CJ and Danny's bedroom
Santa Monica, California
Evening of Wednesday, February 27th, 2008
"This one or this one?" CJ asked as she held two evening dresses aloft.
Danny looked up from his book, a little startled.
"What?"
"This one or this one?"
"Depends what you're accessorizing with, I guess," he said with a shrug.
"I thought I'd wear the silver necklace with the purple stones?"
Now she had his undivided attention.
"The one from the night Hurricane Sarah hit?"
"Yeah?"
"Why can't you wear that dress?"
"I don't have that dress anymore."
"Really?"
He sounded so disappointed that she put the evening gowns aside and joined him on the bed.
"Abbey and I donated our dresses to a fundraiser for families of the sailors lost at sea that night."
"A worthy cause."
"It was."
"I loved that dress," he said nostalgically as he pulled her close.
"I loved that dress, too."
He chuckled.
"What?"
"That was the night I knew I was in trouble."
"Oh yeah?"
"I'd never seen so much of your skin before. It almost drove me to distraction."
"To distraction how?"
"First of all, I was sure you weren't wearing a bra."
"I wasn't."
"I wanted to run my finger under those thin straps and .."
He trailed off and looked at her.
"You're enjoying this, aren't you?"
"A little," she said before she kissed him and got off the bed.
"And now you're going to walk away and leave me in a state of semi-arousal? Again? I don't know why I stick around."
CJ laughed and held up the dresses
"So .. which one of these two?"
"What's this for again?"
"Reception at the South African Consulate on Sunday night."
"Whichever one shows less skin," he said as he went back to his book. "And maybe wear a different necklace? That one turns me on. It wouldn't reflect well on the Foundation if I walked around sporting wood all night."
CJ's shoulders shook with laughter now.
"Yeah, yeah. Make fun of a man when he's down."
"Oh God, I need the bathroom," she said after a while.
"It's really classy when you do this, CJ," he called after her. "Really classy."
She was still being beset by the occasional giggle when she made a call a short while later.
"And?" the voice at the other end said.
"Hook, line, and sinker."
"So you want me to pick up the dress from the dry cleaners tomorrow and .."
"Keep it at your place?"
"Okay."
"I'll pick it when I come over on Sunday. Can I still come over and do the cooking there?"
"You're sure you don't want me to order -"
"Why does everyone think I can't cook?"
"Your propensity for ordering salad for eight years?" Carol said sweetly.
"First of all, I consumed copious amounts of Chinese food. And secondly, I can cook."
"I thought Danny did most of the cooking."
"He does, but that doesn't mean I can't cook. I cook very well, actually."
"I will .. take your word for it. Have you got a plan to keep Danny in the dark?"
"I've asked his agent to keep him occupied from 4pm onwards."
"Sounds like you have it all figured out."
"I do. Valentine's Day got lost in the shuffle between the emergency board meeting on the fourteenth and then me being in Nairobi right afterwards."
"I can't believe we're having a conversation about missing Valentine's Day," Carol said with a laugh.
"You know what? Me neither. Hang on .. yes, Danny?"
"Barbara's on the phone. She wants to know if we can meet on Sunday afternoon. What time's the thing?"
"Car service is picking us up at seven. What time does she want to meet?
"Four?"
"Should be plenty of time."
"So I can say yes then .."
"Sure."
Evening of Sunday, March 2nd
6.50pm
"I'm back," Danny called as he dashed through the front door and practically ran up the stairs. "Sorry I'm late!"
He paused slightly on the bottom step, trying to pinpoint what felt different, but CJ's voice spurred him back into action.
"I laid out your black suit for you," she called from somewhere deep in the house. "Wear my favourite cologne!"
"The Burberry?"
"Yes."
"Okaaay."
It wasn't until he was coming back down the stairs that it occurred to him what was different.
He could smell food, and his stomach rumbled in response.
"CJ?" he called as he wandered around looking for her.
"Out here."
His mouth ran dry as he stepped outside.
Not only was she sheathed in grey silk, the deck looked magical.
"What happened to the thing?" he asked when he had recovered his wits.
"This is the thing," she said with an incandescent smile.
"So the whole story about the dress .." he said as he ran a finger reverently over one of her shoulders.
"Half of that was true. Abbey did donate her dress to a fundraiser. They could have cared less about the Press Secretary's."
"Lucky for me," he said as he dropped a kiss to the same shoulder.
"That's going to have to wait till after dinner," she said as she took his hand and led him to table.
"You cooked, too, didn't you?"
"There should be no doubt in your mind that I'm capable of being a domestic goddess as well as a wanton one."
Danny laughed as he took his seat.
"As long as I can have you for dessert .."
"I'm sure that can be arranged."
"And there was no doubt in my mind, by the way."
"Good."
CJ smiled, and Danny reached for her hand.
"You look even more beautiful now than you did that night, you know," he said as he placed her palm against his mouth and kissed it.
"Flattery will get you everywhere."
"I've tested that theory before," he said mischievously.
"Danny .." she said as he put her hand down and picked up his fork.
"Yeah?"
"I'd like to go on the record here."
"About what?" he asked, his voice full of amusement.
"That was also the night I knew I was in trouble."
Author's Note:
Burberry Touch, for those of you who need those kinds of details.