SINS OF THE FATHER
RATED R
FIRST PART OF THE 'HISTORY REPEATS' SERIES
SAM/DONNA ROMANCE
SPOILERS FOR 'SOMEONE'S GOING TO EMERGENCY, SOMEONE'S GOING TO JAIL'
It surprised them both, though it felt like the most normal thing in the world.
He'd wanted to make sure she got to her apartment safely, and he had insisted that she let him walk her to her door. She hadn't protested—not because she wanted protection but because she knew that things like walking her to her door were reflexes for Sam Seaborn and, though she wouldn't admit it, she loved the gentleman-esk traits that were so completely 'Sam' that she couldn't imagine him doing anything else.
Her keys had decided that it was a good time to play hide-and-seek within the at-capacity confines of her briefcase making Donna feel foolish and more than a little glad that Sam had insisted upon walking her to her door. Sam had tried to help her, making things predictably worse, and when they both knelt to gather up Donna's belongings from the cold floor in her hallway he found himself staring into twin pools of the palest blue he'd seen outside of a Southern Californian sky. One of his hands came up and cupped her cheek for a moment before sliding back to tangle into her hair.
"Sam…" Donna whispered, her fingers wrapping around the folds of his suit jacket. It had been a long time since she had been so close to an attractive man who had that look in his eyes. That look that told her that he was burning with something for her that he didn't quite understand but wanted to explore, if she was willing. It had been a long time since she had felt that same burning within herself. She didn't think she had ever felt it for someone who felt it for her in return. "Sam…" she whispered again as he took a small step forward, just enough to trap her body between his and the wall beside her door. He was warm and soft and hard and so utterly Sam that nothing registered except for where their bodies touched and the fact that, close as they were, she had yet to feel his supple lips over her own.
"If you want me to stop tell me now," Sam said, his eyes locked on hers, "because once I kiss you I don't know if I'll be able to stop."
Donna ignored the cliché because the honesty that she saw in his eyes and the genuine emotion she heard in his voice made it seem as if she was the first woman to ever hear those words.
Unable to find the right words to say in return—something she idly noted would be a major downside to being with a speechwriter who was as good as Sam—Donna leaned forward and pressed her lips to Sam's, softly like all good first kisses.
At least at first.
FLASHBACK
Nancy waited for the door to buzz before pushing her way through into the Situation Room. She was surprised to find that the room was empty save one Navy three-star Admiral who was sitting with his head down on the table, his glasses thrown carelessly to his left.
"Fitz?" Nancy said hesitantly. She couldn't, for the life of her, figure out why Fitzwallace was the only person in the room when only twenty minutes earlier the room had been as busy as ever.
Lifting his head slowly as if it suddenly weighed fifty times what he was used to, Fitzwallace looked at Nancy, his eyes finding hers. Immediately she knew why the room was empty. "They blew the embassy up?" she asked, her voice weak.
"No," Fitzwallace said. "But one of them recognized Hoynes."
Steeling herself against what she had to ask next, Nancy took a deep breath. "How bad?"
"It's bad," Fitzwallace admitted.
END FLASHBACK
"What are we doing?" Donna asked as Sam pulled her earlobe between his lips.
"If you have to ask I'm doing something wrong," Sam replied, his voice low and husky as it vibrated against the shell of her ear seductively.
"Sam, stop. Think," Donna said, pushing him away a little.
"Donna, you alright?" a paunchy middle-aged man asked while shooting a distrustful glance at Sam.
Donna blushed as Sam took a full step back and sighed heavily in defeat. "I'm fine, Mr. Myers. Really. Thanks for asking," she said, locating her keys and opening her apartment door. "Sam, c'mon," she urged, wrapping her fingers around his wrist and tugging gently. "Have a good evening, Mr. Myers," she called before closing the door and locking it. "He… looks out for me," she explained lamely.
"With some of the men you attract I'm glad there's someone looking out for you," Sam said honestly.
"What does that say about you?" Donna asked while hanging up her coat. "I mean, obviously I appeal to you in some way, as I think the post-pubescent hickey on my neck that will require some fancy make-up work in the morning will attest to, but since everyone from my boss to my friends to the guy down the hall seem to believe that I attract nothing but losers and 'local gomers', what does that say about you?"
Sam hung his head. "I deserved that."
"Damn right you did," Donna said as she stepped out of her shoes and flexed her toes into the plush carpeting.
"I just meant that you seem to go out with a lot of guys who are no good for you, and I hate seeing you hurt, which inevitably happens when you get into a relationship… and I'm just saying that I'm glad that there's someone closer to home who is looking out for you," Sam said, looking down at his shoes like they were the most interesting thing in the world. "And I don't know what all that says about me, but I do know that I like you as more than just a friend and I'm attracted to you in ways that are driving me crazy and… I really hope that you have feelings for me as well but if all this just makes you uncomfortable I'll leave now and we'll never talk about this again."
FLASHBACK
After finding out as much as Fitz could tell her, Nancy left the Situation Room and half-ran back to the Oval Office. She reached the outer office just as the Senior Staff, minus CJ, was leaving, though they all followed her back in when she pushed past them, ignoring all the protocols that told her that bursting into the Oval Office was insulting, not to mention not a good idea.
"I'm sorry sir," Nancy said, slightly out of breath. "I have some news." There was a brief pause, and then she reluctantly added, "It's not good."
END FLASHBACK
Donna walked over to Sam and put her hand on his arm, stopping him before he could turn to the door. She gently lifted his chin until his eyes met hers, her fingers lingering on his lightly stubbled skin. "I'm not going to lie to you, Sam, 'cause you and I don't do that. This all makes me a little uncomfortable. You are one of my best friends and the thought of messing that up terrifies me… but there's this other part of me… this part, right here," she said, grasping his hand and bringing it up to her heart, "that keeps telling me that it would be worth the risk. That being with you would be worth any trouble it causes us… though I do realize that you would bear the brunt of any media trouble we bring about."
"You would be the one who gets hurt when it comes to work, though," Sam pointed out.
"I realize that too. And, even though I don't think it will come to that, I know that I will be able to find work elsewhere and still make a difference. I might even be able to affect change that I can't even dream about where I am now," Donna said. "But I don't want to think like that because thinking worst case scenario before we even have dinner together is no way to go into a…"
"Relationship?" Sam offered when Donna struggled to find the right word. "That's what we're talking about, right? A relationship, something with a future. Because I'm not interested in a fling, not with you, Donna. If we do this, we do this right."
"Agreed," Donna said, incredibly relieved that Sam was the one to say it first. She smirked. "I can't believe we're having this conversation in my doorway." Sam smiled. "Why don't we go into the living room… sit down to talk this out?" Donna suggested.
"Sounds like a good idea," Sam said. He took off his jacket and hung it up with Donna's before following her into the small but cozy living room.
FLASHBACK
Bartlet put his hands on his desk for support. He felt like sinking down into his chair, but decided not to, feeling that it would be overly dramatic. Nodding his head, Bartlet tried to brace himself for whatever Nancy had to say. "What is it, Nancy?" he asked.
"From what we have found out in the last few minutes it seems that one of the terrorists recognized the Vice President…" Nancy said. "After the terrorist made his move the Secret Service neutralized the threat and the building was cleared within a minute. The bomb squad is in there now."
"And John?" Bartlet asked.
END FLASHBACK
Sam sat down next to Donna, his hand finding hers and tangling their fingers together, not gripping her tightly, just forming a connection, one that they both needed after the evening they had had.
"I don't know where to start," he confessed.
Donna smiled. "Me either," she admitted. "At least we're on even footing in that way," Donna added nervously. They shared a smile and Donna blushed, ducking her head shyly for a moment before looking up and meeting Sam's eyes. "I… I like you, Sam. And as much as I treasure our friendship… I think that we have something going on that extends beyond friendship."
FLASHBACK
"There were paramedics on site. They got to the Vice President as soon as the immediate threat was neutralized," Nancy said, her tone even and unemotional.
END FLASHBACK
"I agree," Sam said, glad that Donna had taken the first step. "There is definitely more here than friendship."
"There are some things that we need to talk about before we explore this more-than-friendship thing we have going on," Donna said seriously.
FLASHBACK
"They are enroute to the nearest hospital. Captain James Kline, United States Navy, will be the trauma surgeon; he's scrubbing in as we speak," Nancy said.
"Trauma surgeon?" Leo asked, his voice a paler twin of it's usual confidence boisterousness.
Nancy nodded.
"What kind of trauma are we talking about here?" Toby asked, his voice rough.
With a heavy sigh Nancy's eyes flitted to everyone in the room, resting on Josh and the President longer than anyone else.
END FLASHBACK
"I don't want to, but I have to bring it up," Donna said.
"Ainsley?" Sam asked with a sigh.
"All signs point to the two of you tangoing half-naked one foot in the nearest bedroom after one of those debates you two are so good at," Donna said.
"Tangoing half-naked one foot in the nearest bedroom?" Sam echoed, smiling teasingly.
Donna narrowed her eyes at him. "Shut up," she said. "You know what I mean. And before you and I start anything I need to know for sure that I'm the one that you want to be with; that you won't be thinking about Ainsley—or anyone else—when we're together."
Sam raised their joined hands, brushing his lips against her fingers so softly that Donna was almost convinced she had imagined it.
"Ainsley is a friend. We debate, we argue, we hang out from time to time. We are, in no way, tangoing half-naked anywhere. And you have to believe that when you are around I have a hard time remembering that there are other people in the world, let alone my life," Sam said. Donna shook her head, ready to argue with Sam on his assurances. "No, I'm serious. There have been meetings in the Oval Office that I completely miss because you've poked your head in the room. I actually supported making Big Block of Cheese Day every two weeks instead of once a month."
Upon hearing that—other than Toby, who hated Leo's Cheese days with the fire of a nova, Sam was the biggest opposition to Leo's pet office project—Donna laughed, erasing the tension that they were both feeling.
FLASHBACK
"They shot him, didn't they?" Sam said.
Nodding, Nancy glanced at the hastily scribbled note in her hand. "The Vice President was shot once in the right shoulder, once in the left upper thigh, and he was grazed on the right side. The last shot is not a problem; it's just a flesh wound. All he'll need for that is a thorough cleaning, a few stitches, maybe a tetanus booster. It's the other two that are troubling. The shot to the shoulder went right through, a clean exit visible. The shot to his leg, though, only has an entry. No exit wound."
END FLASHBACK
"Since you brought up Ainsley, I have to go there," Sam said.
"Sam, really, I would think that you of all people would know that there is not going to be anything between me and Josh," Donna said, frustrated.
"Why, first of all, would I, of all people, know that? And also I don't see how you can sit there denying the… thing… between the two of you," Sam said, equally frustrated, though for completely different reasons.
"You should know better than anyone because you know me, you know Josh, and you know that he still thinks of me as the idiot farm-girl who got played by a sleazy med student and who has an unwavering desire to be coupled up that will always and forever erase any hint of self worth that I may have," Donna said bitterly. Sam frowned. "That, by the way, is also how I can sit here and deny that there is a thing between Josh and myself."
"Josh doesn't think that," Sam said, feeling the need to defend his friend.
Donna pulled her hand away from Sam's, crossing her arms across her chest in a defensive posture. "Then why did he tell me that he did?"
Sam didn't have an answer for that.
FLASHBACK
"It doesn't look good, sir," Nancy said, her eyes unwavering in their contact with the President's.
Bartlet nodded. "Okay," he said slowly, unsure of what to do next. He looked around the room and quickly realized that he wasn't the only one.
END FLASHBACK
And that was Chapter 7. The flashbacks will continue in the next chapter, but I'm pretty sure that will be the last of them for a while. Hopefully no one had a problem putting everything in place.
M