Charlie makes her way through Independence Hall in the direction of her husband's office. He's been off in Delaware for over a week and she's missed him every second. After all, this is the longest they've been a part since they were married eleven months and four days ago. She bounds up to his office door and grins at Maddox, the head of his personal guard.
"So, how's our President?" She asks him, half joking and half curious as to what he's been up to for the past nine days.
Maddox smiles knowingly. "Tired, I think. He said he wanted to get back to work right away, but it's been a while since I heard him moving around in there." He jerks his head in the direction of the office and lowers his voice conspiratorily. "Truthfully, I think our President is napping."
Snorting, Charlie eases the office door open and slips inside. She is completely unsurprised to find Bass slumped forward on his desk, pen still in hand, drooling on the memo he was halfway through writing. A few of his too long curls are hanging over his forehead and she brushes them away with a smile. Despite her irritation with him at his lack of communication where their future is concered, Charlie loves this man with all of her heart. He sighs as her fingers ghost over his skin and he turns his face into her touch, murmuring her name.
"You need a haircut," she tells him softly as his eyes flutter open.
"I though you liked the scruffy look," he rasps, grabbing her hand and kissing her fingers.
"I do, but I don't think the people want to see their president walking around like he just rolled out of bed." She stands next to him and leans on the edge of his desk.
Bass chuckles softly and lifts his head up from the desk, seemingly deciding that Charlie's stomach will make a softer pillow. He leans against her, resting his cheek right over her belly button, and wraps his arms around her hips with his hands placed happily on her cushy bottom. He turns his nose into her shirt for a moment and takes a deep breath, inhaling her sweet scent.
"I'm never leaving again," he says, his voice almost childlike. "Missed you too much."
Charlie smiles, looking down at his tired face as she runs her fingers through his long curls. He's got his eyes closed again and is most likely moments away from sleep.
"You need to go to bed," she tells him firmly. His response is merely a huff, which makes her laugh. "See? You're too tired to even argue about it."
"Am not," he mumbles.
Rolling her eyes, Charlie pulls herself out of his arms and steps away from the desk, causing him to reach for her with weak limbs. He gives up after just a moment and lays his head back on the desk, though he glares at her petulantly. "Come closer," he whines, reaching for her again.
Charlie can't help but grin at him. "Nope. You need to get up and go take a nap."
A huge yawn tears through him and he gives up all pretense of not being tired. "'S too far."
Grabbing him under the arm, Charlie hauls her husband to his feet and drags him out of his office. The guards on duty say nothing as they escort their half asleep President and his amused wife though the halls. At this point, they're used to it. She dumps him onto their bed and immediately starts pulling off his boots. Bass wakes up enough to lift his head and waggle his eyebrows at her. "Gonna come join me?"
Snorting, Charlie yanks his pants off and tosses them to the floor before climbing onto the bed to work him out of his jacket and shirt. "Even if I didn't have work to do right now, I wouldn't bother getting into bed with you."
He frowns up at her as she pushes his shirt over his head and tosses it over her shoulder. "And why is that?" He asks, suddenly seeming more awake.
Charlie lowers her head and presses a long kiss to his lips before whispering, "because you and I both know that you'll be asleep in about five seconds, so what good would you do me?"
He tries to glare at her, but the affect is ruined by his drooping eyelids. "Later," he murmers, and Charlie agrees if for no other reason than the fact that he's adorable when he's sleepy.
XxX
The next afternoon, Bass joins her in the kitchen for lunch looking well rested and presentable. His curls have been trimmed and are arranged neatly on his head.
"You got a haircut," Charlie says, smiling as he gives her a quick kiss. He takes a seat at the table and immediately starts attacking his food.
"Yeah, I skipped breakfast for it."
Charlie leans over and runs her fingers through the now, short curls. "That was fast. I only told you that you needed it done yesterday."
He shrugs, gulping down a glass of water and shoving part of his sandwich into his mouth. "Well," he says around a mouth full of food. "My dad used to tell me, 'happy wife, happy life.' I figure he had the right idea, so if a haircut makes you happy, then consider it done."
Charlie nods in understanding, watching as her husband continues to devour his food as if it'll be his last meal. It's sweet that he cares so much about what she thinks, but she wishes that it went deeper than just how long his hair has gotten.
"What if I wanted something else to make me happy?" She asks quietly. The serious tone of her voice causes Bass to stop shoveling and turn his attention all on her. He shallows hard around the mouthful of food, then takes her hand.
"I'll do anything for you, Charlie. You know that."
She nods, biting her lip, trying to decide how to talk to him about a baby without upsetting him. "Then I want you to talk to me," she finally says. At his confused look, she clarifies. "I mean, I want you to talk to me and be honest."
He furrows his eyebrows, clearly confused by her words. "I've never lied to you, Charlie. Never. You know I can't keep a secret to save my life, anyway."
"I know you're not keeping secrets. But simply refusing to talk about having a baby is almost as bad."
Bass' mouth drops open and he slumps back in his chair, avoiding her eyes. It takes a minute for him to gather his thoughts, but when he does, he looks straight at her with sad eyes. "I'm sorry." He squeezes her hand in his, but says nothing else. Charlie wonders if he's even realized how much he's been avoiding the topic.
"I know you're scared, Bass." She tells him gently. "I am, too. But we can't let Shelly's death stand in the way of our future."
He tenses up at the mention of his first wife, but says nothing.
"At first I thought that if I gave you time, you would come around on your own. But that was wishful thinking. You're afraid, I get that. But the only way to get over your fear, is to face it head on."
Bass lets out shaky breath and climbs to his feet to start pacing. "Do you even hear yourself?" He asks incredulously, though Charlie gets the feeling that he's not even really talking to her.
"If we try to have a... a..." He groans in frustration, grabbing at his freshly cut hair. "You could die, Charlie!" He shouts suddenly.
Getting quickly to her feet, Charlie rushes over and embraces her husband, cooing softly in his ear to soothe him. He wraps his arms tightly around her and buries his face in her hair as he tries to take deep breaths.
"We have doctors, now." She says after a while. "Maggie is the best there is. And we have a roof over our heads, plenty of food to eat. This is as safe as any baby could possibly hope to be."
"What if it's not enough?" He asks weakly.
Blinking back tears, Charlie whispers back, "I still think we should try. We'll never forgive ourselves if we don't give our family a chance."
Bass takes a deep breath and starts to untangle himself from her slowly. He gently cups her cheeks, brushing away the single tear that managed to escape. "OK," he says softly.
"Really?"
He smiles and pulls her in for a lingering kiss. "Really. I knew when I married you that you would want kids someday, I guess I just didn't think it would be so soon."
"Well it doesn't have to be right this second, but hopefully sooner rather than later."
Bass wraps his arms around her waist and pulls her close, his hand sliding down to caress the skin beneath the hem of her shirt. "Soon?" He asks in a low voice. "Now, maybe?"
Charlie wraps her arms around his neck, pulling him down for a deep kiss. "I like the way you think."
A/N So next up, Ben and Danny! Possibly Rachel? Not sure on her, I haven't decided yet. Thank you so much for reading and reviewing, I love hearing from you guys!