8:02 pm.

Emily walked into the hotel lobby, pizza in hand, and found Aaron sitting in the lounge. She couldn't help but notice that he looked worried.

"Everything ok?" She asked. He had loosened his tie and unbuttoned his top button, and it was distracting.

"There's only one room." His voice was strained, sad even. It broke her heart to hear it that way.

"Ok, well, I'll just get another one." She started to turn towards the front desk, but he interrupted her. "They're full. Something about an air festival."

"Shall we then?" She couldn't tell if Aaron could hear her voice shake.

Aaron led her to the elevator, and they quietly made their way to the room. He held the door open for her, and she dropped the pizza onto one of the beds. At least they each had their own bed. She put her overnight bag on the desk and sat on the bed to take off her shoes. Aaron sat next to her and started to dig in.

She got up to wash her hands. She was fidgeting. To say she was nervous was an understatement. Last night, she couldn't sleep because she was having dirty dreams about this man. How was she supposed to sleep in the same room as him?

8:45 pm.

After she finished eating, Emily excused herself to take a shower. As she slipped off her dress, she couldn't stop thinking about the man right outside her door. Her heart was beating fast, and her hands were shaking.

She slipped under the hot shower and tried to relax, to clear her mind, but she couldn't think how much better this shower would be if there was a certain someone in there with her.

Was she even allowed to have these thoughts? It was her own fault that she is in this situation. If she could just get over her guilt and just figure out what to say to him….

9:30 pm.

By the time she was finished with her shower, Aaron was sprawled out on the bed watching CNN.

"Bathroom's all yours," she said softly. She grabbed a book from her bag and jumped into the other bed. She could feel him watching her, and she felt self-conscious in her oversized tee shirt and shorts. Aaron got out of bed and was heading towards the bathroom, but she couldn't hold it in any longer. "When you kissed me...that night...I didn't talk to Kirkman until after that." She was stammering. She felt like a fool. His back was still to her. She didn't know what she expected. Him to forgive her immediately? She didn't even know if he understood what she meant.

He slowly turned around and nodded. She looked up at him. He made her feel so small in that moment. His eyes were piercing hers, and she hoped that he couldn't see how conflicted she was.

"I'm sorry, Aaron. I never meant to hurt you."

He nodded again. "Yeah, Kirkman said that." He turned and went into the bathroom.

What the hell did that mean? Did he mean that Kirkman said Emily never meant to hurt him, or Kirkman never meant to hurt him? Kirkman already apologized to him? Her head was spinning. Why was Kirkman talking about this with Aaron? She could use a drink. She was hoping that the conversation would go differently. She wanted to feel like she didn't just mess everything up...again.

10:00 pm.

Emily was still reeling over what Aaron had said, staring at the book she wasn't reading when Aaron had gotten into the other bed. She didn't know how to fix this mess.

"Aaron?" Her voice was soft and meek. It wasn't often that she let her guard down, but she felt like she could with him. She trusted him.

"Yeah?" She could hear him shift, and she looked over at him. She decided to put her pride aside and to stop being a coward.

"I really am sorry, Aaron. I couldn't believe that Kirkman put you on that list, and I didn't believe you could have done it. I was just doing my job." She wanted to cry. She was never a big risk taker, and she hated being in a vulnerable position.

"Why didn't you just ask me?" He sounded more curious than hurt, but Emily still thought she could detect some disappointment in his tone.

"I wanted to, but I didn't want to undermine the investigation. The Capitol bombing was much bigger than us." She was trying to reason with his practical side, but she could tell she was falling short.

"Aaron, honestly, what would you have done if you were investigating me?" The silence that followed her question was too much for her. She had thought that he would have done the same thing, but maybe she was wrong.

"No, you're right. I would have done the same thing you did." He sounded so sad that it broke Emily's fault. Part of her wished she'd never even come to the White House to prevent all the hurt Aaron was feeling because of her.

"Maybe we can start over?" Her voice was definitely shaking, and she was pretty sure Aaron could hear it.

"I would like that." She could hear a little huskiness to his voice, and it excited her. "Dinner tomorrow?" she asked.

"Emily, we'd be having dinner together tomorrow no matter what." His chuckle and the change in tone of the conversation put her at ease. She snuggled deeper into her blankets and fell asleep with a smile on her face.