You guys started off my new year so well!
Thanks so much for everything, I love hearing your thoughts and reactions, you guys are amazeballs!
Please always stick with me :)

For the sex scenes: Some will be written (probably more in the beginning) and some will be glossed, just depends on the situation.
Their sex(life) might not be normal for a bit...you'll understand later. No, it's not weird or gross, just a storyline I am considering.
I also saw that some of you had trouble viewing the second chapter, I did as well, but eventually it showed up. Yeah?

Still working on Remember Me. I'm at T.R.A.C.K.S so you know what is going to happen (not changing that!) and so it's proving a bit difficult. Hoping to have it out in the next day or two.

So here is chapter 3


"Well, it's official," Bobbi announced as she made her way behind the bar.

Skye's eyes flicked to her then back to the drink she was making. "What, your divorce?"

"Ha ha," her friend replied in a dry tone.

"Oh, wait, let me guess again, um," she pleaded teasingly. "Charlie Sheen tested positive for tiger blood!?" she exclaimed and handed the drink over to man with his sight on his wallet.

"Can I tell you now?" Bobbi questioned, only sounding slightly annoyed.

Skye smiled. "Does it have to do with our resident HBIC?"

This time Bobbi nearly squealed with joy. "Yep because I'm talkin' to her!"

"What?" she laughed. Bobbi tended to run less bubbly and more the strong, silent type that smiles at funny jokes but doesn't make a spectacle out of herself. Skye was usually the one to snort and make everyone else erupt. So in other words, her being really excited meant something big had to of happened.

"You're in girl!" she insisted. "Like in-in, I was just asking around and you are not someone to be trifled with, missy," she went on excitedly. "Ward sent it around to the boys you're no longer a free agent, no pun intended."

"Bakshi's not here yet, how did you find out?" Skye questioned as she moved closer.

"I may only have one guy, but all straight men talk when confronted with boobs," Bobbi stated. "Besides, they're all talking about it—his heroic move of stopping that jackass and breaking his fingers which is a good thing because I have half a mind to go do it to the other hand after what he did," she mumbled on. "Anywho, guys say we gossip but they are just as bad."

Skye smiled to herself. He liked her. He liked her. She was never one to get picked; she was more of the kind that someone ended up with. To be picked for something felt oddly satisfying and by someone with so much power made it all the better. It wasn't supposed to feel personal, it was the job, she was a spy, but it felt personal. This was what was supposed to happen, it was the goal, but for it to actually have worked out without any big hang-up was nice.

A warmth spread through her belly.

The first choice, that was what she was. It was such a simple thing that meant something to her, but he could never know that. With him she had to be cool, sexy, interesting, not the type that made a big deal out of being picked. That was very uncool even if it was completely like her; she was just a tad neurotic that way.

"Skye." She was brought back to reality by Bobbi waving a hand in her face.

"Hm, yeah, cool," she mumbled out. "Wait, why am I the HBIC now? You think I'm a bitch?" she asked a moment later.

Bobbi chuckled. "You're the HBIC now because you're Ward's girl. Sienna only thought she was in charge because she's been here the longest, but that doesn't mean shit next to being the owner's girl. There is a hierarchy you know," she insisted.

"You didn't answer my question; you think I'm a bitch?" Skye repeated while batting her eyes.

"Shut up, we're girls, we're all a bit bitchy one way or another," Bobbi replied. "But I'd watch out for Sienna, that girl plays dirty."

"That girl is dirty," Skye corrected and Bobbi laughed.

"You've also, uh, been taken off the line-up for the stage," Bobbi added on. "Permanently, so there is that."

Skye smiled to herself. "That's good, right?" Did it mean he cared?

Bobbi nodded. "Yeah, that and you're not the best dancer," she teased, kind of. "It means he's not willing to share, that is always good," she stated seriously and winked at the younger agent. "You're doing great, Skye, don't worry. But you're about to be off bar duty."

Skye followed Bobbi's eyes to find that Ward had entered the room and was talking to someone she didn't know (that wasn't a big deal, she didn't know anyone by their name while Bobbi knew everyone). The conversation, if it even was one since he wasn't great at having those, didn't last more than a minute before he made his way to his chair.

She grabbed a glass from under the bar filled it with ice for his scotch on the rocks. "Looks like I'm up again."

Bobbi sent her away with a butt smack for encouragement that only caused Skye to roll her eyes. The amount of time between leaving the bar and making her way to Ward left just enough time for her to wonder what to call him. Grant? Agent Ward? Mr. Lethal Weapon? They hadn't exactly exchanged pleasantries in that way.

Sure, he knew her name, working history, and probably birthday, star sign, and social security number, but she didn't know squat about him other than his reputation. He wasn't a talkative guy and definitely not someone she wanted to insult when she was trying to get close to him (and stay as his girl).

She was his girl, that still made her want to giggle like a school girl. She was so lame.

"Shaken not stirred, right 007?" she greeted jokingly, holding the tray out in front of him. She had to call him something! And asking right off the bat was even lamer than doing a little dance at the fact that she was his girl (or the fact that she actually succeeded in something).

Ward took it without even looking up. "Something like that. Sit."

It was a command and she knew it, and while it annoyed her to be given orders like a dog she also knew to follow it. There was an ottoman in front of his chair that hadn't been there before and that was where she took her seat. It had been placed there for that reason, somehow she knew that, but she wondered why he wouldn't just want her to take residence in his lap. It was a strip club after all.

As the mission went on she only had more questions about Grant Ward, questions that didn't necessarily have to do with Hydra. He fascinated her—he was different. He had a room full of beautiful, willing girls, girls dressed in practically nothing in some cases and he was choosing to spend time with her. Why? It was good, but it was also a bit of a mystery to her.

She leaned back on her hand with her legs crossed. Tonight she had dressed in a black strapless mini dress that had peek-a-boo cut outs up the sides at the bottom along with black stockings and pumps. It actually felt nice to be wearing something that covered up more than what she had been wearing lately. Bobbi, per her normal, had dressed her because she was better at the 'stripper look' than Skye who was usually more conservative (at least more conservative than this). Her hair, which had been given blonde highlights before the mission, was down and wavy. Sometimes Skye felt like the only reason Bobbi really wanted her on the mission was because she liked to dress her up. Even if that wasn't the case she knew underneath it all Bobbi enjoyed it.

"So what did you do last night?" Skye broke the silence that was somehow comfortable even though they were just staring at another. "I had a date with Netflix because I have this awesome boss who gave me the night off," she teased. "I also may have gorged on pizza with my roommate."

Ward grinned into his glass. His grin was so contagious somehow. How did people find him scary? She found him pretty adorable. Sometimes she didn't know exactly what to do or say around him, but she didn't fear him.

"Sounds nice," he mumbled after he swallowed. "I had less pleasant things to deal with here."

"That guy is still alive, isn't he?" she questioned only being half-serious, or sounding that way. She did hope he was still alive even if he was a jackass.

His grin turned into a smirk. "He might wish he isn't for a while, but he is," he answered truthfully.

"So it seems like all the guys around here are suddenly are aware of my eyes and shoes, you know anything about that?" she wondered as he took another sip of his drink.

His own dark eyes scanned the room before nodding slowly. "Just had to do some reminding of what kind of manners are expected from the regulars around here, that's all," he said in a low tone that made a shiver go up her spine.

"Mhm, and that's why I got removed from the stage list as well?" she asked, moving her head so she was in his line of vision.

"That was because I don't know how much I believe they'll remember their manners when you're up there," he answered. "Or how well I'll remember mine."

His admission made her turn slightly pink. He all but admitted he liked her, was attracted to her, and didn't want the others to do the same.

"That's... sweet, I think," she told him frankly and he chuckled. "So what should I call you, Mr. Manners?" she found the nerve to ask. "I don't think you liked being called a Mel Gibson fan," she joked.

He let out a bark-type laugh and looked down at his now empty drink. "Grant," he stated while shaking the glass.

"I'll get you another," Skye offered and stood.

"No, you can sit down," Ward insisted and took his hand in hers to guide her back down to the ottoman. "Sienna can get it, can't you Sienna?" he said and it was only then that she noticed the blonde had appeared next to him, but he wasn't even looking at the girl.

She cleared her throat. "Um, yeah," she answered, trying to smile. "I mean, yes," she said in a more sultry tone, but Grant was looking at Skye.

"Do you want anything?" he asked her.

Skye looked up at Sienna who was glaring before she shook her head. "No, I'm fine, thanks." With that the stripper walked away in a huff. "You know, you're not making me very well liked among the girls," she sighed exaggeratedly.

"Sienna was never going to like you," he replied. "And she's the only one who is stupid enough to be jealous of you," he added on a moment later.

Was that a compliment or insult? She couldn't tell. Skye bit her lip. "And what is there to be jealous of, Grant?" she asked and used his name for the first time. It sounded nice coming from her lips she realized. Grant. Hm.

"Me," he said easily as he took in a breath. "Taking interest," he finished.

"Taking interest, huh?" she mumbled, leaning in closer to him. Her foot rubbed against his shin. "So you taking interest gets me out from behind the bar, guys not thinking my nipples are eyes, and far away from dancing. What does you actually liking me get me? A raise?" she teased.

"You want a raise?" he questioned. "You can have one, I don't care."

Skye laughed in disbelief as Sienna brought him his drink. "You're not serious, are you?"

He didn't say a word to Sienna and she just walked away even more angrily than before. "I don't care about money, Skye," he insisted.

"Spoken like someone who has it," she responded without batting an eye, not caring if it might offend him. She knew what it was like to be dirt poor; she had lived out of a van for a period of time and barely ate. It wasn't fun; it wasn't some romantic state of mind. Money mattered one way or another.

"I know," he said with a nod. "You know what I do, Skye, I don't claim to not be what I am," he began a moment later while swishing his drink about in a circle. "I get paid well for it and I do own this club. Money is low on my priority list."

"What's high on your list?" Skye asked softly while looking into his eyes.

"Surviving." Ward looked away before standing, obviously not wanting to continue to talk on the subject, but it intrigued the hell out of her. "Show's about to start, want to go upstairs?" he questioned and this time it was a question which surprised her. He usually demanded.

She stayed seated. "That is a list I don't want on," she told him. He was her mission but having sex with him for the sake of it was not something she was going to compromise on. Kissing and stuff, sure, that was pretty much harmless. Besides, at this point she was not opposed to swapping a little spit.

He grinned down at her. "If I wanted that I would have it, I told you that yesterday."

Skye stood with him as the lights dimmed for the first act of the night and nodded. He linked his hand through hers and led her through the club towards the back hall that held the steps. His hand was course and firm, but held onto her fingers gently. It was sweet.

She caught Bobbi's eye from behind the bar who just winked at the situation. What Bobbi didn't know was that her stomach was bubbling with anticipation and her mentor/friend/handler wouldn't approve of that.

Missions like this weren't supposed to be personal, it was for SHIELD, this was for the organization that had protected her one way or another for the majority of her life. Yes, she had to get close to him before getting any real intel, there had to be a level of trust between them in order to get the information, but it was supposed to be about him taking a liking to her, not a feeling on both ends.

He was just so interesting and honest with her. SHIELD had been different since its big fall, Coulson made sure of that. The Levels were the first to go so more information was known by everyone, but there was still an air of mystery surrounding everything. Not everyone could know everything about every mission, that was just plain smarts, but she wasn't used to someone being so openly honest with her despite their surroundings.

It was refreshing.

"You don't like to see if you're getting your money's worth out of the girls?" Skye half-teased when they reached his office.

He had let go of her hand when they got to the steps and motioned for her to go first. He really did have manners, didn't he? "I'm the owner, not the manager, someone else can handle that," he said with a shrug.

"So why are you here almost every night if you're not interested or running things?" she wondered as she did a thorough scan of the room.

Fitz designed an earring that could double as a voice recorder if turned on. Her plan was to wear it, preferably in his office, and 'lose' it conveniently. After a considerable amount of time she could 'find' it and report it back to HQ. She just needed an instance in order to do the drop, like perhaps a make out session? She didn't wear the earring today, but she did have a costume-esque looking ring that recorded things around her when turned on (and it was indeed on at the moment).

She was pretending to be a stripper, putting a listening device somewhere that went under clothes wasn't an option or in certain crevices... Fitz had some fun designing things that could double as stripper attire and SHIELD listening devices. It also made him turn pink when discussed which was a plus.

"Some things are better left unknown," Grant answered as she analyzed the room.

It was pretty bare; it held a few books, a flat screen TV, his desk, and some other furniture like he had large groups in often. The one chair she took a liking to personally was one that seemed a bit like a pear on its side. It wasn't very thick so her legs would fit around it, but she would also probably fit comfortably on it and it curved up to hold your head while the end formed another hill to finish the slope or sorts. It seemed like a nice place to cuddle and watch a movie on the flat screen, but that was just her personal preference.

It was the perfect place to perform (and receive) a lap dance and maybe make out and drop an earring. It was in the middle(ish) of the room and would probably get optimal coverage of the entire area. Plus the cushy rug underneath would hide it well enough. Bobbi would be happy she now had some sort of plan. Her conflicting feelings towards the man behind the mission was something that her surrogate big sister could not know, however.

"Skye."

She turned to find Ward behind her, his eyes questioning as they analyzed her face. "Hm, what?" She zoned out, not the best thing to do when on a mission like this, it made the subject question you.

"You okay?"

His eyes were still studying her. He was trained like Bobbi, to spot suspicious behavior and take cues from someone's body language to tell if they were lying or keeping something from you. She had training in the same thing, but had a feeling that like Bobbi he was better at it than her. Her specialty was communications and computers even if she was a trained specialist.

"I'm in my boss's office," Skye murmured softly, feigning nervousness. "My boss with a scary reputation who saved me from a creep last night and gave me the night off because of it."

Ward nodded in agreement as he took a step closer to her.

"My boss who, for some reason, has taken an interest in me for, I don't know, being normal around him," she continued. "It's just a little confusing. Why do you think I'm always asking you questions?"

He smiled. "Because you're inquisitive," he answered her even though she was being rhetorical. "If I minded the questions, Skye, you would know," he told her a moment later.

She smiled back. "I believe that, trust me." They were both quiet for a moment. "I just don't understand why you don't mind, you know?"

Ward side-stepped her and made his way to the peach-chair she had been admiring earlier. He all but collapsed into it, his feet up and his arms behind his head. It did give off the 'devil may care' look, especially in his practically-black jeans and dark blue t-shirt. He had been wearing a leather jacket, but it was discarded since entering the office (not that she noticed until then—she really had to step up her spy game).

"That makes two of us," he answered after a long pause. "I don't like people, I told you that, and I meant it."

"But you... tolerate me," Skye stated, taking steps closer to him. He nodded slowly, not going to give more than that to her just then. "What next, Grant Ward? You gonna become a teddy bear on me and say you like board games?" she teased.

"If I was going to become a teddy bear I'd tell you I love board games," he replied.

She couldn't tell if he was joking or not and she almost laughed. What was with this guy and why did she like him? He was funny without really trying to, if he even was trying. She moved to stand at the end of his chair and leaned her legs against it with her arms crossed.

"Well, if you don't mind questions I have on more for now," Skye stated a moment later.

"Not surprised," Ward muttered then nodded for her to continue.

Taking a leap of faith in herself she moved to straddle his waist in the chair. His eyebrows raised, but did nothing in return. Nothing else raised either, but he wasn't a twelve year old boy so she didn't expect anything like that to happen (hopefully).

"Did you offer me that raise because you knew something like this would happen?" she asked softly, her hands on his chest. He was firm, damn.

Grant sat up and their noses grazed one another. Skye ignored the stomach flutters. The mission had to come first, if anything could even come second.

"No." He gave away no emotion other than intensity as he stared at her and held his hands on her waist, his fingers perfectly situated in the cut-outs to touch her skin. It was on purpose, it had to be, and she ignored how warm she suddenly felt.

Skye's heart was pounding in her chest and she looked him in the eye while licking her lips. She visibly gulped and rested her forehead against his. "What do you want from me?" she breathed, sounding incredibly honest and emotional because she was.

Grant nudged her away with his head so he could look her in the eye. "Whatever you're willing to give me," he admitted, and this time he didn't sound so robotic. He was being sincere. She had no reason to question it, when had he been anything but honest with her?

Her hands were shaking and she didn't know why. She formed a fist of his shirt to make it stop. "Okay."

She pressed her lips to his and he responded instantly. His arms wound around her waist and she gripped onto his hair (or lack thereof—that seemed to be the only thing he didn't have, hair for her to grab). They became a teeter-totter of sorts, both trying to assert dominance causing them to move back and forth as their lips clashed.

His lips were soft and hard at the same time. His mouth was warm and he tasted so good.

Skye told herself this was all for SHIELD, for the mission, but underneath it all somewhere she knew. It wasn't all for the mission, a big part of her just wanted to kiss him and after starting, after feeling him underneath her and his tongue touch hers, she never wanted to stop.


Okay I hope I didn't end that too cliche-ly...I love cliches so they might show their ugly heads once in a while. Sue me.
I think... I think I actually like this chapter? -gasp-

Alright, so Skye is still (trying) putting the mission first and thinking what is best for SHIELD but is intrigued by Grant Ward (aren't we all?). I hope I am capturing that well.
I am also trying not to make Ward turn into a teddy bear (which I tend to do when he is alone with Skye in my fics) too soon because they are still getting to know one another and he, like her, is confused by the attraction.
Let me know if I am capturing this well.

I feel like this chapter is more of Skye's inner monologue more than actual talking, but she is kind of going through an inner-battle. She is on this mission and supposed to put SHIELD first but everything she is learning about this guy she is supposed to hate she likes, you know? I hope that is coming across well too.

Anywho, let me know how I am doing!
More physical SkyeWard to come (with better descriptions of it- promise). And actual action.

- Kay