Hey, so I'm thinking as I type this that this will just be a bit of a long one-shot. If at the end I think it needs it, I may add some more chapters. We will just have to see how long it goes and such. I got this idea from a combination of reading two different yet equally awesome LongVic writers. TheGodmother2 and rebelxxwaltz. The fighty bit from TheGodmother2's recent story and the jealous bit from rebelxxwaltz's Undercover. I don't know why but after rereading them both, this idea just hit me. Plus they are just awesome lol. Well, here we go. Btw, we are going with the more book like Vic. More mouthy and flirtatious. Just because.
She huffed into his office, slamming the door behind her. "What the fuck Walt? What the hell was that? Thought you had my back?"
He looked up at her the anger and hurt radiating off of him. "Don't you dare. I did have your back. Always have!" He stood up forcefully from his chair, leaning forward onto his hands on his desk. "But I will not stand aside while you obliviously flirt with a reporter. He was trying to prize information from you and you were just…"
She angrily interrupts him. "I what, Walt? I didn't give him any answers. I fed him some bullshit to get the press off our case."
"By flirting with him!" Walt slammed his hands down on his desk, causing some papers to fly off onto the floor. "Dammit Vic this isn't Philadelphia! You can't just flirt with everyone! You have to have a sliver of professionalism."
He instantly regretted his last statement when he saw the hurt wash over her face. He knew immediately that he had taken it a step too far. "Vic, I didn't mean…"
She interrupted him, swinging the door open. "No, Walter. You said exactly what you meant. If only you were as professional as you feel everyone else should be, then maybe it wouldn't cut so damn deep."
And with that she was out the door.
He knew better. He knew she hadn't been really doing anything with the reporter. He just hated it so much. Hated himself sometimes for it as well. He had no real right to be jealous. So what if their flirting had gotten more serious after Sean had moved out of town. It was just flirting. Occasional lingering touches. Sultry looks. Apparently now all poured down the drain. All because he had felt the need to snap at her in front of the reporter. Treated her like a child really. It had been so stupid.
Flashback
He got out of his truck, not at all surprised to see reporters surrounding the front entrance to the station. With the recent shooting, there had been a total of four dead bodies drop in less than a week. It had begun to look more and more like a serial killer but Walt had made sure he never used that word, especially around the press.
There was one reporter that seemed to be away from the pack. He was further out of the group and seemed to be talking to someone against the building. Walt looked a little closer and felt a rush of heat go through him. It was Vic.
He pushed through the crowd, avoiding the questions sailing at him as he approached Vic and the reporter. "So what can you actually tell me about what's going on Ms. Moretti?"
He hadn't been able to get to them yet, but he could still hear. And he could see how she smiled at him. "Oh, well we are really looking into different options right now. Why, did you have a lead for me?" He could see the reporter shake with laughter. Oh, how Walt would like to shake him alright. Shake that damn smug grin off his face.
The cameraman had already pointed the camera away, realizing that she didn't have any information to give, but the reporter had leaned in closer to Vic. "I could lead you to a nice restaurant up the way. How about that?"
Walt had just gotten to them when he finished his question. He swiftly grabbed Vic's arm, pulling her toward him. "As Ms. Moretti should have told you, we have nothing to say to the press." He turned toward her, her face still trying to seem flirtatious, but he had too much anger for it to subside. "And Ms. Moretti, you should be inside working the case. Like a cop."
He cringed remembering all that had happened. Yea, he definitely went too far. He walked out of his office a few minutes later, intending to talk with her.
But when he went out, she wasn't at her desk. "Ruby, where did Vic go?"
The older woman looked up from her paper riddled desk. "There was a call from the Hollstein Farm. Mrs. Carmilla said that when she tried to enter her barn loft that it was boarded up, from the inside. She was afraid that someone was in there so she called asking for one of y'all to come check it out. As soon as the call came in, Victoria shot out the door, saying she could handle it. That was about fifteen minutes ago though. Should be plenty of time for her to be out there."
No sooner had she stopped talking when the radio cut through the room, ringing Vic's voice clear as day. "Ruby, shit! Send some backup fast. There's somebody shooting from the barn. I need that backup fast!"
Walt grabbed his coat and hat, heading out the door at a run. Branch was just coming in as he headed out the door. "Branch, come on. Vic's in trouble. Shooter out at the Hollstein Farm."
The deputy followed on the tail of his boss the entire way to the farm. He wasn't sure what to expect, but the frantic Walt, jumping out of his truck when they pulled up wasn't it. He had always loved Vic as a sister, but he also had a feeling that his boss felt a little differently toward his female deputy than his other ones.
"Vic!" Walt screamed out, looking around franticly. Two shots rang out, and he heard a loud thud follow behind it. He surveyed the land around him, seeing Branch doing the same.
Why wasn't she answering!
"Vic, come on, where are you?" He ran into the main run of the barn, looking up at the loft entrance. He could have sworn his heart stopped beating right then. The loft entrance had been obviously forced open. And hanging out over the entrance, was a small white hand. A hand he could recognize anywhere. A hand whose motions he had watched and been infatuated with watching for a few years now. He climbed the ladder as fast as his legs and arms would take him, pulling himself up the last few steps and landing on his knees right inside the entrance. He pulled Vic's body to him, pressing his hand into her stomach where the bullet had ripped through. "Vic..Vic look at me, come on. Look at me!"
Her eyes drifted open for just a second before closing again. Walt looked from her body, down to Branch who had started up the ladder. "Branch, help me get her down. We have to get her to the hospital. Fast!" Walt wasted only a second, looking to back to see what he thought he had initially seen. The reporter from before. He was the shooter. Vic had been the second shot he heard. She had killed him.
They slowly proceeded back down the ladder, supporting Vic as they went. When they got down Walt cradled her in his arms, running with her to his Bronco. Branch had followed behind him and instinctively opened the door for him. Walt fished out his keys after he put her down and shoved them into Branch's hands. "Go, now!"
He didn't hesitate as he watched his boss climb into the back with her and slam the door behind him. He ran around to the front and began to do just as he was instructed.
It had been three days since the shooting. Vic had required two different surgeries to get the bullets out of her. Not that it really mattered to her though. She hadn't awoken yet. Ever since she had looked up at Walt in the barn loft, she hadn't opened her eyes again. Nothing the doctor's had had to say really made Walt feel any better. They just made him mad anyways. Because he wasn't family, they wouldn't tell him anything, and because her family was so far away, they didn't know just how badly he needed to know, therefore, they didn't tell him anything either. So instead of being treated like the Sheriff, he felt as f he was being treated like the criminal. However, there was one thing his title gave him. The right to protect his deputy. Which he had made sure to point out to the doctors or nurses anytime one of them would tell him that he really needed to go and get some rest.
He knew very clearly what he needed. A whole lot better than they could have known. And what he needed was to sit right next to her bed until she woke up. He had lost one love in a hospital, but she knew how he felt for her. He had never even told Vic. And what hurt him more was that the last thing she would have remembered is him screaming at her, being an all around ass to her.
He took her hand in his, running his thumb over her knuckles. "Vic, I'm so sorry. I really am." He leaned down, resting his head on their hands. "Vic," he cleared his throat, looking back up at her face, hoping to see her looking back at him. He was disappointed though. "Victoria, I should have gotten about this entirely differently. I wasn't mad at you for talking to that reporter. You hadn't done anything wrong. I was mad because, although you were doing good detective work, he acted as though you were truly flirting with him. It wasn't you I was mad at. I could never be mad at you." He huffed out, standing up abruptly. "Dammit Vic, this isn't how any of this was supposed to happen. I was supposed to be able to take you to a beautiful restaurant. Court you. Tell you I love you. Victoria, please." He turns back towards her from pacing, sadly still finding her eyes closed. "Vic…" He walked over to her, leaning down to whisper in her ear. "You did good, Deputy, you got your man." He squeezes his eyes shut, turning his head in towards her, his lips brushing her ear. "I'm so proud of you, Vic. So proud." He pressed a gentle kiss to her cheek. "I have to go do the paperwork Vic. I know you would want me to." He gets to the door before turning around, looking back at her one last time before leaving. "I do love you, Vic. I can say that now."
It was the day after he had finally left Vic's side. He hadn't gone home though. Instead he had gone to work, just like he had told her he would. He was in his office, with the door closed, doing paperwork when Ruby cracked the door open, stepping in and shutting it. "Walter, how are you doing?"
He looked up to her with weary eyes. "I'm well Ruby. Just tired. Glad Vic caught our bad guy. I can't believe I didn't realize earlier that she knew. I should have let her talk instead of screaming at her so much."
She placed a reassuring arm on his shoulder. "Walter, you didn't know though. You can't blame yourself for what happened to Victoria. She is an adult. She made a conscious decision. She has always known the risks of the job. And she has never had a problem with being able to talk…"
She trailed off, causing Walt to look up at her. She has a kind of smile on her face that he hasn't seen in a few days. A genuine smile. "Ruby, what are you getting at?"
She kissed his forehead, just as a mother would. "Walter, the hospital just called. Victoria is awake. She won't talk to any of their staff though." He is already up getting his coat and hat on as she speaks. "Walter. She has apparently been very adamant that she won't speak to anyone until she has had a chance to talk with you."
He smiled, pausing in the door way for just a second. "Ruby, you are the best."
She had adamantly refused to speak with anyone, saying how she must talk to the Sheriff. It was urgent. She had just heard the scuffle outside her door. She knew that deep baritone voice even if it was muffled through the door. She tried to lean up but a streak of pain shot through her side. She decided to settle back against the bed. There came a sudden loud bang against the door, then a few louder voices. She knew he had to be getting irritated outside the door. There must be some kind of disagreement on him coming in. She could only think of one thing that might get him to relax. She called out, her voice still hoarse from not being used. "Walt."
That made everything outside the door go extremely quiet until she heard him say one short thing. Then he was stepping in the door. "Vic, hey."
She smiled, reaching up a hand toward him. "Hey, Walt. Come here."
He took it, quickly coming to her side, patting her hand when she clears her throat. "Hey take it easy, you've been through a good bit. How much do you remember?"
The blood rushes up to her cheeks. "Uhm…I remember all of it."
He goes stiff for a moment, but keeps rubbing her knuckles with his thumb. "I'm sorry then. You didn't deserve that. Vic, I realized later what you were doing. How smart you were. When did you figure out that he was the shooter?"
She smiled, not moving her hand from his. "Well, I remembered that a witness said that a brown and blue striped van had left the crime scene and I saw it when I pulled up. Then, I just matched the name on the van to a person. He wasn't even really a reporter. He was just using it as a cover to try and see what all we knew on him."
He couldn't help the smile that covered his face as she talked, when she stopped he hadn't really noticed. He had turned his face from watching his work on her hand to looking up into her deep chocolate eyes. She, in turn, was becoming more and more lost in the blue crystalline depths of his. She was the first to look away, seeming to stare off into the distance before she spoke. "So, I take it you got all your paperwork done?"
He nodded, his eyes falling back to her soft hands. She had moved, grasping his hand now in both of hers. "Yea, I got it all done. Filled out yours too, so you have nothing to worry about. You did good. I'm so…"
She smiles, giving his hands a light squeeze. "Proud? Yea, I heard you the first time."
He froze, racking his brain. Trying to think when he had said it last. "Vic, I…I haven't said that before. Not that I haven't been proud of you…but…I mean, this is the first time I've ever said it."
When she bit her lip, smiling at him, he had to look down to make sure he really wasn't floating. He had been so sure he would never see that again. "Walt, you said it while I was asleep. Well, technically they said it was a coma, which probably makes more sense on why I was able to hear you." She paused, taking her hands from his and trying to push down in the bed to get to a sitting position. When her left hand pressed into the bed her elbow buckled. "Fuck!"
Walt jumped forward, grabbing at either side of her chest, under her arms, half lifting, to support her weight. When he looked down he was surprised at how close their faces were, but tried to not let it affect him since she was still in so much pain. He waits to speak until her face smoothes back out, no longer scrunched in pain. "Easy, Vic. Just be easy."
She tried to take steadying breaths but the air seemed get thinner when she looked up and saw him looking down at her from only a few inches above her. Her eyes flitted down to his lips for just a cautionary second before going back up to his eyes. "You being proud wasn't all I heard ya know…"
He nodded, making the decision that he had to do something about it now, seeing as she already knew everything else. "Vic, I almost lost you. I was so afraid I hadn't had the chance to tell you…to tell you how I feel. I thought I had waited too late and now I know. I know I wasn't and that you know the truth, even if I didn't get to do it the right way."
She took another settling breath, trying to understand how her life could have changed so much in the past week. It was finally what she wanted…or was it. He hadn't really said it since she had woken up. She didn't really know for sure. She had to know. "Say it, Walter." Bringing up her right hand, she ran it along the thick scruff he had acquired from not shaving at all the day before. "I… I need to here you say it."
Before she knew what had happened, he was next to her face. More directly, his cheek was pressed against hers and she could feel his shallow breaths against her ear. "Victoria Moretti, I am in love with you. Body, soul, and mind. Absolutely and entirely." He pressed a soft kiss against her cheek. "I have known for longer than my pride would like me to admit. And longer than I have ever had the right to." He moved his face so he was directly in front of her again.
Smiling, she nodded a quick short nod. "That's about what I remember." Her hand moved back to his cheek and she took this opportunity to the pad of thumb over his soft lips. They pursed under her gentle touch which just made her smile grow. "What?"
He tried to feign hurt, but couldn't manage it with her looking at him the way she was. "That's all you have to say?"
She couldn't contain a small laugh at what he said. Instead of instantly answering she leaned her head forward, pressing her lips softly to his. It was a soft chaste kiss, but both could feel the things that couldn't be said between them. In mere seconds they had parted lips but were still only inches from the others face. He had lowered her back to the bed while they had kissed. She moved her other hand up to cup his face, smiling when he relaxed in her hands. "Walter Longmire, I too am in love with you. Painfully so. Have been for as long as I can remember. Even when I…well, even when I probably shouldn't have been. And I absolutely always will."
The smile that had been on his only seemed to grow, but it wasn't there long. Just as quickly as it had appeared he had made another decision and lowered down for their lips to meet again.
This one wasn't slow.
It wasn't chaste.
It was them.
And it showed exactly what they could expect of the rest of their future together in one word.
Love.
Well, I hope everyone enjoyed that. As always, I love hearing from the readers. I figured since I had taken such a leave that you all deserved a little something special. Here is your something special. Loveballs to all the wonderful people reading this.