. He slowly and hesitantly crawls into her bed. Margaret goes to the other side and gets under the covers too. She slides next to Leo and takes him in her arms. Leo rests his head against her chest. She starts rubbing gentle soothing circles on his back. It's all been too much for Leo, and he starts to sob uncontrollably. He clings to her like she holds his only chance of surviving this. Margaret holds onto him tightly. "Oh, Leo," she says, as she starts to cry again too. She wonders just how much more he can endure, before he breaks.

Margaret holds onto him until she's sure that he's sound asleep. She slips out of bed and goes out into her living room. It's ten o'clock at night. She decides that it's still not too late to call the White House. She gives the appropriate code to the operator and gets the Residence.

"Hello," The President answers. He already knows who it is because the operator informed him before putting the call though. But, since this is the first time that Margaret has ever called the Residence from outside the White House, she has no way of knowing this and he doesn't want to rattle her by saying her name before she announces it herself.

"Mr. President," she shyly says. "It's... Margaret." She quietly informs him. She doesn't want to wake up Leo.

The first thing that Jed notices is that Margaret's voice is quiet and shaky. "Margaret, is Leo okay?" He assumes that Leo's still with her. He had called Ron earlier tonight to find out where Leo was because he was concerned, since Leo disappeared soon after their talk.

"He's... still very upset, but at least he's sleeping right now." Margaret doesn't even ask how the President knows that Leo's there at her apartment. "He told me.... about what happened in the war. He feels he hasn't done enough..." She starts to softly cry at the memory of look in his eyes as he told her this. He really believes that he's failed those who gave their life, so that he might live.

"Yeah," the President responds. "He told me the same thing. I tried to tell him he has done so much more, just on his own, to honor their memory and that I was proud to know him." It has been years since the President has heard Margaret cry because of Leo, and her tears disturb him. Her tears remind him of the time that he called her to inform her that Leo would be gone for twenty-eight days. She had cried then, too. That's when Jed realized just how much Margaret cared for her boss. Jed can't help but wonder if it's something more this time. Could it be love? Does Margaret love Leo? Does Leo feel the same way too? Leo did go to her apartment tonight. He mulls this over in his head as he asks, "Margaret, are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Sir." She sniffs out between tears. "It's just... I hate to see him so ... haunted. I haven't seen him like this in..."

Margaret doesn't need to finish her sentence. Jed knows exactly what she means. He too had thought the same thing tonight. That's why he had Ron track Leo down. Jed was worried that Leo was going to crawl back inside the bottle. "Margaret, it'll be fine. He'll be fine." Jed wishes that he believed this.

"Sir, the reason I called was that I think Leo needs a couple of days away, but you know him he'll never willingly take them off. I was hoping..."

Jed interrupts her. "Margaret, say no more. The White House is now off limits to Leo until Monday morning. You tell him to call me tomorrow morning. I'll take the heat for this one, Margaret." Jed wants to ask her more. Like why did Leo come to her apartment? But, he decides that now is not the time.

"Okay, Sir," she says, as she peeks back into the bedroom to check on Leo. "He's not going to like this."

"Tough," the President smirks. "You have him call me. Don't you try and take the blame for this, Margaret. I'll pull my Commander and Chief card on him and order him to take the time off."

"Thanks, Mr. President. I think I'm going to try and get him to go away for the next couple of days. He really needs to rest. His leg really seems to be bothering him, too." Margaret pauses, she's not sure if she should say anything about Leo and her. "Sir, I just wanted... um... I think you should... umm... that..."

"Margaret, calm down and tell me." He tells her, as he thinks to himself that it must be something bad if Margaret is this afraid to tell him. "Just tell me what's going on."

"Leo and me, I mean I, are getting closer ...and... I think we both hope it leads to more." She breathes a deep sigh of relief.

"Margaret, I think that's wonderful. I couldn't be happier for the two of you," Jed says, as a huge smile covers his face. He's going to enjoy teasing Leo about her. "I know that you are exactly what he needs, and I know he cares for you a great deal."

Margaret's shocked by the President's statement but doesn't ask how he knows that Leo cares for her. "Thank you, Sir," she pauses, she's not sure if she should ask him this next question. "Mr. President, do you think you could... have an agent come over here and... watch him, while I run to his hotel and pack a bag for him."

"I'll have Ron send someone over immediately, don't worry about it. If you are planning to go somewhere, don't you think you need more than a couple of days? "

"I don't know if he'd like that, Sir."

"Doesn't matter. I don't want to see either of you until Wednesday morning. Okay?"

"Okay and thank you, Sir. I need to get off here and get on the Internet and make some reservations. I'll have Leo call you in the morning."

"Okay, pick somewhere nice and I'll see you when you guys get back. Goodbye."

"Goodbye, Sir," she says and then hangs up the phone. She goes to the bedroom doorway and finds that Leo's still asleep, so she heads for her computer in the corner of her living room and logs on.

She decides that they need to find someplace where Leo can relax, not just another hotel room, but maybe a cabin somewhere. She's always wanted to go the Smokey Mountains and does a search on cabins in the area. She finds a real nice chalet in the foothills of the mountains on the Tennessee side and books the chalet for four nights. Then she quickly scans for the nearest airport and finds that there's one in Knoxville. It's only about an hour away from the chalet. She finds and books them two round trip tickets to Knoxville leaving out of the Ronald Reagan National Airport at ten o'clock tomorrow morning. She figures that Leo will be up long before that. Next, she books them a rental car. She's just finishing up with all the reservations, when there's a knock at her door.

Margaret gets up and quickly goes to the door. She doesn't want the agent knocking again. She's afraid that if Leo wakes up before she can put all of her plans into motion that she'll have a real battle on her hands. One that even the President won't be able to help with. Margaret's very surprised to see who the agent is that's standing on the other side of her door. She opens the door and invites him into her apartment.

TBC in Part 2