DISCLAIMER: Same as before, all non-West Wing characters are mine, and obviously the rest belongs to Sorkin.

NOTES: Thanks for the feedback, I really appreciate. Sorry for the delay on this chapter, but I hope you like it.

…

Sam wandered through the halls absent-mindedly, still in a daze after leaving the President's office. His mind was reeling after everything that had gone on that afternoon, and a bombardment of thoughts wouldn't cease. Andree had come out of no where, falling back into his life just as quickly as she had left it. How long had it been since that day on the Hill? Weeks? Maybe months. It felt like just yesterday…

…

Bright and early the next morning Sam was sitting at a corner table down in the Mess. An empty plate sat before him, scattered with crumbs. They were the remains of toast and eggs that he had ordered about thirty minutes ago. Now here he was, reading through the Sports section of the Wall Street Journal for the third time. He hardly noticed the arrival of another person at the table. It wasn't until Sam heard a voice that he looked up from the newspaper.

"Sam, I'm so sorry I'm late." Colonel McCallister slid into the chair opposite the speechwriter, glancing down at his abandoned plate, "My briefing went a little longer than expected." Her gaze shifted up to his eyes, which held no emotion. This scared Andree, as she fully expected to hear his objections.

"That's okay. I waited for you for months, what's a few more minutes?" the sarcasm flowing in his words chipped away at Andy's defenses. How was it that this man always seemed to know the right buttons to push?

"I've already tried to explain what happened to you on Capitol Hill. You obviously didn't hear me." She snapped back, more so to reinforce her convictions, if anything.

"It was just a front and you know it." Seaborn's voice was harsh but calm as he kept reading the paper.

"Sam, please, listen to me…" she started.

"No, you listen to me," he slammed the paper down on the table, knocking over the empty glass. Andree winced slightly at the sound of hard plastic hitting the floor, "I didn't deserve what you did to me, Andy. You left me standing there without any explanation as to why you were leaving. One phone call and then you were never to be heard from again. But here you are, all of a sudden."

"My career…" again, Andree tried to explain.

"I don't care about your career!" his voice rose slightly, but Sam saw the look in her eyes and stopped, "I didn't care about your career." He folded the newspaper and tucked it under his arm. Standing up, Sam pushed in the chair and turned to walk away. Before he did, though, he stopped. Looking back at her from the corner of his eye, Sam's voice was soft and quiet, "I cared about you." Without another word he walked out of the Mess, leaving Andree there to think about what had just happened.

A few minutes passed and McCallister hadn't moved. Her eyes were fixated on the door in which Sam had just left. The line of sight was impeded when a man stepped in front of her. Andy shook her head to see the same man pass by. Realizing the time, she stood and fumbling with the chair, managed to push it in to the table before leaving.

…

Again, Andree was walking up the front stoop of the apartment building where Josh Lyman lived. She was hoping beyond hope that this meeting would go better than the one from the day prior. More so because this was her first official day of duty and she'd be spending a lot more than a few minutes with the man. Standing on the top step she found the correct apartment number and rang the buzzer. A few moments passed before Josh's voice came over the speaker.

"Yeah?"

"Mr. Lyman, its Colonel McCallister." She waited a beat and pushed open the door once granted access. With a steady pace she walked up the stairs and made her way to the apartment door. Andy was let in with a quick response to her knock.

Opening the door she saw that the living room was a bit tidier than the day before and even the attached kitchen was clean. When she entered, Josh was no where to be seen, but the noise coming from the bedroom told her where he was. She set her stuff down on a kitchen chair and walked back into the living room. Andree was looking out the window when he came into the room.

"Sorry about that." Josh walked into the kitchen and grabbed a pitcher of juice out of the refrigerator. "Would you like anything to drink?" he looked up at her, reaching for the glasses in a nearby cabinet.

"Water will be fine, thank you." She watched as he filled each glass. His mood seemed to be better. There was only one way to test that assumption.

"I'd like to discuss our schedule for the next week." Andy took the glass, all the while never taking her eyes from Josh's face, trying to read his emotions.

"Schedule?" Josh sat down and took a sip of his orange juice.

"Yes," McCallister took the seat across from him, feeling a little more comfortable now that Josh seemed more accepting of the situation, "My duty officially starts today, which means I'll be tailing you almost everywhere you go." She added in, "During the day, that is. There will be Secret Service detailed to your apartment at night."

A silence fell between them as Josh took in the information. He had realized last night after she left that his outburst was a result of being under pressure. This woman was there under orders, not of her own free will. There had been no need to be short. Josh had thought over what the Colonel had told him and decided to have a more open mind now.

"Alright." Josh took a breath and leaned back, "Well, for one, I'll be here for the next week. The doc said I could return to work on Monday." He folded his hands in his lap, a small grin spread across his face at the thought of returning to the White House.

"Okay, that's a start." Andy smiled as she stood. Walking over to the chair where she had left everything earlier, she pulled at a pad of paper and a pen. Sitting back down, McCallister settled in and wrote a few things on the lined paper. When she looked up she was surprised to see Josh staring at her. Andy was taken back by how dark his eyes were. They pierced her own, going down to her very core. Blinking a few times, she looked back down at the paper then back up. He was looking passed her and out the window now.

"Seeing as how we'll more than likely be here the rest of the week, let's start with next Monday." Scribbling on the paper, Andree listened as he re-iterated his schedule to her. She glanced up from time to time, trying to read his emotions, searching for any kind of signs to give her a hint as to his physical and mental state. It would be key in how she handled the way in which she would initiate her mission.