A/N: Thank you to everyone who has reviews. There have been some extra kind people like Angel Marie1 and Lystelle who just found my fic and read it through and I appreciate it. Both of you have excellent works that I am hoping to see more of.
And thanks to Holly...who has some of the best Buffy fics out there (Holly4) and some of the best writing I have ever seen. (Can you tell that she is also my best friend and my generous beta-er?)
And thank you all for sticking through this story and my erratic posting habits. It's just hard to stay on a schedule.
For some reason I was having bad vibes about this chapter and how the story is going in general. I don't know, I guess I'm just weird.
If there is any truth to my worries or you see something you don't like or is wrong, feel free to email or IM me and set me straight. On that note I will shut up and let everyone enjoy this.
Chapter Fifteen
As the day drew to a close, Donna was more than relieved to make her way home. It had just been awkward to be around Joshua Lyman today and all she could hope for was that tomorrow would improve.
She knew that Josh had tried his best to get her out by five, but when Leo put a six-thirty meeting on the schedule, both were resigned to the fact that they were completely out of luck. But it wasn't all bad; she was still getting home before nine.
"I hope you left me something good to eat," she called out as she made her way through the door. She was starved and hoping that Dawn had already ordered some dinner. The sight she encountered helped in suppressing her appetite.
Sam Seaborn was standing in the middle of her bathroom doorway. In a robe. Just a robe. Just a pink robe.
Just her pink robe.
"Sam?"
He had the look of a deer caught in the headlights. "I assure you that there is a perfectly feasible explanation as to why I am dressed this way."
"You like to get cleaned up after you screw my roommate?"
She could tell that Sam was too horrified to speak and as she saw Dawn's expression as she slowly emerged from the bedroom, Donna knew that a moment would be needed.
"He…spilt soy sauce on his pants while we were eating dinner."
"Soy sauce?" She tried biting her cheek to keep the smirk from coming through, but she figured that was unsuccessful.
Sam raised a hand to speak. "Donna, I--"
Donna did a similar gesture to stop him. "Sam. Don't." She sighed and realized that there hadn't even had been the chance to put her purse down. She cast it on the nearest piece of furniture. "Guys, I don't care what you two do as long as you think of the implications." A long pause. "I know that sounds bad coming from me of all people, but I mean it with love and concern."
Both Sam and Dawn relaxed enough to chuckle. "We know."
Dawn came and placed her hand in her boyfriend's. "Me and Sam have talked and I think that we've reached an agreement."
"We want a relationship and we don't care to hide it."
Donna was overjoyed. "Really?"
"We know that my age is going to play a bit of a problem with Sam's publicity."
"Also the fact that she might get bothered more than she should. The press and me in general might interfere with her studies."
Dawn gave him an adoring look. "Which we don't want but agree is a sacrifice worth taking. Also, we know that my family is an issue."
"Dawn is afraid that if anyone does enough research they may see that they are a bit…on the side of quirky."
"They're freaks," Dawn said unabashedly. "Also we know that they will give Sam trouble once they find out we're an item."
"Zack and Will?" Donna questioned.
Sam cast his eyes downward in mournful despair. "Spike."
"And my sister too. But I'm sure that it will be her husband that takes the cake."
With a sad sigh, Sam looked away once again. "Spike."
"Anyways…we decided that we don't care if people know, but that we want to keep it low-key right now."
"You guys have done a lot of thinking about this," Donna observed.
Sam shook himself out of his impending ass-kicking slump. "We truly have. Dawn and I have decided that those close to us…aside from her family who we want to keep far far away, will know. The guys at the White House know, so we don't need to go advertising. Since no one is after me…in a political sense, we feel that the story will be kept for awhile."
Donna was utterly giddy. She ran over to hug both of them. "This is wonderful." She had to pause to get in a good tease of Sam. "So this means that I should plan on you spending more nights here, eh?"
"We can stay at Sam's place."
"No. I don't mind," Donna openly admitted. "As long as you two stay quiet enough for me to get to sleep, then you can go at it all you want."
Dawn blushed and Sam commented. "Sounds good to me."
"As long as there's some dinner in that fridge, you two can start up right now in the living room floor for all I care."
"Donna!" Dawn looked as bright as a cherry.
"There's some Chinese," Sam added.
As Donna bounded off to the other room she called over her shoulder. "Just buy me a new bathrobe, Mr. Congressman."
Sam was undeniably happy as he sat in his Washington office. Things in his life were about as good as he ever banked on them getting. He was doing well in his new job-even looking at how well he would fair in re-election-along with aspects of his personal life. He was getting along better than ever before with Donna and though he had been a little distant with Josh, there had been an ultra-smooth transition between them when it came time for him to take office. He couldn't be more pleased. Then, along came Dawn.
Dawnie.
Ever since that first night where they threw common sense out the window, things had been going strong. Though her age was a serious factor- she was twenty-two and he was, as she stated, "so incredibly not"-they could get by. No other scandals were attached unless they looked very, very closely at her family. So they did not care to be secretive. They just wanted to keep it low-key.
For good reasons. To avoid said family and also avoid the craziness which was the Washington press cycle. One never knew how they would handle an issue or another and Sam really had no desire to find out.
So he decided to cast the thought aside and go about more pleasant things. Like how happy he was. Or the fact that he currently had absolutely nothing to do but sit in his office and look online for bathrobes. He thought that it was an endearing gesture to a good friend with a few issues.
When Bonnie opened his door he was muttering to himself. "Well…turquoise just isn't her color…I don't think."
She arched her brows. "Sam?" He looked up at her. "Josh is on line one."
"Excellent," he said with the smile that made Bonnie forget that she was about to ask what he was looking at. He grabbed the phone. "Hey."
"Hey."
Josh didn't sound nearly as chipper as he was. That was never good. He toned down his glee. "Everything going alright on your end of the federal government?"
Josh was slow responding. "Yeah. Things at work are fine. I just…" Josh knew that he should keep Donna's confidence because he figured that she wasn't prepared to start bragging on her illegitimate child. That's why he reasoned that Sam was the only one he could talk to. Sam no longer worked with them so he didn't feel like it would affect her that much. "Donna talked to me yesterday."
"It's really amazing when assistants actually verbalize to you. It makes you begin to wonder how they could work there everyday without doing so."
"Shut up." He didn't mean for it to sound quite as snippy as it came out, but he had a lot on his mind. Then when he figured in all his work too, there was just about too much for concentration. "No, I mean that she told me something."
"What?" Then it dawned on him. Donna told Josh about everything yesterday.
"Donna told me a secret."
Sam tried to hide the humor in his voice, but this was too adorable. "Josh, do you have a secret and you can't tell me? 'Cause I have to say that more and more this conversation is reminding me of something I experienced in the third grade."
"Donna…Donna is pregnant."
"Well that isn't third grade at all," he mumbled. Sam was then silent a moment. He was trying to read the man on the other line's reaction. "How did you take it?"
"Shocked. How are you taking it?"
"Well, I admit that I'm utterly surprised by the whole situation."
"Not only is Donna pregnant, but the father wants nothing to do with the baby."
"Really?" Now he could act shocked.
"Yeah. Donna told me so."
"The guy doesn't want the baby?"
"Donna said that it was decided that it wasn't in the best interest of the father to announce that he is the…father."
"So maybe he does want to take care of the baby, but it's been decided that they shouldn't do it publicly."
"He's a prick! If she would give me his name I would kick his ass right now."
Sam knew that he shouldn't, but he was grinning. This was classic. Josh wanted to go and kick his own ass. "Sounds like Donna didn't want you to go act irrationally with the paternal information."
"I would," Josh admitted in defeat.
"I know," he said in a low tone.
It took a moment of silence for Josh to realize that Sam didn't act like he had banked on. Then it dawned on him. "Did Donna tell you already?"
"What?"
"That she was pregnant?"
His tone went slightly higher than desired. "Why would you say that, Josh?"
His feeling of defeat was now replaced by silent anger. He was mad at her for telling Sam before him and he was mad at Sam for not telling him. "She did."
As he ran a hand through his dark hair, he knew that he couldn't lie to his best friend. "I was there when she got the news."
"Who's the father?"
Now Sam's mind was reeling. Why did he just jump a very big ravine into assuming that he knew that information? Sam settled on the sad fact that it was because he did. "Josh…"
"I know that you know, now because you didn't immediately deny. Tell me, Sam."
"I think that Donna was right on that one. It would be best for Donna, you, the father." He was pleased for his subtle word choice there. "As well as my own personal safety if I would just not answer that."
"Your own personal safety?"
"Donna would kill me."
There was a long silence. Then Josh spoke. "Do I know him?"
Sam sighed. He should just hang up. Why don't I just hang up? "Yeah…you do."
"You know him?"
"Quite well."
"Do I like him?"
Sam snorted. "Honestly, not really, but yes. You do have a penchant for this fellow."
"Is he being selfish in his career?"
"Just like Donna is in her own. Revealing the information will more than likely get her fired. Scandals will arise and then this child will grow up knowing that it ruined their parent's careers. Donna doesn't want anyone to experience that."
Josh was feeling betrayed. He really felt like the scorned lover. "You and Donna have talked a lot about this."
"Yeah. She likes for me and Dawn to listen to her as she tries to reason this."
"Does she think this is actually good reasoning?!"
The dark haired man took a deep breath and hoped that the act would produce his friend to do the same. It did. "Josh, she's really looking out for the father with this. More than I think she should, but it's her decision and as the mother, she gets the say."
"Yeah." Bitter couldn't even describe him at the moment.
"I advise that you don't take this out on Donna. She needs you right now. She needs you."
Josh Lyman's world was collapsing around him more than he ever thought possible. Sam said that she needed him. He figured that she didn't need him when she found out. Or when she reasoned everything. Or when she made this baby.
But he needed her. He needed her. As a tear rolled down his cheek, he finally realized how much. "Yeah," he managed when he felt stable enough to speak.
"Good. I knew that Donna could count on you."
Josh just wasn't sure on whom he could count on anymore.
