A/N: Thanks again to everyone who had read, favorited, and alerted this story. We're going to speed up a little for the next chapter or so, and the current plan is for the next chapter to be M-rated. I'll post that chapter here up to the portion where it goes M with a note that the whole story will be reposted in the M section. From that point on the story will only be updated in the M section but everything that has been posted here will remain.


Sam had a restless night. He tried hard not to wake Jules but whenever he was up, she was up. He apologized every time and every time she reminded him of the first days after she returned home from the hospital after being shot.

"I don't deserve you Jules," he said with a kiss to her forehead.

"No you don't Soldier. Let's get some sleep," she replied with a kiss to his chin.

The next 2 days were filled with lots of relaxing in between walks up and down the block, the weather cooperating with beautiful blue skies and just enough warmth to make a light jacket the perfect outer garment.

Jules remembered all of the light PT exercises she'd been given when she was first released from the hospital and she helped Sam get them done.

Between the exercises and walks came a lot of naps. Jules and Sam would curl up together on the couch; her ear pressed tightly over his heart, every beat reminding her that he was safe and home with her. As much as she tried to avoid it, every now and then the reality of what could have happened came creeping in. In those moments she hugged him a little tighter—taking care to avoid his injured right side—and buried her head in his neck.

The subject of Sam's return to the SRU came up from time to time and Jules always changed the subject. Sam allowed it, knowing she was feeling the same things he felt when she was first released from the hospital after being shot. His challenge was to make her realize his injuries were different and he'd be back at work in a few weeks, a month at the most.

Natalie came by to visit, finally spending more than a few minutes with Sam. Jules heated up some leftovers from the meal Shelley and Wordy had prepared and they enjoyed a long, leisurely lunch. Jules was glad to hear Natalie was working nights so she would be able to drive Sam home from PT once Jules went back to work.


The first time Sam went upstairs by himself Jules stood quietly watching from the hallway. Everything in her told her to go to him and help him. But then she remembered when she was recovering and she got frustrated with Sam always hovering over her. So she stood by, biting her bottom lip as he slowly made his way up to their bedroom.

"Thanks, Jules," he called down once he'd reached the top.

"For what, Sam?" Jules asked in return.

"You know," he said with a smile.

Jules smiled back and nodded. "You got it, Sam."


After two lazy days it's time for Jules to return to work. She reluctantly leaves Sam at home, since his PT doesn't start for another few days. During their workout Sarge tells everyone that, since Sam's return isn't going to be too far off, they won't bring on another team member. Instead, the other SRU teams agree to supply one of their team members to Team One. Teams will rotate based on who has an off-shift day.

Everyone agrees this is the best plan, though in their heads they each have a different timetable for Sam's return. They take bets on how long it will take Sam to call. Spike wins with his 70-minute prediction. Winnie answers the phone and assures Sam things are boring and yes, he is missed.

With Sam out, Ed running tac, and the fill-in team member subject to constant change, Jules is Sierra One again. She bounces around the station like a child who has had too much candy. It reminds Ed of her reactions as they drove to the scene of the hot call the day they all met Sam for the first time.

"Every day is Jules day, Ed," she says with a smile.

Jules's excitement is bolstered by a series of successful hot calls. With no need to pull the trigger, she gets to enjoy the return to her old position without having to deal with the downside. She plans to avoid talking to Sam about work but he asks so she fills him in on the events of each day.


Finally it's time for Sam to begin physical therapy. Jules drives him to his first appointment on her way to work. Sam tells his physical therapist it's very important that he improve the range of motion in his right arm as quickly as possible. He says it's crucial for his job. It's a half truth, at least. He smiles when the therapist agrees to focus on that in their initial PT sessions.

Natalie has pickup duty and she shows up right on time. Sam convinces her to go out to lunch. They discuss his injuries and her reaction to them. She admits she's afraid of him being seriously injured or worse, killed. He reminds her he could have been killed during his tours in Afghanistan, or when he was taken hostage in an airport, or when an explosion brought a building down around him and knocked him unconscious. Or when he is walking down the street minding his own business. She nods and they finish their lunch and return home. Sam sleeps the rest of the afternoon.

Shelley and Sophie drop by with dinner on most nights. Jules and Sam insist they don't have to do that but deep down they are very grateful. They'd rather spend their time curled up together and the ready-made meals allow them do that more often than if they had to cook. And they know it won't last forever.

Jules sticks to her "nothing more than snuggling" edict the first day and Sam doesn't push her. By the second day she's realizing the negative side of her decision. When they go to bed and he leans in to kiss her cheek she turns her head and captures his lips with her own. She smiles into his gasp of surprise as her tongue lightly traces his bottom lip.

Sam holds her tightly to him as she kisses him again and again. There's no urgency and she won't allow things to escalate, but he'll take what he can get. He tells her he feels like they're in high school and he's waiting for his parents to come bursting through the door. She assures him she took his house keys from Wordy so there's no chance of anyone dropping in unannounced.

It's enough for him and he pulls her close again. When he kisses her it's intense and passionate and leaves her breathless. She returns his kisses with equal passion and when they break apart they're both panting. It'll have to do for now, she tells him as she kisses his forehead and settles against his chest in their favorite sleeping position.


He makes rapid progress in PT and Natalie enjoys the time she gets to spend with him as she takes over driving him there in addition to picking him up. She's somewhat concerned that he's pushing himself too hard but he assures her he's fine. She promises to try to worry less. He knows she'll fail.

One day Jules comes home and he tells her he's getting closer to being cleared for light duty. She refuses to discuss it, saying it's too soon. He knows he should drop it but he also knows they have to talk about it soon, so he presses the issue. She gets frustrated and tells him he needs more time. They fight and end up on different floors of the house.

Eventually they end up in the living room together. He tells her he understands because he felt the same way when she was shot. She is annoyed with herself for acting this way. It could've been so much worse and she reminds herself how lucky she is.

That night they end up making out for what feels like hours before she retires to a cold shower. His stitches have been removed so he follows hers with one of his own. They both feel like they might die if he isn't able to lift his arm over his head soon.


Greg senses reluctance in Jules when he raises the subject of Sam returning to work. He can tell she's struggling with her feelings so he doesn't push her; but he does make a mental note to keep an eye on things as Sam's return date draws closer. He's been getting progress reports from the physical therapist and knows Sam will likely be cleared for light duty within the next 2-3 weeks.

The team is on a run of very successful hot calls. There are lots of after-work trips to the Goose and after a while Sam begins to join them. No drinking for him yet but just being back in the team's company does wonders for him. He returns home exhausted but Jules has to admit she's happy to see him out with the team again.

Things are going so well all around, they should have known it couldn't last.


A/N: Yes, I'm really going to leave it there. I absolutely hate this chapter. It took far too long to write and I struggled with it even though it's substantially shorter than my usual chapter length. And yes, I know I shifted verb tense in the middle of the chapter but no matter what I change it to it doesn't sound right to me, so I'm leaving it as is and moving on to the next chapter. Which hopefully won't give me nearly as hard a time as this chapter did.