A/N (1) Previously on Chuck versus The Journey: There is no "previously" that is of any importance for our two lovers as this chapter arrives, so I simply skip it. And you should know that we enter a very sensual moment, so leave now if you can't stand the sight of a truly satisfied couple. I like to believe I managed to put down something sweet and sexy that nobody in the 21st century needs to be afraid of reading, but you're the judges. Already biting my nails over the question if I could allow them enough love without offending anyone. I simply say I tried my best to let them be happy after all the angst they (and especially she) went through. But it's certainly not smut, and contains no smut words. It's love.

You've got to give a little, take a little,
And let your poor heart break a little
That's the story of,
That's the glory of love.
You've got to laugh a little, cry a little,
Before the clouds roll by a little
That's the story of,
That's the glory of love.
You've got to win a little, lose a little
And always have the blues a little
That's the story of,
That's the glory of love.
"The Glory Of Love" (Billy Hill)

Chapter 31: Chuck and Sarah & The Glory Of Love

Sarah found herself brimming with lust when Chuck's lips and hands explored all the spots on her body that begged to be caressed. She was losing control as he was mind-bogglingly good at sensing each square inch of her skin she hoped he would touch, and touch her he did oh so good. Kiss, stroke, nibble, squeeze – he was attending to her as his life depended on it, and possibly that wasn't so far from the truth.

"I've never been so turned on," she hoarsely told him, alternating between blissfully leaning back into the pillows, closing her eyes and savoring the sensations he gave her, or raising her head to almost disbelievingly behold the sight of herself being pleasured.

When his lips moved down below her belly button, their way became a trail of molten lava, generating heat where his mouth had not even arrived yet.

"Chuck," Sarah asked, trembling, "Chuck, what...?"

She knew it anyway. And knew that he knew.

In their first faked night, she had revealed in that awkward dirty talk that still was enough to fool their listeners, that she had never been kissed there. Hell, no lover ever took so much time to pamper her so deliciously that she was in a frenzy of rapture she had not experienced before.

If we stopped now, it still would be the best time of my life.

And their dance, as old as humankind, only had begun.

Even though her vision had become a tad hazy as her other senses required all of her attention, she registered how his mouth seemed to mumble silently and how he slightly shook his head and knew he kept himself from getting nerdy.

"What?" Sarah inquired again, keen to find out what had streaked through his mind and edgy not to miss the shortest of time of his riveting, sensual touch.

His caresses had rooted her. The salaciousness he had stirred up made her ready to take over control of their afternoon delight again and to make short work of his boxers this time. But he played the game so wonderfully that she selfishly decided to revel in the incredible joy he gave so richly. On the other hand, he didn't seem in any way careworn that she took advantage of his skills, energy, and determination. Instead, he was as spellbound as Charlie Bucket in Willy Wonka's chocolate factory, wandering over the soft curvy landscape of her perfect form with the fascination of a brave explorer.

Still, she wanted to know what he was up to. This time, not inhibited by a watchful unknown enemy, the things he told her were titillating. He instinctively found the perfect balance between sweetness, the right amount of naughtiness, and the soupçon of humor as his nerdiness sometimes influenced his talk's tone or wording, making it intimately personal. All she knew was agency talk, and she realized she shouldn't be ashamed if it showed.

We are what we are.

She wanted to elicit his thoughts out of him. And then some.

"So, what tactics will you apply next?"

There's no way to separate the woman from the agent, Chuck mused. That's her. The task is not to split them but to come to peace with whatever horrible thing is lurking in her past.

"Don't think about it. It ain't tactics, Agent Walker, it's just the nerd in me," Chuck apologized, looking like a man caught with his hand in a jar of Cheese Balls.

He apologizes! Dear God! I think I could reach a very, very critical point before he even touches my sweet parts, and he apologizes!

"Hey, will you be nerdy with me," she cooed. He was her Chuck. She still rolled her eyes when he spiraled or lectured about something weird, but it was good-natured for the longest time already. It was part of him, and she loved it.

Don't try to change the recipe, or you may lose the flavor.

"Tell your randy kitten," she murmured, adding a smoky tone to her voice. She could see the goosebumps her words caused on his arms. To emphasize what was at stake, she squirmed her hips to make him aware that there was even more of Sarah Walker that was screaming to be fondled from one toe-curling peak to the other.

And where did he learn all that? It must be a nerdy thing. When a nerd does something for real, then he's tackling it – to my good fortune, that 'it' is me! – going full blast ahead.

His eyes checked hers, and he understood that she was serious. And randy. Or seriously randy. He shrugged mischievously, meaningfully glancing at the panties she wore.

"I'm going down where no man has gone down before," he whispered, almost ashamed of the innuendo, wanting to add that he usually wasn't someone to deliver such flat lines, but she let out a liberated little giggle.

"I knew something like that was up," she laughed huskily, then hitched a breath as his fingers were on her hips, playing with the hem of her panties, and she could swear it was the most nerve-jangling thing that ever happened to her. That is, aside from what he did just a few seconds ago and a few seconds before that. And so on. Chuck peered up to her with an almost childlike fascination in his eyes.

She nearly could hear him begging in her mind. 'Please, Sarah, please, let me play with my new toys? I will take good care of them and will tuck them all safely away when I'm done playing. Oh, please, please, please.'

Maybe it was only in her bubbling, overflowing mind, but she comprehended that Chuck was tremendously pleased to please her.

Perfect Win-Win situation! Better get Carina's handcuffs and tie him to your bed forever.

He still had no hurry. Chuck seemed to exist singularly to be whatever Sarah needed to finally live for real, which would mean he would consequently find a life well worth living for himself. They gazed at each other for the tiniest eternal moment – hesitating but having bypassed all hesitation already, deciding what had been unspoken agreed on at the beginning of their loveplay, figuring out what they knew didn't need to be figured out. As the moment burnt up like a shooting star, Sarah knew she could not wait for another blink of the eye longer.

"Graze on my lips, and if those hills be dry, stray lower, where the pleasant fountains lie," she sultrily said, ignoring the recognition flashing up in his eyes, and helped him by raising her tushy. Moments later, she had lost the very last piece of clothing, and all she wore was a sassy, teasing, and inviting smile. It was the most beautiful thing she ever wore, he found, as his heart overflowed with love, and he almost froze in the moment, until her sight reminded him that he was expected to express his feelings in a down-to-earth way finally.

"Exquisitely beautiful," he said with a deep, shaken voice as he looked down, somehow only at this moment comprehending that so-close-yet-so-far Sarah suddenly was up-close and paradise was near.

He then clenched her panties in his fist.

"Dear God, Sarah, did you shower in these?"

•••••••••••••••••••

Feeling like floating on a cloud of cotton candy, Sarah felt his arms holding her not as tight as before, sensed his hands gently stroking but not driving her crazy anymore, and his lips almost soothingly touching her forehead. He gently helped her to come down from pure ecstasy. She was thankful to the core for him caring about her in these tender, disoriented moments of descending back from Cloud Number Nine that she thought she would cry. But that notion passed in a tick. She had cried enough last night. The little merry melody that she had hummed while in the bathroom resurfaced. While she remained silent, that was much better than tears.

She rolled off of him on her back and lay sprawled across the bed for a few moments. Or a few moments longer lingering in the traces of the rapture that had totally melted her – and absolutely addicted her to his touch.

I'm ruined for sex, Sarah registered. I never want anyone else to touch me but Chuck. Not in a million years.

"Hey," she panted, pausing to catch her breath. "Hey, ...you, Mister." Her voice oozed with deep satisfaction.

Chuck pointed at himself quizzingly.

"Yeah, you, ...the one … the one with the... sexy goofy smile."

A slow, ravaging smile was on her lips.

"And... those chocolate curls... with those funny animal shapes. But... one of those shapes looks pretty obscene. You know, … it starts with a 'd' and ends with a 'k'. You should cut it. The curl, not the thing that starts with a 'd' and ends with a 'k'."

Chuck tried to look up at his hair and began to be cross-eyed from the effort, which caused a low-voiced laugh from Sarah. She was done being loud for the time being.

"I recognize you, Mister. … I've seen you before in that bed, on that loveseat, on that leather chair, … everywhere."

Sarah lingered in the memory of how they had chased themselves from one erotic playing field to the other as they added new twists to their game of love. A shiver ran over her spine as she remembered how the cool crimson-red leather had contrasted with her skin and how animally hot the sight had made him. Not that he was a tough audience to please. She had lasciviously bathed in his fiery gazes and gladly added to the joy by living out her unleashed dreams under his eyes.

He certainly gave me the Grand Tour of the Honeymoon Suite. No gal ever could have seen so much of it in such deliriously exciting ways.

Having caught her breath, her voice became a purr.

"I saw you with a blondie you made happy. T-o-t-a-l-l-y h-a-p-p-y."

She was amazed she could spell it out correctly. For the best part of the past hour or more, she had not been able to coherent speech. Chuck didn't seem to mind at all and even appeared to understand all her sounds. She mastered so many languages Chuck did not speak, but the words and sounds, whimpers and moans, she had exclaimed lately he understood naturally.

"You did, did you? How could you see all that?"

"I was there!" she bubbled merrily.

"Is zat so?" Colossal delight ruled his face. "Come here often?"

She threw him a questioning look if there was a double entendre in his words but couldn't find any of it in his eyes. Still, she could not avoid laughing as her mind heard a hidden meaning. "Hm-m, pretty often. I think you found the atomic bomb."

Chuck made big eyes. He had devoted every fiber of his being to make her happy, and the light in her eyes spoke more words than her mouth ever could, but still, he was coming to terms with the fact that he, the nerd, apparently, had fulfilled every desire she had.

Don't look so innocent, buddy. You're responsible.

Sarah pointed at herself: "Boom!"

He laughed. "So I finally understand what they mean with sex bomb."

"Actually…" She grinned with irrepressible joy. "It was more like a rocket. They do have more than one stage that… what's the word?"

Chuck watched her intently, curious where this was leading – and unable able to look anywhere else than into those eloquent blue eyes anyway.

"Ignites, Sarah. The Saturn V, the – to this day – most powerful rocket ever built, which took Apollo 11 to the moon, ignited three times."

"Three times?" she echoed dreamily. "Only? I mean, that – " she gestured between them with a lazy finger "– was more like igniting numerous times."

"Numerous times?" It was his turn to echo her words and blush. Happiness and a healthy dose of proudness dominated his face. Sarah sensed what big ego boost her words had been and thought she should add a little cheeky extra.

"Carina was always bragging about it, so I knew such a thing as multiple Big O's existed, but thanks to you, I can join in her bragging now."

"Then it was worth the ordeal," he mockingly sighed.

She contorted on the bed in laughter instantly, surprised how he played the cockiness card so casually, and the glow of love and satisfaction on her face mixed with mirth. Not half as relaxed as he pretended, Chuck watched her once more, totally mesmerized as her shoulders twitched. She was the most beautiful human being he could imagine, but it reached an altogether different dimension when she laughed. The love – not attraction, not lust, not sexual longing – that took hold of him as he watched her was so powerful that his heart began to ache. And a big heart like his could also ache very big.

"About your ordeal," she chuckled after she playfully slapped his shoulder, "how did you do… I mean... how do you…"

Isn't it crazy how I can't say it? You're not so shy, aren't you? Where's your naughty side? What's the difference suddenly?

She didn't have to ponder long. No longer than identifying her monthly copy of Knives Illustrated at the newsstand.

You're in post-coital bliss, and it strikes you hard. It strikes wonderfully enchanting after the immense thrill of spectacular lovemaking, but still, it is a paralyzing new sensation.

Before today, I needed to be alone as quickly as I could. I needed the time to shower right away, getting off the sweat and getting my mind off the fact that there was a strangely unfulfilled emotion like a bleak void. Suddenly there was Chuck... I never felt a touch so excitingly, the dance between the sheets never had thrilled me even half-as-much.

No matter how hard you tried, and you could try hard in the bedroom, that bitter aftertaste sooner or later caught up with you. You were damaged goods, but Chuck fixed you.

Is it even possible to fix something like me? I don't feel the need to wash any evidence away as soon as possible. I don't want to leave the scene of the crime but look forward to becoming a serial offender. I am here with him, and the room smells like sex and could use a good airing, but until then, I inhale it. It is the scent of me and my lover. My first true love.

Sarah looked at him, once more feeling tears coming up that eventually did not materialize, but the strong urge to let him know. She molded her naked form against him like a koala fitting itself into its favorite sleeping position in the branch fork of a fever tree and closed her burning eyes for a few moments. Chuck did not catch what was going on but was savvy enough to lay still and let her rest.

Eventually, she realized that she had to ask him a coherent question to give him the chance to answer. She didn't know how to formulate it without breaking the spell that was still cast over them.

"That thing you did… where no man has gone before… how did you do that?"

"I couldn't say. I mean… it's obvious, right? I mean…" Chuck nervously laughed. "Don't make me brag in a moment like that! I really don't know."

"Don't tell me again that you simply sense what might feel good," she teased, and he shrugged.

"What?" she exclaimed.

"You requested I shouldn't say it."

Sarah patted his chest. "You're a keeper, Chuck, you really are," she dreamily murmured as if it was the most natural thing in the world. And it was. His almost shocked gaze told her that she spoke those words out loud.

"I don't want to scare you away by sounding clingy," she rushed out, but he shook his head.

"Sarah, I'm not scared. This is what I want. I'm over the moon that you…"

He knew he shouldn't press her since she slipped. Truthfully, in case she followed up on her words, there were a few things he had to come to terms with as well about a serious relationship.

"… even consider this."

The look on his face made clear that there was another zany quip following. "It's OK. Take your time. I like it that way. I like my women coming back for more."

Sarah pouted playfully, tapping gently on his forehead. "Women, Chuck? Is there a little macho inside the big nerd? Do you dream of me crawling up for more? Do you expect me begging on my hands and knees?"

Chuck blinked. "Uhm, Sarah, how do I put it…."

"You put it quite well, don't worry," she interrupted him with the most salacious grin he ever saw, and that included Morgan's semi-public showing of Irene Demova and her friends at the multimedia room at the Buy More. Regardless of what they just shared, it made him blush all over his body. At least it felt that way, and it felt sinfully good.

"How do I break it to you? About hands and knees… you already did…"

I certainly did not crawl up to you on my hands and knees! Not me! What in the world are you talking about?

"I can't have been that bad that you already forgot that part of it," he said with a sigh and began to murmur through closed teeth while turning redder than the reddest lipstick Sarah owned. "It's that word that starts with a 'd' and ends with a 'y'."

"Oh," she whispered, almost inaudibly.

"Yes," he confirmed. "An 'o' is the second character of that word."

What's he saying? Do..y?

Sarah looked at him like a madwoman as his blush deepened though that seemed impossible. She suddenly had difficulty breathing.

Oh yes, now I remember! Indeed he had me on my hands and knees, and like the rest of it, I gave myself entirely away to the thrilling pleasure. It was not the most intimate moment of the past hours but the most telling.

"Oh my God!" she gasped and shuddered.

"What is it, Sarah?" Chuck stiffened with concern. "Everything OK with you? Did I do anything you didn't want?"

She gave him another freaky look full of deep comprehension.

Never in my life have I allowed someone to have sex with me while I could not see his eyes, arms, and hands. I am defenseless that way, completely vulnerable, with no chance to see if my lover would turn into my murderer.

It was a crazy thought as she never had an affair with a man she expected to turn into a foe, but it was in her agent-DNA never to allow anyone out of sight who was that close to her. It was a monumental realization of what walls inside her mind they had torn down together.

But with my Chuck, it's making love. And it's the first time that I add 'my' to a man's name as well.

So she had given herself to Chuck without holding back, only wanting to be with him. Be. When she had searchingly bent an arm back to touch him, he had proceeded to grab and hold both of her arms, stretching her flexible, voluptuous body like a bow about to eject the arrow or like she was about to unfold her wings. And then she was taking off and flying on the pinions of trust, lust, and love, and reaching heaven's gates again.

I have changed. I am changed. Chuck helped me to accomplish that. And I don't feel smaller from it, from blindly trusting him. I feel stronger like his strength complements mine. It's like I pull power from being his, and he draws power from being mine. Aw, Chuck!

Suddenly 'trust' meant to have more strength and safety, to have someone else besides herself to protect her. Somewhere, Sarah wasn't sure from what part of her mind, Samantha Lisa smiled as she disappeared, wafting away like the image of a ghost in a movie, reintegrating with Sarah Walker.

Sarah finally was one and whole again.

She realized he was staring at her with growing worry.

"Chuck, nothing's wrong," she hurriedly explained. "It's something very, very good. You're the first man in my life that… that… is it OK if I keep it my secret for a while? Don't worry, it's something freakingly great, and I think I need to let it… sink in a bit before I can talk about it. I know you can talk about anything anytime, but that's not who I am, so let's leave it at that that you gave me something extremely precious, is that OK?"

Oh my God, Sarah Walker is spiraling, and I don't have a recorder handy! Chuck thought as his lips slowly parted to a grin. What did I do to make this happen?

Sarah reached to his face and pressed her hands left and right on his temples.

"If you grin any wider, your teeth will fall out."

She smiled at him, still deliriously sated.

"I feel so alive! I'm so happy I could shout it out to the world."

He generously gestured in the direction of the terrace door.

"Help yourself…"

She lissomely jumped out of bed and darted to the door. Chuck nearly fainted from the sight.

"Chuck…" she said with a low voice. He was alarmed by the change in her tone and sat up. "… that door is not closed."

Sarah featured a naughty grin.

"Oh well, what the…. we're supposed to be honeymooners, aren't we?"

She shrugged her shoulders, setting other parts of her anatomy in mouthwatering motion. Chuck blinked and didn't know if it was indecent to adore her at that particular moment. She studied his face and got wise about his considerations. Shaking her head, she huffed with a sexy smile.

"Shy and polite is all well, Chuck, but I intend to be naked and willing for as long as possible today, so... for the time being, do me a favor and admire me. I like that, trust me."

Nerd, she formed silently and playfully with her mouth towards him, almost like blowing him a kiss, before she opened the ajar door completely and supported herself on the door frame, her feet remaining inside. She stood on her toes, her calves and thighs stretched, her buttocks the last thing Chuck saw – as he dutifully checked her out – when she leaned her upper body out of the door. He also thought it was the last thing he would see on earth as he could simply die from the sight, having overdosed on her heavenly beauty already.

"I'm so happy!" she shouted into the sunny day. The echo came immediately.

"So we heard!" a grumpy voice confirmed.

"Tell us something new!" a voice with an accent and a laugh hollered, and Sarah thought it was the same gentleman that had called Chuck a 'poor laddie'.

"Now make him happy, too, so we all can have a peaceful lunch!" another male voice exclaimed.

"Send him over, and I'll take care of what's left of him!" a woman chimed in.

Sarah's head, her hair dancing around her face, appeared as she bent back into the room. She laughed uncontrollably. Chuck watched her glee and could not help but to join in.

"Well," he chortled. "It was great sex when even the neighbors need a cigarette afterward."

Walking back to their bed, Sarah took a detour and switched the radio on, the device remembering the romantic channel she had found the first evening.

She jumped into bed and listened to the ballad playing while making herself comfortable on his chest. It was a classic that both of them were familiar with. Sarah because she heard it when learning to dance (part of the education of an international spy) and Chuck because he heard it in a Quantum Leap episode titled - nerdy brain database activated! - 'Play It Again, Seymour'.

Sarah listened to the lyrics. 'Swift wings you must borrow, make straight for the shore, we marry tomorrow, and she goes sailing no more'. She always thought it was a lovely little melody with the typical lyrics of a male-dominated world that was generations ago, but today, she stopped to ponder about it.

"Yeah, Red Sails In The Sunset, isn't it funny?" Chuck said pensively, picking up her meditative demeanor. "You'd think it is a song about love and marriage and old-time gender settings, little wifey staying home once being married, but why should she stop sailing when married?"

"Why would she?" Sarah asked, already grasping where this was leading.

"It's from the 1930s. You couldn't write about strong and independent women and relationships like you do nowadays. They still found ways to transport the message. I believe it's about a woman who has her experiences and goes sailing on her own, means, selects her lovers as she wishes, but when she finds her true love, she has no need for other adventures anymore – and that's why she goes sailing no more!"

She looked away, fearing that her features betrayed her. "And what opinion would you have of such a woman?"

Chuck looked at her, totally ignorant of the meaning of her question.

"Opinion? She's a woman. An ordinary woman. We've come a long way in this society, and I hope every woman nowadays can pursue her dreams without being morally judged."

The case was closed as far as he was concerned, but then he saw her expression when she turned back to him.

"Hey, such deep thought in a moment like that? Pondering... emancipation? Did I do anything that makes you think I don't have the respect you deserve?"

"No," she sighed. "Not at all." She coughed, foolishly trying to hide how touched she was by his words. "It's just a thought because I think you're right about that song. They've been more clever back then than we often give them, do you think?"

"Absolutely."

He began to massage a point on her forehead with two fingers, right above the bridge of her nose and seemed very concentrated about it.

"If you want to turn me on again, that's not the best spot. Take any one of those you found the first time," she recommended with a droll look.

Chuck leisurely shook his head. "Ah no, just making sure that you don't get any forehead wrinkles there."

"Now that we had sex, do I like an old bag for you?"

He gave her a peculiar glance and moved closer, gently snuggling his length against hers.

"You'll never get old for me," he said boldly, "but when we were… I mean, when we…, you often had wrinkles there."

Sarah raised her hand and felt where his finger circulated and was about to frown when she remembered that this would certainly produce a few wrinkles.

"What are you talking about, lover of mine?" she asked, her eyes staring at him through his softly moving fingers.

"There were these moments... when you were looking at me. Then your eyes moved kind-of far away, you smiled or laughed as if there was a joke only you heard ... licked your lips, pursed your lips, or opened your mouth as if you were going to scream - and you did."

He pointedly smoothed down the linen.

"And you fisted that linen as if you would tear it apart. That was when you had such a sweet concentration on your face. When your eyebrows… somehow tautened... first came one wrinkle exactly there on your left brow, and then another one right next to it, and all the sounds you made, faster breathing and then-"

She had snuggled her head under his chin, thus ending his beauty treatment, and sighed pronouncedly the whole time he spoke. She was going to finish his tale for him.

I want to tell him that these were the moments when I came harder than I ever did before, but I don't know which words to use. It's so unique that I struggle to find the most relevant terms for my giant emotions. But, possibly, it's irrelevant – there are no sufficient words for what we did and how much it means to us. Yet, I want to express it somehow. He has to know.

She sighed against his chest to finish for him. "… and then I climaxed harder than I ever did in my life. And the next time again. And again."

Chuck, The Lover, was rendered speechless. Thankfully Chuck The Nerd was always ready for something enlighteningly wacky.

"My sweet sexy multi-stage rocket," he said, stroking her hair. She purred and kissed his chest. It was a bit salty from their earlier activity, but she didn't mind.

"So coming back to our discussion of explosions and ignitions," she began to talk about something that genuinely perplexed her, and she could not wait any longer to discuss it. "You didn't, didn't you? Why didn't you…?"

He kissed first her left cheek, then the right one, before locking his gaze into hers.

"This was all about you, absolutely you."

She raised her eyebrows, and he continued: "Before we, … uhm, before that…"

"I get it, Chuck," she motioned him on to continue with loving impatience. "It's called making love."

"Well, you said 'Jackpot', so I, as offered, took things into my hands…"

"That you did splendidly," she confirmed, her body responding to the memory.

"Errm, I didn't mean it that way… I mean…" he faltered a bit, fully knowing that she was naughty.

"I took it precisely that way. But you're sidetracking!"

He was full of mock indignation.

"Well, I had taken on the job to be in control until you un-jackpot yourself, and there won't be any need for me being in charge anymore. Trust me, Miss Walker, I was fighting more often than you can imagine thanks to your immaculate performance, and to maintain said control was the hardest thing in my life so far…"

"I can confirm that," she said in a chipper tone and moved a knee up his thighs. "Rock-hard. But you're such a nerd," she admonished lovingly. "What on earth made you think-"

She was on the brink of saying something really dirty when she understood that she shouldn't argue about this with him, not even in jest. He wouldn't budge. If his loving and slightly confused brain – heck, she was drifting on a sea of way too many emotions to think straight also – concocted that it had to be this way, then all she could do was to make sure that the next time, the finale would happen as she directed it. She decided right there and then, that Chuck Bartowski would not stand a chance to withhold anything at all from her.

"Chuck, I feel divinely worshipped. Like a goddess."

His face beamed with pure joy in response. She grinned back. Sometimes it's so easy to make each other feel good.

"Would you worship your goddess again?" she asked. "I know you said last night you wouldn't bore Sarah Walker with the same trick twice, but what if I beg on my knees-" she threw him a wink from under her eyelashes "-to give a repeat performance?"

Sarah cheekily shoved just the tip of her tongue out, wiggling it a bit and then licking her lips. And she knew Chuck's answer before he voiced his consent as her knee had reached a strategically vital position to pick up any non-verbal communication instantly.

"And since you don't need to reload your gun-" his eyes popped almost out of their sockets - that was certainly agency locker room slang! "-how about right now?"

He nodded in silent awe and smiled that goofy, adorable smile that always had made her limbs turn gooey as they began their game again.

"Oh my god, Chuck!" was the last thing she consciously remembered wording. She stretched her arms down along her body and grabbed a handful of his curls. She then rarely lost track of them throughout the time they took care of each others' needs, sometimes reaching up to find them and feast on them, sometimes reaching down, occasionally reaching back over her shoulder. For a long while, there was no end to her sighs and moans and cries as Charles Irving Bartowski exactly seemed to know what her squirming, grinding, arching, bucking body craved.

Sarah eventually decided that it was enough. She wanted to feel him in the most intimate of all moments since he had withheld that pleasure from her on their first round, so she slung her arms around his shoulders and her legs around his waist and reduced him to a lustfully whimpering heap of a nerd.

"C'mon, Chuckie," she hungrily breathed into his ear and felt him react powerfully to the first time she used an endearment now they were a real couple, "cookie pie wants her cream filling."

•••••••••••••••••••

A/N (2) It ain't tactics, Agent Walker, it's just the nerd in me: Chuck is paraphrasing one of the Elvis fandoms' most favorite movie quotes, when Elvis as Vince Everett growls, "It ain't tactics, honey, it's just the beast in me." (Jailhouse Rock, 1957).

A/N (3) I am going down where no man has gone down before: It may be cheap, but I couldn't resist. Of course, that is frivolously paraphrasing the original Star Trek series, affectionately called TOS by fans, and eternally on our minds for a cast led by Hollywood's biggest ego, The Shat, aka William Shatner.

A/N (4) That chapter might have been hotter than the usual "Journey" chapters, but your keyboard is as cool as ever. Any thoughts?