Part 5
See disclaimers in Part 1.
Leo finally makes it back to his office and falls into the chair by his couch. He sits there for several minutes, before trying Margaret's cell phone number again. He looks at his watch and its now nine o'clock. He jumps when his cell phone rings. He flips it open, not even checking to see who is calling, "Hello," he says, in a panic.
"Leo, what's wrong?" Margaret's panicked voice comes in loud and clear.
"Margaret, just where the hell have you been?" He agitatedly shouts back into the phone.
"What do you mean?" She nervously asks. She has no idea why he's yelling at her, but can tell by the sound of his voice that he's scared.
"Josh and I have been trying to get a hold of you all morning. Are you okay?" He impatiently waits for her answer.
"I'm fine, why wouldn't I be?" She's still unsure why he's so upset.
"Damnit Margaret, there was a car bombing there and I thought..." He can't even say the words.
'Oh my God,' Margaret thinks to herself. She realizes that Leo thought she was either killed or injured. "Leo, the car exploded in the overflow lot; they think it was a drug deal that went bad."
"But Josh said the news..."
"Oh Leo, I'm sorry. I never even gave it a second thought, because they came right out and said this morning that it wasn't terrorism and that the only people injured were from a gang. I'm sorry I worried you," she cries into the phone.
"I'm just glad... you're okay," he breathes with a heavy gasp into the phone, while leaning forward in his chair and resting his head in his hand. "Margaret, I'm sorry I yelled. It's just that..."
"No Leo, I'm the one who's sorry. I had my phone off because I had that Sexual Harassment Seminar this morning and they asked us to turn our phones off. This guy was really adamant about it. You wouldn't believe some of the cases of harassment they told us about."
"Yeah, I would," Leo sighs heavily, while thinking that it's a good thing that Margaret can't read his mind or she would be filing a sexual harassment suit against him right now, cause all he wants to do is take her in his arms and kiss her all over. He's so relieved that she's okay.
"I was gong to call and check... on you this morning and make sure you had everything ready for your trip out here, but I decided not to bother you. Leo, I'm so sorry. I..." There are tears in her voice as it catches. She would never intentionally hurt or worry Leo.
"No Margaret, don't worry about it," he informs her. He's just so happy that she's okay. He also realizes now that what he's been feeling is very real. He was so upset when he thought Margaret might have been hurt or even worse. He knows now that he has to tell her how he feels. "Look... I umm... we need to talk when I get down there," he whispers into the phone in a soft voice.
"Okay," she agrees, sniffing back a tear. The sound of his soft gravelly voice sends a chill though her body. "Call me when you get here, okay?" She pleads.
"Okay," he says, fighting to keep his emotions under control.
"Leo, I'm really sorry I..." Margaret heads for the Ladies Room, she knows she's about to break down and doesn't want a bunch of nosy people wondering what's going on with her.
"Margaret, it's okay, I'll talk with you when I get there, bye." He flips his cell phone shut and leans back in his chair.
"Bye," she says, as she makes it to the stall just in time, cause the tears are falling freely now and she can't control her sobs. She berates herself for being so stupid and not calling Leo this morning, but she just never even thought about it. The bombing seemed like such a small thing, just a drug deal that had gone bad. Why did it even make the national news?
Margaret knows that she scared Leo; she could hear it in his voice. She could tell he was fighting back tears. She wonders what he wants to talk to her about. She knows what she wants to talk to him about. She's going to tell him that she loves him. She's made up her mind. She can't go on any longer like this. She needs for him to know how she feels.
Margaret looks at her watch and realizes that it's almost time for the next seminar to begin. She straightens her clothes, leaves the stall and walks over to the bank of sinks. She splashes some water on her face, and then pats it dry. She reapplies some makeup and stares at herself in the mirror, "That will have to do," she mutters as she heads off to the next event.
After a couple of minutes of trying to get his heart to slow down, Leo gets up from his chair and walks unsteadily to his desk. He pauses for a few seconds, leaning heavily on his desk, trying to get his emotions under control. Eventually, he picks up his phone, calls Josh, and lets him know that Margaret's okay. He answers a few of Josh's questions about what happened and then tells him he needs to go. It isn't until he hangs up the phone that his tears start to fall that had been threatening ever since he first heard about the bombing in Nashville.
Leo quickly wipes his faces and wills his tears to stop, but he's unable to control his emotions. He limps over to his favorite chair; the one in front of the window with his Air Force blanket draped over it and slumps into it. He breathes a heavy sigh and thinks about what he needs to tell Margaret, as his silent tears continue to fall freely down his face.
When Debbie gets back to her desk, she finds Leo's leave slip on her desk. She stares at for the longest time. It's the first leave slip she's ever gotten from him. She quickly grabs her leave notebook and verifies that this is the first leave slip he's turned in since she started working at the White House. She suspects that it's the first leave slip he's turned in since they took over the Office. She looks up at Charlie, "Charlie, who signs Leo's leave slip?"
Charlie's head whips around to her from the computer screen he's been staring at. "Leo put in a leave slip?"
"Yeah," Debbie stares back at him with surprise showing on her face.
"Ah... I'm not sure, cause I don't think... he's ever taken leave," Charlie tells her, as he gets up and walks over to her desk to look at the paper.
"I didn't think so either," Debbie cautiously says, as she quickly looks over at the Oval Office and then back at Charlie and whispers, "I know that they're not getting along, and it's none of my business, but..."
"Debbie, this is one time that we both need to stay out of it." Charlie informs her. "I've never seen them act like this. They've had disagreements before, but its never lasted more than a day or so, this is... different."
"Well, in my opinion," Debbie looks around and then continues, "I think the President is acting like a spoiled child, I can't believe the way he's been treating Leo." She watches Charlie nod his head in agreement.
"Who's acting like a child and treating Leo badly?" The throaty voice of the First Lady inquires from behind her.
"Mrs. Bartlet, I..." Debbie verbally backpedals.
"Debbie, it's okay, trust me I've heard a lot worse," she says walking the rest of the way into the outer office of the Oval. "What's that in your hand?" She asks, with a raised eyebrow.
"It's a... leave slip for Leo, and we're not sure who signs it or whom we should give it to," Debbie informs her as she holds up the piece of paper in her hand.
"Leo's taking leave? Does it say what for?" Abbey asks in a very concerned voice. She can't remember Leo ever taking a day off, well at least not since he quit drinking.
Debbie shakes her head, "I was just about to take it to the President and ask him about it."
"Here," Abbey says, holding out a hand. "I'll take it to him." She says as she heads for her husband's office.
"Okay," Debbie breathes a sigh of relief. She wasn't looking forward giving it to the President.
Debbie and Charlie share worried glances, as they watch the First Lady enter the Oval Office.
Jed is sitting behind his desk, deep in thought and doesn't realize his wife is in his office, until she is standing next to him. "Hey, Abbey. What's up?"
"This," she says, thrusting the piece of paper into her husband's hand. She's getting fed up with this thing between Jed and Leo.
Jed uncrumples the paper in his hand and stares at it. He puts on his glasses and reads it, "Leo's taking leave?"
"That's what it says. What are you going to do about it?" She huffs, as she heads for the couch.
"Nothing, I'm sure that he has plenty of leave saved up," he says standing up and following his wife to the couch, trying very hard not to act concerned, but inside his stomach is churning. Leo's not taken any leave since they got to the White House.
"Aren't you curious as to why, all of a sudden, he's taking leave?" She says, taking a seat on the couch.
"No," he lies, sitting down next to her. He doesn't want to admit that he's been thinking about Leo and their rift a lot these past couple of days. He's ashamed of the way he's been treating Leo. But he's not sure how to fix things.
"Jed, I know you. You can't hide your concern from me. You need to go talk to him. I think something's wrong. I saw him the other day in the hallway, when he thought no one was looking, he almost fell and had to rest for a while against the wall."
"He knows where I work. If he has a problem, he knows where to find me," Jed stands up quickly and walks back behind his desk. His stubborn pride won't let him make this right.
"Yeah, like you've been so receptive to him lately, I'm sure he's just forgotten to come to the Residence these past few weeks," she stares at her husband.
"Leo can come and go wherever he wants, no one's stopping him," he advises his wife.
"Jed, that's not true and you know it. You've been ignoring him and pushing him away ever since the bombing in Gaza," Abbey quickly stands and angrily walks over to the front of his desk. "I've heard about some of the childish things that have been going on around here. It's a wonder the story hasn't somehow been leaked to the press."
"He was wrong about wanting to bomb Gaza; it turned out that they weren't even involved in the car bombing. We would have killed innocent people," he snarls, as he slams the palm of his hand on his desk.
"And you were wrong about trying to deal with Chairman Farad. Camp David was a disaster. So, it turns out you were both wrong, when are you two going to stop this?" She yells back at him. "It's tearing you both apart, and it's destroying this administration. You need to stop being a stubborn jackass!"
"Abbey if you would have heard what he said to me at Camden Yards, you wouldn't be so... forgiving." Leo's harsh words about him being gun-shy still echo loudly in his ears.
"And... if you would have heard what I said to him after Zoey was rescued, you've never think that I could be in the same room with him ever again. But, I was wrong then and so are the both of you now," she informs him, turning quickly and heading for the door that connects their two offices. "I'm going to go talk to him and find out what's going on. Leo doesn't take time off for just anything, and you know that," she loudly informs her husband, as she heads for Leo's office.
Leo is sitting in his chair lost in thought, rubbing his wedding ring with his thumb, without even realizing it. He's reflecting on the past couple of days. He suddenly becomes conscious of the fact that he is playing with his wedding band. He stares at it with a deep frown. He's worn this ring for over thirty years and has rarely taken it off. He takes a hold of it and slides it off his finger. It no longer stands for his love for Jenny, but instead a constant reminder of yet another failure in his life. He closes his eyes and squeezes the ring tightly in his hand, feeling the edge of it dig into his palm.
Leo is still deep in thought, when Abbey walks into his office through the connecting door from the Oval Office. He isn't aware of her presence, until he hears the sound of the closing door. He automatically jumps up at the sound, thinking that it's the President.
Leo's relieved to discover that it's Abbey, standing in front of him, instead of Jed. Because he's not sure that he could face any more disappointment from his best friend right now. Especially with his emotions running as high as they have been this morning, and he doesn't think he'd be able to hold his tongue.
Leo suddenly remembers his tears and quickly goes to wipe them from his face, dropping his ring in the process. The golden ring bounces off his coffee table and lands at Abbey's feet. Both of their eyes drop to the ring on the floor, and then they slowly look at each other.
Leo starts to take a step towards the ring, but stops after Abbey quickly bends over and scoops up the ring. She silently stands there staring at the worn band of gold, which has long ago lost its luster, in her hand for a few seconds. She thinks about the joy and pain that it has caused Leo over the years. She slowly raises her eyes to him and gives him a sympathetic look.
"Abbey," he hoarsely says, his voice still influenced by his raw emotions.
"Leo," she calmly says, as she walks over to him, placing the ring in his outstretched hand. She quickly forgets about the ring, when she notices the tear-streaked marks on his face. "Leo, are you okay? What's going on?" She asks as she places a caring hand on his arm.
"I'm... fine," he says, as he quickly slides his ring back on his hand and quickly drops his hand to his side.
Abbey can feel him shaking. "Leo, sit down and tell me what's going on." She guides him to the couch and sits down next to him.
Leo sits down next to her and breaths a heavy sigh. "There was a bombing... in Nashville and I couldn't get a hold of her and I wasn't sure if she was okay and she just called... and..." he rambles on as the tears start to flow again. Everything that has happened over the past year is coming to a head, and Leo can no longer keep it all inside.
"Her who? Mallory?" She quickly guesses, trying to figure out who and what could make Leo this upset. "And what bombing?" Abbey is shocked at the site of a disheveled and incoherent Leo.
"No, not Mallory," Leo tries to gather himself, "Margaret," he finally manages to say.
"Is she okay?" She quickly asks.
"Yes," Leo nods his head. "There was a drug related car bombing at the hotel she's staying at, and the news blew it out of proportion and Josh knew she was there and... Oh, Abbey I thought... I thought she was dead," he shudders. "I need her... I don't know what I would do without her." Leo's feelings are unguarded and fragile but he's just so relieved that she's okay.
Abbey looks deeply into Leo's eyes and sees the love he has for his long time assistant. "Leo, are you in love with Margaret?" She cautiously asks, with a raised eyebrow.
"Yes... yes I am," he mellifluously whispers.
"Does she know?"
Leo shakes his head.
"Leo, you should tell her," she implores him.
"I know... and after this morning, I plan to," he answers her in a calmer voice wiping the tears off his face once again.
"Good," Abbey smiles. "Do you think she loves you too?"
"I... think so and I'm gonna find out for sure; cause I'm flying out there this afternoon. The FEW Conference needed a last minute replacement for a speaker on Saturday night, and Margaret asked me if I wanted to do it. She knows that I'm not very busy around here these days." Leo motions around the room with his hand.
"Leo, that's what I came in here to talk about."
"Abbey," Leo warns her, his back becoming rigid.
"Leo, this thing between you two has gone on long enough," her voice taking on a mother-like quality.
Leo nods his head in agreement, "I know... I've been thinking about it a lot, lately," he says, looking towards the Oval Office.
"And?" Abbey raises an eyebrow.
"Abbey... I'm starting to think that... the best thing that I can do for ...Jed... is to leave," Leo chokes out, lowering his eyes. He's afraid his tears are going to start again.
"Leo," Abbey gently says, surprised that Leo referred to the President as Jed. Something he's rarely done these past six years. She reaches out and places a hand on his leg. "He doesn't want you to go." She softly informs him.
"It doesn't seem that way to me," Leo says, raising his sad eyes to hers. "Look... I really don't want to belabor the point or fight about it. He did what he thought was best. He's the President. He has that right."
"Leo, you know he's depends on you so much," she stresses.
"That time... has passed," Leo says, slightly shaking his head. "I think that if I stay, he will grow to resent me or... even... hate me."
"Leo, Jed could never hate you," Abbey says in a soft voice.
"You... do," Leo softly accuses, remembering how she treated him after Zoey's rescue.
"Leo, I don't..." She knows what he's referring to. She had been very unforgiving about Zoey's kidnapping. "I was just upset..."
"It doesn't matter, you had every right to be angry and to resent me cause I was the one... who convinced..." He stops abruptly. He still can't admit to Abbey that he blames himself for Zoey's kidnapping. "Let's just say that it all started back then, maybe even before that."
"Leo, it doesn't matter. I don't hate you, and you need to stop blaming yourself for everything. You and Jed did what you thought was best for the country. I realize that now."
"Jed only did it after I convinced him. I tried again after the Gaza bombing. I told him he had no option but to retaliate. I pushed, and he pushed back. He's tired of people thinking that he's my puppet and that I pull his strings."
"Leo McGarry, no one controls Jed," she quickly snaps back, defending her husband.
"I know that, Abbey, but others don't. They think," Leo motions with his hand towards Capitol Hill, "that it's all been me. It's not fair to him. He's a great man, and a great President on his own and it's about time others realize that. And... I don't think that can happen if I stay," his voice growing softer the longer he talks.
"Leo, I think you are giving yourself too much credit," she suggests.
"I'm not trying to take credit. I'm just saying that if I stay, the Republicans will always accuse him of being under my influence."
"But you and Jed know the truth," Abbey offers.
"That doesn't appear to be enough for him... anymore and... it's not fair to him either," he mumbles.
"Leo, you need to talk to Jed. Tell him what you just told me. You two need to work this out before it eats you both up."
"Nah, this is my decision, I know him; he'd just try and convince me to stay," his voice is soft and loving. "I need to make this decision on my own. Besides, I have other decisions I need to make too, and some of they might affect the White House even more, so..."
"Margaret?" She guesses.
"Yeah," he smiles, but his eyes are unable to hide the fact that there is more going on in his life right now besides Margaret and work.
"Leo, is this all that is going on with you? Because I'm having a hard time being convinced that you're thinking about leaving the job you love because of this thing between you and Jed. I've been worried about you for a while now. You look exhausted, and you've lost a lot of weight. Leo, are you okay?" She asks in an anxious tone.
"I'm fine, Doctor B," he swiftly lies. He's not about to tell her about his health problems; Mallory and Margaret don't even know yet. "Plus, I needed to lose some weight," he says, patting his stomach.
"Leo, I don't believe you," she says sternly. She's not about to let him off the hook this time. "When was the last time you had your blood pressure checked? Have you even had a checkup during the past six years? I know you and I know you've not taken care of yourself since... since Jenny left."
"Abbey, drop it," his voice is unyielding. He quickly stands ready to storm out, but realizes that this is his office.
Abbey stands up and gets right in his face. "No, I won't drop it this time. Something's going on with you and I want to know what it is." She has both hands on her hips and is blocking his exit from the room. "I saw you almost fall in the hallway the other day. What's going on?"
The last time she tried to get him to talk about his health he was able to escape the Residence, but this time she's got him trapped. "You're not my doctor," he stubbornly points out.
"Do you even remember who your doctor is?" She sneers. "Do I need to get Mallory involved?" She pulls her last card, even though it might be unfair to bring up Mallory, but she's desperate at this point in time.
Leo drops his eyes at the mention of his daughter's name. "Abbey," he pleads, breathing a heavy sigh. "It's not what you're thinking... it's not... life threatening." He stops, hoping this is enough.
"Leo, please," she requests with her eyes and her voice, dropping her hands from her hips and placing one on his arm.
Leo looks off to the left, like he's searching for an answer and then back at Abbey, "I... need some surgery and well... I've put it off a lot longer than I should have, and so now there's... more that they need to do," he awkwardly admits, looking down at his right leg.
"Your leg," she says, motioning. "You need a knee replacement?" She guesses, realizing that he has been favoring it more lately. She knows about his war injury and has even examined it a few times in the past, when it was bothering him. The last time she examined him was after his drunken fall in that motel parking lot eleven years ago. She's surprised he hasn't had to have his knee replaced before this, because his leg is so bowed below the knee from where had the compound fracture, when he had to bail out of his plane so many years ago. He's lucky that he didn't lose his leg from the injury he sustained.
"And... my hip. They need to replace my hip and knee," he says, sitting down on the couch. His hip is bothering him from where he had practically run back from Josh's office this morning after he told him about the car bombing at the hotel.
"Your hip, too?" Abbey notices a glint of pain cross his face as he sits down.
"My hip has been damaged from all the grinding... ya know... because of the way I have to walk," he explains.
"When did your orthopedic surgeon first mention having your knee replaced?" She sits back down on the couch, beside Leo.
"A few years ago, but I wasn't very respective to the idea of surgery at the time," he admits, lowering his eyes.
"Was it when you were still drinking?" Abbey asks, laying a hand on his leg.
"Yeah," he says, still not looking at her.
"Leo, that's in the past. You need to get this done, and it sounds like the sooner the better." She imagines that he must be in quite a bit of pain to be ready to have the surgery. She knows that he'd put it off as long as he possibly could.
"You doctors, are all the same," he smirks.
"So, why haven't you had it done before now?"
"I was going to wait until after the administration was over, but the doctor said that if I wait too much longer, he'll have to replace both hips. And the pain was been... well it's been getting worse, and now it's sorta catching on things floating around in there."
"When did your doctor tell you that?" Abbey knows that the pain must be bad for Leo to mention it.
"Last year... and then again, very loudly, on Monday."
"Last year," she loudly repeats back to him. "Well why the hell didn't you get it done then?"
"Well, we've just been a little busy around here the past year and..."
"And what, Leo?"
"Well, I'm gonna need a lot of help right after the surgery and then there's going to be a long period time after that when I'll need help and you know that... well... since Jenny left... there hasn't been anyone and you know that since Mallory moved back, she's been busy with teaching. So, there... wasn't anybody else to help me," he softly admits.
"Leo, that's not true. I could have helped, and I know for a fact that Margaret would, too."
Leo gives Abbey a look, "I couldn't ask Margaret, cause it would be too personal and way too much to ask of her. You know everything that it entails," he looks down shyly at the obvious implications of a surgical recovery. 'They are not even intimate with each other...yet,' he thinks to himself.
"I only realized my feelings for her last summer, and it's not been until after this last crisis that I thought that maybe she felt the same way. But even then, I just don't want to be... a burden."
"Leo, she wouldn't think of it as a burden, and even if you two didn't have feelings for one another, she would have helped anyway, she's helped you plenty in the past with other personal things." Abbey knows for a fact that Margaret did a lot of things that Jenny should have been doing when Leo was drinking. Margaret took care of him a lot back then. Better than Jenny ever did. Abbey wonders if Margaret might have been in love with Leo way back then.
"You're probably right," he has some vague memories of Margaret helping him during his days in the labor department before he went into rehab. "But I... couldn't ask her."
"Leo for heaven's sake, you have more money than God. You could have hired people to help take care of you or gone into a rehab facility for your recovery and physiotherapy. You have no valid reasons for not having your surgery and ..." she pauses for a moment, trying to get her emotions under control.
Leo stares at her, surprised by her outburst.
"You could have asked me," Abbey implores.
"Well... we haven't exactly been that close lately and..." He motions between them with his hand.
"Leo, never doubt that I wouldn't be here for you and help you," she says in a soft voice. "Yes, we've had some rough moments these past few years, but I'll always be here for you and Jed will, too." Abbey voice is full of emotion, and she is on the verge of tears.
Leo slightly nods his head. He's not very proud of what has happened between the three of them over the past year. He blames himself for their problems. "Abbey, I never meant for..."
"Shh..." Abbey places a hand to the side of his face. "Leo, stop trying to take the blame for everything."
"If you give me your Ortho's name I can call him and find out more about what needs to be done, if you'd like?" She smiles.
"Thank-You Abbey," he pulls out his wallet, digs out his Ortho's card and hands it to her.
"Does Margaret know that you need to have this done?"
"No, do you really think she would have let me get by this long without having the surgery if she knew?"
"Fair point. Are you going to tell her?" Abbey asks, raising an eyebrow.
"I have a lot to tell her this week, when I get to Nashville," he discloses, with a sigh.
"Yeah, I guess you do. Are you going to let her help you?"
"Yeah," nodding his head.
"Are you going to discuss your future work plans with her too?"
"Probably."
"Leo, as much as I would hate to see you leave, you need to decide what's best for you. I still say you're wrong about the reasons why you should go, and I hope that Jed gets his head out of his ass in time to see how much he's hurting you," she proclaims.
"Abbey," Leo growls.
"What? He's my husband, I can say that about him, even if he 'is' the President of these United States," she smirks. She moves to him and gives him a kiss on the cheek. "When do you leave for Nashville?"
Leo looks at his watch, "In about thirty minutes."
"Are you going to tell Jed you're leaving?"
Leo thinks about it and decides that he can't face him right now, "No," he softly whispers.
"Do you want me to tell him where you're going?"
"I guess," Leo doesn't think he will care anyway. "It really doesn't matter if he knows where I'm at. He won't be needing me anyway."
"Leo," she shakes her head in disgust.
"Abbey," he growls back.
"Okay, so when are you getting back to DC?"
"The flight gets back early Sunday afternoon, but I don't think I'll be back at work until Monday."
"Will you call me when you get back into town?"
"Yeah."
"I'll have the details about your surgery, and we can go over them and we'll need to set a date for your surgery. I assuming your doctor has been ready for some time now."
"Okay, we could meet here in my office, I'll bring Margaret, too."
"Leo, should I mention this to Jed?" Motioning to Leo's leg.
"No," he quickly states.
"Leo," she scoffs.
"Sorry, I just don't want him to try and fix this because of my leg, okay?" Leo doesn't want his sympathy.
"Okay, I won't say anything. But, you're going to have to eventually."
"Yeah, I know."
Abbey heads for the door "Have a good time in Nashville, oh and you're need to call your doctor and tell him it's okay for him to discuss your case with me."
"Okay, I'll call him and I'll try to have a good time."
"Call me when you get back."
"I will," he says to her back as she disappears out his door and down the hallway. He pulls out his cell phone, looks for his Ortho's number in the Contacts Menu and then gives him a call. After he hangs up, he walks back over to his wing back chair and sits down and a small groan of pain escapes from his mouth.
Sarah hears Mrs. Bartlet leave Leo's office. She gets up and walks over to his door again. She hesitates before entering. She hadn't meant to eavesdrop earlier, when she first got back from completing the tasks that Leo had assigned earlier this morning. She had his office door halfway open and thought she heard him crying, but before she could enter, Mrs. Bartlet walked into his office.
The concern in Mrs. Bartlet's voice made her hover by the door. Sarah heard Leo tell Mrs. Bartlet about the bombing and then she heard him confess his love for Margaret. This brought a smile to Sarah's face as she moved away from the door and sat down at her temporary desk.
Sarah finally finds the courage to knock on Leo's door and waits for him to answer.
"Yeah," Leo raspy voice answers. "Come in."
Sarah opens the door and steps into his office. He doesn't look up at her as she walks over and sits down on the end of the couch that's closest to his chair that he's sitting in. "Leo, umm... are you okay?" Her voice is full of concern.
"Yeah," he hoarsely breathes out, as he continues to stare at a spot on the floor by his feet. "It's... well... it's just been a tough morning. I thought that..." Leo stops and tries to gather himself.
"Leo, it's okay. I umm... sorta overheard you tell Mrs. Bartlet what happened," she shyly admits.
Leo finally raises his eyes at Sarah and sees her knowing smile. He realizes immediately that she must have heard him tell Abbey that he's in love with Margaret. "Did Margaret leaves instructions on how to listen at the door, too?" He smiles.
Sarah's smile fades as she quickly panics, "Mr. McGarry, I didn't mean too, I'm sorry. I was..."
"Sarah, It's Leo... and I was just teasing ya," he grins. "I trust you."
"Oh," she says, as she instantly calms down. "I didn't mean too, it's just I heard you umm... well I could tell you were upset and I was about to come in and check on you, but Mrs. Bartlet..."
"Sarah, it's okay. Really," he tries to persuade her. "You know... you remind me a lot of Margaret when she first started working for me. You have a lot of the same qualities."
"Thank you, that means a lot to me cause I think Margaret's wonderful," she says as her face turns slightly crimson.
"I think she's wonderful, too," he grins. "And you blush like her too," Leo softly laughs.
Sarah's gives Leo a warm smile, "Leo, is there anything I can do for you before you leave?"
"Nah, I think I'm all set," he informs her.
"Should I call for your service car? It's almost ten," she says as she stands. Margaret will kill her if she lets Leo miss his plane.
"Yeah," He replies as he stands up, using the arms of the chair to help him stand.
Sarah notices a ripple of pain wash across Leo's face as he slowly stands, "Is there something I can get you... for the pain?" She inquires, as she motions towards his hip.
"Nah," Leo shakes his head. "I can't take anything else for another couple of hours."
"Okay, I'll go call for your car," she says as she heads for the door and then hesitates and turns back around. "Leo... I just wanted to say that... Margaret's a very lucky person to have someone like you, love her."
"Thanks," he says, blushing slightly. He thinks he's the one who's lucky, well that is if Margaret returns his feelings.
"You're welcome," she says as she disappears though the open door.
Leo stands there for a few seconds, looking around his office and wondering if it will be his for much longer. He walks outs into his outer office area, "Sarah, I'm outa here. See ya on Monday. I've already called the pool and informed them that they've lost their best person," he smiles.
"Leo, I just wanted to thank you again for this opportunity."
"You've earned it," he informs her with a smile. "I'll call Josh on the way to the airport and tell him you've be reporting to him tomorrow." He says, as he starts to leave.
"Okay. Have a good trip and good luck."
"Thanks," he says. "Bye."
"Bye."
Leo steps off the plane at around twelve o'clock Central Time. He's already adjusted his watch on the plane. He pulls out his cell phone and calls Margaret. She answers it after a few rings.
"Hey Leo," she says. She had her phone on vibrate and stepped out into the hallway to answer it.
"I just got off the plane," he tells her as he heads for the arrival area of the airport, so that he can catch a cab. He didn't check his luggage, so he didn't have to wait forever to get it.
"Great, I'll meet you in the lobby." She looks at her watch and figures she has at least forty-five minutes until he gets here. It's almost time for their lunch break, and then she just has one more seminar today. It's scheduled to start at one-thirty, so she won't have to miss much to be able to catch Leo before he tries to check into the hotel.
"Margaret, I know how to check into a hotel. I thought we'd covered this already," he reminds her.
"I didn't say you didn't, but this hotel is huge and you'll never be able to find your room," she politely informs him.
"Are you questioning my navigational skills?" He smirks, as he walks out of the airport door and finds a limo driver standing there with his name on his board. Leo smiles that Margaret arranged for a driver to pick him up.
"No... yes, cause who kept getting lost during the first Champaign?" She mocks, smiling because Leo seems to be in a good mood.
"That was Josh's fault," Leo voice takes on a 'Josh like' whine. "He kept giving me bad directions," he protests, climbing into the back seat of the limo.
"Fine, blame Josh, but I've seen you try to read a map and you can never figure out how to properly refold them," she laughs, as she paces the hallway outside the room she was just in.
"Hey, I don't think those things can be refolded; it's like origami." He gripes, as the limo pulls away from the curb. The driver said they should be at the hotel in about twenty minutes. He'll show Margaret. He'll get there, check in, find his room and then call her. He smiles to himself at the fun he'll have bragging to Margaret about his triumph.
"Leo, as much fun as this is, picking on your poor navigational skills is I need to get back into the seminar. I don't want to waste the government's money."
"Okay, I'll see ya at the hotel, Bye."
"Bye," she replies, flipping her phone shut, as she sneaks quietly back into the room and takes her seat.
TBC in Part 6
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Bev (adoreleo):
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