CJ's home office
Santa Monica, California
Evening of Sunday, January 27th 2008
"What do you want, Daniel?"
"State of the Union tonight," he said with a waggle of his eyebrows, as he leaned a thigh against her desk and slid the list towards her.
"Your enthusiasm is making me nervous."
"Performance anxiety?"
"That's your department."
"That was a low blow."
But he was smiling, so she knew he'd caught the reference to the disaster of a date they'd had in late 2006.
She closed her computer and came round the desk.
"I know this was my idea, but - "
"We don't have to do this, you know," he said as he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her backwards into him.
"It's just .. it feels like it's a barometer of our relationship."
"What set you off?"
"Seeing state of the union at the top of the list."
Danny pulled the list off the desk and looked through it.
"I can see how that could be a metaphor," he said after a moment's thought. "I'll change it to something else."
"Okay."
"Found your suit?"
"No. But I do have the necklace."
"Don't show up just wearing the necklace, okay? Don't wanna fluff my lines out of an inability to focus."
"I still have the combo from the business dinner. I can pair it with a skirt. Best I can do. Take it or leave it."
"I'll take it."
"Oh, and just to be clear, I'm not walking into the door. Your ego is already big enough as it is."
"You're saying I can't throw you off balance any more?" he asked as he kissed the nape of her neck.
"Where's my fish?"
"You're deflecting."
"Gotta start getting back into Press Secretary mode."
Danny laughed out loud.
"The fish will be in position by the time you've changed."
"You got a fish? "
"Yeah. We said props, right?"
"I know. I just figured .."
"I'm a details guy, CJ. I got a fish. Although I do have a question."
"What's that?"
"How the hell did Carol and Margaret get those decorations in without emptying the bowl every time?"
"They had the biggest tweezers you ever saw. They were both very particular about not getting their cuffs wet."
"Okay then."
"Okay. I'm gonna go change."
She started to walk away and then turned back.
"Are you sure that's what you were wearing?"
"I have no idea. I only remember what you were wearing."
She opened her mouth to respond and then shook her head.
"So you're gonna .."
"Go get the fish and wait here."
"Okay."
"Okay."
Ten minutes later there was a knock at the door.
"Yes?"
"It's CJ."
"Okay."
"Can I come in?"
"CJ, this is your office."
"Right."
She entered the room, looking as delightfully awkward as he remembered, and cleared her throat.
"Hello."
"Hello."
"So, you have asked me out forty-nine times, I have said no."
He thought about correcting her, but the fact that she remembered approximately how many times he'd asked her out was cute, so he let it go.
"You said yes once."
"That was a business dinner."
"Okay."
"I think you stuck your hands in your pockets here," she whispered.
Danny complied.
"Nonetheless," she continued as she moved closer. "I do seem to have a preoccupation. A girlish, I suppose, thing. You had your arms crossed by now. Which, and please don't be misled in any way by anything -"
"You started to gesticulate here .." he observed
"In fact, let me put it this way .."
Danny dropped his hands to his sides.
"CJ, I was supposed to write about the speech tonight. My paper's going to want me to, you know, see it. So if there's any way you can move this along. You know what, you were staring at my mouth more when I was talking."
"What?"
"You were staring at my mouth."
"I was not. You were staring at mine."
"Actually, no. You were the one doing the propositioning. I was just the guy standing there being .. propositioned."
"Whatever. Keep going, you're distracting me."
"CJ, I was supposed to write about the speech tonight. My paper's going to want me to, you know, see it. So if there's any way you can move this along .."
"I thought what I'd do is kiss you. You know, on the mouth. And then I'd just .. get past it." She squinted ever so slightly. "I'd just get past it. And I'd be able to give my work the kind of concentration it really deserves."
"Okay."
"How's right here?"
"That's fine."
"Be careful of the fi - you really did get a fish!"
"Focus! We're coming up to the good part."
"Right. Be careful of the fish .."
"Sure .."
"No, I'm saying because if you rock against the eh -"
He put a hand to the back of her head and pulled her in for a kiss.
"CJ, what are you doing?"
"What?"
"Why are you slipping me tongue?"
She had the good grace to look embarrassed as she shrugged.
"Force of habit?"
"There wasn't any tongue. Again .."
"Be careful of the fish .."
"Sure."
"No, I'm saying because if you rock against the eh-"
He put a hand to the back of her head again and kissed her.
Her hand reached for his and squeezed it as tightly as he remembered.
"How's that? he asked when they broke apart.
"Oh, good."
"Past it?"
His hand lingered in her hair for a just a moment.
"Yeah."
"You know that's the wrong answer, right?"
He pulled her face towards him and kissed her again.
"Past it?"
"Yeah."
He was about to pull her face towards him again when he stopped and grinned.
"Are you saying that so I'll keep kissing you? "
"Yes."
He pulled her face towards him and kissed her one more time.
She pulled both of their hands into the space between them this time, as she had on the night of their first kiss.
"How's that?"
"Oh, good."
"Past it?"
"No."
He gave her the smile that always made her insides flutter.
"I have a question .."
"What?"
"Were you sporting one of these that night, too?"
He shivered under her touch as she ran their joined hands over his groin.
"You didn't notice?" he asked incredulously.
"Guess not," she said with a wicked smile as she picked up the fish bowl. "I gotta go now."
"CJ, taking that fish with you?"
"Yup .."
The door closed behind her.
"Hey! It's not nice to leave a guy with an erection just standing there," he wanted to call after her.
Until he realized that the following Sunday would roll around soon enough.
And that whoever said that turnabout was fair play was absolutely right.