Something about Varrick being gone on Valentine's Day really got to her. Zhu Li sighed, throwing a hand on her hip and tossing a form needing signed by him in the bin on his work desk. She knew the inevitability of him being called away to a business meeting even if it was on such a day as Saint Valentines. Although, she couldn't help feeling a bit forlorn, regardless of him returning home later that evening.

The call had caught them both off guard and he had apologized profusely. With a regretful smile, he promised to make it up to her. Deep down, she knew him to be a closet romantic and the thought of making it up to her probably nagged at him ever since.

She sighed, retreating from his desk and making her way over to the assembly line. She stopped at the railing that looked down onto the loud, fast-paced production floor. Everything seemed to be in order, running like clockwork. She met the eyes of the head of production, who stood beneath the platform she was standing on and waited expectantly. The man brought up two fingers and gave a smile and a quick salute. She nodded.

Zhu Li turned on her heel and walked a short distance to the wooden door leading to her office. She sat down and released a breath. A smile crossed her face seeing a picture of her and Varrick. No other place besides home ever sounded so good. "Soon," she murmured to herself. She grabbed a form that needed signed, quickly glancing at it, sliding her pen across the dotted line in a sloppy signature before tossing it into the empty completed shelf and snatching the next of numerous forms.

She lowered her head and placed the last form needing to be signed into the completed bin. She leaned back, stretching her arms out above her head, yawning. Her eyes veered over to the wall clock and her lips turned up into a smile as her eyes read five o' clock. Time to go home. She had to wonder as she placed her paperwork in her brown, take-home bag how the meeting was going. She imagined Varrick waving his arms about in discontent, rambling on about how the meeting interfered with Valentine's Day and pointing fingers at whoever thought of having a meeting on such a special day.

With that, she smiled. Maybe when he returned home they could make up for lost time, and, if both of them were coherent enough after today, have a little 'varrifun' as her husband coined their bedroom time. She turned the key in the building's lock and walked down the concrete stairs leading down the parking lot. She had no hurry, reaching for the car door handle. The car gave a jolt as she fell down onto the seat and sighed. She was tired. A nice cup of tea when she got home may warm her spirits if only a little.

The empty spot where Varrick's car normally sat did not surprise her. She sighed and removed the key from the ignition. She stepped inside the front door and flipped on the light switch.

She gasped, bringing a hand to her mouth. Red rose petals trailed along the hardwood floor and small tea light candles lit the way down the hall leading to their bedroom. The scent of roses and candles tickled her nose. She moved forward and her eyes followed along the path of rose petals.

Her brain's turning didn't stop as she pushed open the bedroom door. Her heart continued to race upon seeing the bed covered in roses and the flickering flames from two candles settled on the nightstand. She instinctively brought a hand up to her chest with a content smile.

"I did pretty good, didn't I?" Varrick's all too familiar voice brought her out of her thoughts.

Zhu Li spun on her heel, wide-eyed. Varrick was dressed to the nines and the cheeky smile he wore made him all the more handsome. "Varrick! I thought you had a meeting today?"

"Ah, nope."

"Then where is your car?" She asked, furrowing a brow.

"That, my dear, you need not worry about," Varrick said. He walked past her and grabbed her hand, tugging her towards the bed. "All that matters now is we're both here and it's Valentine's Day and nothing could have stopped me from surprising you on such a special day."

Zhu Li smiled as he wrapped his arms around her neck. Of all the Varrick things to do, he had to go and do something so extravagant and sneaky. She felt his hands entangle in her hair and she sighed. "It's absolutely beautiful, Varrick. Thank you."

"You're very welcome, Zhus."

She pursed her lips at his use of her pet name and pushed herself back away from his grasp. "Stop calling me, 'Zhus'. It sounds like you're saying, 'shoes' with a 'z'," she noted.

He pouted. "Aww, but I think it's cute."

"Alright, you can call me 'Zhu's'...only since its Valentine's Day."

"What about every other day?"

She rolled her eyes. "You can still call me 'Zhus' I guess. Just not in front of other people, ok?"

Varrick clasped his hands together. "Ha yes! I'm sure you're quite hungry though, aren't you sweetie?"

"Yes, I am to be honest."

"Then come on! Dinner awaits."

Beautiful candles sat as a centerpiece on the table, glowing warmly and surrounded by flowers, a sensual, romantic atmosphere that made her heart flutter. Varrick outdid himself with this one. She smiled up at him as they ate in silence, reaching over and taking his hand in her own.

"Are you enjoying the food?" he asked.

She nodded and gave his hand a quick squeeze. "Yes. It's very good. I can't believe you did all this. It's so sweet, hon."

"Of course I did all this! I told you, nothing would stop me from surprising you. You're my wife and my duty as your husband should be to treat you better than gold." He tugged at her hand, bringing it to his lips and placing a chaste kiss against her skin.

"And you have, so thank you."

He smiled.

No words transpired between them until they finished eating. Varrick stood and grabbed her hand, guiding her onto her feet. With a small force, he pulled her hand and led them down the hall and to their bedroom. "Come here, you," he said. He took a step closer to her, kissing her sweetly before reaching over to the door and closing it quietly.

Happy Valentines Day everyone! Hope everyone enjoyed this little Zhurrick fic for the holiday. A big thanks to Icearoundthemoon and Popdiva24 for being my amazing betas.

Thanks for reading and please drop a review if you feel so inclined :)

-SF15