Disclaimer: see chapter 1
A/N: ok, so my map totally lied to me. Charleston SC - not as close as the map said it was. Sorry to anyone from the region. Thanks to Kristin over at JDFF at Yahoo for pointing that out to me. Also thanks to Mindy at JDFF at Yahoo for all the ideas about Charleston - her ideas are all over this story. Also, thanks to ghosts dot org for the info on the Gray Man. Apparently, it's true and if you ever in Charleston, you can take the tour yourself! I swear, this story is going somewhere, so just stick with me!

She glared at him over their pizza and beer. She had been trying to get into his head since they had arrived, but he was stumping her. He had been very un-Josh like since he showed up at her apartment this morning. He was relaxed and funny and attentive – it had been a long time, a very long time since she had seen this side of him. It's not that she didn't like it – she liked it a lot, but she was waiting for the other shoe to drop. He had spent a good 20 minutes chatting up Rhonda at the front desk, picking her brain about what they should do while they were in town. Normally a flirty 25 year old red head would have made her a little jealous – ok, a lot jealous, but he kept his arm securely around her shoulders they whole time they talked to Rhonda.

Rhonda had recommended this pizza place not too far from the mansion, so they headed out here. She was convinced he had lost his mind when he said that they should walk instead of driving. It was unseasonably warm for this time of year and he thought they should take advantage of it. Donna felt his forehead to make sure he didn't have a fever.

"Will you quit looking at me like that?" he said as he swallowed his beer.

"Like what?"

"Like I've been invested by the pod people and you are trying to figure out if you're next."

"I wasn't…" He cocked his head and raised his eyebrows, effectively cutting her off. "Ok, but I haven't had that thought in a good hour or so."

He smiled and grabbed another slice off the tray. She studied his face for a minute before taking a sip of her beer. "Just ask me" he said as he poured red pepper flakes on his pizza.

"Fine. What in the hell is going on with you?"

He sighed and put the shaker back down. "I'm just… I need to get out. I felt like the weight of DC was crushing me. I'd felt like that for awhile, but after the election… well, it just got worse. The thought of going out of my house made me sick to my stomach. I just had to get out, make an escape while I still could and, of course, I thought that you could use the break as well since we both know that your previous bosses have been… well, let's just say less than accommodating when it came to vacations."

All she could do was smile. She knew that he had been stressed and about to lose it and Leo's death had just compounded everything he had been feeling. She tried not to push him too much in those last few days leading up to the election. When the news came out, they knew it would be bad, but they all agreed that they had to be honest with the public – it's the only way Leo would have wanted it, he had said when they found out.

"Now what?" he asked, smiling back at her.

"Nothing" she said, shaking her head to break her out of her reverie. "So, what's next on the agenda there, Joshua?"

He waggled his eyebrows at her and looked down at his watch. "Yeah, we need to get going or we are going to be late." He waived the waiter over and quickly paid.

"Rumor has it that anyone who sees the Gray Man's apparition will soon meet their untimely end. He only appears when the moon hides itself behind the clouds…" the tour guide prattled on as they walked through the graveyard.

Donna was looking at the headstones and trying to keep her heart from beating out her chest – after all, Josh knew how she felt about ghost stories – when from behind her a pair of hands grabbed her and shook her.

"Oh my God, there he is. Don't look, Donnatella. Take me you crusty old ghost – let the lady live!"

She whirled around and started to slap him on the arm with her hands. "You are a hateful, hateful man Joshua Lyman" she said, glaring at him. When he started to laugh, she pushed against his chest, effectively pushing him off his feet and onto the ground. She just glared at him as his body went stiff against the ground.

"I can't… oh God… oh Donna, Donna, save me Donna. The ghosts are… I'm trapped. You're my only hope, Donna. You have to sacrifice yourself to save me!" Josh yelled from the ground.

"Well, looks like you are totally screwed then, Lyman."

Josh pushed himself up on his elbows and scowled at her. "And I'm the one that gets called hateful. You gonna help me up?" he asked, reaching his hand up to her. She put her hand in his and pulled him up off the ground. She lost her footing as he pushed himself up, so she soon found herself pressed against Josh as he wrapped his arms around her waist to keep her from falling.

She was having trouble breathing, but in a good way. It had been such a long time since she had been in this kind of proximity to him – she had about forgotten the effect it had on her. In the past, though, he would immediately release her and their walls would go back up. Not this time, though – this time he smiled shyly and readjusted his arms so they were just a bit tighter around her waist. She immediately rested her hands on his elbows.

"I'm sorry you are having a bad time" he whispered, leaning in a fraction more.

She counted to ten, trying her best to keep her pulse under control. "Oh well… it's not… I'm not having a bad time" she said, smiling back, running her hands over his arms to his shoulders.

Josh glanced over their shoulders to see the group starting to break up. He turned back to the woman in his arms. "Well, looks like the tour is about over anyway. I say we grab some ice cream and head back and watch a movie, ladies' choice."

Donna waggled her eyebrows at him and smiled widely. "Well, what girl could resist that offer." He returned her smile and released her from his arms. They started walking out of the cemetery and as they hit the sidewalk to head back to the mansion, Josh reached over and threaded his fingers through hers.

"Damn, she is so sexy."

"Yeah, I'll grant you that."

Josh looked over at Donna – something he hadn't been able to quit doing since she showed up at his door in a red tank top and black shorts. He had to recite the Vice Presidents names in his head in order to keep himself under control.

"Excuse me?"

Donna looked over at Josh and giggled. "She's hot, Josh. You'd have to be blind not to see that."

They were watching 'Mr. and Mrs. Smith' on pay-per-view after they had decided it was the best of both worlds – Brad Pitt for Donna and Angelina Jolie for Josh.

"I mean, seriously, Josh, she's smoking' hot and any woman that…" she looked over to see that Josh had closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the headboard. "What in the world are you doing?"

"Letting my imagination run away from me" he said, smirking. She made a face and slapped him on the chest. Before she could remove her hand, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her flush to his body. Donna titled her head up to look at Josh and lost her breath when she saw his lips mere millimeters away from hers.

"You want to abuse me or do you want to watch the movie" he asked, smiling as he tucked her hair behind her ear and ran his fingers along her cheekbone and down to her jaw. Before she could gather her thoughts, Josh turned his attention back to the movie and shifted Donna ever so slightly so they were both comfortable in their current positions. After the movie was over, they watched national news and yelled at SportsCenter until they both fell asleep lying in each other's arms.

TBC…