A/N: It's been a long time since my last update. But if you've been reading In a New York Minute, which I wrote with mlea7675, there are a couple of spoilers in it for how this resolves long-term.

On TWW, Jed and Abbey don't have much in the way of privacy in the White House or during the campaign for that matter. Privacy will continue to be a theme I explore in future stories. But for now, I hope you enjoy my attempts at levity and humor in the midst of all the drama that goes on.

The title comes from Season 2's "And Surely to Their Credit…". It answers Abbey's question about the absence of romance during their attempt to have private time,

This chapter is dedicated to mlea7675 and babyphd. Thank you for your support and for loving these characters as much as I do.

Happy reading!


Felicity yawned and rested her head on her mother's breast, utterly and completely milk drunk. Her eyes fluttered closed and she started her next nap. Abbey smiled to herself as she laid the blanket back over her sleeping baby. Felicity's paternity might have been the subject of national debate. But she knew who her parents were and that was all that mattered on this late Saturday morning.

"Ma'am?" CJ said, cutting into her thoughts.

"Yes, CJ," Abbey said, turning her attention back to the meeting they were having in the den.

"Is there anyone you'd like to conduct this interview?"

"Not particularly, no."

"Ma'am," Donna said gently. "We want to make the interview as comfortable as possible."

"I understand that, Donna. But there is no such thing as this interview being comfortable for me or for the President."

"That will be enough for now," Sandra said, entering the room. "The three of you have been in here for two hours and no progress has been made. It's time for lunch."

"Mom, we're fine," Abbey assured her mother.

"And just how long do you think my granddaughter will remain sleeping?"

Abbey looked at Felicity. The baby had been unusually cranky ever since she woke up earlier that morning, which was unlike her. So far, Abbey and Jed found that Felicity was easy to soothe and make happy. Today, Felicity seemed to have no patience for it. It was as if she knew there was a cloud hanging over her parents and the people around them.

"You're right," Abbey admitted and let her mother take Felicity from her. "We can pick this up later."

CJ and Donna noticed that Abbey made no further effort to continue the meeting and actually seemed grateful for the interruption. There was also the look from Mrs. Barrington. It suggested that she had just about enough of the public speculation surrounding her daughter and newest grandchild and scheduling this interview. But good manners prevented her from saying anything in front of the staffers. Abbey, Sandra, and Felicity left the room.

"We may need to consider tabling this interview," Donna said to CJ when her boss left.

"Why?" CJ asked, confused. "Yesterday, you and Toby agreed we should proceed with it and continue to pin down what happened with Dr. Bartlet."

"I think I already have."

Donna pulled a set of receipts from the back pocket of her portfolio and handed them to CJ. The press secretary looked at them and then back up at Donna.

"You bought a dozen pregnancy tests during the campaign."

"For Dr. Bartlet in October. She asked me not to say anything about it and I thought she wanted to keep it between herself and the President. I tucked them away in my planner and didn't think about the timing of it until I found them this morning."

CJ sighed, "So this story is looking increasingly plausible after all."

"Or Toby might be wrong."

"Either way, we're going to end up prying into Dr. Bartlet's business and that doesn't leave me with a good feeling."

"I second that," Donna said and stood up. "Let's go get lunch. We'll figure out the next step after."

CJ handed the receipts back to Donna and she put them back into her portfolio. The two women left the room feeling very uneasy about those next steps.


Jed carefully peeled the ever-present sensor Felicity wore off of her little foot and set it on the desk in his study. He took her foot in his hand and kissed it for good measure, noting the tiny indentation marks on her skin.

"There you go, lovebug," He said with a loving smile as he looked into her deep blue eyes. "I bet you feel so much better."

Felicity didn't attempt any sort of a smile. But she looked content and that was a win in Jed's book after the day so far. Lunch with the house full of family started off great until Annie accidentally hit her glass with her elbow. It fell to the floor and shattered, waking Felicity in the process. Her scared and furious cries quickly filled the dining room, prompting Jed to bring her into his study to calm her down.

It never ceased to amaze him how quickly he picked up old habits. When the girls were little, Abbey was the one to comfort them when they were hurt or sad. Temper tantrums, meltdowns, and general upsets were his to deal with. He picked Felicity up and removed her from the room so fast that most of her indignation faded by the time they walked in here.

"How is it going?" Abbey asked, entering the room. She closed the door behind her.

"Good, I think I finally figured out why Felicity is so cranky today," He replied and held up the sensor.

"She should be wearing it, you know."

"I know. But lovebug deserves time off for good behavior, isn't that right?"

Abbey watched him grin down at the tiny baby in his arms and her heart melted. But the love she felt for her husband and child at that moment was tempered by guilt.

"I hope the same applies to me," She said, taking a seat on the couch adjacent to his desk.

Jed's brow wrinkled in confusion, "Why would you need it?"

He came around the desk and went over to the sofa, taking a seat next to Abbey.

"You asked me yesterday if I had any idea why Steven would claim that Felicity was his."

"Yes. We never got around to your answer."

"Well," Abbey said, and paused. "I think he's getting back at me from what happened at the congress last year."

Abbey, you didn't—" Jed started, his heart sinking into his stomach.

"Of course I didn't sleep with him, Jed. But it wasn't for lack of trying on his part."

Silence settled between them. Abbey watched Jed's expression tighten in anger. He felt Felicity's tiny nose nuzzle his shirt before she yawned and forced himself to remain calm.

"What did the good doctor do, Abbey?"

"We struck up a conversation while waiting for panels one day. It was actually pleasant for once. The subject of our families came up and Steven told me that he and his wife were separated. His long working hours took a toll on her. I sympathized and told him that we'd had our share of difficulties. He came to my room before my presentation the next day to thank me for listening and then he kissed me."

The very thought of Steven Bennet kissing Abbey made his blood boil. But it was the look in Abbey's eyes that made Jed remember the phone call they had.

"It was more than a kiss, Abbey," He said, feeling his anger rise. "I called you that day and I remembered thinking that something was wrong. But you put me off."

"I pulled away and told him to stop. He didn't and kissed me again. This time he grabbed me and he was more insistent," Abbey said and paused again, remembering what she thought would happen. "I managed to free myself from him and step away. Then I told him to leave. Steven wasn't happy, but he complied. You called me just after I shut the door on him."

Jed swallowed hard and Abbey could see that it took everything he had not to yell or throw something. The baby in his arms made doing either highly unadvisable.

"Why didn't you tell me after it happened?"

"Because Steven betrayed my trust. For everything that went on between us professionally, I never thought he would treat me like that. As much as I wanted to tell you, it wasn't the time. You were days away from the election and our time alone was already limited."

"God, Abbey. You should have told me, no matter what was going on."

"What would that have accomplished? You would have been angry and distracted at the worst possible time."

"That bastard hurt you. I would have given up the Presidency itself had I known."

"Steven Bennet isn't worth it, Jed. What he did that day was unforgivable. I couldn't let him take Felicity away."

"Take Felicity—" Jed began and looked down at his daughter. Then it hit him. He looked back over his wife. "Abbey, I wouldn't have let this interfere with our plans."

"We've been married for over 30 years, lover. I think I know you well enough by now. Be as angry as you want with me. But I wasn't about to let one more thing get in our way."

Jed couldn't dispute Abbey's point. For nearly 20 years, there was always some sort of roadblock in their way. Keeping up with the demands of their jobs and raising the girls played a large role in not having a fourth child sooner. The campaign for Governor of New Hampshire, and the MS diagnosis didn't help either. He remembered telling Abbey that he didn't want them to live with the regret of not trying to have another baby after she came back from that trip.

Anger roiled in his stomach just thinking about how close that bastard came to actually be the father of his child.

Felicity fussed in his arms, snapping him out of his thoughts, "It's all right, lovebug," He said, bringing her to rest on his chest.

Abbey watched the way Felicity snuggled into him, "Felicity is worth all of this," She said quietly.

"Yes, she is."

Even as Jed agreed with his wife, he was already trying to figure out a way to make Steven Bennet pay for what he did.


While Abbey and Jed talked in the study, Donna was in the den going over a list of interviewers that she planned to follow up with. While the interview wasn't going to happen as soon as CJ planned, Donna wanted to be prepared with a list of options for Dr. Bartlet.

"Hey Donna," Charlie said, entering the room. "Do you need help with anything?

"I'm just trying to decide which interviewers the President and Dr. Bartlet would feel comfortable talking to. It might be an exercise in futility. But it can't hurt."

Charlie crossed to the sofa and sat next to Donna. He was about to ask her who made the cut when he saw a list with dates, hotels, and names on it.

"What's this?"

Donna looked at what Charlie indicated and pulled out the list, "This is a list Danny Concannon complied from other reporters. It's a list of names, dates, and hotels Dr. Bartlet used during the campaign."

Charlie looked at it, "Nora Charles, Jane Bingley, Bacius Smith, Lucy Honeychurch…."

"Those are the pseudonyms that Dr. Bartlet used."

"Has anyone told you that these are literary characters?"

"What?"

"They're part of couples. Bacius is in Ovid's Metamorphosis, Jane Bingley is in Pride and Prejudice, Lucy Honeychurch is in A Room with a View, and Nora Charles is a Dashiell Hammit character," He said and smiled to himself.

"Oh, Charlie….that sounds exactly like—-"

"Something the President and Dr. Bartlet would do?"

"Exactly."


Charlotte, NC
Late October 1998

Jed checked his watch for the second time in five minutes at the Bartlet for America field office in Charlotte, NC. He was only half-listening to Sam, Toby, and Josh debate the merits of putting something into his stump speech for an event the next day. It was past seven now and he promised he would be somewhere else by eight.

"Hey Leo," He said, leaning over to his best friend and campaign manager. "I have to be somewhere. Any chance we can wrap this up?"

"Yeah," Leo said. "You got a hot date or something?" He asked with a slightly teasing tone in his voice.

"Just a quick meeting before I call it a night."

"Go ahead. I'll take care of this."

Jed patted his best friend's shoulder, "Thanks, Leo."

He got up and slipped out of the office before anyone could stop him. Jed made his way to the Marriott Hotel in Downtown Charlotte. He walked right past reception and went straight to the elevator with a key in his pocket that was delivered via messenger to the field office a few hours ago. When he arrived on the appropriate floor moments later, Jed stepped off and found the room.

The romantic atmosphere was apparent from the moment he let himself in. Flower petals marked a trail from the entryway through to the bedroom. It led to a small table set for dinner complete with candles by a window with a view of downtown Charlotte. Champagne chilled in an ice bucket beside the table and two cocktails sat ready on a console table nearby. The king bed just beyond the dinner and cocktail set up also had rose petals scattered over the bedspread. Jed smiled to himself as he shed his jacket and put it on the back of a chair at the table. It was perfect.

The sound of high heels tapping on the bathroom tile caught Jed's attention. He looked up to see the light on in the bathroom near the bed. A figure stood in the doorway.

"Mrs. Bingley," He managed. His throat suddenly felt dry.

"Hello Mr. Bingley," Abbey replied, with a smile of her own as she stepped into the room wearing a slinky little black dress.

"You look beautiful, Abbey."

"Thank you handsome."

They met in the center of the room and shared a passionate and tender kiss. As they parted, Jed reached for a remote that sat beside the cocktails. Mel Tormé began to sing "P.S. I Love You."

Dear, I thought I'd drop a line
The weather's cool, the folks are fine
I'm in bed each night at nine
PS I love you

"Now it's perfect," He declared.

"Jed…" Abbey said, reaching for a cocktail. She took a sip and set it down "Cocktails…Mel Tormé. I feel like I'm having an affair with my own husband."

Jed grinned, "That's the idea, Sweet Knees. I don't know if we'll have another opportunity to do this again before the election. So I wanted to make this occasion special."

"You've really gone all out, haven't you?"

Abbey took a moment to take in the room. She made a point to not look at anything when she arrived back here an hour ago. She checked in a few hours before and sent a messenger to the field office with a key. Abbey left to run a few errands after to let the hotel staff set up Jed's surprise. She certainly felt special. Jed reached for his cocktail and saw Abbey's expression shift. He saw her love for him in her eyes. It was the love he'd spent the last thirty years trying to live up to every day.

"I thought setting a mood might help us succeed at making a baby this time around."

"I like the way you think, Dr. Bartlet."

Yesterday we had some rain
But all in all, I can't complain
Was it dusty on the train?
PS I love you

After what happened at congress, Jed's romantic gesture was just what Abbey needed. A part of her was tempted to tell him about Steven. But she resolved to keep it to herself. It would only spoil the mood and Jed was right. This would probably be the last time they would be able to sneak away like this until the election was over and the outcome of it wasn't as certain as it had been in June. The odds that they might end this journey in the White House were starting to improve.

"Going to congress didn't change your mind, did it?" Jed asked, thinking about their phone call from the other day.

"Absolutely not," Abbey said, with a reassuring smile. "But we might not be looking at a post-political life anymore. If you win, you're going to face enough challenges to your health. Trying to have another baby would only complicate matters."

"Or it could be the best thing we ever do," He pointed out. "We don't know what the future holds, Abbey. But I don't want to live with regrets, no matter what happens with my MS. We stopped trying after my diagnosis and for so many other reasons before that. I want this for us and for you no matter what happens next."

"What did I do in my life to deserve you?" She asked after a moment, her voice thick with emotion.

"I ask myself the same question every day, baby doll."

Jed wrapped his arms around Abbey's waist and kissed her again. His meticulously planned romantic interlude was forgotten temporarily in favor of their first true attempt to bring their lovebug into the world.

Write to the Browns
Just as soon as you're able
They came around to call
I burned a hole in the dining room table
Now let me see, I guess that's all

Nothing else for me to say
And so I'll close now but, by the way
Everybody's thinking of you
PS I love you


Zoey shot a long stream of water in her sister's direction from a large Super Soaker water gun. It drenched Ellie on contact.

"You're so dead," Ellie said, running after her sister across the expansive farmland, leaving the tall gates erected leading up from the driveway behind.

"Hey Zoey, think fast," Alex called, as her cousin ran in the direction of the barn. She pulled the trigger of her own Super Soaker and the water soaked Zoey's shirt almost immediately.

The three girls were taking part in their favorite summer tradition before the season ended. They had squirt gun fights every year, starting the first summer after Alex's surgery, and kept it going. Summer hadn't officially ended until someone won this battle. Liz was sitting out this year's fight.

"You better run," Zoey said, taking off after her cousin as Alex ran in the opposite direction of the barn.

Alex ran across the field, going past the cows in their pen. She heard Zoey chasing after her and picked up speed. After a couple of minutes, she stopped to take a breath and turned around to see where Zoey and Ellie were. But they were nowhere to be found.

"Zoey? Ellie?" Alex called. "Where did you go?"

"Alex."

Alex turned in the opposite direction and her brow wrinkled in confusion, "What are you doing here?"


"Leo, I want to assassinate someone," Jed said into the phone when it connected to his Chief of Staff. "Can I do that?"

"I can get the National Security Council to come up with options, Mr. President."

"The NSC is too big a circle, Leo. This is personal."

"Dare I ask what this is about?" Leo asked warily.

"That bastard Steven Bennet," Jed practically spat. "I want to make him pay."

"As your Chief of Staff, I advise against it. The American people frown on the President using the powers of his office to settle personal vendettas. But as your long-time friend, I'm willing to hear you out. What happened?"

"He took advantage of my wife, that's what happened!" Jed growled. "Apparently, they got to talking at the conference she went to not long before the election. He gave Abbey some sob story about his wife and she took the time to listen. The next day, he went to her hotel room and tried to force himself on her. I talked to Abbey right after it happened and I knew something was wrong then. But I didn't follow up on it. Damn him!"

Leo took a beat before answering, "I assume Abbey told you now because of the magazine article."

"Yeah," Jed replied and let out a sigh. "I wanted to be mad but the last thing I want is to upset her or the baby. Felicity's been in a bad mood all day. I just want to put this whole thing to bed."

"That's not going to happen, sir. CJ asked Danny Concannon if he knew anything about the sources that reporters used for the stories on Abbey's affair during the campaign. He came back to Sam with a list of dates, hotels, and fake names. CJ hasn't brought it to you yet because she's still checking into it."

"Do you have a copy of this list?" Jed asked, holding back a groan.

"Yeah, why?"

"Does it contain names like Jane Bingley, Lucy Honeychurch, or Nora Charles?"

Leo consulted it, "It does. How did you know about it?"

"Because I made the reservations for Charles Bingley, George Emerson, and Nick Charles myself," Jed replied, pinching the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger. "Abbey started coming to campaign stops early or she left later, beginning in July. I made reservations for her at another hotel and we usually spent the night together. I didn't want the staff to know."

"You could have told me you needed time with Abbey. I would have covered for you."

"We were trying to have a baby, Leo," Jed finally admitted. "Damnit! I promised Abbey that it would be our secret. You have to make this go away. I don't want these stories or that list to go any further. Do what you have to do. But call it off."

"Yes, Mr. President," Leo said. "I'll get on it."

Jed hung up with Leo and left his study to go see if Abbey was in her office. Just as he arrived at the door, he met Donna in the hallway.

"Hello, Mr. President. You have good timing. I need to talk to you and Dr. Bartlet."

Abbey came to the door holding Felicity in her arms, "What is it, Donna?"

Donna followed Abbey inside with Jed bringing up the rear. He turned to close the door behind him but stopped when a loud thud reached his ears followed by Zoey's scream.

"MOM!"

Jed rushed to find Zoey. Without thinking, Donna held out her arms for Felicity and Abbey gave the baby to her before following Jed out the door.

Lyrics: Mel Torme- P.S. I Love You