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"Plus---it's amazing that you sometimes have to go far away to see what's closest to you."- BeckyC

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Epilogue

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Six months later…

The speaker crackled on and the deep voice of the captain came on, "We are on final approach to Chicago. We ask that you if you are moving about the cabin that you return to your seats….."

Sam leaned back into her seat and lifted up her tray, clasping it into place just as Courtney walked by to remind the passengers to put their seats back into the upright position. She stopped and said, "I guess I don't have to worry about you, Samantha. You have become quite the frequent flyer on this route."

Sam smiled and replied, "I could probably do the Safety Instructions speech if you wanted me to." She raised her hands and motioned as she talked, "The emergency exits are located at the front of the plane, next to the wing and…."

Courtney laughed and said, "Hey, if you ever decide to give up being a Federal Agent you could definitely have a career in the fun and exciting world of air travel."

"Thanks but I'm happy where I am." Sam grinned at the flight attendant she got to know quite well over the last few months. "So, how are things with the dentist?"

"Very good, thanks. Actually he's at the airport waiting for me." Courtney smiled; the Danny incident long behind her. "We are taking a weekend trip to Puerto Rico."

"That's great." Sam cheerily commented.

Courtney opened her mouth to say something when an older woman yelled out for a stewardess. She gave Sam an apologetic look and said, "Sorry, excuse me."

Sam nodded that she understood and watched as Courtney walked down the aisle to assist the woman. She sighed and looked out the window. The sky was bright blue and she smiled down at the Chicago cityscape below. It seemed no matter how many times she made this trip it was always exciting to return. She played with the gold chain hanging around her neck as she studied the city below.

"Check it out." She turned to find Martin waving two small bags of honey roasted peanuts at her. He sat down in the seat next to her and in a conspiratorial voice said, "I pilfered them from the beverage cart."

She laughed lightly as he happily tore open the bag and said, "Wow. You stole two bags of complimentary airline peanuts. You are a rebel."

He eyed her and said, "Just for that I'm not sharing, Goldilocks." She eyed him and he handed her one of the bags before ripping open his own. He tossed a handful of the nuts in his mouth and chewed smilingly.

Sam tore open her bag and pulled out a few nuts. She always smiled whenever he called her by the pet nickname he had given her. In the past she would never have let anyone call her by such a ridiculously cutesy nickname but Martin was able to get away with it because it marked a very big day for the two of them.

"And I am sure you can agree that the asking price for this brownstone is quite reasonable considering the location." Brenda, the perky but ambitious realtor commented as Martin and Sam wandered around the living room. She pointed out the prime location on the upper west side, the recent upgrades to the kitchen and all sort of details that would draw in a potential buyer. She finally finished with, "Martin, I was able to get you in to look before word hit the street. There's going to be a lot of interest in this property so the sooner we get an offer in the better."

Sam looked over at Martin who nodded his head in agreement and said, "Can you give me two minutes, Brenda?"

Brenda hesitated. She glanced over at Sam and said, "Sure. I'll just step outside and make a call." It was no secret that Brenda blamed Sam for Martin's inability to find a place. She pulled out her cell phone and started dialing as she stepped out the front door.

"Alright, let's hear it, Goldilocks." Martin said with his eyes on Sam.

She feigned surprise and repeated, "Goldilocks?"

"You heard me," Martin began as he shoved his hands into his trouser pockets. "Every single place I've looked at you think is either too big or too small; the cost is too high or way too high; too old or too new...do I need to go on?"

Sam folded her arms across her chest and replied, "Well excuse me for wanting to make sure you find a nice place."

He smiled and said, "This is a nice place."

Sam shrugged her shoulders, looked around at the wide open living room with the crown moldings, hard wood floors and large windows and mumbled, "Yeah, its okay." It was actually better than okay, it was magnificent, but she refused to admit that. "Do you really need this much space? You could just keep staying with me and look for a while longer…"

He shook his head and said, "Sam, you know I can't. Your landlord made it very clear that letting me stay there with Milo was only a temporary arrangement."

Sam knew he was right. She was surprised that her landlord agreed to the arrangement at all considering it was a no pets building but she was able to finesse him to agree to let Milo and Martin stay for a few weeks; but that was almost three months ago. Martin really did need to find a new place, besides Milo wanted to have a yard again.

However, despite knowing these things the honest truth was she didn't want him to move out.

Martin stepped over to the fireplace and ran his hands over the mantle. His tongue darted out of his mouth, a gesture she now recognized as him considering his words. He looked at her and quietly said, "Do you really think I am looking for this much space just for me and Milo? That the only reason I invited you to come look at all these places was just so I could get your opinion" He looked at her, his sky blue eyes watching her carefully. "I know when we talked about the position opening up here that maybe it was moving too fast and if I moved here that I would only stay with you until I found a place of my own so we could slow things down a bit…but Sam, I'm done. You're it. I love you and I want to be with you always." Her breath caught in her throat and her pulse raced as Martin continued, "I know you're not ready…"

"I love you, too." The words left her lips so fast she wasn't sure if she actually said them aloud. She opened her mouth to repeat them just in case when she saw the wide smile appear on Martin's face.

"You love me?" He asked, his voice a mixture of excitement and trepidation.

"Yes. I do." Sam replied adamantly.

Martin smiled where he stood before rushing to her and pulling her into a tight embrace and kissing her solidly on the lips. No matter how often he kissed her it always sent a thrill through her. She knew she would never grow tired of the feel of his lips on hers.

Sam heard Brenda clear her throat so they broke apart and looked over at the realtor. Brenda looked at them and asked, "So, have you made a decision?"

Martin looked at Sam who smiled and said, "We'll take it."

Brenda raised her hands in victory and shouted, "Yes! Finally!" She pulled her cell phone back out and said, "I'll call the offer in right now." She hurried out the room and they could hear her talking to the broker.

Sam looked back at Martin who was smiling devilishly. "What?"

"I was just thinking that I can't wait to try and figure out which room will be our favorite."

"Me too," She laughed and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Say something in French."

Martin laughed, looked up as if considering what to say and then in a deep voice whispered, "Voulez-vous coucher avec moi, ce soir."

She was still laughing when they kissed.

"So, what time is the rehearsal dinner again?" Martin asked bringing Sam back to the present.

Sam shook her head at Martin's seemingly insatiable appetite. "Um, we're meeting Brigid and Gus at the church at 6:00 pm and then dinner will be right afterwards." Between moving Martin to New York and all the wedding plans for Brigid's wedding Sam had been traveling between the three states at least once a month if not more.

"Good. I should be done at the bank by then." Martin replied as he crumbled up the tinfoil bag and stuck it in his pocket.

He finally sold his home in Chicago and arranged it so that he could sign the papers as long as they were in town. Sam was sorry to see the house go since she had so many fond memories of it but they were making plenty of new memories where they lived now. Particularly since the dining room table now had a prominent place in their new home.

Martin leaned towards her and looked out the window. His eyes sparkled at the sight of the Sears Tower. She looked at him and said, "You miss it don't you?" He looked at her and she added, "Living in Chicago."

"Sometimes I do. I miss hanging out with the team, having dinner with my sister and her family." He got a wistful look on his face and Sam realized how much he had given up so he could be with her. He must have noticed because he added, "But I don't regret moving to New York to be with you. Besides, it's not like we had a choice." She looked at him questioningly and he explained, "Sam, don't you get it? You and me, we're inevitable."

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A/N: Whew! Thank you all so much for reading. I wish I could have replied to each and every review. I want you to know that they meant so, so much to me. Thank you for going on this long journey with me. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

This fic was a real challenge because so many obstacles kept getting in my way so I am super happy that I finally finished it. Especially considering in my original outline it was only going to be 34 chapters!

Finally, as is my MO, the next post is a teaser for my next fanfic.