Love Sings

Disclaimers: I am not now nor have I ever been . . . an owner of Scarecrow and Mrs. King. They still belong to the brilliant people at Warner Brothers and Shoot the Moon Productions. I am playing around with them strictly for my entertainment; all I get from this is the smile on my face from a job well done. Anyway, suing me will do little good as I am perpetually broke anyway; you'll likely pay the lawyers more than is in my pockets to give. I also do not own the following:

Hands to Heaven written by David Glasper and Marcus Lillington of Breathe

The Last Words You Said written by Richard Marx and Janey Clewer, and sung by Sarah Brightman and Richard Marx.

The Special Two written and sung by Missy Higgins.

Lyrics offset by bold italics

Time line: Post season 4. Assumes marriage is still a secret to all outside parties.

Premise: Love Sings. Lee has to leave on a dangerous assignment while Amanda remains behind at the Agency. Fallout ensues.

Archive: Not without permission, please.

Feedback: Of course, all constructive criticism and high praise gratefully accepted. Flames? I got a bag of marshmallows ready, anyone got a stick? (Mmmm ... marshmallows ...)

Authors Notes: All three parts were originally written and posted to at least one forum in late 2002, with the exception being some major overhaul on part three. They were originally posted as three separate stories, and I've always thought of them as the "Hands To Heaven" trilogy. Although my original posts claimed they stood alone although the second two were sequels, while combing over them after rescuing them from the vault I realized they really do not stand alone ... thus my decision to post them as 'chapters' of the same story. However, each part retains it's own title as they were written. I hope you all enjoy these, as I definitely enjoyed working with them once more.

Excerpts in "Love Me Now, Forever" taken from the aired episodes "Remembrance Of things Past", "Stemwinder", :"Nightcrawler", and "The Man Who Died Twice"

Hands To Heaven

Written September 12, 2002

Lee's Apartment,

Tuesday, October 6,

11:00 PM

"As I watch you move, across the moonlit room, with so much tenderness in your loving . . ."

'She's so accepting of this,' Lee Stetson thought as he finished packing his bag. He looked over at his beautiful wife, Amanda, standing on the other side of the bed from him. He would give anything not to make this journey, but he knew that for him, there was no choice. A presidential order was not something to be taken lightly, and they both knew it. 'I swear, one of these days I am going to get out of this business and be done with leaving her.' He snapped the bag shut and walked over to where she stood.

"How much time?" She whispered.

"Tomorrow I must leave, the dawn knows no reprieve. God give me strength when I am weary . . ."

"I have to be at the airport at 6 am," Lee answered. He reached out at the same time she did, and drew them into a powerful embrace.

"I wish you didn't have to go."

"I don't want to go either, Amanda. If I had a choice, I wouldn't go, you know that."

"Yes, I know. It doesn't make it any easier, though, does it?"

"No, it doesn't."

"Lee?"

"Hmmm?"

"How dangerous is it?"

Lee paused for a moment, wondering what answer he could give. Should he lie and tell her it wasn't, that it was a milk run, and spare her the worry? Or should he tell her the truth, and tell her just how dangerous it was, and that he might not make it back? Or, should he tell her something somewhere in the middle?

"Lee?"

He opted for the truth, in a well crafted veil. "Well, let's put it this way. I was very tempted to tell Billy about us in hopes that he might change his mind about sending me."

"So raise your hands to heaven and pray that we'll be back together someday . . ."

"In other words," Amanda continued his thought while pulling back to look into his eyes, "this is one of those missions that they send single men on because they don't feel like making widows."

Lee ducked his head, his Amanda knew him all too well. "Yes."

Amanda sighed and chucked her husband under the chin to bring his eyes back to hers. "Well, then, we have about six hours before you have to leave. Why don't we make the most of them?"

"You read my mind," Lee whispered as he lowered his lips to claim hers.

"Tonight I need your sweet caress, hold me in the darkness. Tonight you caught my breathlessness, you relieve my sadness."

"As we move to embrace, the tears fall down your face. I whisper words of love so softly . . ."

Lee held Amanda tightly after their love was spent, neither wanting to fall asleep, lest the dawn come too soon.

"Just promise me one thing," Amanda's whisper broke the silence between them.

"Anything," Lee answered, repositioning himself to face her. His heart broke as he saw the single tear that had escaped her eye.

"I want you to be careful."

Lee smiled crookedly, knowing what she was really asking. He brushed the tear that had now made it's way to her cheek. "Always. How could I not be? I have so much to come back to now, Amanda."

Amanda smiled her own tiny smile. "I love you."

"And I love you."

"I can't believe this pain, it's driving me insane. Without your touch life will be lonely . . ."

The night, of course, is a fickle monster, and started to wind itself out all too fast. Neither would fall asleep, but held each other close.

'I swear, when I get back, we are going to talk about finally ending all this secrecy,' Lee thought as the moonlight enveloped them. 'I know this is hard on her, and it's hell on me to have to keep leaving like this. Maybe it really is time to retire after all, take that desk job Billy was talking about. There might still be traveling, but nothing like this!'

"So raise your hands to heaven and pray that we'll be back together someday . . ."

Lee's Apartment

Wednesday, October 7

5 AM

"Morning must come another day. I must pack my bags and say goodbye . . . goodbye . . ."

"It's time," Lee whispered, wishing more than anything that he didn't have to break the spell that had wound itself around them that night.

"I know," Amanda whispered back, holding to him tighter. "Ill drive you."

"Amanda, I don't want to have to worry about you falling asleep on your way home, and I know you didn't sleep any more than I did last night."

"Lee, I'll be fine. I just want to spend as much time with you as I can before you have to go."

Lee knew that she knew that he knew that he really did want her there until the last moment when there was no choice but to let go. He reached out his hand to hers, and waited a moment for her own to join in, before he breathed the acceptance that was coming. "Okay."

A Hotel room in an undisclosed location

Wednesday, October 7,

9 PM Local Time

"Tonight I need your sweet caress hold me in the darkness. Tonight you caught my breathlessness you relieve my sadness."

The previous night floated through his mind as he prepared for bed that night. How he wished he wasn't under contact Zero!

He turned on the bedside radio, hoping to find something that would soothe him to sleep. A song he had never heard before floated over the airwaves, and immediately, he thought of the night before. Sometime during the song, Lee Stetson fell asleep, dreaming of the night he had recently shared with his wife.

"Tonight I need your sweet caress hold me in the darkness. Tonight you caught my breathlessness you relieve my sadness."