Title: Keeping The Vows

Series: Story Of Us

Rating: PG

Keeping the Vows

CJ wasn’t sure if it was the heat or the extra weight, which bothered her most. The forecasters had been going on for days about global warming and temperatures continuing to rise. The air conditioning was already on in every room of the townhouse and since taking maternity leave CJ had taken to showering three times a day. The baby had suddenly grown in the last two months and her trendy smart suits had gone to the back of the closet. Now she was forced to wear cotton sundresses and much to her disgust she looked as though she was wearing a tent. Leo told her how beautiful she was and how he loved her more now she was carrying their child, but in truth she felt fat and frumpy and very un-CJ like.

The day ahead was only going to serve to make things worse. Leo was downstairs trying to dress the groom, having crawled out of bed at four am to pick him up from a bar. Being Sam he had wanted Josh to be Best man, which was asking for disaster. Josh had gotten drunk in the first hour, fell in love with the stripper and passed out on the pavement. Charlie in his wisdom had thought to inform CJ and in so doing had involved them in the whole sorry mess.

CJ banged on the bathroom door again, ‘Josh it’s twelve o’clock, the weddings at one.’

‘Do you think you could stop that, I have a headache?’ he mumbled in reply.

‘Do you think you could get your butt out of my bath or I’m coming in?’ she shouted.

‘You wouldn’t?’ he muttered.

‘Wanna try me?’

Seconds later she heard his footfalls on the floorboards and the wincing as he knocked into the walls. CJ made her way back into the bedroom and stared in the mirror one last time. It didn’t look like her but in many ways it was more her than she had ever been. Her hair had lightened naturally with the sun and had grown a little longer allowing her to wear it in a pleat. Leo had chosen the dress, in a deep red he said favoured her skin, sleeveless and floating around her calves, her stomach covered in layers of fabric.

‘They say beauty is in the eye of the beholder so I’m one lucky man.’ Leo shuffled up to her and wrapped his arms around her belly, nuzzling her neck. ‘Have I told you today I love you?’

‘No, and I was really beginning to wonder there, you know with all those skinny young girls around the office,’ she replied, only partly in humour.

Leo spun her around, ‘Claudia, don’t ever think I love you any less. Young girls don’t interest me, I have you and soon we’ll have baby McGarry.’

CJ looked at him and smiled, ‘we really need to come up with a name and soon, she’ll be here in three weeks.’

‘CJ,’ came a whiny voice from down the hall, ‘can you tie my cravat?’

‘You know Josh you really should learn how to do it for yourself,’ Leo chided grabbing the material and pulling Josh with it.

‘But I have Donna.’

Leo and CJ exchanged glances, someone was going to have to tell him soon and neither really wanted to be the one and especially today. Donna herself was refusing, fully expecting Josh to beg her to stay, and in desperate need to do this one thing for herself. She had been twenty four when she joined the campaign and in the intervening years made good friends and found herself, now she was planning to return to school and graduate, which for her meant going home. Leo had already instructed Margaret to find a replacement in the hope that Josh wouldn’t completely fall apart.

‘There done. Got the rings?’

Josh went blank and began to shake his head until CJ held out her hand containing the two gold bands. He took them and set off in search of Sam.

‘I sometimes wonder if I’m set to be father of four for the rest of my life,’ Leo sighed.

‘Well I’m not adopting them,’ CJ stated, ‘Now let’s go, before the bride gets there first.

The church was full to capacity, the couple’s own families, the First family and West Wing staff in attendance. Ginger had laid down only one rule when she agreed to marry Sam and that was she wanted a traditional white church wedding. He had called in a wedding planner and left them to it. Now as he stood in Church, he wondered what the hell he had done, wishing they had eloped or something. Josh sat to one side, his head pounding and Leo sat just behind, squeezing his shoulder, only slightly relieved it wasn’t his Mal. The organ started and Ginger appeared at the aback of the church. CJ started to cry immediately and Leo handed her the first tissue. Ginger started towards them, the simple Dolce and Gabbana Dress of white silk enhancing her every curve, clutching Toby’s arm. The couple exchanged traditional vows, Donna gave a reading on the joys of marriage and the choir sang Jerusalem as the couple, Josh and Donna signed the register. As they began their first walk as man and wife Leo handed CJ a fresh tissue from his second handipack and squeezed her hand tighter.

The reception was held at the Hilton, the room decorated with flowers and ornate candle displays, the tables organised with a California theme. The guests sat down to a three course meal and laughed as speeches were given and the couple sliced through the lavish sponge cake. Later they all let their hair down to the sounds of a local disco.

Leo watched CJ from across the room, she sat talking to Donna, her hair falling around her face, her hands protectively holding her stomach. He wondered briefly if McGarry junior was about to make an entrance but she didn’t seem to be in distress so he shrugged it off. She just looked tired so he ambled across to her.

‘Hey honey, hey Donna. You look tired, want to go home?’ he squeezed her hand but she shook it loose.

‘I’m fine.’

‘Okay, it’s just you don’t seem it.’

‘Everything’s fine,’ she reiterated standing, ‘Donna and I are just going to dance, maybe you should go see Margaret.’

She pushed past Leo and headed to the dance floor, Donna giving him a sympathetic look over the shoulder. They had been married not yet a year and despite disagreements, major ones about work they had never yet had a fight. Something told him she was mad, and maybe it wasn’t about the hormones. He started to search for Margaret, except she was nowhere to be seen, his search lead him onto the patio and by the fountain he found her, except she wasn’t alone and the guy with her was practically pawing her. Hearing footsteps the guy stopped and turned,

‘Mr McGarry.’

Leo recognised him as one of the agents on Abbey’s detail.

‘Hey, hey Margaret, can I have a word.’

Margaret extracted herself and watched as the guy disappeared

‘You should be careful, Margaret, god knows what he would have done to you out here alone.’

‘If wishing made it so,’ she whispered, and then looked at Leo, ‘I’m sorry I didn’t realise she didn’t know I knew, otherwise I would never have said anything.’

Leo looked on blankly, ‘Did any of that make sense?

‘You should have told her I knew then I wouldn’t have tried to be sympathetic and put my foot in it.’

‘Knew what?’

‘That it was a marriage of convenience.’

‘MARGARET,’ he yelled and she cringed, ‘that explains why my wife is pissed at me. You don’t still think this is an arrangement, that baby is going to win us a Bill?’

Margaret shrugged, ‘I didn’t know what to think. You were all touchy feely at Christmas and I assumed it was for show. I mean you’re married and she probably wants to you know and I…’

Leo paced around her rubbing his temples, sometimes Margaret was beyond comprehension. And he wasn’t about to tell his secretary that he couldn’t keep his hands off his wife because she was fantastic in bed. And now he had to figure out exactly why it was bugging CJ and fix it, sometimes he longed for an easier life.

CJ left the dance floor and wandered in the direction of the bar where she was sure he would be, it never ceased to amaze her how predictable he was. Except on this particular occasion he wasn’t alone. Seated at a table close to the bar were Toby, Ainsley, Mallory and Josh, and by the number of empty glasses none were on their first drink. CJ pulled up a spare seat and sat down. The bartender appeared in seconds, CJ indicated she’d have a water and he left.

‘She’s leaving me, Claudia.’

CJ inwardly groaned, this was a conversation she was hoping not to have.

‘Margaret told me, was I the only one not to know?’

He looked so pathetic as he pouted and slumped on the table. ‘Well she’s on a roll tonight. Josh she wanted to tell you herself she just didn’t want to hurt you.’

‘Huh.’

‘Okay what’s wrong with the rest of you?’ She stopped as she realised what the two women had in common. ‘Mal, go shag a hockey player, Ainsley screw a republican, oops that’s what we do, or find a chef, just get over it.’

They all looked at her in surprise, Toby caught her eye and grimaced at the sadness in her eyes. He stood and moved to help her up.

‘CJ and I need to talk. Put whatever on my tab,’ he added and then called over his shoulder, ‘It’s the hormones.’

He directed her out into the hotel lobby and motioned to a couch. She slumped into the cushions and closed her eyes. Toby waited for her to acknowledge what she had just done, when she didn’t he started, ‘It’s not like you to be so cruel, that’s my job.’

‘Right now I don’t give a damn,’ she stated.

‘We could rent a room and we could….’

CJ opened her eyes and glared at him.

‘…or maybe not. Hey I’m drunk.’ he pointed out as if it made a difference.

‘Ginger knows you right?’

Toby looked at her as if she had grown two heads, ‘We haven’t slept together if that’s what you’re implying.’

‘You haven’t been with anyone since Andi. I meant she knows things about you.’

Toby rubbed his temples as his headache started, ‘She knows how I like my coffee, when I don’t want to take a call, when you and I have had a fight, so?’

CJ shifted to face him, ‘Margaret’s been with Leo for like twelve years, she knows things even I don’t, she’s still partly in love with him, so if there was a problem she’d know, right?’

He wished he had thought to pick up his drink, ‘I don’t know where this is going and I might be the wrong person, but yeah. What’s that…?’ he started before he noticed she was crying. Reaching into his pocket he handed her a tissue and placed an arm around her back, stroking her.

‘She thinks this is still an arrangement, and I’m wondering if she’s right?’

Toby glanced over her shoulder and saw Leo hovering in a doorway nearby. He took a deep breath and began the hardest conversation of his life.

‘You told me at Christmas that you loved him and he loved you. I’ve seen nothing to prove otherwise. He’s devoted, he leaves early, he buys you roses every Monday and I’ve seen him staring at you in meetings. This is post natal depression coming early.’

CJ glanced at him, eyebrows raised.

Toby blushed, ‘I read up, if I’m going to be godfather I need to know these things.’

CJ grinned.

‘Anyway my point is you are feeling fat, your hormones are skyhigh, and you have all these self doubts. It isn’t about Leo, it’s about you. And I can tell you hand on heart you are still the sexiest woman in the building.’

CJ threw back her head and laughed, ‘You really are drunk Ziegler.’

‘But he’s right,’ Leo commented joining the couple, ‘Can you give us a minute?’

Toby leaned in and kissed her lightly on the forehead before turning and walking away. He stopped when he reached the bar and sighed when he saw Leo sat next to her, holding her hand. Sometimes he was happy to acknowledge he’d lost her to the better man, tonight he would just get drunk and try to forget that she was the only woman he ever thought about.

‘Margaret didn’t mean to upset you. She told me shortly before the wedding she knew about the arrangement but was happy for us. I told her she’s wrong. Whatever happened before when I took my vows I meant every word. I love you, and I always will. Toby wasn’t wrong when he said you are sexy, the fact it’s my baby only makes me want you more. I never look at another woman, why would I when I’m the envy of Washington. I screw this up and I don’t get another chance.’

CJ stopped staring at their hands and looked into her husbands eyes, ‘You don’t regret marrying me, you still fancy me?’

Leo released her hand and cupped her cheek, ‘My only regret is I didn’t marry you sooner and if you’re worried about me not making love to you, it’s because I didn’t want to hurt you or Anna.’

‘Anna?’

‘Yeah, after my grandmother. And as for the making love thing, wanna go home and I’ll show you what you do to me?’ he grinned at her and let his lips lightly graze hers.

CJ grinned back, ‘But the couple haven’t left, and Josh is all upset about Donna.’

‘I’ll tell them you were tired, and I think it’s about time the kids took care of themselves.’ He stood and held out his arms to help her up, CJ allowed herself to be pulled up and walked towards the door with him, leaving the party and her doubts behind.

The End