Hello. This is one of two entries for Valentine's Day. I know some of you were upset by this week's episode, but I'm holding out to see what happens. You just know they can't keep Chuck and Sarah apart forever. It'll happen.
There are actually two versions to this story. This is the "T" rated version, the cleaner of the two. The other one will be "M" rated and for good reason. That will be posted tomorrow, but feel free to enjoy this version for now. As always, please leave reviews. I hope you get to spend this weekend with that someone special. And if you don't have someone special, go find one. They're out there somewhere.
Lake Tahoe, NV
Saturday, February 13, 2010
5:00 PM
Chuck hauled what seemed like more computer and surveillance equipment than he ever handled in seven years at the Buy More up the snow-covered stairs. Usually Casey would be of some assistance in this. However, he was tied up in Burbank and would not arrive for a few hours. Not surprisingly, the ski resort was packed primarily with couples, and it was only natural that he and Sarah would rent a chalet on a weekend like this. They looked like the perfect couple to spend the very definition of a romantic weekend in a beautiful winter location.
Aside from the secret agent work they would be doing, that is.
The briefing came in earlier that morning, but Chuck was fortunate to not have to work in the store today. He did, however, check to make sure Jeff and Lester actually woke up and got to the store on time. General Beckman gave them a very simple assignment. Dr. Moran McGurn, an ex-MIT scientist, had developed a decryption program that would help hack the computer systems used by The Ring, and he was rumored to be selling it tomorrow to an unknown buyer. Chuck, Sarah, and Casey were assigned to steal the program and bring it back to Castle.
Sarah, who was carrying the two small weekend bags of clothes for them, opened the door and held it for Chuck as he walked into the luxurious chalet that overlooked the ice-covered lake. Once he put the equipment down with an inelegant thud that made Sarah wince, he caught his breath and took in where they would be staying for tonight and possibly the next night.
"I have to admit, this certainly beats trying to get the information sitting in a Motel 6," Chuck said in an awe-inspired voice.
Sarah looked at him with considerable amusement. "For once, the movies got it right. But you still watch too many of those damn things for your own good."
"I know, I know. But I'm getting better. It's such a shame we have all of this to set up and we're down one person for now. I would have loved to relax."
Sarah sighed. Chuck was right about that. She hadn't stayed in a location this beautiful since Madrid. And that was a less-than-desirable assignment at a less-than-desirable time. A time when Chuck chose being a spy over being with her. At least, that's what she thought he had done. It turned out he was doing what he thought everybody wanted, including her. He never stopped loving her. But she remembered what she went through in her first few years of being a full-time agent. There was nothing except the job. You stole what they told you, killed who they told you, screwed who they wanted you to screw, and you didn't think of yourself. She wondered how much of a machine she would have become had she not thought Bryce was someone who could provide a link to something real. It was something that she wanted with Chuck now, but she wasn't sure if she could get it.
On the good side, Chuck readying the equipment alone with minimal help from Sarah didn't take much longer than it normally would with Casey. With the computers and the monitors set up and running, they still had at least an hour before Dr. McGurn would arrive. It was now her turn to set up the microphones and cameras in the adjoining chalet where McGurn would be staying. Donning a black shirt and sweatpants, Chuck gave her a foothold into the ventilation system. She crawled through the layout of vents through the adjoined chalets, her lithe body able to move easily through the tiny ducts. She planted a microphone and camera at two different vent locations in the living room area, one by the kitchen, and one set in the bedroom.
"Are they working, Chuck?" Sarah whispered quietly, hoping that they got them right on the first try.
"Four for four," Chuck replied. "Come on back."
She carefully turned, trying not to let the sheet metal of the air ducts make any sounds. She carefully crawled back. As she got to the opening, her hand slipped and she pitched forward out of the duct, falling to the ground with a bit of a surprised shriek.
Fortunately, the landing was soft. Or at least as soft as landing on Chuck was.
She discovered her problem: the ducts hadn't been cleaned probably since before they were born. She was covered in soot and dust, and she got a lot of it on Chuck's clothes. She didn't find it the least bit amusing, but that didn't stop Chuck from laughing.
Sarah seethed at him with a stern glare. "Don't say it…"
"It's a dirty job, but somebody's gotta do it? I appreciate a woman who isn't afraid to get their hands dirty? It's always good to have someone who breaks your fall?"
Sarah wiped her dirty hand across his face and laughed in spite of herself. At least she hadn't broken anything. An eight-foot drop onto a hardwood floor would injure anybody.
Sarah got up and almost began to dust herself off, but her dirty hands would have made matters worse. "I will go take a shower. Can you watch them for a few minutes?"
"No problem," Chuck replied with a huge grin that would have earned any person not named Chuck a smack from her.
Chuck went to the kitchen sink and cleaned off his face with the liquid hand soap he found there. He found some coffee in one of the cupboards and set about to make a fresh pot, occasionally glancing at the monitors to see if McGurn had arrived. He made a cup for himself and left one for Sarah on the dresser outside of the bathroom. He turned the couch in the living room area so they could sit while watching the monitors.
After a few minutes, Sarah emerged wearing a towel over her body and one in her hair. She was sipping from the coffee Chuck made. She sat down next to him on the couch.
"Thanks for making the coffee," Sarah told him as she relaxed and sighed contentedly for the first time in a long time. Between the way Daniel Shaw turned the team upside-down and Hannah disrupted their talks together by giving Chuck that closeness the two of them hadn't felt lately, things finally were coming back to normal.
"My pleasure."
"This has been really difficult for me lately. It's been tough for me to adjust to what you are now." Sarah paused for a moment, her mind reminiscing about how far Chuck had come in three years. "They teach you to be ready for the unexpected to happen. Who was once your enemy one day would be your friend the next. You're making love to someone you end up having to kill because they turned. I think I got too comfortable with the way things were supposed to go."
"I…you were right that I didn't think this all the way through. It never occurred to me just how much sacrifice there was to doing this. I thought I was doing what everybody wanted me to do. What they thought I was capable of."
"I know," Sarah replied, taking his hand. "I encouraged you as much as anybody. I guess…I was probably being selfish. I guess I just wanted that funny, caring, sweet guy to realize just how special he was. I didn't think it would result in all of this. I have to confess. It scared me that you had to deal with your asset like that. I know it hurt you to turn him in, and I had a painful flashback to what I thought I would have to do to get the Intersect files from you three years ago. I…I guess I was afraid you would turn into what I've tried to stop being since I met you. I was so cold and unfeeling, and…"
Chuck squeezed her hand tightly and gazed into her azure eyes, the light from the fire he started while she was in the shower flickering in them. "For the record, I never thought you were cold and unfeeling. You were always, and still are, the most beautiful, intelligent, and nicest person I have ever met. And as much as I want to be a spy, I never want it to change how you feel about me. And I'm going to try and make sure that never happens."
Sarah gazed into those mocha eyes that could turn from two pools of mirth to soul-penetrating trust instantaneously. She could get lost in his look forever. Her hand involuntarily glided along his cheek. She pulled him to her and placed a gentle kiss on his lips. He ran his fingers through her silken blonde hair as his lips responded to hers. She held his face in her hands as their lips fused in an unending wave of burgeoning passion, their tongues teasing each other.
They were interrupted by the sounds of the door to the neighboring chalet opening.
"Oh, right," Chuck reluctantly broke away from Sarah. "Work first, huh."
"I'm afraid so," Sarah replied with considerable disappointment. They watched the monitors as Dr. McGurn entered the chalet with a slender brunette that any bartender would card in a tavern and automatically assume her ID was fake.
"Do you ever wonder if Casey secretly loves this holiday? I mean, could you just see him curling up on his recliner at night with a double-feature of Must Love Dogs and Never Been Kissed?"
Sarah giggled. "I hope the most romantic thing he does tonight is realign the sights on his M25 sniper rifle. The thought of Casey getting weepy is…I don't even want to picture it."
Chuck glanced at the monitor, and his eyes widened slightly. "Speaking of not having to picture something…"
Dr. McGurn and his date were quickly disrobing in the living room area. His date, wearing only a pair of stilettos and a smile, brought two flutes of champagne to the rug. She kneeled down by the scientist, and the two started to kiss and caress each other.
"Anyway…more coffee?" Chuck asked, looking for any excuse to get away from the monitors.
"Oh, definitely," Sarah replied as she gave him her coffee mug. Chuck quickly went to refill their mugs while Sarah adjusted her view of the monitors like she was taught in the CIA. They showed agents methods of filtering out what they see on the monitors to insulate themselves from it while still paying attention for anything out of the ordinary, such as someone hiding a weapon or attempting to stash an object on the premises.
Chuck returned to the couch. It was Sarah's turn to get up. "I'm going to get dressed. Try not to drool."
She flashed a wicked grin at the dirty look Chuck was giving her. She had to admit, she felt a bit of envy towards McGurn and his date, or girlfriend, or whoever she was. The thought of taking the night off and making love to Chuck on the rug in front of the fireplace sent a nervous tingle through her entire being.
She emerged from the bedroom a few minutes later, and Chuck was still in the same spot he was before. He was none the worse for wear.
"I think they're getting ready to go out," he said to Sarah.
Sarah checked the time on her watch. It was 6:45. It would take the average person 15 minutes to walk to the main restaurant at the resort, so Dr. McGurn must have made reservations. "Good. We can look through their place, find the files, and be gone before anybody knows what happened."
"And head back? Aww, what a perfectly good waste of a nice vacation home."
Sarah smiled at him. "Now, now. It's work time. Besides, it could be worse. I'm sure Casey isn't having much fun driving from the Reno airport to here in the snow at night."
"Good point. Well made," Chuck replied.
They observed the couple leave the chalet. They waited for three minutes for them to walk to a safe distance away. Chuck and Sarah immediately exited their chalet and walked over to the front door. Sarah quickly picked the deadbolt on the door, and they entered. They carefully looked in the drawers, desks, and luggage for the item. They had no luck at first.
Chuck went into the bedroom looked around at the pictures on the walls, mainly paintings of city skylines. He came across the skyline of Chicago and flashed. He saw images of gangsters from the Depression Era.
"I think we have a winner." Chuck took down the painting and felt the surface of the canvas and the frame.
"Why that one?" Sarah asked as she walked into the bedroom.
"Dr. Moran McGurn? Moran and McGurn. Two of the principles in the St. Valentine's Day Massacre." Chuck held up the painting. "In Chicago. 1929." He found a small opening in the frame. He pulled back the wood to reveal a small microchip. "This Dr. McGurn knows his history."
"Nice work. Let's get going." Chuck and Sarah quickly exited the bedroom.
They were greeted by two very large men holding guns. Dr. McGurn's date was also standing there.
"Who are you?" the woman asked. Chuck and Sarah looked at each other but remained silent. The woman nodded, and the two men with her grabbed Chuck and Sarah. They dragged them into the living room area. They stood by the fireplace.
"I'll give you one last chance. Who are you?" Chuck and Sarah remained silent. The woman smiled. "It won't matter much longer, anyway. We'll get the program, and then we'll get rid of your bodies, too. The Ring would prefer that the computer program doesn't fall into the wrong hands, which would be anybody's hands but ours."
Chuck looked at the two men in front of them holding the guns. He glanced to his left at the pokers for the wood in the fireplace. He flashed, and his Intersect gave him the specs on the size, weight, and throwing force of the iron bars. He glanced at Sarah and raised an eyebrow. Sarah caught the message.
Sarah dove to the ground as Chuck grabbed one of the pokers and winged it at the two thugs. The poker knocked their guns out of their hands. He immediately charged the one to his right as Sarah jumped up and landed a roundhouse kick at the one in front of her. Chuck retrieved the poker and swung it at the man, blocking the three punches he tried to throw. He nailed the man in the chin with the poker, and he went down. The other man caught Sarah's foot as she tried to deliver another shot, but she pushed off with her other leg, spinning and landing a kick to the side of the man's head. He fell to the ground as well. Sarah landed facing the fire.
McGurn's date grabbed one of the guns and leveled it at the unsuspecting Sarah.
"NO!" Chuck dived for Sarah, tackling her to the ground, as the shot just missed. The rug shifted underneath them, and the woman was knocked off her feet. The gun lay in the middle between her and Chuck. Both of them raced to get it, but the woman got there first.
She got to her feet and cocked the gun, aiming it at Chuck's head. "A valiant effort. Too bad it was all for nothing." Chuck stared at her, keeping himself between McGurn's date and Sarah.
A shot rang out. The woman fell to the ground.
Chuck looked everywhere to see where the shot came from. He turned to see Casey slowly enter the chalet.
"I found McGurn's body stuffed in his trunk. I guess the song was right: love stinks."
Chuck shook his head in disbelief. "Just out of curiosity, Casey, did you root for someone to break John Cusack's boom box in Say Anything? Ticked off because Ali McGraw didn't die sooner in Love Story?"
Lake Tahoe, NV
Saturday, February 13, 2010
11:00 PM
Chuck was again sitting on the couch in their chalet. Sarah was in the bathroom. They had completed their reports and arrested the two men who tried to help steal the files from Moran McGurn. The microchip was in the hands of the CIA, and their mission was over. However, it was too late to fly back to Los Angeles. They decided to stay in the chalet for the night and fly back in the morning.
Sarah walked into the living room area and sat down on the couch. Chuck hung his head.
"I'm sure you're not happy with me tonight. That was a pretty risky and dangerous thing I did. All I could think about was her bringing the gun up and your back was to her and…"
Sarah dove at Chuck and tackled him down on the couch, kissing him with a fervor that she never felt before in her life. She wrapped her arms around him and threatened to break his ribs from squeezing him so tightly.
"God, I don't care. I don't care, Chuck. Just, you're here, and I love you and…" Sarah gave up on talking to him and held on, kissing and caressing Chuck all over his face. Chuck grabbed her and swept her into his arms. Their lips never broke contact as they went into the bedroom, quickly shedding their clothes, and pressed their bodies against each other. They kissed and caressed each other with an intensity neither of them had ever felt from anybody they had been out with. Not Shaw, not Hannah, not Bryce, and not Jill. All that was left were each other; the world disappeared for that night as their hearts and souls and bodies came together to become part of each other.
Lake Tahoe, NV
Sunday, February 14, 2010
9:00 AM
Chuck and Sarah woke in their bed bathed in sweat for such a cold morning, their bodies fused together from the most passionate night either of them had ever experienced. It was the culmination of a three-year tango around their feelings, where they tried to deny how they truly felt about each other. Where many roadblocks were thrown in their paths…Fulcrum, The Ring, family, other loves…to keep them from experiencing what they now had.
Both of them opened their eyes, and the sight of the other person brought a smile to their faces they could feel in their souls. Chuck slid his hands over her cheeks and gave her a gentle kiss. She pulled him closer and slid on top of him with a desire to continue from where they left off last night.
Murphy's Law was in full force this morning. There was a knock on the door. Both of them quietly growled and then laughed about doing that at the same time. Each of them pulled on robes and went to the door. Casey was on the other side of it.
"Let's get going. Flight's in two hours."
"You have to be kidding," Chuck said with exasperation. "You booked an 11AM flight on a Sunday morning? We're barely awake."
"Just want to get out of the cold and back to civilization, Bartowski."
"What is that?" Sarah asked, pointing at Casey's cheek.
Casey goes into full denial. "What's what?"
"That mark?" She ran her thumb along the mark on Casey's cheek.
"Hey. Keep your hands off my marks. We're late."
Sarah looked at the mark. She raised an eyebrow. "This wouldn't have anything to do with that auburn-haired woman from the resort's security office, now would it?"
Chuck looked at him in surprise. "Casey, you stud muffin, you!"
"Knock it off, moron. Nothing happened."
"Uh-huh," Sarah replied. "Apparently, she felt you needed a full de-briefing, huh?"
Chuck was starting to crack up. "Well, security is tight here, Sarah. I'm sure she thought it prudent to check him everywhere for a weapon of any kind."
"Yeah, just how thorough is she with her patdowns, big guy?"
"Enough. Get dressed, will you?" Casey exited the chalet in a huff.
Chuck took Sarah's hand. "I really wish we didn't have to go. I would have enjoyed sharing this place with you a lot longer."
"Me, too," Sarah replied. "But could I ask you a question?"
"Sure."
"Last night, did you receive any, um, tips from the Intersect?"
Chuck gave a slight laugh. "That was all Charles Carmichael last night."
Sarah turned slightly red. "I'm sorry. It was the best night I ever had and I was curious if you got any assistance."
"I don't know. Do you think that was programmed into my brain?"
Sarah looked at him and wiggled her eyebrows. "Let's find out."
The two of them dashed for the bedroom.
"Wait, wait," Chuck quickly stopped them. "What about Casey?"
"You know, I think I saw some trespassers out the back of the chalet. I think we need to call the security office."
"Good idea, Walker. Better safe than sorry."
Sarah laughed and wrapped her arms around Chuck. They fell on the bed in the bedroom.