Title: "A Volume of Springtime Haiku" (4/6) (CJ/Danny.
Author: soft lite.
Poetry written by CJ Clanton
Characters: CJ, Danny, Abbey, Gail, Carol, Toby, Charlie, and Jed.
Rating: G.
Disclaimer: Characters from "The West Wing" are not mine. Monopoly isn't mine, either.
Spoilers: Through Season 5's "The Warfare of Genghis Khan." Archive: If you want to.
Author's note: A big thank you to CJ Clanton for volunteering to write poetry for this story! At long last, I may write the game of Monopoly that Spooky asked for long ago. Thanks also to Athena for discussing conflict of interest and what it's like to be in the public eye with me…ya'll can blame or thank her ;P for some pieces of this part. Which is NOT to say that I'm going to deal fully or realistically with conflict of interest…you've been warned.
Thursday, March 25, 2004
CJ was delighted to hear his voice so early in the morning. "It was already morning," he stated as though they were in the middle of a conversation. She rose and went to him as he entered and closed the door, and when they met, their fingers twined and their lips united.
But only briefly, because the door opened and the First Lady walked in, holding up a piece of swan gray parchment.
How can she not see When she looks into my eyes Things I cannot say
She recited the Haiku from memory as she closed the door. "I would think you two would want to keep closer tabs on these things."
Although they had stopped kissing when she entered, they had not moved away from each other. Instead, when their fingers disentangled, each put an arm around the other and CJ reached for the poem. "Thank you for bringing it down, Mrs. Bartlet. I'm sorry it got mixed into the President's papers – Josh thinks it's fun to see me find them during staff meetings."
"When we're alone and talking about personal matters, you can call me Abbey. Remember? I can imagine that it would be fun to see you talking about peace in the Middle East and suddenly turn the page to find a poem about dating without dating or communicating without words."
"Yeah, it's real fun," CJ said dryly and with a hint of irritation in her voice. "So is wondering whether Josh knows anything at all about how to not kill Gail," CJ commented, pointing towards the fishbowl.
Danny and Abbey both looked to see a slightly-too-big-for-a-bowl-ornament bottle sticking from the gravel at the bottom of the fishbowl up a couple inches above the rim. Inside was a not-too-neatly rolled piece of pale turquoise parchment. Gail was swimming around it, looking more crowded than she was accustomed to. Abbey laughed. Danny didn't. "Hey, what's he trying to do to Gail?" Danny complained as he pulled his handkerchief out of his pocket and the bottle out of the bowl.
"Obviously he doesn't have a good sense of scale," CJ commented with a smirk.
"Men never do," Abbey agreed.
Danny decided to ignore their goading. "This is Josh we're talking about – we should be glad it's not a beer bottle."
CJ took the bottle from Danny, considered it for a moment, and then asked, "What are the chances we're going to be able to pull that parchment out of there?"
"Zero," Abbey observed. "Give it to me. I do this professionally now." She took the bottle and smacked it on the inside of CJ's trash can. Pleased when it broke easily, she observed, "Much better than a bottle of champagne." Gingerly, she picked up the parchment and inspected it to make sure no glass was attached.
Dripping on the floor Another trip in the pool Turn your head, Fishboy
Wryly but with laughter in her eyes, Abbey asked, "So CJ, which one of them gets the doghouse first?"
CJ smiled and declared, "Always Josh, Abbey, always Josh. Besides, the doghouse isn't where I want Danny."
Abbey smiled knowingly as Danny blushed. "Oh CJ," Abbey asked just before opening the door to leave. "Have you asked Danny what dress he'd like to see you wearing tomorrow night?"
"Not exactly," CJ hedged.
Danny could see CJ's discomfort and remembered what CJ had told him about the First Lady's feelings about the gray dress. "How about the one from the Inauguration?"
"Which one?" CJ and Abbey asked together, smiling at each other.
"The second," Danny replied without hesitation.
CJ continued smiling and shrugged, and Abbey nodded and raised her eyebrows. "Good choice. I'll see you tomorrow night, Danny. I expect a dance."
"Yes, ma'am."
---
Finally today, CJ had a bit of time in the mid-afternoon to talk with Danny. "I've been thinking that we always get interrupted, even when we don't have a chaperone." She slowly ran her fingers up and down his suspenders under his jacket as she spoke.
"Well, yeah," Danny agreed. "But isn't that what we expected?"
"I guess," CJ admitted with a smile, allowing him to pull her closer. "I know my job is demanding and my colleagues and yours are persistent, but. . . ." CJ paused to think about how Danny would react. "Would you like to come with me to my brother's house on Saturday night? We do a dinner and board game thing as regularly as we can. This month it's pot roast and Monopoly. It would be him, his wife, their daughter, and us."
Danny's enthusiasm sounded a little forced when he agreed, "Sure." After a hesitation, he added, "What does that have to do with being interrupted?"
"My brother and his family aren't going to care if we kiss, you know, as long as we don't do anything their teenage daughter shouldn't see. They might even leave us alone for a while." CJ tried to reach for a kiss.
Danny was catching on. "And in their house, no reporters would see, and if you're taking me to meet your brother, your colleagues are only going to call if it's super important."
"Exactly."
"Sounds fabulous," and now Danny, too, moved for a kiss.
As if on cue, there was a knock on the door and Carol peeked in. "Sorry to interrupt. CJ, the president wants you."
As CJ drew away from him, Danny commented in a low voice, "He's not the only one."
CJ playfully slapped him as she left. "See you at dinnertime."
"Okay."
---
As Danny approached CJ's office, he was pleasantly surprised to see that half of her shades were closed: those over the sofa were still wide open, as was her door. "Hi Danny," Carol greeted him with a smile, and, picking up some take out containers. "Come on in." She led him in, put the food on the table, and, as she was leaving commented, "Take some time off, CJ."
CJ looked up and smiled at both of them. "Okay. Just a minute."
Carol closed the door as she left. Danny sat down on the sofa. A moment later, CJ finished typing, went to lock the door, and then joined him. "Oh, I like this," Danny reached for CJ, pulling her close. And for once they were not interrupted. After a long and satisfying kiss, they parted, and Danny pointed out, "The food's getting cold."
"Yeah." CJ smiled into his eyes for a moment. "Let's eat."
"Okay."
Carol had neatly stacked each meal with its napkin and silverware, and left a surprise that CJ found when she tried to spread her napkin on her lap: a lilac parchment.
In the Rose Garden Her finger brushes my hand Neither speaks a word
"These are beautiful, Danny. Thank you."
"You're welcome," Danny replied, kissing her and setting the card on the table, away from their food. "I'm glad you're enjoying them."
As they started to eat, CJ asked, "Why did you start writing them?"
"Writer's curse," he answered glibly. At CJ's suspicious look, he added, "Last year when I was working on the Shareef story, you asked me what I was writing –"
"You said, 'A volume of springtime Haiku!'"
"Yes, and then I just couldn't get it out of my head. Haiku started forming, unbidden, in my mind – not at all what I needed while trying to write about Shareef – so I started keeping a notebook of them. And then, when it sounded like you'd date me, I got the nice paper and started copying them."
"How many have you written?" When Danny only shrugged, CJ insisted, "I've already found like two dozen."
Without meeting her eyes, he confessed, "I've supplied Carol and Josh each with three or four dozen. Poems, you know – not all of them are Haiku. And I have a feeling we're going to have to ask Josh to rediscover some of his or else they'll remain hidden until, like, two Administrations down the road." They both laughed a little at this.
"They're lovely, Danny. Why are you embarrassed about this?"
"I didn't think so many people would know about them and read or hear them."
CJ stared at him in amazement, eyes wide. "For years he has had articles published almost daily in major newspapers with huge circulation not to mention they're archived for posterity, he wrote a very popular book – and he's embarrassed because a few dozen people know he also writes poetry."
"I know it's dumb."
"It's not dumb. It's sweet." CJ thought for a moment. "And even though I stand up there and talk to a bunch of reporters every day, I don't know if I'd be okay if they started asking me questions about my sex life. Not that I've had one recently, but I keep hoping," she added with a smirk.
"So do I," Danny agreed.
This time they didn't get even a brief kiss before there was a knock at the door followed by the sound of someone struggling with the doorknob. CJ rushed to open it and a rather put-out looking Toby announced, "You need to have someone from maintenance look at that!"
"It was locked, Toby."
Toby looked over at the sofa and saw Danny sitting with a plate of food on his lap. "Oh. Sorry. We have to go to work, CJ." At that moment, Danny's pager went off. "That'll be your notice to come to the White House, Danny. CJ'll see you in the briefing room in a bit."
---
3:36 a.m. Friday, March 26
When Danny awoke and saw the clock, he realized he'd only been in bed for three hours. And he doubted he'd be getting back to sleep. After a moment's consideration, he reached for the phone.
"CJ," answered a sleepy voice.
"Hey."
"Hey," she replied in a friendly tone.
"You scolded me once for not calling you in the middle of the night."
"What's up?"
Danny ignored the urge to tease her. "I had a dream."
"Was it a nice dream?"
"A very nice dream. We were in bed together."
"Were we naked – 'cause I've been having that dream."
"No. Our jackets and shoes were off, but we were just kissing, rolling around, holding each other."
"Hum." CJ sighed. "Too anxious for contact to bother taking clothes off?"
"Yeah."
"I don't think that's what's going to happen."
"Maybe not the first time, but we have a whole lifetime ahead of us." He could tell from CJ's breathing that she was sleepy. "I'll hang up and let you go back to sleep."
"Danny."
"Yeah."
"Thanks for calling."
"Go back to sleep."
---
It was still early, not yet 7, when Danny arrived at the White House and went to greet CJ. "Morning."
She smiled as she turned to meet him. "Again." They kissed briefly despite her hands being full of papers.
"Did you sleep well?"
"Yeah, you put a very nice image in my mind. I had sweet dreams."
"I'm glad."
CJ noticed Danny wasn't looking so well rested, "Did you get back to sleep?"
"No, I couldn't. Got up and showered and stuff."
"Would that stuff have included writing more of these?" CJ withdrew a honeydew parchment that was peeking out of one of the files she was looking through.
Picnic in the park Cherry petals in her hair I try not to stare
"Maybe."
CJ looked at her watch. "I have about ten minutes before Senior Staff, and I'm all ready. Want to walk on the North Lawn a bit?"
Danny smiled and joked, "So we can drive Toby even more nuts?"
CJ laughed a little. "Don't worry about him." They walked in silence, enjoying being outdoors together in the crisp early spring air, trees budding around them, occasionally glancing at each other to exchange smiles, sometimes aware that they could be seen from the street.
Ten minutes later, their walk ended as Carol approached them and handed CJ the folder she'd need for her meeting. "You need to go now."
"Yeah. I'll see you both later."
---
It was almost noon when Charlie brought Danny a note asking him to go to CJ's office. "Charlie, surely Carol doesn't have you running her errands?"
"No," Charlie replied quietly and somewhat mysteriously. "Go now."
Danny stepped out of the press area just in time to join the president's entourage which also seemed to be headed towards CJ's office. "Danny, come in," the president encouraged, holding out his hand, then closing the door behind them. "CJ, have you seen this yet?" From the blank look on her face, he surmised not. "It's the Enquirer. Something like this was bound to happen sooner or later. Probably a telephoto lens – I wouldn't have thought even that would work. Time for more landscaping."
CJ and Danny had moved together, taken the "newspaper" from the president, and were looking in shock at the picture on the front page. CJ explained, "Well, this was clearly last night. And a telephoto lens wouldn't have been sufficient alone. Someone must have taken multiple pictures and digitally overlaid them to remove foreground stuff like the window panes and blinds – even though they're open, you can see them," she added, gesturing towards the window.
"Yeah," the president agreed. "From now on when you and Danny are going to share a few passionate kisses on the couch, make sure the outdoor blinds are closed."
"Right."
"It's not like anyone is upset about this, CJ. I just didn't want to you hear about it first in your press room. Speaking of the press room, I hear they gave you a box for your poems."
"Yes," CJ admitted, picking up the box to show the president.
After commenting on the historical roots of carved boxes and the particular style of inlaid rose, he opened the cover. "Wow, you have quite a few of these." Then picking up the two that didn't want to lie flat the way the others did, he asked, "What happened to these – particularly this one?" he held up the taped-together poem by its corner.
"The rolled one Josh put in a bottle and the other one I tore up one morning when I was in a bad mood."
"Well, I'm glad you weren't mad at me." The president replaced the poems, closed the box and handed it back to CJ. "Leo actually thinks this Enquirer thing will be good for public opinion. Not that that matters. Anyway, if there's anything either of you would like to talk to me about or ask me, let me know."
CJ stared at the president uncomprehendingly for a moment, and then decided to take the bait. "Actually, Mr. President, I was wondering if you could tell me something."
"Shoot."
"When a man and a woman love each other –"
"I'm out of here," the president announced, realizing that he had walked right into that.
"But –"
"CJ, I have it on very good authority that you don't need anyone to tell you anything about sex."
Now Danny looked confused. "Whose?"
"Hers," the president answered immediately pointing to CJ. Seeing the opportunity to turn the tables on her, he added, "She hasn't warned you? Son, I hope you're in excellent physical condition," and he turned and left before either of them could say any more.
"You've been talking with the president about your sexual prowess?" Danny asked, sounding highly interested.
"Once, a long time ago, I said a thing in mixed company, and I was afraid it would come out in the papers, so, yeah, I told the whole senior staff, and when they asked why I said it, I said it was true." CJ was quite red in the face by this time.
"What's true?"
"That I'm great in bed," CJ said lightly as she left.
---
CJ had been too busy to see Danny the rest of the day, and had even had a dinner meeting. So the next time Danny walked towards CJ's office, he was in his tux, going to get her for the First Lady's birthday party. He noticed that now ALL the shades for her office were closed and wondered what she had in mind for him. Knocking on the door, he said, "CJ, it's Danny."
The door opened slightly, "Come in."
When he did, the door closed and locked immediately behind him, and he could see why. "You change clothes in your office?" he asked hoarsely. "I think I'm glad I never knew that before."
"Oh please. I have bare feet and my zipper's not all the way up, but it's not like I'm indecent."
"But you were just a minute ago, weren't you?"
"I was in my underwear," CJ admitted with a shrug and a dismissive wave. "I have bathing suits that cover less than that, though. Could you help with the zipper?"
"Okay. When do I get to see you in these bathing suits?" Danny easily fastened the dress.
"Soon," CJ promised, turning to kiss him. At a knock on the door, CJ reluctantly pulled away and opened it. For Josh.
"Hey guys, the First Lady asked me to stop by and make sure you made it to the party."
"Remind me to thank her," CJ said sarcastically as she took Danny by the hand and led the two men out of her office and towards the party.
"Oh, you'll want to especially thank her for asking Leo and Toby to make sure you make it home safely and alone tonight."
"What am I, sixteen?"
"I hear you asked the president a question that would suggest that maybe you're younger than that."
CJ rolled her eyes and they went to enjoy the party, CJ trailing two men behind her.
---
Hours later, CJ decided that though she hadn't know what to expect at the birthday party, this degree of public scrutiny wasn't it. Not that she was unused to being in the public eye, but she felt guilty that they seemed to be drawing more attention than the guest of honor. "Mrs. Bartlet," CJ began.
"Abbey," the First Lady corrected firmly.
"Abbey, I hope you know I haven't been trying to steal the limelight tonight."
Abbey glanced around looking concerned. "Watch your mouth, Claudia! If my husband had heard you, we would all now be enduring a lecture on the invention, drawbacks, and historical importance of limelight."
"Already heard it."
"You think that would stop him?"
"Point taken."
"CJ, I've encouraged people to pay attention to you and Danny tonight. This is a relatively closed party, and Danny might not have been aware of the degree of scrutiny to expect. Plus I ALWAYS ask Jed not to do a big thing for my birthday, but he always does, anyway."
"Oh. Okay."
"Go dance one last with Danny and then I'll have Leo and Toby take you home." CJ glared, but did as she was told.
Author: soft lite.
Poetry written by CJ Clanton
Characters: CJ, Danny, Abbey, Gail, Carol, Toby, Charlie, and Jed.
Rating: G.
Disclaimer: Characters from "The West Wing" are not mine. Monopoly isn't mine, either.
Spoilers: Through Season 5's "The Warfare of Genghis Khan." Archive: If you want to.
Author's note: A big thank you to CJ Clanton for volunteering to write poetry for this story! At long last, I may write the game of Monopoly that Spooky asked for long ago. Thanks also to Athena for discussing conflict of interest and what it's like to be in the public eye with me…ya'll can blame or thank her ;P for some pieces of this part. Which is NOT to say that I'm going to deal fully or realistically with conflict of interest…you've been warned.
Thursday, March 25, 2004
CJ was delighted to hear his voice so early in the morning. "It was already morning," he stated as though they were in the middle of a conversation. She rose and went to him as he entered and closed the door, and when they met, their fingers twined and their lips united.
But only briefly, because the door opened and the First Lady walked in, holding up a piece of swan gray parchment.
How can she not see When she looks into my eyes Things I cannot say
She recited the Haiku from memory as she closed the door. "I would think you two would want to keep closer tabs on these things."
Although they had stopped kissing when she entered, they had not moved away from each other. Instead, when their fingers disentangled, each put an arm around the other and CJ reached for the poem. "Thank you for bringing it down, Mrs. Bartlet. I'm sorry it got mixed into the President's papers – Josh thinks it's fun to see me find them during staff meetings."
"When we're alone and talking about personal matters, you can call me Abbey. Remember? I can imagine that it would be fun to see you talking about peace in the Middle East and suddenly turn the page to find a poem about dating without dating or communicating without words."
"Yeah, it's real fun," CJ said dryly and with a hint of irritation in her voice. "So is wondering whether Josh knows anything at all about how to not kill Gail," CJ commented, pointing towards the fishbowl.
Danny and Abbey both looked to see a slightly-too-big-for-a-bowl-ornament bottle sticking from the gravel at the bottom of the fishbowl up a couple inches above the rim. Inside was a not-too-neatly rolled piece of pale turquoise parchment. Gail was swimming around it, looking more crowded than she was accustomed to. Abbey laughed. Danny didn't. "Hey, what's he trying to do to Gail?" Danny complained as he pulled his handkerchief out of his pocket and the bottle out of the bowl.
"Obviously he doesn't have a good sense of scale," CJ commented with a smirk.
"Men never do," Abbey agreed.
Danny decided to ignore their goading. "This is Josh we're talking about – we should be glad it's not a beer bottle."
CJ took the bottle from Danny, considered it for a moment, and then asked, "What are the chances we're going to be able to pull that parchment out of there?"
"Zero," Abbey observed. "Give it to me. I do this professionally now." She took the bottle and smacked it on the inside of CJ's trash can. Pleased when it broke easily, she observed, "Much better than a bottle of champagne." Gingerly, she picked up the parchment and inspected it to make sure no glass was attached.
Dripping on the floor Another trip in the pool Turn your head, Fishboy
Wryly but with laughter in her eyes, Abbey asked, "So CJ, which one of them gets the doghouse first?"
CJ smiled and declared, "Always Josh, Abbey, always Josh. Besides, the doghouse isn't where I want Danny."
Abbey smiled knowingly as Danny blushed. "Oh CJ," Abbey asked just before opening the door to leave. "Have you asked Danny what dress he'd like to see you wearing tomorrow night?"
"Not exactly," CJ hedged.
Danny could see CJ's discomfort and remembered what CJ had told him about the First Lady's feelings about the gray dress. "How about the one from the Inauguration?"
"Which one?" CJ and Abbey asked together, smiling at each other.
"The second," Danny replied without hesitation.
CJ continued smiling and shrugged, and Abbey nodded and raised her eyebrows. "Good choice. I'll see you tomorrow night, Danny. I expect a dance."
"Yes, ma'am."
---
Finally today, CJ had a bit of time in the mid-afternoon to talk with Danny. "I've been thinking that we always get interrupted, even when we don't have a chaperone." She slowly ran her fingers up and down his suspenders under his jacket as she spoke.
"Well, yeah," Danny agreed. "But isn't that what we expected?"
"I guess," CJ admitted with a smile, allowing him to pull her closer. "I know my job is demanding and my colleagues and yours are persistent, but. . . ." CJ paused to think about how Danny would react. "Would you like to come with me to my brother's house on Saturday night? We do a dinner and board game thing as regularly as we can. This month it's pot roast and Monopoly. It would be him, his wife, their daughter, and us."
Danny's enthusiasm sounded a little forced when he agreed, "Sure." After a hesitation, he added, "What does that have to do with being interrupted?"
"My brother and his family aren't going to care if we kiss, you know, as long as we don't do anything their teenage daughter shouldn't see. They might even leave us alone for a while." CJ tried to reach for a kiss.
Danny was catching on. "And in their house, no reporters would see, and if you're taking me to meet your brother, your colleagues are only going to call if it's super important."
"Exactly."
"Sounds fabulous," and now Danny, too, moved for a kiss.
As if on cue, there was a knock on the door and Carol peeked in. "Sorry to interrupt. CJ, the president wants you."
As CJ drew away from him, Danny commented in a low voice, "He's not the only one."
CJ playfully slapped him as she left. "See you at dinnertime."
"Okay."
---
As Danny approached CJ's office, he was pleasantly surprised to see that half of her shades were closed: those over the sofa were still wide open, as was her door. "Hi Danny," Carol greeted him with a smile, and, picking up some take out containers. "Come on in." She led him in, put the food on the table, and, as she was leaving commented, "Take some time off, CJ."
CJ looked up and smiled at both of them. "Okay. Just a minute."
Carol closed the door as she left. Danny sat down on the sofa. A moment later, CJ finished typing, went to lock the door, and then joined him. "Oh, I like this," Danny reached for CJ, pulling her close. And for once they were not interrupted. After a long and satisfying kiss, they parted, and Danny pointed out, "The food's getting cold."
"Yeah." CJ smiled into his eyes for a moment. "Let's eat."
"Okay."
Carol had neatly stacked each meal with its napkin and silverware, and left a surprise that CJ found when she tried to spread her napkin on her lap: a lilac parchment.
In the Rose Garden Her finger brushes my hand Neither speaks a word
"These are beautiful, Danny. Thank you."
"You're welcome," Danny replied, kissing her and setting the card on the table, away from their food. "I'm glad you're enjoying them."
As they started to eat, CJ asked, "Why did you start writing them?"
"Writer's curse," he answered glibly. At CJ's suspicious look, he added, "Last year when I was working on the Shareef story, you asked me what I was writing –"
"You said, 'A volume of springtime Haiku!'"
"Yes, and then I just couldn't get it out of my head. Haiku started forming, unbidden, in my mind – not at all what I needed while trying to write about Shareef – so I started keeping a notebook of them. And then, when it sounded like you'd date me, I got the nice paper and started copying them."
"How many have you written?" When Danny only shrugged, CJ insisted, "I've already found like two dozen."
Without meeting her eyes, he confessed, "I've supplied Carol and Josh each with three or four dozen. Poems, you know – not all of them are Haiku. And I have a feeling we're going to have to ask Josh to rediscover some of his or else they'll remain hidden until, like, two Administrations down the road." They both laughed a little at this.
"They're lovely, Danny. Why are you embarrassed about this?"
"I didn't think so many people would know about them and read or hear them."
CJ stared at him in amazement, eyes wide. "For years he has had articles published almost daily in major newspapers with huge circulation not to mention they're archived for posterity, he wrote a very popular book – and he's embarrassed because a few dozen people know he also writes poetry."
"I know it's dumb."
"It's not dumb. It's sweet." CJ thought for a moment. "And even though I stand up there and talk to a bunch of reporters every day, I don't know if I'd be okay if they started asking me questions about my sex life. Not that I've had one recently, but I keep hoping," she added with a smirk.
"So do I," Danny agreed.
This time they didn't get even a brief kiss before there was a knock at the door followed by the sound of someone struggling with the doorknob. CJ rushed to open it and a rather put-out looking Toby announced, "You need to have someone from maintenance look at that!"
"It was locked, Toby."
Toby looked over at the sofa and saw Danny sitting with a plate of food on his lap. "Oh. Sorry. We have to go to work, CJ." At that moment, Danny's pager went off. "That'll be your notice to come to the White House, Danny. CJ'll see you in the briefing room in a bit."
---
3:36 a.m. Friday, March 26
When Danny awoke and saw the clock, he realized he'd only been in bed for three hours. And he doubted he'd be getting back to sleep. After a moment's consideration, he reached for the phone.
"CJ," answered a sleepy voice.
"Hey."
"Hey," she replied in a friendly tone.
"You scolded me once for not calling you in the middle of the night."
"What's up?"
Danny ignored the urge to tease her. "I had a dream."
"Was it a nice dream?"
"A very nice dream. We were in bed together."
"Were we naked – 'cause I've been having that dream."
"No. Our jackets and shoes were off, but we were just kissing, rolling around, holding each other."
"Hum." CJ sighed. "Too anxious for contact to bother taking clothes off?"
"Yeah."
"I don't think that's what's going to happen."
"Maybe not the first time, but we have a whole lifetime ahead of us." He could tell from CJ's breathing that she was sleepy. "I'll hang up and let you go back to sleep."
"Danny."
"Yeah."
"Thanks for calling."
"Go back to sleep."
---
It was still early, not yet 7, when Danny arrived at the White House and went to greet CJ. "Morning."
She smiled as she turned to meet him. "Again." They kissed briefly despite her hands being full of papers.
"Did you sleep well?"
"Yeah, you put a very nice image in my mind. I had sweet dreams."
"I'm glad."
CJ noticed Danny wasn't looking so well rested, "Did you get back to sleep?"
"No, I couldn't. Got up and showered and stuff."
"Would that stuff have included writing more of these?" CJ withdrew a honeydew parchment that was peeking out of one of the files she was looking through.
Picnic in the park Cherry petals in her hair I try not to stare
"Maybe."
CJ looked at her watch. "I have about ten minutes before Senior Staff, and I'm all ready. Want to walk on the North Lawn a bit?"
Danny smiled and joked, "So we can drive Toby even more nuts?"
CJ laughed a little. "Don't worry about him." They walked in silence, enjoying being outdoors together in the crisp early spring air, trees budding around them, occasionally glancing at each other to exchange smiles, sometimes aware that they could be seen from the street.
Ten minutes later, their walk ended as Carol approached them and handed CJ the folder she'd need for her meeting. "You need to go now."
"Yeah. I'll see you both later."
---
It was almost noon when Charlie brought Danny a note asking him to go to CJ's office. "Charlie, surely Carol doesn't have you running her errands?"
"No," Charlie replied quietly and somewhat mysteriously. "Go now."
Danny stepped out of the press area just in time to join the president's entourage which also seemed to be headed towards CJ's office. "Danny, come in," the president encouraged, holding out his hand, then closing the door behind them. "CJ, have you seen this yet?" From the blank look on her face, he surmised not. "It's the Enquirer. Something like this was bound to happen sooner or later. Probably a telephoto lens – I wouldn't have thought even that would work. Time for more landscaping."
CJ and Danny had moved together, taken the "newspaper" from the president, and were looking in shock at the picture on the front page. CJ explained, "Well, this was clearly last night. And a telephoto lens wouldn't have been sufficient alone. Someone must have taken multiple pictures and digitally overlaid them to remove foreground stuff like the window panes and blinds – even though they're open, you can see them," she added, gesturing towards the window.
"Yeah," the president agreed. "From now on when you and Danny are going to share a few passionate kisses on the couch, make sure the outdoor blinds are closed."
"Right."
"It's not like anyone is upset about this, CJ. I just didn't want to you hear about it first in your press room. Speaking of the press room, I hear they gave you a box for your poems."
"Yes," CJ admitted, picking up the box to show the president.
After commenting on the historical roots of carved boxes and the particular style of inlaid rose, he opened the cover. "Wow, you have quite a few of these." Then picking up the two that didn't want to lie flat the way the others did, he asked, "What happened to these – particularly this one?" he held up the taped-together poem by its corner.
"The rolled one Josh put in a bottle and the other one I tore up one morning when I was in a bad mood."
"Well, I'm glad you weren't mad at me." The president replaced the poems, closed the box and handed it back to CJ. "Leo actually thinks this Enquirer thing will be good for public opinion. Not that that matters. Anyway, if there's anything either of you would like to talk to me about or ask me, let me know."
CJ stared at the president uncomprehendingly for a moment, and then decided to take the bait. "Actually, Mr. President, I was wondering if you could tell me something."
"Shoot."
"When a man and a woman love each other –"
"I'm out of here," the president announced, realizing that he had walked right into that.
"But –"
"CJ, I have it on very good authority that you don't need anyone to tell you anything about sex."
Now Danny looked confused. "Whose?"
"Hers," the president answered immediately pointing to CJ. Seeing the opportunity to turn the tables on her, he added, "She hasn't warned you? Son, I hope you're in excellent physical condition," and he turned and left before either of them could say any more.
"You've been talking with the president about your sexual prowess?" Danny asked, sounding highly interested.
"Once, a long time ago, I said a thing in mixed company, and I was afraid it would come out in the papers, so, yeah, I told the whole senior staff, and when they asked why I said it, I said it was true." CJ was quite red in the face by this time.
"What's true?"
"That I'm great in bed," CJ said lightly as she left.
---
CJ had been too busy to see Danny the rest of the day, and had even had a dinner meeting. So the next time Danny walked towards CJ's office, he was in his tux, going to get her for the First Lady's birthday party. He noticed that now ALL the shades for her office were closed and wondered what she had in mind for him. Knocking on the door, he said, "CJ, it's Danny."
The door opened slightly, "Come in."
When he did, the door closed and locked immediately behind him, and he could see why. "You change clothes in your office?" he asked hoarsely. "I think I'm glad I never knew that before."
"Oh please. I have bare feet and my zipper's not all the way up, but it's not like I'm indecent."
"But you were just a minute ago, weren't you?"
"I was in my underwear," CJ admitted with a shrug and a dismissive wave. "I have bathing suits that cover less than that, though. Could you help with the zipper?"
"Okay. When do I get to see you in these bathing suits?" Danny easily fastened the dress.
"Soon," CJ promised, turning to kiss him. At a knock on the door, CJ reluctantly pulled away and opened it. For Josh.
"Hey guys, the First Lady asked me to stop by and make sure you made it to the party."
"Remind me to thank her," CJ said sarcastically as she took Danny by the hand and led the two men out of her office and towards the party.
"Oh, you'll want to especially thank her for asking Leo and Toby to make sure you make it home safely and alone tonight."
"What am I, sixteen?"
"I hear you asked the president a question that would suggest that maybe you're younger than that."
CJ rolled her eyes and they went to enjoy the party, CJ trailing two men behind her.
---
Hours later, CJ decided that though she hadn't know what to expect at the birthday party, this degree of public scrutiny wasn't it. Not that she was unused to being in the public eye, but she felt guilty that they seemed to be drawing more attention than the guest of honor. "Mrs. Bartlet," CJ began.
"Abbey," the First Lady corrected firmly.
"Abbey, I hope you know I haven't been trying to steal the limelight tonight."
Abbey glanced around looking concerned. "Watch your mouth, Claudia! If my husband had heard you, we would all now be enduring a lecture on the invention, drawbacks, and historical importance of limelight."
"Already heard it."
"You think that would stop him?"
"Point taken."
"CJ, I've encouraged people to pay attention to you and Danny tonight. This is a relatively closed party, and Danny might not have been aware of the degree of scrutiny to expect. Plus I ALWAYS ask Jed not to do a big thing for my birthday, but he always does, anyway."
"Oh. Okay."
"Go dance one last with Danny and then I'll have Leo and Toby take you home." CJ glared, but did as she was told.