A/N: Thanks for the continued support for this fic, particularly the reviews. I wasn't expecting it to be as popular as it has been.

Thanks again to LetsGoRed for being my beta. This is in a much better shape because of him.

Sarah has shared more about herself with Chuck on their date. So, what happens next? Let's find out…

Disclaimer: I don't own Chuck, just a lot of thoughts about the show.

Life After Death

Chapter 3 – Accommodation & Skills

Sarah's hotel room, next day

He would be picking her up soon. She'd dressed casually and now sat on the end of her bed. Thinking again.

These were not unpleasant thoughts like last time she'd sat here. That kiss. He only kissed her cheek, not her lips, but the contact had still sent an almost electric shock through her. How did he do that? And what would kissing his lips be like?

She knew she shouldn't be thinking like this. He was just being a friend. Then that thought settled on her. A friend!

Sure, she had Carina and Zondra, but they were spy friends, which was not the same. Zondra had left the CIA before her, but their connection was through that past. Chuck was the first friend she had made since leaving. A real friend. A warm feeling spread through her as she thought about that.

Is this what real life is like? Friends that make you feel like this? Or is it just him? She didn't know, but she was sure as hell going to find out.

She thought back to the call she'd had earlier that morning…

- . -

She had smiled when she'd recognized his voice. "Hi, Chuck. Can't wait until we see each other in the park?" she teased.

"Sorry, Sarah. No running today. We've an appointment to see the apartment in Echo Park."

She'd been stunned, "What? You've arranged it already?" She'd looked at her clock. "It's only five past nine!"

"The early bird …" he'd started.

"Are you calling me a worm?" she teased.

She could hear that caught him out. "N… no. Ju… Just the apartment."

She'd laughed at that. "God, you're easy."

She had heard him huff. "I don't think I like that comment."

She'd just laughed more.

"Anyway… the appointment is at eleven, so I'll pick you up fifteen minutes before that."

She'd thought how sweet he was doing this for her. "Thank you, Chuck. You're the best."

"I sure am."

She'd laughed again. "See you then."

She'd then recorded his name against the number, while still smiling. He's such a goof, but my goof.

- . -

Now she was smiling and waiting for him.

Then, her phone rang. He was here.

Echo Park apartments

Promptly at 10:45, Chuck arrived at the hotel and called her. He was happy to see her again so soon after the date.

He looked up when he noticed movement. She appeared so quickly that she must have been waiting in the lobby. She got into his car before he managed to get out to open the door for her. "Hi, Chuck," she smiled at him.

Always amazed at her beauty and that gorgeous smile, he had to shake himself before he replied, "Hi, Sarah. Ready to be wowed?"

Sarah noticed his reaction to her, glad to have that effect on him. He just looked at her face, his eyes never wandering. Such a great guy. "Wow me, Chuck." She noticed that caught him out too and she grinned.

The drive took next to no time, even at his pace. Soon they were walking up to the apartment. There was a central courtyard with the apartments around a fountain. Sarah was surprised at that. "It's beautiful!"

"We used to spend a lot of time in this courtyard," he commented.

"Oh, your apartment was right here?"

He pointed to the left. "Yeah, that one."

The realtor was standing outside the one next door. "Ms Walker?"

"Yes, that's me." Sarah reached out and shook her hand.

"Well, come on in. We haven't put the details for this one up yet, so you're seeing it before anyone else."

They entered and toured the apartment. Sarah knew this would work for her. She decided not to look elsewhere and just go for it. Before noon, Chuck had driven her to the real estate office and she'd signed the paperwork. She'd move in next weekend.

She'd never done anything that impulsive before, always planning to the finest details on her missions; no rash decisions. But this didn't feel like a rash decision. It felt right. She looked at the man that had quietly accompanied her all through it. He settled her. She felt comfortable making decisions around him.

Coffee shop, Echo Park

Chuck had led her to the coffee shop next to the real estate office. She was in a bit of a daze at how quickly her situation had changed, so she definitely needed a coffee and to sit down and digest it all.

She sat quietly while he got their coffees, not surprised at all that he remembered exactly how she took hers.

After a few minutes, she looked up at him. "Thank you, Chuck."

He smiled, "It's what we Bartowskis do. We help people."

She smiled. "Well. You've certainly helped me today."

"Finding somewhere for you to live is just a start." She could see the sparkle in his eyes. "We now need to consider your skills and what you're your future career path could be."

She'd forgotten they'd planned to do this. Well, he'd planned to do this and she hadn't objected. She tried to sidestep. "Oh, we don't need to do that now."

He gave her a flat look. "Yes, we do."

She looked around them. They were in a corner with no one near them to overhear their conversation. Looking into his eyes and his determined face, she found she couldn't resist him and quietly said, "Okay."

This took her back to her thoughts when she first arrived in Los Angeles.

Chuck noticed her tightening her jaw. She looked at him. "There are things I don't want to do anymore."

Chuck nodded, "Okay. Let's start with those."

"No killing. No lying. No dressing for men to be ogled and certainly no being groped." She looked at him with the last comment, feeling nervous even saying it.

He choked on his coffee. "God! Did you have to put up with that?"

She looked down, "Sometimes."

He grabbed her hand. "I'm so sorry, Sarah."

The electric shock running up her arm and the sorrow in his voice were almost overwhelming. She looked at him. "Why? You didn't do that."

He looked almost affronted. "Of course not! I just hate that you suffered that."

She smiled. "You're a real gentleman, Chuck. And thanks for caring. I had to put up with it 'for the greater good'. God, how I hate that phrase!" She stifled that anger so they could continue.

Chuck saw how thinking about that was affecting her, so quickly moved on. "So, I get from this a 'no' to some jobs." With a glint in his eye, he said, "Obviously 'no' to prostitution." She snorted at that. "But probably a 'no' to waitressing or acting either."

"Agreed. I could probably act, that was definitely part of conning and spying, but I'd be glad never to do that again."

He gave her a straight look. "However, you do realize that whatever you do and whatever you wear, men are still going to ogle. You're stunning."

That gave a warm feeling all over. She reached over and placed her hand on his arm. "Thank you, Chuck. I used to hate men making comments like that, but when you do it, I don't feel the same way."

He looked abashed, but quietly said, "Maybe that's because my eyes aren't undressing you."

She hadn't expected him to say something like that, but when she thought about it, she realized he was right. "No, you only seem interested in my face." hat realization surprised her and, she had to admit to herself, disappointed her some.

"Oh. I'm interested in all of you, but I was brought up right. I wouldn't behave like that." He was surprised at himself for saying that.

She smirked. "Is that a challenge, Chuck?" Then she thought about what she'd just said and blushed.

"N… n… no," he stuttered.

"It's alright, Chuck. That was a cruel tease. I apologize." Then she smiled. "But I am glad you like more than just my face."

He held her hand. "Oh, I do, but, like I said before, I'm drawn to your eyes. I find it hard to look away from them. I feel I could fall into the oceans I see there and never want to escape."

Sarah was speechless and just tightened her grip on his hands for a minute. God, how does he do this to me?

She spoke very softly, "You have to know I feel the same way."

He visibly shook himself and withdrew his hands. "Well, this isn't helping the decisions today."

She just looked at him thinking, maybe not about career path, but it has helped other decisions.

He wasn't aware of her thoughts and continued, "My guessing is that you wouldn't want to get into jobs where killing might happen either, like the police or security. Is that right?"

She thought for a while before answering. "I'm not totally ruling those out, but I really want no more deaths on my conscience. However, they may be all that I am qualified for." That was a depressing thought, which caused the good feelings from earlier to dissipate.

Chuck could see her expression and quickly said, "Let's park those and consider your other skills and experiences to see what else could be possible."

She gave him a small smile. "Thanks."

She thought for a while and what else she could do other than killing and lying. "Well, I am fluent in a number of languages. Maybe that could be useful."

Chuck spoke without thinking, "I bet that helped on your missions abroad." He then noticed her frown. "Sorry, I'll try not to mention them again."

"I'd appreciate that."

He then asked, "How many languages?"

She blushed. "This is rather embarrassing. A dozen fluently and a few more in passing."

"Wow!" He looked shocked, "I can only speak English, but can understand Spanish. That's all."

"Well, you've probably never needed more," she replied.

"Oh, it would have helped a lot when travelling promoting the games."

That was a surprise. "Really? You travelled abroad for those?"

"Yeah. It's something I thought would be fun, but I rarely left the hotels," he admitted.

She barked out a laugh, "Mostly the same for me, although I did get to see a lot of warehouses and bad guy lairs!"

He laughed with her. "Well, that's a skill that could help you." He noticed her frown. "The languages! Not the other! What else?"

After some thought, she said, "Not specifically a skill, but I did get a Business Administration degree."

He smiled, "Oh, that could be good. Where from?"

She looked away again, "Harvard."

His jaw dropped. "Oh, you're full of surprises today. That's something to shout about."

"Not really. It wasn't in the name of Sarah Walker and I don't have anything to prove I went there."

He raised an eyebrow. "Sarah Walker's not your real name?"

"It depends what you mean by 'real name', Chuck. That's the name I was given when I became an agent and is still my name now. Everything about me is now Sarah Walker, but it's not my birth name or one of the names I used when with my dad. Or on many CIA missions either. My name when I was "recruited" was Jenny Burton and that's the name of the person who got the degree." She sighed, "She hasn't existed for a long time now."

"Well, you have the qualifications, we just need to work out how they can be used."

She nodded. Then brightened. "As part of my degree I also studied Finance and Marketing. I've used both on missions. I had a one-month assignment in a Finance department, so I guess I have Finance skills too, just not the qualifications or any references to call on." That last thought brought her situation home to her. She slumped. "No references mean no chance at securing a job anywhere, doesn't it?"

Chuck scratched the back of his head. "It does make things harder." Seeing the dejected look on her face, he said, "Sarah, let's take a break. How do you feel about a walk on the beach?"

Sarah frowned, "But we're not at the beach."

"No, but it's not far away." He grabbed her hand and started pulling her up from her seat. "Come on."

For Sarah, it felt like no time before she was carrying her scandals and wriggling her toes in the sand. "This does feel good." She turned and smiled at him. "Thanks again, Chuck."

He smiled back. "You're welcome."

They walked in silence for several minutes.

As he walked, Chuck thought about himself with this amazing woman. He now knew Sarah was much more than he'd expected. She not only knew so many languages, but also had business and finance training and experience too. What was he? Just an IT guy.

Sarah was also deep in thought. I seem to be saying "thank you" to him a lot. He's been a life saver. I haven't known him long and now I seem to be dependent on him. She'd never depended on anyone before.

She stopped walking and turned to him and took hold of his hand and pulled him to a halt too. "Chuck, you've been so good to me. I don't think I can ever thank you enough."

"Oh, I've hardly done anything," he replied, looking embarrassed.

She just wrapped her arms around him, pulling him in for a big hug, whispering in his ear, "Yes you have, and stop being modest."

Chuck said nothing, just enjoying the closeness and hugged her back. Sarah realized this had become more than just a thank you hug, but relaxed into it, humming.

After a minute, they separated, both looking a bit embarrassed, so she grabbed his right hand in her left and pulled him along. They continued their walk hand in hand.

After an hour on the beach, Chuck decided they should talk more about future careers, his as well as hers. He led her to a beach café where they got ice creams and sat at a table away from others.

"Sarah, I've been thinking and wanted to talk about my plans, if you don't mind." He looked tentatively at her, not sure how she would feel, when they were supposed to be discussing her future.

"Oh, thank God! I am fed up of talking about me!" She smiled at him. "You know, I'm not a talkative person."

He raised an eyebrow. "Really? You've talked a lot today."

She smirked, "That's your fault, you loosen my tongue!"

He burst out laughing. She joined in.

When he got himself back under control, he started, "I told you I wanted to do something different, didn't I?" She nodded. He continued, "Well, still software development, just not games anymore. I have an idea that might solved both our problems, I just hope you don't think I'm being too forward." He broke off and took a deep breath.

"You're making me nervous, Chuck."

"Sorry, don't be, it's me that's nervous." He looked at her and rushed ahead, "After our talk this morning, I'm now thinking of developing some linguistic software. I wondered if you'd join me and we'd develop it together." He held his breath waiting for her response.

She went quiet, thinking about what he'd suggested. She could see he wanted to tap into her language skills, but as she thought about what she knew about his previous business challenges, she could see other things she could help with. But should I tie everything to this man?

She stared at him trying to decide.

Chuck was getting fidgety. He had expected a flat 'no' but hadn't got that, thankfully. He didn't want to rush her. "Sarah, I am not trying to pressure you into this. Why don't you think about it overnight, or however long you want? I know it would be a big step joining with someone you hardly know. I shouldn't have mentioned this. God, I'm an idiot."

Sarah grabbed his arm. "Chuck. You're spiraling."

He chuckled. "Sorry. I do that when I'm nervous."

She smiled. "I've noticed." She took a deep breath. "I will take some time thinking about this, Chuck, but not for the reasons you mention. I want to think about how it could work and what I'd be bringing to the partnership, if we go ahead."

He smiled. "Thank you, Sarah."

She smirked, "You're welcome!"

Park near Echo Park estate, next day

Chuck had met her at the entrance to the park she used for her runs. They ran together in companionable silence, occasionally glancing at each other and smiling.

Before they left the park, Sarah took hold of his hand and pulled him over to a bench. "Let's talk," she said.

Chuck looked nervous, all of a sudden and said, "Just so you know, that sounds ominous."

She laughed. "Nothing ominous!"

They sat down and she launched straight in, "I spent some time last night thinking about your idea."

He braced himself, expecting the worst. She saw this. He's so easy to read. Nothing hidden. That helped her resolve. "Chuck, I think it would need some work to turn into something real."

He beamed at her, "A business plan?"

She barked a laugh, "Yes, a business plan!"

He looked so happy, she realized she hadn't been completely clear. "Chuck…" He was still in a euphoric state and didn't hear. Louder she tried again, but it came out sharply, "Chuck!"

He looked at her in surprise.

She looked at him with a serious expression. "I haven't yet decided if it's a good idea for me yet, just that it is worth developing this idea and making that business plan."

"Oh." He looked really crestfallen, and she found her heart went out to him. She placed a hand on his arm. "We'll work on the plan together, while I try to get my head around what I want to do."

He brightened. "So, we'll see each other a lot while we do that?"

God, he's really fallen for me! That thought made her think about her feelings for him and was now sure she was the same. She couldn't speak at that moment, so she just nodded and smiled.

He looked so happy and leaned over and gave her a hug.

She pushed away and gave him a serious look. "And that's not very professional. We'll have none of that while we plan!" The twinkle in her eyes, belied that statement.

She continued, "Seriously though, my business skills will help with the business plan, but also setting up and running a business. My finance skills will help, too. I'm even a good negotiator, so that will help with business deals and securing finances. I'll be able to contribute from the start." She held up a finger to stop him jumping in. "IF I join you after that planning."

He looked stunned at all this information. He frowned, "Did you get any sleep?"

She chuckled. "Some."

He looked a bit bemused. "I'm now just wondering what I'm bringing to the party."

She smiled. "I think you're bringing your nerdy head to it. Without your software, there's no business to plan. The software offering and its purpose will be part of that plan."

He leaned back and grinned. "I'm so happy, Sarah. You do that to me, you know."

She smiled indulgently.

The gleam in his eye was clear. "Let's go out this evening to celebrate the partnership."

She raised an eyebrow, "Another date?"

Chuck had been trying not to think of it that way.

He definitely liked her and would love a serious relationship with her. A second date could possibly lead that way. He'd even told her how she made him feel, and she had seemed to like him. However, thinking about what she'd told him about herself, he actually felt inadequate. She was so much better than him. He didn't deserve her, so he should really drop that fantasy.

He frowned as he said, "To be honest, I don't think we're both in the same league, so let's just see it as a friend taking a friend out for a meal, huh?"

That was like a stab to her chest. It hurt! Sarah looked away to hide how that made her feel. He's thinking he's way better than me. And he's right!

All their conversation today, and the date last night, had made her feel this was going to work between them, that they could be more than friends. Then he suddenly says that! Had he been playing her? She knew she shouldn't have lowered her walls. Now she was getting hurt!

Sarah started to get up. I have to get out of here!

However, she hadn't turned quickly enough and Chuck had noticed her expression change. He realized she had mistaken his comment. She was now looking away and starting to rise. So, he grabbed her hand before she could stand.

He had to explain. He spoke quietly, "I'm not good enough to be with you, Sarah. You deserve better."

Instantly, he'd knocked those walls down again. Sarah turned back to him. "Oh, Chuck, you're so wrong. So wrong."

As they looked at each other, she had to say more. "Chuck, when I'm with you, I feel better about myself, but, if I'm honest with myself, I know I don't deserve you; you're so much better than me."

"Well, we'll have to agree to disagree on that." He didn't turn away, just kept staring into her eyes.

The happy mood was lost. She hated that and wanted it back.

She persisted, "So, a date then?"

He chuckled. "Yes, okay, a date!"

A/N: I had to include some self-doubt here. Chuck may have made a success out of his life, but he still doesn't rate himself and certainly not with women. Sarah also has issues. What a pair!

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