A/N: There's a teeny, tiny spoiler in this chapter about Will's occupational future, but it's nothing that you wouldn't have guessed from watching "The Abduction." As always, thanks for reading a reviewing.
Chapter 7: "Matinee"
Vaughn took another sip of coffee and forced himself to concentrate on the report he was writing about his and Sydney's Fiji mission. Concentrating was proving to be an impossible task, however, because all he wanted to do was go home and sleep for a week. At the moment, he had a severe case of jetlag that was kicking his ass, but if that was the price he had to pay for spending New Year's with Sydney, it was worth every bit of the suffering he was currently experiencing. He smiled, remembering the amazing time they'd had on the island. The details of what they'd been doing to have such an amazing time would never find their way into his report, however. As far as he was concerned, that information was classified Omega-17.
His thoughts were interrupted as he looked up and saw a black-clad United States marshal walking in his direction.
"Agent Vaughn, I'm Jake Myers," the marshal said as ha and Vaughn shook hands. "We're ready for you now. You can follow me."
Vaughn nodded and followed Jake through the halls of the joint ops center. They made their way up to the roof, and another marshal let them enter through the gate. Vaughn watched as Jake retrieved his rifle and returned to his post on the roof. As his eyes darted around the roof, he counted six marshals, each armed, ready and waiting to take the prisoner out if she made one wrong move. He also noticed four snipers on the roofs of two adjacent buildings. The gravity of their presence reminded him who he was dealing with, and he straightened his posture as he braced himself for another encounter with Irina Derevko. He was no longer intimidated or disgusted by her, the way he had been in their first few meetings, but he knew that she was an expert at playing mind games, and he needed to prepare himself to counter her every move.
He watched her closely as she slowly paced back and forth in the middle of the roof. Her chin was raised, her eyes were closed, and she looked as if she was meditating and sleepwalking simultaneously. Vaughn walked over to her and cleared his throat, alerting her to his presence. Her eyes opened in surprise at the unexpected interruption and she slowly turned around to face him.
"Agent Vaughn. I wasn't expecting to see you, at least not up here," she gestured to their surroundings.
"I needed to speak with you, and I figured this was as good a place as any." In truth, talking to Irina on the roof had been a calculated decision on his part. He took another cursory glance around the roof. The marshals were watching them closely but he was sure that they were unable to hear what they said to each other. More importantly, he knew that there was no audio feed from the rooftop surveillance cameras to the ops center, so he didn't have to worry about anyone monitoring their conversation.
"Happy New Year. I trust that you and Sydney enjoyed your time in Fiji?"
"I think we both found it worthwhile," he said carefully, as she shot him a knowing smile. "Agent Bristow and I were both grateful for the intel you provided us, but we were surprised at how painlessly you turned it over."
"Why would that surprise you, Agent Vaughn? And was the intel *all* that you were grateful for?" she asked with a raised eyebrow.
Vaughn glanced away for a moment before turning his eyes back to her. He squared his jaw and decided to ignore her second question. "I've read the terms of your immunity deal. I know that you're obligated to cooperate with the CIA, but technically, you're under no obligation to make it easy on us."
"I think I've made my daughter's life difficult enough," she said softly. "It's about time that I started making things easier for her, wouldn't you say?"
"Is that what you're actually doing?" he asked challengingly.
She folded her arms across her body and returned his stare. "You're concerned about my motives, Agent Vaughn?"
"If I weren't concerned about your motives, I wouldn't be fit to be your daughter's handler. It's my job to protect her."
Irina regarded Vaughn and felt a certain admiration for him. Even though she knew that he was desperately in love with Sydney, he didn't allow those feelings to cloud his judgment when it came to either her or Jack. He had already proven himself willing to confront both of them if it meant protecting Sydney. She knew that he would always put her first, and her long dormant maternal side appreciated his devotion to her daughter. There was also something about him that reminded her of another young CIA officer who had moved up the agency's fast track. Whenever Vaughn talked about Sydney, he got a look in his eyes that reminded her of the way that Jack used to look at her. She missed that look.
"I know that you worry about my daughter, especially where I'm concerned. I can't say that I blame you for that. Neither her father nor I have been model parents. But I assure you that I have no intention of hurting Sydney."
"I hope you mean that. But just so we're clear, I have no intention of letting you or anyone else hurt Sydney. *Ever*."
Irina was impressed by the steely tone in his voice. This was a far cry from the man who could barely bring himself to look her in the eye a few months earlier, and she could tell that he meant every word that he said.
"I'm glad that my daughter has you in her life," she said softly as she looked off into the distance.
Vaughn stared at Irina, wondering whether he had heard her correctly. She certainly sounded sincere; if she wasn't, she was the best actress he had ever seen in his life. *I didn't do it for you.* The words he had once spoken to her, the words that she'd repeated back to him, echoed in his mind. He didn't think he would ever come to terms with her role in his father's death, but in a strange way, he felt a bond with her. She was the mother of the woman he loved, and they both seemed equally concerned about her well-being. He still didn't trust Irina, but he wanted to believe that she loved Sydney.
"I have a few questions for you about the disks."
"Ah. First you want to know why I gave them to you?" Her words were more of a statement than a question.
"I assume you gave them to us because you want to see SD-6 destroyed as much as we do."
"Yes. I want to see Arvin Sloane burn in hell, and the Alliance in ruins," she said bitterly. Once that happens, Sydney will be free. I'm not sure that she'll ever have a truly *normal* life, but I want her to have a life free from secrets and danger."
Vaughn nodded. That was all he wanted too. "The information on your disks could go a long way towards giving Sydney that life. How was your organization able to acquire all of that intel?"
"Does it matter, Mr. Vaughn?" Irina asked cooly. "All that really matters is that you have the information now. I suggest that you and your agency use it wisely."
"In order to do that, I may need to ask you more questions in the future. I need to know that you'll be willing to answer those questions."
"Yes, I'll tell you what you need to know."
"Thank you." Vaughn turned to leave, but a few steps later, he stopped and turned around to look at her. "To answer your question from earlier . . . yes, I was grateful for more than the disks in Fiji. But I think you already knew that."
Irina smiled as Vaughn walked away. She did already know; it was written all over his face.
*****
Will Tippin glanced around the bar he was in, sensing that there was something very unusual about the place. In fact, he'd sensed something strange from the moment he arrived and stood in front of a steel door with a small opening near the top. Any bar that required a password to gain entry was obviously not your run-of the-mill watering hole. Once he entered the bar, he was surprised to see it filled with men who all seemed to be wearing a similar uniform, dress slacks and starched oxfords with rolled up sleeves and loosened ties. There was a sprinkling of women throughout the bar, but the clientele was overwhelmingly male. This obviously wasn't the place to come if you were looking to meet women, he observed with a wry smile. He was still examining his surroundings when Vaughn and Weiss returned to the table with a pitcher of beer and three frosted glasses in hand.
"Sorry it took us so long. Mike and the bartender were having an argument over who's the better pool player," Weiss explained.
"It wasn't an argument," Vaughn laughed. "It was too one-sided to be an argument. JD knows he can't compete with me."
Weiss rolled his eyes at Will. "To hear Mike tell it, he's the best pool *and* hockey player that ever lived."
"Damn straight," Vaughn nodded.
"It was really cool of you guys to take me hang out tonight," Will said appreciatively.
"Our pleasure," Vaughn replied. "We thought we'd help celebrate your first day as a CIA employee."
"Yeah, if that doesn't deserve a few drinks, I don't know what does," cracked Weiss. "Nothing like signing away your life to the government."
"Thanks, you're making me feel really good about this decision," Will joked. He was surprised that Weiss and Vaughn were discussing the CIA so openly in the middle of the bar, where anyone could listen in on them. He wasn't well-versed in CIA protocol yet, but he was sure that it wasn't a good idea to let people overhear that you work for the most secretive intelligence agency in the world.
"Don't pay Eric any attention. He's a total company man. Working for the agency is actually pretty cool, and in no time, you'll probably be get your own password for this place."
Will's eyes widened with surprise. "Yeah, what is this place exactly? Is it some kind of secret club?"
Vaughn laughed. "I guess you could think of it that way, but actually it's just a CIA bar. The CIA discourages its agents from going out and getting plastered in public bars, because of the security risk," Vaughn explained when Will shot him a questioning glance. "You can still go to regular bars, you just have to be careful when you do. Eric's such a sloppy drunk that we usually just end up coming here," Vaughn smirked as Eric playfully slapped him on the back of the head.
"I don't remember reading anything about getting hammered in the agency handbook they gave me," Will laughed.
"I know," Vaughn smiled. "You're going to learn quickly that most of the agency's *really* important rules are unwritten. A few years ago, someone came to the shocking revelation that working for the CIA is stressful and that the company's employees might need a place to blow off steam, so they created this place. You have to know the password to get in, and it changes every so often. Someone will tell you all about it after you make it through your probationary period."
"So this is like a sneak preview?" Will grinned.
Weiss raised his glass and laughed. "Yeah, welcome to our world, man."
A pitcher later, Will felt as if he, Weiss, and Vaughn were old friends. Vaughn and Weiss old him stories about their days at Langley, and their early years at the agency. He told them stories about his college years, and took notice of the way that Vaughn seemed to smile to himself whenever Sydney was mentioned. During their first meeting, Will had suspected that Vaughn and Sydney's relationship wasn't just a professional one, but he was beginning to think that he didn't know the half of it. He had just finished telling them about the time a drunken Sydney led an entire bar in a rendition of "Turn the Beat Around," when he noticed the bartender gesturing over to their table.
Vaughn laughed and stood up. "Sorry guys, JD's a masochist. I'm gonna have to go take his money."
Weiss grinned and shook his head. "Go easy on him, man," he said as Vaughn walked over to the pool tables in the corner of the bar. He turned back at Will. "So, I bet you have a lot of questions about what it's like to work for the agency."
"Yeah, I do, but I'll start with the important stuff. How much vacation time do I get?"
"Not enough," Weiss laughed. "I've only been back at work for a few weeks, and I already feel like I need a vacation. I knew I should've gone to Tahoe with Mike when he asked me."
Will almost choked on the beer he'd just swallowed. Did Weiss just say that Vaughn had recently been to Lake Tahoe? "When was that?" he asked innocently.
"Back in November. He went for a week, and I was a fool for staying here. There's nothing like sitting around a fire drinking hot chocolate with snow bunnies, ya know?"
Will laughed, but his mind was spinning. He remembered how happy Sydney was when *she* returned from Lake Tahoe in November. Was it possible that they had been there at the same time -- together? Both he and Francie had suspected that Sydney was hiding something the night that they had gone out for his birthday, now he was sure of it. He just had to find a way to get her to admit it.
*****
Will looked up from his bowl of cereal as Sydney entered the kitchen the next morning.
"Hey, Syd."
"Hi," she smiled. "You got in late last night."
"Yeah, I did." Will shifted nervously on his stool, wondering whether to ask her about what he'd learned the night before. "I went out with Weiss and Vaughn." He noticed Sydney's eyes widen slightly when he mentioned Vaughn's name.
"What were you doing out with Vaughn and Weiss?"
"They took me out for drinks to celebrate my new job."
"Oh, that was nice of them. Did you have a good time?"
"Yeah, I did. They're really good guys."
"Yeah, they are," Sydney nodded as she tried to suppress a smile.
"Why are you smiling like that?" He asked, trying to find an opening to ask her about Vaughn.
"Smiling like what?" Sydney asked, as her smile grew even bigger. "I'm not smiling like anything. Congratulations, by the way. I haven't had a chance to tell you that yet."
"Thanks. I'm just relieved to be gainfully employed again. Of course, my first question was how much vacation time I get every year," he said with a grin.
"Will!" she laughed, shaking her head.
"What? Vacation time is important for morale purposes. Remember how happy you were when you came back from Lake Tahoe?"
"Yeah, I do." By now her smile was a full-blown grin, as she thought about the magical weekend she'd spent with Vaughn.
"Speaking of Tahoe, it must be a pretty popular vacation spot."
"Well, if you went there, you'd know why. You saw my pictures; it's gorgeous there," Sydney said over her shoulder as she reached into a cabinet for a bowl.
"Hey, did you know that Vaughn was also in Lake Tahoe a couple of months ago?"
Sydney froze when she heard Will's question, and she was glad that her back was turned to him so he couldn't see the shocked expression on her face. Had Vaughn slipped and mentioned to Will that he had also been in Lake Tahoe?
"Uh, yeah, actually, I did know that. He and a friend of his went skiing." She walked back to the counter and poured a bowl of cereal.
"A friend. Was it you?"
Sydney took a deep breath and set the cereal box back down on the counter. She stared into her bowl as if a good answer to his question would magically appear amidst her corn flakes. "No, he went with one of his friends from college. Why would you think that Vaughn and I went on vacation together?"
Will shrugged. "You were both in Tahoe at the same time, and you were in a really good mood when you came back. I just assumed that maybe the two of you had gone together."
"We didn't go there together, Will," Sydney sighed. She knew that she should just leave it at that, but she also knew Will well enough to know that he wouldn't drop it that easily. "Vaughn and I didn't go together, but we ended up at the same ski resort, purely by coincidence. I was getting on the elevator the morning I arrived, and there he was."
"Wow, that's pretty random. So did you hang out with him and his friend?"
"No. His friend had to leave unexpectedly and he was already gone by the time I got there. So Vaughn and I ended up spending the weekend together -- alone," she said quietly.
"Oh. Well that makes sense. I mean, you guys are friends, right?"
"Well, we were, but -- " Sydney cut herself off abruptly as she went to the refrigerator for milk.
"But what?" Will asked, wondering what she had been about to say.
"Will, I'm not sure we should be discussing this. I don't want to make you uncomfortable." Or maybe she didn't want to make herself uncomfortable. Sydney didn't know if Will still had feelings for her, but if so, the last thing she wanted to do was rub his nose in her relationship with Vaughn.
"Syd, it's okay. You can talk to me about Vaughn, seriously." Will knew that part of his heart would always belong to her, but he had long since accepted that the two of them would never be more than friends, and that they were probably better off that way.
Sydney looked at him dubiously. "Are you sure you want to hear about this?" He nodded. "I was saying before that Vaughn and I *were* friends before Tahoe, but since that weekend, we've been more than friends."
"Are the two of you in a relationship?"
"Yeah. I shouldn't even be telling you this, it's supposed to be a secret. If the wrong people found out, we could both end up dead," she admitted.
Will didn't doubt that for a minute. Ever since he had been abducted by Sark, he was fully aware of the dangerous people that inhabited Sydney's world. He was surprised that Sydney would tempt fate just to be with Vaughn.
"Syd, I hope you don't mind me asking, but is what you guys have worth the risk you're taking?"
"Yes," Sydney said without hesitation. "Will, I'm in love with him."
"Oh," Will said quietly. Even though his feelings for Sydney weren't the same as they once were, he couldn't help but feel a small stab of pain in his heart. At the same time, he couldn't help but be happy for her, especially seeing the way that her face lit up when she talked about Vaughn.
"After Danny was murdered, I didn't think I would ever fall in love again. I certainly didn't expect to fall in love with my handler, but somewhere along the way, I did. I don't even know when it happened. It wasn't like I had an epiphany one day and realized that I loved him; it just snuck up on me. When we were in Tahoe, it was the first time that we got to have fun and be normal, and that's when I knew that I had to tell him how I felt."
"And he feels the same way?" Will already knew the answer to his question. He couldn't imagine that any man lucky enough to be loved by Sydney Bristow wouldn't return her feelings.
"Yeah, he does," Sydney smiled as she looked back down at the counter. "Actually, I think he was in love with me long before I realized how I felt about him. I don't have anything concrete to base that on, but ever since the day we met, he's done all these amazing things for me, things that went above and beyond friendship."
"Like what?"
"Like risking his career and his life to help me rescue you in Taipei, and talking to my mother so I wouldn't have to face her, and breaking into the Vatican with me." She laughed when she saw the shocked expression on Will's face. "Yes, we broke into the Vatican once. And I never told you this, but my mother killed his father, and he's never once held that against me."
"Wait, your mother, in addition to shooting you in Taipei, killed Vaughn's father? God, what kind of woman *is* she?"
"I don't know. A few months ago, I would have said that she was an evil woman, but now I'm not so sure. Every time I think I think I have her figured out, she does something that throws me for another loop." She was tempted to tell Will about Fiji, but she thought better of it. Even though he was working for the CIA now, there were limits to how much she could tell him, and she knew she shouldn't tell him any details about the SD-6 operation.
"So if your relationship with Vaughn is so top-secret," Will said, returning to their original topic, "how do you get to spend any time with him?"
"With a lot of planning," she laughed. "We have to sneak around for now, which sucks. But one day, when SD-6 is gone, we'll be able to have a normal relationship -- well, as normal as a relationship between tow spies can be, anyway."
"Can you wait that long?" Will asked skeptically.
"I'll wait as long as it takes. He's worth it," she said softly. "In the meantime, I'm so grateful that I got to tell you about this. Not being able to tell anyone how I feel about Vaughn was killing me," she admitted.
"So you're thanking me for being so nosy?" he asked with a grin.
"Yeah, I am. I'm also thanking you for being such a good friend."
He smiled back at her. "No problem. *You're* worth it."
*****
A week later, Sydney walked into a movie theater, her arms loaded with popcorn, a soda, and a box of candy. She had no intention of eating all of that, but she needed to look as if she was staying for the duration of the movie, in case she was being watched. The previews were already running and once her eyes adjusted to the dark, she saw Vaughn sitting in the far corner of the last row in the theater. The only other people in the theater were a middle aged couple sitting in the third row. She quickly climbed the stairs to the top row. Ordinarily, she would have sat in the row below him, a couple of seats over, but the theater was so empty, that she decided to take the risk of sitting next to him. Besides, she'd been careful to avoid tails, and she doubted that the sweet looking couple below them were working for SD-6 security section.
"Hi," she whispered as she sat down next to Vaughn. She smiled when she noticed that he was dressed in jeans, a v-neck sweater and t-shirt. It was 1:30 on a Tuesday afternoon, and she surmised that he probably hadn't wanted to look conspicuous by wearing a suit to the movies.
"Hi." He took the popcorn and candy from her, so she could get situated. "Hungry?" he smirked.
"Shut up. I had to look like I was actually going to a movie, not meeting my handler to discuss my latest mission."
"Good thinking," he said as he handed the food back to her and watched her place it on the seat next to her, He glanced around the theater quickly, and when she turned back to him, he leaned over and kissed her deeply. Her lips were warm and sweet and he tried to remember how he had managed to resist the urge to kiss for an entire year before Tahoe. He was just about to pull away from her when she grabbed his arm and pulled him back to her. They were both breathless when they finally broke apart.
"God, I've missed you," she sighed. Other than a brief meeting before she left on her most recent mission, she hadn't seen him since they returned from Fiji.
He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "I missed you too. How did things go in Kuala Lampur?"
"Fine. Sloane has no idea that the CIA also has a vial of Phong's serum. The SD-6 vial is still in analysis, but as soon as I find out what Sloane's planning to do with it, I'll let you know."
"Good. Our scientists think the serum may jump start cellular regeneration, but we're still trying to decipher Phong's research logs. If their theory is true, the Alliance might try to corner the market on the serum and charge a premium for it."
"Sounds like something they'd do," Sydney agreed.
"Is Sloane sending you anywhere else this week?"
"I'm not sure yet, but I doubt it. He's leaving on Thursday for an Alliance meeting in Rome."
"Is he leaving your dad in charge of the office?" Vaughn asked, sensing a possible opportunity to inflict more damage on SD-6.
"Not this time. He's putting someone else in charge, a guy named Gerald Nichols."
"I've heard of him. He's one of the original agents who knew the truth about SD-6 when it was formed, so you're going to have to be as careful as you would be with Sloane."
"I know, and to make matters worse, if I'm not being sent on a mission, I won't get to see you for the rest of the week," she frowned.
"So we'll just have to enjoy our time together right now," he smiled at her.
"Are you serious? I just assumed we were both going to leave after I briefed you on my mission."
"No, you can't go. I specifically chose this movie so we could spend some time together. It's three hours long, and it's gotten terrible reviews," he grinned. "I knew it would be perfect -- the theater is empty, and if the movie is as bad as the critics say it is, we won't miss much if we spend the next three hours making out."
She giggled softly. "What, are we sixteen years old?"
"We can pretend. Seriously, I just wanted to do at least one normal, date-type thing with you, and since I can't take you to the movies on a Friday night, I have to settle for a Tuesday afternoon."
"The CIA *pays* you for this kind of strategic planning?" She knew she had a goofy grin on her face, but she didn't care. She was at a movie with Vaughn, and it seemed so refreshingly normal, even if it was the middle of the day and they were watching a crappy movie. Her whole body tingled when he took her hand in his, and she thanked the inventor of stadium seats as she scooted closer to him and leaned her head on his shoulder. They silently watched the movie for a few minutes until Sydney broke the silence.
"Will knows about us," she whispered.
"You told him about us?" Vaughn asked with surprise.
"Yeah, I had to after you told him that you were in Lake Tahoe at the same time that I was."
"What? I never told Will about my vacation."
"Well, if you didn't tell him how did he . . . "
They looked at each other and smiled. "Weiss," they said in unison.
"After a few beers, Weiss will tell you anything you want to know," Vaughn said with a wry smile. "So what did Will say?"
"Not much. I think he was mostly just trying to get me to admit that we were there together. I thought you should know since you might be working with him. But don't worry, we can trust him. He won't tell anyone."
"I hope you're right. So is Will really that good at digging for the truth? I can't believe you would crack so easily," he grinned.
"Truthfully, I didn't really try to evade his questions. I know I probably should have," she said quickly when she saw the surprised look on Vaughn's face, "but it was such a relief to finally tell someone the truth about us. It was the first time I admitted my feelings to someone other than you." She pulled her head back from his shoulder and looked him in the eye. "Don't take this the wrong way, but our relationship is so secretive that sometimes I have to pinch myself to make sure that I'm not making it all up in my head. Telling Will made it seem real, somehow. Does that make any sense?"
"Yeah, it does. I feel the same way sometimes. After your Christmas surprise, I know Weiss has probably figured out that something is going on between us, but I still haven't told him the whole truth. He doesn't even know that you were in Tahoe when I was."
"You could tell him. I mean, I told Will," Sydney shrugged.
"Maybe," Vaughn said noncommittally. Even though Weiss had resolved to stop lecturing him about protocol, Vaughn still wasn't sure that he could or should tell Weiss the whole truth. He didn't want to put Weiss in the position of possibly having to lie to protect him and Sydney if anyone ever found out about them.
"This is all so complicated," Sydney sighed. "Do you ever ask yourself whether it's worth all the trouble?"
"No," he said in a harsh whisper. "I *never* question that. Why, do you?" he asked uneasily.
"No," she answered truthfully. "I know the circumstances of our relationship aren't ideal, and I know that there are a million reasons -- good reasons -- why we shouldn't be together, but none of that matters to me. I love you, that makes all the risk worth it."
"You're gonna have to keep telling yourself that, Sydney. It's hard to make a relationship work under the best of circumstances. Given everything that we're up against, it's going to be even harder. So if things get tough -- when they get tough," his voice broke, "just remind yourself that I love you and that what we have is worth fighting for."
"I will," she assured him. She knew that Vaughn was right, inevitably there would be rough patches in their relationship. But right now, while everything was so new and so wonderful between them, she hated to even consider the possibility that they might not be always be that way.
"But you need to remind *yourself* that you're stuck with me now. You can't weasel your way out of this," she smiled, trying to lighten the serious mood that had descended over them.
He laughed. "Believe me, I won't try." He turned onto his side to face her and traced his finger along her jaw and throat. "Sydney," he said intensely, "you're a part of me now. I couldn't free myself from you even if I wanted to -- and I don't," he added firmly.
He moved his finger up to trace her lips and she shivered under his touch. His eyes were smoldering with love and desire for her, and she felt as if she was being hypnotically drawn to him. The moment she leaned in to him, their lips met in a slow, sensual kiss that sent a jolt of electricity through both of them. Instinctively, his hand moved to her hip and he pulled her closer to him, so close that he could feel the heat radiating from her body. His body was soon responding to her, and he silently cursed himself for choosing to meet with her in a public place. He would give anything to be in the warehouse or the bloodmobile right now, where he could act on his feverish desire for her. As it was, he was dangerously close to acting on it,anyway. His mind was telling him to break away from her and regain his self-control, but his mouth and his hands refused to obey. He felt himself drowning in her until she gently pulled away from him and ran her fingers through her hair. He fell back in his seat and closed his eyes as he tried to catch his breath.
When Vaughn opened his eyes, he found Sydney staring back at him, her eyes reflecting all of the heat that had been in his own eyes just a few minutes ago. The intensity of her gaze was so strong that he could barely breathe or move. She quickly turned her head over her shoulder and looked at the couple sitting in the front of the theater. They were engrossed in the movie, oblivious to the couple in the back of the theater. Sydney turned back to him with a seductive smile on her face. He knew what that look meant, and he was powerless to protest; she was irresistible and he was putty in her hands. His view of the screen was soon obstructed as she climbed onto his lap and straddled him.
"Syd," he half groaned, half laughed.
"Shhh." She placed a finger over his lips and smiled mischievously. "We're sixteen, remember?" Before he could respond, they were kissing again, tongues dancing, hands roaming, bodies melting into each other.
As Vaughn drove home, he couldn't remember a single scene from the movie they had seen. All he could remember was how he and Sydney had spent three hours laughing, talking, and making out like a couple of teenagers. All in all, it was the best time he'd ever had at the movies.
TBC . . .
Chapter 7: "Matinee"
Vaughn took another sip of coffee and forced himself to concentrate on the report he was writing about his and Sydney's Fiji mission. Concentrating was proving to be an impossible task, however, because all he wanted to do was go home and sleep for a week. At the moment, he had a severe case of jetlag that was kicking his ass, but if that was the price he had to pay for spending New Year's with Sydney, it was worth every bit of the suffering he was currently experiencing. He smiled, remembering the amazing time they'd had on the island. The details of what they'd been doing to have such an amazing time would never find their way into his report, however. As far as he was concerned, that information was classified Omega-17.
His thoughts were interrupted as he looked up and saw a black-clad United States marshal walking in his direction.
"Agent Vaughn, I'm Jake Myers," the marshal said as ha and Vaughn shook hands. "We're ready for you now. You can follow me."
Vaughn nodded and followed Jake through the halls of the joint ops center. They made their way up to the roof, and another marshal let them enter through the gate. Vaughn watched as Jake retrieved his rifle and returned to his post on the roof. As his eyes darted around the roof, he counted six marshals, each armed, ready and waiting to take the prisoner out if she made one wrong move. He also noticed four snipers on the roofs of two adjacent buildings. The gravity of their presence reminded him who he was dealing with, and he straightened his posture as he braced himself for another encounter with Irina Derevko. He was no longer intimidated or disgusted by her, the way he had been in their first few meetings, but he knew that she was an expert at playing mind games, and he needed to prepare himself to counter her every move.
He watched her closely as she slowly paced back and forth in the middle of the roof. Her chin was raised, her eyes were closed, and she looked as if she was meditating and sleepwalking simultaneously. Vaughn walked over to her and cleared his throat, alerting her to his presence. Her eyes opened in surprise at the unexpected interruption and she slowly turned around to face him.
"Agent Vaughn. I wasn't expecting to see you, at least not up here," she gestured to their surroundings.
"I needed to speak with you, and I figured this was as good a place as any." In truth, talking to Irina on the roof had been a calculated decision on his part. He took another cursory glance around the roof. The marshals were watching them closely but he was sure that they were unable to hear what they said to each other. More importantly, he knew that there was no audio feed from the rooftop surveillance cameras to the ops center, so he didn't have to worry about anyone monitoring their conversation.
"Happy New Year. I trust that you and Sydney enjoyed your time in Fiji?"
"I think we both found it worthwhile," he said carefully, as she shot him a knowing smile. "Agent Bristow and I were both grateful for the intel you provided us, but we were surprised at how painlessly you turned it over."
"Why would that surprise you, Agent Vaughn? And was the intel *all* that you were grateful for?" she asked with a raised eyebrow.
Vaughn glanced away for a moment before turning his eyes back to her. He squared his jaw and decided to ignore her second question. "I've read the terms of your immunity deal. I know that you're obligated to cooperate with the CIA, but technically, you're under no obligation to make it easy on us."
"I think I've made my daughter's life difficult enough," she said softly. "It's about time that I started making things easier for her, wouldn't you say?"
"Is that what you're actually doing?" he asked challengingly.
She folded her arms across her body and returned his stare. "You're concerned about my motives, Agent Vaughn?"
"If I weren't concerned about your motives, I wouldn't be fit to be your daughter's handler. It's my job to protect her."
Irina regarded Vaughn and felt a certain admiration for him. Even though she knew that he was desperately in love with Sydney, he didn't allow those feelings to cloud his judgment when it came to either her or Jack. He had already proven himself willing to confront both of them if it meant protecting Sydney. She knew that he would always put her first, and her long dormant maternal side appreciated his devotion to her daughter. There was also something about him that reminded her of another young CIA officer who had moved up the agency's fast track. Whenever Vaughn talked about Sydney, he got a look in his eyes that reminded her of the way that Jack used to look at her. She missed that look.
"I know that you worry about my daughter, especially where I'm concerned. I can't say that I blame you for that. Neither her father nor I have been model parents. But I assure you that I have no intention of hurting Sydney."
"I hope you mean that. But just so we're clear, I have no intention of letting you or anyone else hurt Sydney. *Ever*."
Irina was impressed by the steely tone in his voice. This was a far cry from the man who could barely bring himself to look her in the eye a few months earlier, and she could tell that he meant every word that he said.
"I'm glad that my daughter has you in her life," she said softly as she looked off into the distance.
Vaughn stared at Irina, wondering whether he had heard her correctly. She certainly sounded sincere; if she wasn't, she was the best actress he had ever seen in his life. *I didn't do it for you.* The words he had once spoken to her, the words that she'd repeated back to him, echoed in his mind. He didn't think he would ever come to terms with her role in his father's death, but in a strange way, he felt a bond with her. She was the mother of the woman he loved, and they both seemed equally concerned about her well-being. He still didn't trust Irina, but he wanted to believe that she loved Sydney.
"I have a few questions for you about the disks."
"Ah. First you want to know why I gave them to you?" Her words were more of a statement than a question.
"I assume you gave them to us because you want to see SD-6 destroyed as much as we do."
"Yes. I want to see Arvin Sloane burn in hell, and the Alliance in ruins," she said bitterly. Once that happens, Sydney will be free. I'm not sure that she'll ever have a truly *normal* life, but I want her to have a life free from secrets and danger."
Vaughn nodded. That was all he wanted too. "The information on your disks could go a long way towards giving Sydney that life. How was your organization able to acquire all of that intel?"
"Does it matter, Mr. Vaughn?" Irina asked cooly. "All that really matters is that you have the information now. I suggest that you and your agency use it wisely."
"In order to do that, I may need to ask you more questions in the future. I need to know that you'll be willing to answer those questions."
"Yes, I'll tell you what you need to know."
"Thank you." Vaughn turned to leave, but a few steps later, he stopped and turned around to look at her. "To answer your question from earlier . . . yes, I was grateful for more than the disks in Fiji. But I think you already knew that."
Irina smiled as Vaughn walked away. She did already know; it was written all over his face.
*****
Will Tippin glanced around the bar he was in, sensing that there was something very unusual about the place. In fact, he'd sensed something strange from the moment he arrived and stood in front of a steel door with a small opening near the top. Any bar that required a password to gain entry was obviously not your run-of the-mill watering hole. Once he entered the bar, he was surprised to see it filled with men who all seemed to be wearing a similar uniform, dress slacks and starched oxfords with rolled up sleeves and loosened ties. There was a sprinkling of women throughout the bar, but the clientele was overwhelmingly male. This obviously wasn't the place to come if you were looking to meet women, he observed with a wry smile. He was still examining his surroundings when Vaughn and Weiss returned to the table with a pitcher of beer and three frosted glasses in hand.
"Sorry it took us so long. Mike and the bartender were having an argument over who's the better pool player," Weiss explained.
"It wasn't an argument," Vaughn laughed. "It was too one-sided to be an argument. JD knows he can't compete with me."
Weiss rolled his eyes at Will. "To hear Mike tell it, he's the best pool *and* hockey player that ever lived."
"Damn straight," Vaughn nodded.
"It was really cool of you guys to take me hang out tonight," Will said appreciatively.
"Our pleasure," Vaughn replied. "We thought we'd help celebrate your first day as a CIA employee."
"Yeah, if that doesn't deserve a few drinks, I don't know what does," cracked Weiss. "Nothing like signing away your life to the government."
"Thanks, you're making me feel really good about this decision," Will joked. He was surprised that Weiss and Vaughn were discussing the CIA so openly in the middle of the bar, where anyone could listen in on them. He wasn't well-versed in CIA protocol yet, but he was sure that it wasn't a good idea to let people overhear that you work for the most secretive intelligence agency in the world.
"Don't pay Eric any attention. He's a total company man. Working for the agency is actually pretty cool, and in no time, you'll probably be get your own password for this place."
Will's eyes widened with surprise. "Yeah, what is this place exactly? Is it some kind of secret club?"
Vaughn laughed. "I guess you could think of it that way, but actually it's just a CIA bar. The CIA discourages its agents from going out and getting plastered in public bars, because of the security risk," Vaughn explained when Will shot him a questioning glance. "You can still go to regular bars, you just have to be careful when you do. Eric's such a sloppy drunk that we usually just end up coming here," Vaughn smirked as Eric playfully slapped him on the back of the head.
"I don't remember reading anything about getting hammered in the agency handbook they gave me," Will laughed.
"I know," Vaughn smiled. "You're going to learn quickly that most of the agency's *really* important rules are unwritten. A few years ago, someone came to the shocking revelation that working for the CIA is stressful and that the company's employees might need a place to blow off steam, so they created this place. You have to know the password to get in, and it changes every so often. Someone will tell you all about it after you make it through your probationary period."
"So this is like a sneak preview?" Will grinned.
Weiss raised his glass and laughed. "Yeah, welcome to our world, man."
A pitcher later, Will felt as if he, Weiss, and Vaughn were old friends. Vaughn and Weiss old him stories about their days at Langley, and their early years at the agency. He told them stories about his college years, and took notice of the way that Vaughn seemed to smile to himself whenever Sydney was mentioned. During their first meeting, Will had suspected that Vaughn and Sydney's relationship wasn't just a professional one, but he was beginning to think that he didn't know the half of it. He had just finished telling them about the time a drunken Sydney led an entire bar in a rendition of "Turn the Beat Around," when he noticed the bartender gesturing over to their table.
Vaughn laughed and stood up. "Sorry guys, JD's a masochist. I'm gonna have to go take his money."
Weiss grinned and shook his head. "Go easy on him, man," he said as Vaughn walked over to the pool tables in the corner of the bar. He turned back at Will. "So, I bet you have a lot of questions about what it's like to work for the agency."
"Yeah, I do, but I'll start with the important stuff. How much vacation time do I get?"
"Not enough," Weiss laughed. "I've only been back at work for a few weeks, and I already feel like I need a vacation. I knew I should've gone to Tahoe with Mike when he asked me."
Will almost choked on the beer he'd just swallowed. Did Weiss just say that Vaughn had recently been to Lake Tahoe? "When was that?" he asked innocently.
"Back in November. He went for a week, and I was a fool for staying here. There's nothing like sitting around a fire drinking hot chocolate with snow bunnies, ya know?"
Will laughed, but his mind was spinning. He remembered how happy Sydney was when *she* returned from Lake Tahoe in November. Was it possible that they had been there at the same time -- together? Both he and Francie had suspected that Sydney was hiding something the night that they had gone out for his birthday, now he was sure of it. He just had to find a way to get her to admit it.
*****
Will looked up from his bowl of cereal as Sydney entered the kitchen the next morning.
"Hey, Syd."
"Hi," she smiled. "You got in late last night."
"Yeah, I did." Will shifted nervously on his stool, wondering whether to ask her about what he'd learned the night before. "I went out with Weiss and Vaughn." He noticed Sydney's eyes widen slightly when he mentioned Vaughn's name.
"What were you doing out with Vaughn and Weiss?"
"They took me out for drinks to celebrate my new job."
"Oh, that was nice of them. Did you have a good time?"
"Yeah, I did. They're really good guys."
"Yeah, they are," Sydney nodded as she tried to suppress a smile.
"Why are you smiling like that?" He asked, trying to find an opening to ask her about Vaughn.
"Smiling like what?" Sydney asked, as her smile grew even bigger. "I'm not smiling like anything. Congratulations, by the way. I haven't had a chance to tell you that yet."
"Thanks. I'm just relieved to be gainfully employed again. Of course, my first question was how much vacation time I get every year," he said with a grin.
"Will!" she laughed, shaking her head.
"What? Vacation time is important for morale purposes. Remember how happy you were when you came back from Lake Tahoe?"
"Yeah, I do." By now her smile was a full-blown grin, as she thought about the magical weekend she'd spent with Vaughn.
"Speaking of Tahoe, it must be a pretty popular vacation spot."
"Well, if you went there, you'd know why. You saw my pictures; it's gorgeous there," Sydney said over her shoulder as she reached into a cabinet for a bowl.
"Hey, did you know that Vaughn was also in Lake Tahoe a couple of months ago?"
Sydney froze when she heard Will's question, and she was glad that her back was turned to him so he couldn't see the shocked expression on her face. Had Vaughn slipped and mentioned to Will that he had also been in Lake Tahoe?
"Uh, yeah, actually, I did know that. He and a friend of his went skiing." She walked back to the counter and poured a bowl of cereal.
"A friend. Was it you?"
Sydney took a deep breath and set the cereal box back down on the counter. She stared into her bowl as if a good answer to his question would magically appear amidst her corn flakes. "No, he went with one of his friends from college. Why would you think that Vaughn and I went on vacation together?"
Will shrugged. "You were both in Tahoe at the same time, and you were in a really good mood when you came back. I just assumed that maybe the two of you had gone together."
"We didn't go there together, Will," Sydney sighed. She knew that she should just leave it at that, but she also knew Will well enough to know that he wouldn't drop it that easily. "Vaughn and I didn't go together, but we ended up at the same ski resort, purely by coincidence. I was getting on the elevator the morning I arrived, and there he was."
"Wow, that's pretty random. So did you hang out with him and his friend?"
"No. His friend had to leave unexpectedly and he was already gone by the time I got there. So Vaughn and I ended up spending the weekend together -- alone," she said quietly.
"Oh. Well that makes sense. I mean, you guys are friends, right?"
"Well, we were, but -- " Sydney cut herself off abruptly as she went to the refrigerator for milk.
"But what?" Will asked, wondering what she had been about to say.
"Will, I'm not sure we should be discussing this. I don't want to make you uncomfortable." Or maybe she didn't want to make herself uncomfortable. Sydney didn't know if Will still had feelings for her, but if so, the last thing she wanted to do was rub his nose in her relationship with Vaughn.
"Syd, it's okay. You can talk to me about Vaughn, seriously." Will knew that part of his heart would always belong to her, but he had long since accepted that the two of them would never be more than friends, and that they were probably better off that way.
Sydney looked at him dubiously. "Are you sure you want to hear about this?" He nodded. "I was saying before that Vaughn and I *were* friends before Tahoe, but since that weekend, we've been more than friends."
"Are the two of you in a relationship?"
"Yeah. I shouldn't even be telling you this, it's supposed to be a secret. If the wrong people found out, we could both end up dead," she admitted.
Will didn't doubt that for a minute. Ever since he had been abducted by Sark, he was fully aware of the dangerous people that inhabited Sydney's world. He was surprised that Sydney would tempt fate just to be with Vaughn.
"Syd, I hope you don't mind me asking, but is what you guys have worth the risk you're taking?"
"Yes," Sydney said without hesitation. "Will, I'm in love with him."
"Oh," Will said quietly. Even though his feelings for Sydney weren't the same as they once were, he couldn't help but feel a small stab of pain in his heart. At the same time, he couldn't help but be happy for her, especially seeing the way that her face lit up when she talked about Vaughn.
"After Danny was murdered, I didn't think I would ever fall in love again. I certainly didn't expect to fall in love with my handler, but somewhere along the way, I did. I don't even know when it happened. It wasn't like I had an epiphany one day and realized that I loved him; it just snuck up on me. When we were in Tahoe, it was the first time that we got to have fun and be normal, and that's when I knew that I had to tell him how I felt."
"And he feels the same way?" Will already knew the answer to his question. He couldn't imagine that any man lucky enough to be loved by Sydney Bristow wouldn't return her feelings.
"Yeah, he does," Sydney smiled as she looked back down at the counter. "Actually, I think he was in love with me long before I realized how I felt about him. I don't have anything concrete to base that on, but ever since the day we met, he's done all these amazing things for me, things that went above and beyond friendship."
"Like what?"
"Like risking his career and his life to help me rescue you in Taipei, and talking to my mother so I wouldn't have to face her, and breaking into the Vatican with me." She laughed when she saw the shocked expression on Will's face. "Yes, we broke into the Vatican once. And I never told you this, but my mother killed his father, and he's never once held that against me."
"Wait, your mother, in addition to shooting you in Taipei, killed Vaughn's father? God, what kind of woman *is* she?"
"I don't know. A few months ago, I would have said that she was an evil woman, but now I'm not so sure. Every time I think I think I have her figured out, she does something that throws me for another loop." She was tempted to tell Will about Fiji, but she thought better of it. Even though he was working for the CIA now, there were limits to how much she could tell him, and she knew she shouldn't tell him any details about the SD-6 operation.
"So if your relationship with Vaughn is so top-secret," Will said, returning to their original topic, "how do you get to spend any time with him?"
"With a lot of planning," she laughed. "We have to sneak around for now, which sucks. But one day, when SD-6 is gone, we'll be able to have a normal relationship -- well, as normal as a relationship between tow spies can be, anyway."
"Can you wait that long?" Will asked skeptically.
"I'll wait as long as it takes. He's worth it," she said softly. "In the meantime, I'm so grateful that I got to tell you about this. Not being able to tell anyone how I feel about Vaughn was killing me," she admitted.
"So you're thanking me for being so nosy?" he asked with a grin.
"Yeah, I am. I'm also thanking you for being such a good friend."
He smiled back at her. "No problem. *You're* worth it."
*****
A week later, Sydney walked into a movie theater, her arms loaded with popcorn, a soda, and a box of candy. She had no intention of eating all of that, but she needed to look as if she was staying for the duration of the movie, in case she was being watched. The previews were already running and once her eyes adjusted to the dark, she saw Vaughn sitting in the far corner of the last row in the theater. The only other people in the theater were a middle aged couple sitting in the third row. She quickly climbed the stairs to the top row. Ordinarily, she would have sat in the row below him, a couple of seats over, but the theater was so empty, that she decided to take the risk of sitting next to him. Besides, she'd been careful to avoid tails, and she doubted that the sweet looking couple below them were working for SD-6 security section.
"Hi," she whispered as she sat down next to Vaughn. She smiled when she noticed that he was dressed in jeans, a v-neck sweater and t-shirt. It was 1:30 on a Tuesday afternoon, and she surmised that he probably hadn't wanted to look conspicuous by wearing a suit to the movies.
"Hi." He took the popcorn and candy from her, so she could get situated. "Hungry?" he smirked.
"Shut up. I had to look like I was actually going to a movie, not meeting my handler to discuss my latest mission."
"Good thinking," he said as he handed the food back to her and watched her place it on the seat next to her, He glanced around the theater quickly, and when she turned back to him, he leaned over and kissed her deeply. Her lips were warm and sweet and he tried to remember how he had managed to resist the urge to kiss for an entire year before Tahoe. He was just about to pull away from her when she grabbed his arm and pulled him back to her. They were both breathless when they finally broke apart.
"God, I've missed you," she sighed. Other than a brief meeting before she left on her most recent mission, she hadn't seen him since they returned from Fiji.
He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "I missed you too. How did things go in Kuala Lampur?"
"Fine. Sloane has no idea that the CIA also has a vial of Phong's serum. The SD-6 vial is still in analysis, but as soon as I find out what Sloane's planning to do with it, I'll let you know."
"Good. Our scientists think the serum may jump start cellular regeneration, but we're still trying to decipher Phong's research logs. If their theory is true, the Alliance might try to corner the market on the serum and charge a premium for it."
"Sounds like something they'd do," Sydney agreed.
"Is Sloane sending you anywhere else this week?"
"I'm not sure yet, but I doubt it. He's leaving on Thursday for an Alliance meeting in Rome."
"Is he leaving your dad in charge of the office?" Vaughn asked, sensing a possible opportunity to inflict more damage on SD-6.
"Not this time. He's putting someone else in charge, a guy named Gerald Nichols."
"I've heard of him. He's one of the original agents who knew the truth about SD-6 when it was formed, so you're going to have to be as careful as you would be with Sloane."
"I know, and to make matters worse, if I'm not being sent on a mission, I won't get to see you for the rest of the week," she frowned.
"So we'll just have to enjoy our time together right now," he smiled at her.
"Are you serious? I just assumed we were both going to leave after I briefed you on my mission."
"No, you can't go. I specifically chose this movie so we could spend some time together. It's three hours long, and it's gotten terrible reviews," he grinned. "I knew it would be perfect -- the theater is empty, and if the movie is as bad as the critics say it is, we won't miss much if we spend the next three hours making out."
She giggled softly. "What, are we sixteen years old?"
"We can pretend. Seriously, I just wanted to do at least one normal, date-type thing with you, and since I can't take you to the movies on a Friday night, I have to settle for a Tuesday afternoon."
"The CIA *pays* you for this kind of strategic planning?" She knew she had a goofy grin on her face, but she didn't care. She was at a movie with Vaughn, and it seemed so refreshingly normal, even if it was the middle of the day and they were watching a crappy movie. Her whole body tingled when he took her hand in his, and she thanked the inventor of stadium seats as she scooted closer to him and leaned her head on his shoulder. They silently watched the movie for a few minutes until Sydney broke the silence.
"Will knows about us," she whispered.
"You told him about us?" Vaughn asked with surprise.
"Yeah, I had to after you told him that you were in Lake Tahoe at the same time that I was."
"What? I never told Will about my vacation."
"Well, if you didn't tell him how did he . . . "
They looked at each other and smiled. "Weiss," they said in unison.
"After a few beers, Weiss will tell you anything you want to know," Vaughn said with a wry smile. "So what did Will say?"
"Not much. I think he was mostly just trying to get me to admit that we were there together. I thought you should know since you might be working with him. But don't worry, we can trust him. He won't tell anyone."
"I hope you're right. So is Will really that good at digging for the truth? I can't believe you would crack so easily," he grinned.
"Truthfully, I didn't really try to evade his questions. I know I probably should have," she said quickly when she saw the surprised look on Vaughn's face, "but it was such a relief to finally tell someone the truth about us. It was the first time I admitted my feelings to someone other than you." She pulled her head back from his shoulder and looked him in the eye. "Don't take this the wrong way, but our relationship is so secretive that sometimes I have to pinch myself to make sure that I'm not making it all up in my head. Telling Will made it seem real, somehow. Does that make any sense?"
"Yeah, it does. I feel the same way sometimes. After your Christmas surprise, I know Weiss has probably figured out that something is going on between us, but I still haven't told him the whole truth. He doesn't even know that you were in Tahoe when I was."
"You could tell him. I mean, I told Will," Sydney shrugged.
"Maybe," Vaughn said noncommittally. Even though Weiss had resolved to stop lecturing him about protocol, Vaughn still wasn't sure that he could or should tell Weiss the whole truth. He didn't want to put Weiss in the position of possibly having to lie to protect him and Sydney if anyone ever found out about them.
"This is all so complicated," Sydney sighed. "Do you ever ask yourself whether it's worth all the trouble?"
"No," he said in a harsh whisper. "I *never* question that. Why, do you?" he asked uneasily.
"No," she answered truthfully. "I know the circumstances of our relationship aren't ideal, and I know that there are a million reasons -- good reasons -- why we shouldn't be together, but none of that matters to me. I love you, that makes all the risk worth it."
"You're gonna have to keep telling yourself that, Sydney. It's hard to make a relationship work under the best of circumstances. Given everything that we're up against, it's going to be even harder. So if things get tough -- when they get tough," his voice broke, "just remind yourself that I love you and that what we have is worth fighting for."
"I will," she assured him. She knew that Vaughn was right, inevitably there would be rough patches in their relationship. But right now, while everything was so new and so wonderful between them, she hated to even consider the possibility that they might not be always be that way.
"But you need to remind *yourself* that you're stuck with me now. You can't weasel your way out of this," she smiled, trying to lighten the serious mood that had descended over them.
He laughed. "Believe me, I won't try." He turned onto his side to face her and traced his finger along her jaw and throat. "Sydney," he said intensely, "you're a part of me now. I couldn't free myself from you even if I wanted to -- and I don't," he added firmly.
He moved his finger up to trace her lips and she shivered under his touch. His eyes were smoldering with love and desire for her, and she felt as if she was being hypnotically drawn to him. The moment she leaned in to him, their lips met in a slow, sensual kiss that sent a jolt of electricity through both of them. Instinctively, his hand moved to her hip and he pulled her closer to him, so close that he could feel the heat radiating from her body. His body was soon responding to her, and he silently cursed himself for choosing to meet with her in a public place. He would give anything to be in the warehouse or the bloodmobile right now, where he could act on his feverish desire for her. As it was, he was dangerously close to acting on it,anyway. His mind was telling him to break away from her and regain his self-control, but his mouth and his hands refused to obey. He felt himself drowning in her until she gently pulled away from him and ran her fingers through her hair. He fell back in his seat and closed his eyes as he tried to catch his breath.
When Vaughn opened his eyes, he found Sydney staring back at him, her eyes reflecting all of the heat that had been in his own eyes just a few minutes ago. The intensity of her gaze was so strong that he could barely breathe or move. She quickly turned her head over her shoulder and looked at the couple sitting in the front of the theater. They were engrossed in the movie, oblivious to the couple in the back of the theater. Sydney turned back to him with a seductive smile on her face. He knew what that look meant, and he was powerless to protest; she was irresistible and he was putty in her hands. His view of the screen was soon obstructed as she climbed onto his lap and straddled him.
"Syd," he half groaned, half laughed.
"Shhh." She placed a finger over his lips and smiled mischievously. "We're sixteen, remember?" Before he could respond, they were kissing again, tongues dancing, hands roaming, bodies melting into each other.
As Vaughn drove home, he couldn't remember a single scene from the movie they had seen. All he could remember was how he and Sydney had spent three hours laughing, talking, and making out like a couple of teenagers. All in all, it was the best time he'd ever had at the movies.
TBC . . .