The Story of Her

Disclaimer: As much chance of being mine as the SuperBowl being won by the Eagles.

Author: Lee )

Rating: PG

Part: Two of three stand-alone stories.

Feedback: Wonderful!!

AN: The companion piece to The Story of You, but can be read alone.

Summary: The uncertainty was completely unbearable.


It wasn't just a one night stand. Granted you admitted that for right now that one night would have to satisfy, but you wanted more. You wanted her, fully, completely and openly.

But, that couldn't happen with your office fifteen feet from the President's.

Then you worried that it would never happen as you stared at the letter still sitting neatly on the center of your desk. She had resigned and you had pushed her to it. Regret colored your thoughts. Then fear.

You feared for her and for your future. Was it even vaguely possible that you could exist without her? Why had she left? It was nearly three months since the wonderful night in Idaho Falls. Shouldn't she had left sooner, if she was going to leave?

Then a startling realization hit you. You had to find her. You knew the truth and just needed it confirmed or denied. The uncertainty was completely unbearable.


You slammed the phone down. Her brother was a jerk. You knew he was lying to you, but you hadn't gone that far as to actually say that to him. He was also a line backer, who could break you in two and would to protect his baby sister.

You had exhausted every resource. You had called her parents, her brother, her friends, even her super, repeatedly, but no one had any information that they were willing to share.

It was two weeks since she left and two weeks since you felt whole. You searched and searched, but kept coming back to the letter that was now on the top of your Margaret file. Her resignation and your destruction. You wondered how much longer you could keep performing your job with any skill and ability. You wanted to make sure she was safe. That's all you wanted or at least that was the lie you told yourself everyday.

Then a solution walked through your door in the form of Agent Mike Casper.

Smiling, you stood and shook his hand, "Mike, it's good to see you."

He smiled back at you, confusing tinting his eyes, "Yeah, you too, Leo. Josh said that you needed me for something?"

"Yeah," you waved him into the seat across your desk. "You know my assistant, right?"

"The new one," his thumb hooked towards the door to the outer office.

You suppressed the shutter that tended to run through your being whenever someone referred to Rina as your assistant, "No, Margaret."

"Oh, sure," he nodded. "I thought she resigned."

"She did," another shutter tried to escape. "I need you to find her for me."

Mike looked at you like you'd completely lost your mind, "What?"

"Ah... um... She didn't leave a forwarding address and I need to... to get her last paycheck to her."

Mike blinked at your lie, "Leo, I really can't... that would be an abuse of power... Frankly, ah... well, Leo, if she wanted you to know where she was she would have left a forwarding address. Maybe Mr. Butterfield could do something for you, but I don't think I should get involved."

You wanted to scream at your frustration, but instead nodded, "You're right. Please, forget I asked."

Mike nodded and stood. He started for the door, but the second his hand hit the knob he turned back to look at you, "It's amazing how people sometimes find their way home, Leo. Maybe you should just give her sometime."

You head dropped back against the chair, time was something that you had learned to hate.


You watched him strutting through the walls. An overnight bag slung over his shoulder and an impossibly large grin plastered on his face. You were amazed. The way that he looked when he left a few days again, you thought that he would never smile again. You wanted to tell him to stop to run back to everywhere he had been that weekend that made him so happy. He deserved to be happy and you wanted to give him that.

He noticed you watching him and smiled. With a playful shout of "Mrs. Bailey" to his assistant, Josh tossed his bag at her and jogged over towards you.

"You're in a good mood," you smiled at him as he came to a stop in front of you.

He nodded, "I had a wonderful weekend. In fact, I'm going to share some of my joy with you."

You moaned, "Oh, god, I really wish you wouldn't."

"Ha," Josh laughed and started guiding you towards your office, "you don't even know what great joy I have to share yet."

"I refuse to listen to your sex-apades, Josh," you let him lead you, but you complained.

Josh shook his head, "Nope, no sex for me this weekend. Hey, Nicole!"

You just rolled your eyes at the look on your fifth replacement assistant's face. She was best of the bunch, but still not used to Josh and your other merry men yet. It didn't really concern you since in three weeks you'd be handing your office over to Will Bailey and the Russell administration. Once you were in the office, with all the doors closed, you noticed, you turned to him and shook your head, "Well, then who were you with that could make you this happy?"

Josh smiled at you, "Remember the part about no sex? Well that is a very important part, because I truly believe you could kill me and make it look like an accident."

"I could," you smiled back at him, loving the banter that had been missing between you for over two years now.

"Yup, I figured." Josh took a deep breath and let the words flow, "I spent the weekend with Margaret."

"Margaret? My Margaret," you were suddenly very serious and tried very hard to control your breathing.

Josh nodded, "Yeah. She's been living Boston for the last couple of years. Now, I need you to stay very calm as I tell you the rest of this. Okay?"

You dropped into the chair behind your desk and rubbed your temples, "Okay."

"I found her just a few months after she left. She's been working as Eric Logan's assistant almost this whole."

Anger burned in your eyes, "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because she asked me not to and I had to respect her wishes, Leo," Josh sighed, one hand going to his hip, the other to his forehead.

"But, you knew I was looking for her," you ground the words out.

Josh shook his head, "Don't do that, Leo. Don't doubt my loyalty to you or her. I've spent the last two years begging her to talk to you, but I couldn't and I wouldn't force her to see you or even contact you."

You nodded. You knew that the friendship between Josh and Margaret had always been a strong, if confusing, one. "How is she," you whispered.

He smiled, "Absolutely amazing."

"These weekend trips and the pilgrimages to Boston? They were to see her?"

He nodded and you took a deep breath, "Why are you telling me now?"

"Because, my brilliant negotiating skills have finally worked and she's agreed to meet you."

You were suddenly on your feet, the younger man wrapped in your arms in a bone crushing hug, "Thank you. When can I see her and where?"

He worked his way out of your arms to look at you, "The Charles River Basin Park, whenever you tell me and I call her to set it up."

"The 21st. I don't want to wait any longer than I have to," you felt the pain begin to lift at his nod. He started from the office, but you called him back, "Josh, is there anything else that you need to tell me?"

Josh blinked, a tell you knew from years of playing poker with him, "No, but... no."

He left your office and you sat back down. You were going to see her again.


You brushed a hand over her soft red tresses. The moment Margaret handed you the photograph two years of wondering and dreaming were finally realized. You had another daughter, a child created by you and Margaret. For two years you had tried to suppress the feeling you had about the true reason Margaret left. Then you were standing next to your daughter's bed, listening to her breathing as she slept. She was perfect and you found yourself fighting to breathe.

You knelt by the bed and gently brushed her hair away from her face. She slept on her stomach, just like you. Her hand dangled off the side of the bed. You had seen her mother sleep enough times, even before the night she was conceived, to know that was how Margaret slept.

You smiled and leaned down closer to her face. You laid your head on the pillow next to hers. Your fingers continued the brush gently over her face. Closing your eyes, you gently placed a kiss on her forehead. Pulling back, you laid your forehead against hers and just watched her sleeping.

You felt a hand on your shoulder and turned to look at the woman standing over you. She smiled at you and titled her head towards the bedroom door. You smiled up at her and nodded. As you stood you kissed your daughter on last time and pulled the covers up around her shoulders. You moved away from the bed and found your place taken by Margaret's body as she kissed Valerie as well.

You moved into the hallway and waited for her to join you. She followed and slipped the door closed silently, before she leaned against it. She looked at you through her lashes and tried to smile, but worry colored her features. You smiled at her, "She's beautiful."

"Yeah," she smiled fully at you. "She's completely amazing."

You nodded, "Is she happy?"

Margaret's eyes flashed back to the door, her smile softened, "Very."

"You," you asked softly, and tentatively.

She looked back at you for a moment. Her eyes slipped closed, then fluttered open again, "She is my happiness. She makes every day worth everything."

You moved closer to her, "I'm so sorry you had to do this alone. I wish I had been there for you, for her, for all the life I've missed of hers. I've missed so much."

"It was... It was what I had to do for you and for her," she lowered her head slightly. "I'm sorry that you've missed so much, but... but there is a lot more to come in her life."

You tried not to smile, but you felt it twitching at the corners of your mouth, "Margaret, what are you asking?"

"Stay, Leo?"

You could barely hear her whisper, but you understood and wrapped her in your arms, "As long as you want me."


The second time you woke up Margaret wasn't in the bed. Your daughter was still in your arms, but your... your... You weren't quite sure what she was yet, but you knew these two girls had your heart. But Margaret was gone.

Carefully slipping your daughter out of your arms, you made sure she was protected by pillows and then crawled out of the bed. Pulling your pants on over your boxers, you headed out of the master bedroom. For a moment you stood in the den, confused as to where Margaret had gone in the small, rented Townhouse. Then you heard the stereo playing downstairs and followed the sound. It had been years since you had to step over child gates, but it was nice to know you still could as you headed down the stairs.

At the bottom of the steps you stopped and looked back into the kitchen. Margaret stood with her back to you, her hips swaying in time to the slow jazz beat as she cooked at the stove. You watched her for a moment, a smile you'd forgotten you had plastered on your face. Still smiling, you walked up behind her and placed your hands on her hips, stilling her long enough so that you could wrap your arms around her waist.

You started to sway with her to the music again as you kissed her neck, "What are you doing?"

She returned your kiss, "It's a Josh weekend. We always start Josh weekend with pancakes."

"This is a Josh weekend," you grumbled slightly against her neck, not thrilled with having to share she and your daughter that weekend.

She placed the golden brown pancake on the pile of finished pancakes and snapped off the gas, before turning in your arms, "Yes, I asked him to come up this weekend. I didn't want to be alone if our meeting hadn't gone all that well."

"But it went well," you complained holding her closer.

She nodded and kissed your lips, "I know, but it is too late to tell him not to come. Besides, we have a tradition." You tried not to flinch at the idea of them having a tradition as she continued, "Sunday afternoon after Church, Josh takes Val for a few hours to give me some time alone. This time, we can have some time alone to talk and..."

"Do other things," you asked eagerly.

Her laugh was sweeter than the music to you, "Yes, and do other things."

You kissed her again, but this time the kiss was broken by a small voice at the top of the stairs, "Mama!"

She pushed you away, "Go get your daughter."

"Gladly," you smiled as you headed for the stairs. Climbing up you stopped in front of the gate, "Hey, Val, you want pancakes?"

She looked up at you and smiled, her little arms rising over her head, "Pancakes."

You picked her up and snuggled her against your chest as you started down the steps again.

Her hand went to your cheek as she land her head on your shoulder. One little word slipped from her lips, "Daddy."

Your heart soared. You kissed her head, wondering at the Story of Her.