Author's Note: This is the second of this evening's chapters. For me this is a natural stopping point, so if you'd like this story to continue then I may require some persuasion, and a fair dollop of inspiration! This chapter is a big thanks to AuggieDeeksNico ( u/321921/AuggieDeeksNico) and is her payment of choice for having read through all the boring bits. The ending was actually written for her well before I filled out the middle, and she's been desperate for me to fill in the gaps, and thanks to her encouragement and enthusiasm I did finally get there!

Thanks to Aaron Sorkin & John Wells being just so cute and adorable, and for creating such delicious characters. Sorry for borrowing them, but sometimes it just has to be done! x

PLEASE NOTE - Chapter 4 was added at the same time as Chapter 5, so if you just skipped to the end to read the new chapter, back up one because you've missed a section!

They're dancing, slowly. She knows it's not his thing, but she has an idea that holding her is preferable to going another round with the President.

"I thought you were going to stop them ganging up on me?"

She thinks he's cute when he's overwhelmed, but she'd prefer he didn't know that. "It was only the President Josh, and I got you out of there before your head exploded. You're lucky the First Lady wasn't with him, I'm sure she'd have had something to add."

"Thank you."

"And he said he was pleased for us."

"He threatened me."

She smiles. "Only if you screw up Josh. Now, do you think you could pretend you're enjoying holding me in your strong, powerful arms, so we can retain some kind of dignity."

She can feel him relax somewhat beneath her fingers and by the end of the song he may even have enjoyed himself. She notices they leave the dance floor on the other side of the room from the President though.

She watches as he disappears through the crowds to get them drinks, and hearing her name turns to see who called. "Ainsley" Donna drops to the sofa beside the familiar face. "It's great to see you, Josh said you were back. White House Counsel, congratulations!"

"Thank you Donna, it's a privilege to be back. California was great, but I just love DC." Ainsley smiles sweetly at one of the servers, and manages to procure a tray of appetisers. "Are you hungry? These things always make me hungry. Sam's supposed to be getting me a drink, and hopefully something to eat, but he's taking his time."

"I wondered where he'd got to, I'm looking forward to meeting his fiancée. What's she like?"

"Delightful. Everybody says so. Charming, and infuriating, and beautiful, and intelligent, more intelligent than him." Ainsley flashes her engagement ring and holds out her hand. "Hi, Ainsley Hayes, Sam's fiancée, pleased to make your acquaintance."

Donna blinks a couple of times.

"I take it from the look on your face Sam forgot to tell you about us?"

"I – I knew he had a fiancée, but he never told me your name, never said it was you."

Ainsley laughs "I think we just got so used to keeping things under wraps when we were working together he just forgets he's allowed to talk about it now."

"You – you were together before?"

"Oh, nothing official, but we had our moments. It all got too complicated after the MS though. We met up again about a year ago, in California, and well, we always had chemistry, but the timing was better this time."

Donna grins to herself, she knows all about chemistry and timing. She shakes her head. "I'm glad timing is finally on our side."

"Josh?" Ainsley's grinning, "And how was Hawaii?"

"Great, we did our best to make up for nine years of chemistry and bad timing."

Donna spots Josh returning from across the room, drinks in hand, winding past Will. She can feel herself smiling just catching a glimpse of him. She tries to concentrate on Ainsley, but her eyes are drawn back to Josh... and Amy.

Josh has stopped to talk to Amy. Donna's suddenly flustered, embarrassed. Why does she feel like she's intruding on a private moment? Josh and Amy were over a long time ago, and according to popular gossip Amy's very happy with her current relationship. They're just saying hello.

Maybe It's because Donna remembers the days when she was the intruder. Not intentionally, but she was a constant in Josh's life, a constant that Amy could never erase. She was always at the other end of the phone, always there for him, always pulling him away from her bed, always in a ball gown at White House events, a spare date.

Donna tries to remember why Josh and Amy could never work, would never work. Donna is the one that understands Josh. Now's the time to understand Josh. Can she remember that Josh loves her? Amy is just a colleague, an extra in their love story, not even an intruder.

She's kissing him. Amy's kissing him. On the cheek. Donna looks at her lap, when she looks back up Josh is walking towards her alone. She tries to remember what Ainsley's been talking about, but it won't come. Luckily Sam appears to distract them.

"You two look cosy, what have you been planning?"

"Josh"

He's startled, Amy's grinning at him.

"You look happy J. With Donna."

He gives a half smile, not sure what conversation they're having.

"I'm glad Josh, I didn't know if I would be, but I am. I'm pleased you've stopped wasting your time."

"I am – happy."

"That's good. I'm glad she waited for you. You've been in love with her for a long time J." She leans forward and kisses him on the cheek. "Be happy, love's much easier when you're happy."

"I didn't know Amy. I was, in love, but I didn't know."

"Just don't forget." She walks away.

Josh scan's the room for Donna hoping to get his balance back. He spots her chatting to Sam and Ainsley. Hopefully she's realised Ainsley and Sam are engaged. He smiles to himself, he should have told her. Sam should have told them both.

As they're leaving Charlie appears. "Josh, CJ needs you for five minutes. In her office."

"She's still working?"

"Yeah, there's a thing, in Jerusalem. It's morning there."

He looks to Donna to check she's ok with him disappearing. She's been kind of preoccupied, distant.

"No, go, I'll be fine. I'll wait in the foyer. Will he be long Charlie?"

"No, five, maybe ten minutes, CJ just wants to fill him in."

He leans over and kisses Donna on the lips, and tucks a stray hair behind her ear. "I won't be long."

As they leave Donna at the doors to the West Wing and head through to the CJ's office Charlie drawl his name. "Josh-ua Ly-man."

Who knew his name could be stretched so far. He sighs, "This is going to be about Donna isn't it? Can we just get it over with?"

"Well it took you long enough. I've been wondering for years why you couldn't just kiss her and get it over with."

"Zoey?"

"Hey, I told her, I manned up. That's a relation-ship. You just carried on letting Donna get you coffee every day ignoring the obvious."

"She never got me coffee Charlie, well, only when I really screwed up. She was too busy doing everything else."

"So what job have you got Donna doing now she doesn't have to pick up after you? Anything less than Deputy Press Secretary and I'm going to need a serious talk with you."

"I asked, she got a better offer though, Mrs Santos' new Chief of Staff."

"That'll do!"

"So, are you staying around? I can use you if you want to stay, CJ has great things to say about you."

Charlie knocks at CJ's door and opens it for him. "Sorry, I'll look you up after I've finished law school!"

"Make sure you do that Charlie." Josh slaps the door as he watches Charlie leave, not sure why he's so sorry things are ending when he has an exciting new beginning ahead.

"CJ, Jerusalem?"

His meeting with CJ takes longer than expected. He'd forgotten to factor in the now familiar cross examination about his altered relationship with Donna. Ten minutes into the 'Josh and Donna Quiz' and CJ's reached a reflective mood. "We put our lives on hold for these jobs Josh, and what have we achieved?"

"Another four years."

"Was it worth it?"

"I'll tell you in four years."

"You're lucky, doing it with Donna this time. Don't take it for granted."

"I'll see you tomorrow CJ, she's waiting for me."

The Lobby's empty when Josh enters, apart from the ever present security. Donna's coat is draped over the arm of a sofa near the entrance. He places his coat and bag down beside it, and raises his eyes to the familiar security guard who indicates with a nod that Donna's in their old bullpen.

When he spots her she's standing in the dark, in the centre of his old office, just staring out the window. Thinking? The moonlight shimmers through her hair, off her dress, giving her an ethereal look. He wonders what's on her mind. So much of their history played out here. He stands quietly just inside the doorway, watching her breathe.

They worked hard here, but the office doesn't remind him of work, it reminds him of the times they sat together, eating lunch, drinking beer, arguing over politics, just the two of them. He knows Donna is a great devil's advocate. With that wacky sense of humour and a penchant for irony she had made him see both sides of many policies. Her quick wit allowing her to spot the flaws in his positions, exploiting them till exasperation made him change his mind or find a better argument.

She kept him confused, grounded yet off balance at the same time, interspersing her political quips with the briefest flashes of blatant sexuality, flashes he really should have wondered more about. Ok, he'd thought about them, but never at the time, it was always a more private reflection, an afterthought.

He realises now that she had developed a perfect distraction technique. It kept him thinking, thinking about her. Finding humorous ways of winning their war of words, instead of using the time to wonder what she really meant to him. Of course it had only distracted him for so long, he had eventually realised, but by then they had settled into their happy routine, an old married couple before he'd ever worked up the sense to kiss her.

He calls to her quietly, doesn't want to startle her. "Donna?"

She turns to him.

"You're beautiful."

She smiles. "You don't look bad either Joshua."

He flashes his dimples, looks down to the floor and back to her. "You're always beautiful Donna. I can't remember how I ever managed to concentrate with you around."

"Yet amazingly, some days you barely noticed me." She quips.

He pauses. "You had me so dizzy, some days it was hard to concentrate. I noticed though." He remembers his favourite fantasy, Donna in a ball gown tying his bowtie and then kissing him most thoroughly against the wall. His wall, his calm place. He blushes as he remembers how it would evolve. It wasn't always Donna on her knees though.

She walks towards him, towards the door, kisses him fleetingly on the cheek and makes to leave. He reaches for her wrist, pulls her back to him, his hands on her waist, holding her still.

He can't let her go just yet. "What were you thinking about?"

"Nothing. Amy. How long it took us to get here?"

"Amy?"

"I saw you talking"

He realises she saw Amy kiss him. "We took too long getting here. I should have kissed you a long time ago. Amy's pleased I've stopped wasting time, and that I'm with someone who makes me happy. She'll kill me if I screw it up."

Donna's using her seductive voice. "Josh, that's my job."

"Are you going to have time?"

She straightens his bowtie and pulls him to her lips, speaking between electric kisses. "I'll make time." She's nibbling his lower lip, probing his mouth, her hands in his hair, holding him to her.

He's dreamed about kissing her in his office for so long. He tries to remember this isn't his fantasy. Tries not to push her against the wall. Tries to remember this isn't his office anymore. Tries to keep control.

He breaks the kiss.

"Josh?" she's enquiring.

"Just a moment, I need a moment." He rests his forehead on hers, breathing in deeply, hoping she hasn't noticed the bulge in his trousers. Are her nipples straining against the flimsy material of her dress? Is she as aroused as him? Unconsciously he reaches out to her breast, drawn to her arousal.

Her voice catches. "Josh, we can't."

He breathes deeply again, kisses her cheek and takes a step back, staring deep into her eyes, trying to calm himself. After a few moments he's feeling more relaxed.

She smiles, a cruel flash of pure lust. "I love you Josh."

He grins, knowing he's happy to be confused by Donna. "I love you too."

They barely speak on the taxi journey home. They don't want words, don't need small talk, they want to hold one another, let their bodies communicate their desire. She settles for Josh's hand on her leg, his fingers lazily massaging her inner thigh through the silky material of her ball gown. She can feel the heat rise within her. It is all she can do to breathe, talking is beyond her, she has no words that can be said in a taxi.

She places her hand over his, stilling his fingers, she can take no more, not until they are behind closed doors. She feels Josh's eyes, studying her expression, but can't meet his gaze, that would mean giving in to the lust rising within, and that wasn't going to happen in a taxi, not any more than it could happen in a deserted West Wing office.

He barely has time to drop his bag inside the door before she's kissing him, her hands in his curls, ruffling his adorable hair. He closes the door behind them and she can feel the cool of the plaster against her shoulders as he backs her into the wall, his body pressed against her, in all the right places.

Her hands move to his bowtie, loosening it. Josh has pulled away from her lips, he's studying her expression, almost imperceptibly shaking his head. He lifts her hands from his shoulders, entwining her fingers with his, and presses them to the wall at her sides. His lips explore her jaw, neck, her collar bone has never felt this good. Her nipples are hard against her dress as his body rubs the material over them.

His hands release hers and have moved to explore her hips, her ass. She leaves her hands against the wall it's helping remind her which way is up.

His voice catches, stutters, "Donna, are you wearing underwear."

Half moan, half word, "No."

"I'm so very glad I didn't know this earlier." He's speaking to her chest through his kisses.

He drops to his knees in front of her, his hands holding her hips in place, steadying them both. He's looking up at her, worshipping her, running his hands down the flowing skirt of her ball gown, skimming her thighs, calves, ankles. He's lifting her feet, slowly one at a time, removing her shoes, his hands hidden beneath the hem of her dress.

He's teasing her, running his fingers up inside her skirt, lazily brushing the outsides of her long legs. Doesn't he know where she needs him? She knows he knows. He's just taking his time, making her wait, making her wet, like she hasn't waited long enough. His hands are gently kneading her hips, moving her dress up, making room for him to work.

His long fingers tip-tap a beat across her abdomen, across her hip bones, quickly down her thighs until suddenly with a swoosh of material his head is beneath her gown, kissing his way back up her sensitive skin.

One hand steadies her as the other slips between her thighs, briefly investigating the dampness that's been growing, waiting. His hand slides lower, lifting a leg over his shoulder making room for his mouth, his tongue connecting with her clit, sucking, lapping at the oasis between her legs, probing.

She moans. His fingers have found their way inside, slipping in easily, swirling, igniting the flames within. He's barely touched her yet she can already feel herself losing control.

"Josh" her voice is unsteady, trembling, she's hoping he'll slow down without her needing to find the words.

"Josh", she calls again. This time he releases her clit, gently breathing, blowing against her, allowing her a moment to calm, brace herself against the wall.

As his fingers continue their massage deep within, with one hand she reaches for the steadying purchase of the door frame, her other hand gently guiding his head back deep between her thighs. His tongue again seeks out the throbbing bud of her clit, massaging, sucking licking.

She works to keep her hips from jolting against his steadying hand, as she shudders against his lips. Her leg wrapped around his back keeping him pressed against her as she tries to remain upright, riding his comforting embrace through her orgasm.

When the room comes back into focus he's still holding her steady, his head against her pelvis, her leg still wrapped around his back, beneath the folds of her dress. Breathing slowly she releases him, allowing him to emerge from under her skirt, and rise to kiss her taking her body into his strong steady arms.