You Know I Don't Like Surprises
Sam and Andy were laughing as they walked out into the 15 Division parking lot and got into Sam's truck. Andy was searching for something in her bag as Sam pulled out into traffic and it was a few minutes before she looked out the window and quickly realized they weren't headed for her place, or for Sam's.
"Where are we going? Andy demanded.
"It's a surprise," Sam replied, and she fidgeted with irritation.
"You know I don't like surprises. Just tell me."
"No, you'll have to be patient." Sam tried to hide his smile as Andy sat scowling in the passenger seat.
After an hour's drive they pulled up in front of Oliver's cabin. Everything was dark inside, although the full moon reflecting off the snow gave plenty of light.
"What is this? Why are we here?" Andy demanded.
"You keep saying that we never go anywhere - so here is somewhere," Sam replied as he got out of the truck and lifted some bags out of the back.
Inside the cabin the fireplace had been laid, ready for the touch of a match, and soon the welcome warmth and crackle of the flames made the living room more comfortable. Sam piled Andy's overnight case and his duffel bag beside the bedroom door, and put several bags of groceries on the kitchen counter.
"What do you want me to do?" Andy asked from one of the big armchairs in the living room.
"Nothing," Sam replied as he continued unloading packages and bottles, "you can relax." In just a few minutes he came back into the living room with a glass of red wine in each hand. "Here you go," he said, handing one glass to Andy and sitting down in the other big chair. He had a sudden flashback to the last time he had been here, the night he told Oliver how much he missed Andy. "I've got steaks ready to go onto the barbecue as soon as it heats up, so I hope you're hungry."
"Always," Andy said with a grin. "This is really great. How long have you been planning it?"
"I've wanted to take you away practically since I've known you."
"Right, uh-huh, sure you have," Andy replied sarcastically.
"Seriously," Sam insisted. "Well, maybe not the first time I saw you when you busted me and blew my cover, but pretty much right away after I got back into uniform. When did you first know that something was going to happen?"
"This trip?" Andy queried.
"No, us," Sam responded.
"I don't know - when did you?"
"I think I wanted it to happen from the night we put Emily on the bus," Sam answered.
"You did not!" Andy blurted out.
"I did. You asked me if I had been scared in Anton Hill's restaurant, and I said yes. When I asked you the same question, and you said no, because I was there, I couldn't believe that you could have that much faith in me."
Andy looked at Sam in amazement. "That was my first week on the job! It's been five years - did we waste all that time?"
"It wasn't wasted. We had a lot of things to work out - me especially - before we could get to where we are now."
"I guess," Andy agreed. "I had to almost get shot, and you had to really get shot, and I had to go through the whole thing with Luke, and you with Marlo, and then of course there were the various bombs."
"But there was always the connection, right?"
"I guess," Andy said thoughtfully. "When we did the drug buy - I can remember exactly how I felt when you kissed me. And of course there was the night of the blackout."
"The blackout?" Sam frowned in concentration. "Oh yeah, I forgot all about that night," he answered and Andy looked quickly to see his grin and realize that he was teasing her. Neither of them would ever forget that night, she thought.
"And when you came back from your undercover assignment and I saw you in the warehouse it was like you had come home to me. I felt complete." Sam grinned as he remembered the overwhelming relief he had felt when he saw that she was safe.
"I am home when I'm with you," Andy said softly.
"I love you, Andy. You know I do. I'm sorry it took me so long to say it."
"I love you too, Sam."
"I want us to be like this all the time. I want to go to sleep with you every night and wake up every morning. I don't want to leave your place to go home, and I don't want you to go home from my place. I want us to have a place that's ours."
Andy frowned in concentration. "What are you saying, exactly?"
"I'm saying something that I never thought I would say, to anyone. Andy, will you marry me?"
Andy's eyes widened. "Sam. Sam, are you serious?"
"I am. And I need you to answer me."
"I want to. I really do. But I'm terrified."
"So am I," Sam said quietly. "But we can try to be brave together."
"Oh, Sam, I can try."
"I have something for you. I've been carrying it around for weeks."
"Is it the key to your front door? I'm so sorry I didn't accept it when you first tried to give it to me."
"No, it's not the key. I hope this is something you'll like even better," Sam said as he pulled the small blue velvet box out of his pocket and opened it to reveal a beautiful ring. "Will you take this instead?"
"Oh, it's beautiful! Yes, Sam, I'll take it. Of course I will! Here, put it on my finger."
Sam held her left hand in his as he slid the ring onto her finger, pretending to struggle until Andy started to laugh. Andy lifted her face to his and his lips claimed hers in a tender kiss, that quickly became more passionate until he led her to the bedroom.
Andy stretched luxuriously under the soft puffy quilt and reached across the pillow for Sam, but his side of the bed was empty. She could hear clattering in the kitchen and she smiled to herself, recalling the time that he had told her that he would cook her dinner, among other things, until she said yes. Well, she had finally said yes. Did that mean that she could expect to find a dog named Boo Radley when they got back to the city? Sam came back into the bedroom with two big mugs of coffee. "You brought me coffee? Thank you."
"That's what friends do," he said, "so I guess fiancés do too."
" Fiancé," Andy repeated, "I guess that's what we are now. But friends too?"
"Always, pal."
"That's good - buddy," Andy said with a chuckle. "Please tell me we don't have to leave right away."
"No, we can stay until tomorrow afternoon if you want to," Sam reassured her.
"I want to," Andy told him. "I want to. I'm not sure I'll ever want to leave."
"I was thinking that we don't want to be late for parade on Monday. But we don't have to go - I'm pretty sure they'd send out a search party eventually." Sam sat down on the edge of the bed and Andy lifted her face for a kiss.
"No," she sad with a touch of sadness, "I guess we should head back in time for work. Besides, there's something I want to show Traci!" she laughed, flaunting her left hand under Sam's nose.
After a substantial breakfast of scrambled eggs and sausages and toast they were occupied with cleaning up the kitchen, and when they were done they relaxed with another cup of coffee.
"Let's go for a walk," Andy said suddenly.
"Outside?" Sam queried, with a look of apprehension.
"Yes, outside! You really are a city boy, aren't you?"
"But there's a foot of snow!" Sam protested.
"Suck it up," Andy scoffed. "We've got warm jackets and boots and hats and scarves and gloves…"
"All right, all right," Sam protested. "Enough with the inventory."
"It'll be fun. It's a beautiful day," Andy coaxed.
"Beautiful - and cold." Sam said. "I thought you said you hated the cold."
"Not really," Andy laughed, "Well, I'm going. You can stay inside if you're scared."
"No, I'm coming. But I think you're crazy, when we've got a big fire and a cozy bed…" his voice trailed off suggestively.
"And that's one of the things you love about me, right? That I'm crazy?"
"Right," Sam muttered as he pulled up the hood of his jacket.
The snow sparkled in the sunlight, so bright that they had to squint as their eyes adjusted. They wandered down the path towards the woods for a little way, when Andy said suddenly, "Let's build a snowman!"
Back at the cabin they set to work, until Sam complained, "The snow won't stick together. I can't make it into a big enough ball."
"It's good for little ones though," Andy replied, hitting him squarely in the back of the head with a snowball.
Sam immediately fell to the ground, sprawled out on his face, unmoving.
"Sam!" Andy yelled, and she rushed to his side, dropping to her knees to check on him. Sam rolled over and grabbed her, pulling her down beside him and washing her face with a handful of snow.
"Stop it, Sam! Stop!" Andy spluttered, but she was laughing too hard to put up much of a fight.
"OK, I'll stop," Sam agreed, and he leaned towards her, kissing her thoroughly.
"Mmmmm," she murmured under his lips, "I'm getting cold. Maybe we should go inside to get warm."
"You're the one who wanted to play in the snow," Sam insisted, "so I think we should have a little more snow fun." With that, Sam shoved a handful of snow inside the collar of her jacket.
Andy's response was to catch him off guard and shove him over onto his back. "Let's see how you like it," she hissed, and tried the same manoeuvre on him, but he grabbed both her hands before she could get any snow inside his jacket.
They wrestled playfully back and forth, first one on top, then the other. Gradually the wrestling slowed as they stopped struggling and began caressing each other. "Too many layers," Sam muttered. "I need to get some of these clothes off you."
"I agree," Andy panted breathlessly, "Let's do that inside, not out here."
They struggled to their feet, laughing and bumping into each other as they tried to brush off the snow.
"I think we need hot chocolate," Andy suggested. "Why don't you warm up in the shower while I make some?"
"Good idea," Sam agreed, and he headed to the bathroom.
Andy quickly stirred the chocolate mix into a pan of milk and set it on the lowest heat, then started stripping off her clothes as she moved towards the bathroom door. Shedding her t-shirt and underwear she crept closer to the shower stall, then carefully slid it open and stepped in behind Sam. She reached around him from behind and Sam yelped as she touched him with her still-cold hands.
"Your hands are freezing," he protested, capturing both her hands in one of his as he used the other to pull her in close. "Let's see if I can warm you up."
"I'm good," Andy said. "Turn around and I'll wash your back."
"That feels really good," Sam said as Andy lathered his back and massaged him gently through the suds. "Don't stop."
"I have to stop," Andy protested, "so you can wash mine."
"Gimme that soap," Sam growled.
When the shower suddenly started to run cooler and cooler they agreed it might be time to rinse off and get out. Wrapped in big fluffy towels they jostled each other through the doorway and headed for the bedroom. After a feeble attempt to dry each other off Andy fell back onto the bed, pulling Sam down on top of her. "There's more than one way to warm up," she purred into Sam's ear.
When they woke up a couple of hours later, they were content to cuddle together in bed.
"Is it too soon to talk about setting a date?" Sam asked.
Trying to hide her surprise, Andy said "I guess not. When were you thinking?"
"Well, City Hall is probably available pretty soon," Sam suggested. He chuckled as Andy's face fell, giving her his best tongue-in-cheek grin. "No," he reassured her, "I think we should have a real wedding."
"Thank you," Andy said in a small, shy voice.
"Don't mention it," Sam replied as he gathered her into his arms, closing his eyes and smiling contentedly.