The Alternative Universe Series
Toss the Twilight Zone experience of Season 5 into the proverbial trash can. These stories pick up after Steele of Approval. While Approval still exists, more importantly these stories look at season 4 as most of the viewers saw it - Laura and Remington had crossed that line, imbuing that Season with the "Mr & Mrs Steele" feeling that most experienced.
To get the most out of my stories, I recommend reading them in the following order:
Steele Forsaken (Part 1 of 3 in the A Holt New Beginning Series)
Steele Mending (Part 2 of 3 in the A Holt New Beginning Series)
A Holt New Beginning (Part 3 of 3 in the A Holt New Beginning Series; Takes place during and after Steele Searching)
Holt the Presses (Takes place during and after Steele Blushing)
The Holt Truth (Takes place during and after Forged Steele)
You've Gotta Know When to Holt 'Em (Takes place during Premium Steele)
Holt the Sugar (Takes place during and after Coffee, Tea or Steele)
Not So Merry Steele (After Dancer, Prancer, Donner and Steele)
Snippets of Steele (Missing scenes from Steele on the Air, Steele Inc, and Steele Spawning)
Holting Down the Fort (During Suburban Steele)
Steele Admired (During and After Santa Claus is Coming to Steele)
Steele Moving Forward (Sensitive Steele)
Steele Yours (Steele at Your Service) – Coming Soon
Her Holt Heart (Pre Beg, Borrow through the end of Season 4 [No Bonds]) - Coming Soon
As usual, I do not own the characters. I simply borrow them.
Chapter 1
Remington and Laura had spent a thoroughly enjoyable evening together. It had been a celebration of sorts, for after six long weeks his cast had come off, and he was fairly itching to do those things together they'd been denied because of the limitations that accompanied such an inconvenient abomination. Dinner at Casa Bianca was followed by a leisurely stroll on Venice Pier where he'd plied her with all the cotton candy she desired. After: a walk along the beach, her hand in his, talking, laughing and indulging in a bit of kissing, as the cold surf rolled over their feet. Then, once they'd returned to her loft, he'd finally had opportunity to make love to her as thoroughly as he not only preferred but she also deserved – something else denied him by that buggering cast - leaving her a feminine mass of quaking flesh by the time he'd finished. He'd barely separated their joined bodies and collapsed on his back, when she'd nuzzled her face into his chest, slipped a leg between his and fell sound asleep. He'd followed not long after, with his arms wrapped around her, a smile of accomplished content on his face, for he'd loved his woman well, and had left her fully sated.
Only to be nudged insistently awake in the middle of the night. His eyes had traveled automatically to the alarm clock stationed at her side of the bed: two-nineteen a.m. Given her struggles after her secret admirer had left her feeling both she and the sanctity of her home had been violated, he pressed up on an elbow and lay concerned eyes on her.
"What is it? Are you alright?" he asked, seeing no signs of distress on her face.
"We forgot to set the alarm," she announced. He flopped back down on his pillow and closed his eyes.
"Then set it and let's get back to sleep, hmmmm?" he suggested, even as his hands reached for her slim form to pull her back near. Instead, she slipped away, getting out of bed and crossing the room to grab her robe from the closet.
"It's Thursday night," she pointed out, gathering up his clothes from where they'd been tossed hither and yon earlier, and laying them on the bed. He rolled to his back and blinked at her, bleary eyed.
"Given the hour, it's technically Friday morning, wouldn't you say?" he asked, impressed he'd managed to put together a coherent thought, half-asleep as he was.
"Exactly. Which means today is a workday…" she hinted. It finally registered with him what she was getting at.
"You can't be serious," he protested. She crossed her arms in front of herself, her chin tipping up a notch.
"We have an agreement," she reminded him.
"Yes, yes, we do," he agreed, then qualified, "But we aren't dancing the night away, for pity's sake, we are… rather were… sleeping… quite contentedly I might add." She held his clothes out, obstinately refusing to bend.
"Nevertheless…"
His lips thinned, and he shook his head as he threw back the covers, then took his clothes from her hands. Without a word, he went downstairs to the bathroom, took a quick shower, dressed, then strode to the front door.
"Remington," she called quietly from where she sat on the couch behind him. He came up short, then dutifully turned around and walked over to her while she stood. He brushed a perfunctory kiss against her cheek.
"Goodnight," he clipped, then returned to the door. It slid close behind him without another word.
Laura drew in a long breath and let it out slowly.
"Night," she bade the empty room, regret threading her words. He'd made it no secret he was upset by her insistence that he leave in accordance to their agreement. But she already felt like she was walking on constantly perilous ground, losing what little control she had left – over their relationship, her own heart, the fears that threatened to swamp her and without a single hint of how he felt, what – if anything – he wanted from the future.
So little control over any of it, that she clung to what she had left, remaining steadfast to the rules they'd laid down… whether either of them liked it or not.
With a heavy sigh, she latched the door and returned to bed, where she tossed and turned until the voices of Bud and Norman said it was time for the day to begin.