A/N; Time to meet the family. It'll be fine, right? Yeah. I'm sure it'll be fine. It's only Ellie...

Disclaimer: Don't own Chuck.


Chapter 3

Sarah was surprised when they pulled into the upscale neighborhood, and even more so when they turned onto the secluded cul de sac. It was rimmed with large, beautiful homes, all with well manicured lawns and mature trees. When Chuck pulled into the driveway of the most stunning home of them all, Sarah just stared in wonder. It was a gorgeous single-level home with board and batten siding and stone accents, including the large stone chimney which served as a focal point on the front of the house. It looked as though the living room had vaulted ceilings, the nearly two-story wall being covered in windows. Daylight was fading and the exterior Christmas lights were on, outlining the roofline in white icicle lights. A large grapevine wreath with sprigs of evergreen boughs and pine cones was wrapped in white twinkle lights and mounted on the chimney, a small flood light shining from below causing the wreath to stand out even more. The shrubbery in the front beds were likewise decorated with white lights, as were the trunk and branches of a small tree to the right of the three-car garage.

"Welp. This is the place. Are you ready?" Chuck asked, sounding a bit uneasy. After he and Sarah had solidified their plan, he called Ellie to tell her he was bringing someone to Christmas. The resulting squeal had been so loud it startled Sarah and nearly caused Chuck to swerve into the adjacent lane of traffic. He tried to keep the call brief, only giving his sister the barest of details, telling her they would be there in an hour or so. Now, here they were, about to face the firing squad.

"God, this place is gorgeous, Chuck. What the hell does your sister do?" Sarah asked, her eyes still wide as she took in the features of the home.

"She's a neurologist and Awesome's a cardio-thoracic surgeon," Chuck stated, giving a shrug.

"Jesus. Are you kidding me? This is gonna be harder than I thought," she confessed, looking a little uneasy herself. Chuck gave her a confused look, causing Sarah to expound. "You're a computer nerd, your sister and her husband are doctors. What do your mom and dad do? Is he a rocket scientist and she an astronaut or something?" Sarah was becoming more animated, her hands gesturing wildly, talking faster as she went. "How am I going to be able to carry on an intelligent conversation with your family? I'm going to sound like a complete idiot." Slumping in her seat, she blew a stray hair out of her face in exasperation.

"Whoa! Where is this coming from?" Chuck questioned, raising his hands up to halt her rant. "First, don't think for one second that because you don't have a piece of paper from some college that you aren't just as smart, if not more so, than anyone else. In my opinion, life experience is a far better teacher than any university. Second, my mom is a high school principal. Sure, she used to teach at Stanford, which is where she met my dad, but she traded that in to work in the K-12 system. She wanted to catch the kids before they got to college because she thought she could have a greater impact that way. Now my dad, ironically he actually is a rocket scientist. Well, kind of. He heads up the Aerospace Robotics Lab at Stanford. He teaches and does research there. But that's neither here nor there. Now -which number am I on- Oh! Third," he added, counting off on his fingers, "my family, despite their penchant for meddling in my private life, are very nice and down to Earth people. It's not like we sit around talking about academic journals and stuff. Ok… maybe my dad and I, but we're nerds. Ordinarily, we're just… people. Trust me. You have absolutely nothing to worry about. Just you being here, they'll worship the ground you walk on. Me, I'm going to get the third degree. Now, let's get in there before she comes out here and drags us in. I'm sure she's peeking through the window."

Sarah relaxed in her seat, Chuck's words providing an unexpected level of comfort. She nodded, giving him a warm smile before climbing out of the car. When she rounded the car and stepped up beside him, they started to walk up the remainder of the driveway toward the walkway that led to the front door. Sarah caught a glimpse of a curtain flutter, indicating that someone was indeed watching them. That meant it was show time. Out of the corner of her mouth, she whispered to Chuck, "Take my hand."

"What?" he whispered back, not entirely certain he'd heard her right.

"They're watching us. Take my hand," she reiterated, whispering a little louder. Chuck scrambled to find her hand, but once he did, he intertwined his fingers with hers. He inwardly berated himself because he knew it had to be uncomfortable for her, with his hands so warm and sweaty from nerves. To his surprise, she squeezed his hand a little harder. Maybe it was to help set him at ease, or perhaps it was partly for her benefit too. In either case, he relished in the warm, softness of her skin and in the strength she hid beneath. He thought it a fitting metaphor for the woman beside him. He saw her as an unrivaled beauty on the outside, yet she had a strength, a determination, on the inside. He found himself hopelessly in awe of her.

When they reached the front porch, greeted by the large, wooden double doors, they shared a look. There was an unspoken acknowledgement between them that they were about to embark on something both thrilling and terrifying at the same time. Chuck glanced at their joined hands, marveling at how comfortable it felt, and lamented internally at how much time had passed since he'd felt this kind of physical contact. When he lifted his gaze, he saw that Sarah, too, had been inspecting their hands. He couldn't help but feel guilty that she was having to subject herself to this type of contact, especially with somebody she hardly knew. But, when he met her gaze, the ocean blue of her eyes and her kind smile gave him some hope that she didn't find it entirely revolting. Nevertheless, he would do his best to keep the PDA to the bare minimum.

Lifting his free hand to knock on the door, his knuckles met with air as the door flew open. His sister, her smile threatening to break her face, yelped in excitement as she nearly tackled Chuck in a bear hug.

"You're here. Grrr. I'm so excited to see you." Pulling away, she turned her attention to Sarah, wasting no time before wrapping her in a hug as well. "You must be Sarah. I can't believe you're here. I can't tell you how happy we are to have you." Sarah's eyes flew open in surprise as she received one of the most bone-crushing hugs she'd ever experienced in her life. She gingerly returned the hug, patting the other woman on the back.

"I can't believe it myself," Sarah uttered, struggling to catch a full breath of air. If only Ellie knew how true that statement was. The older woman finally released her, taking a step back and swatting Chuck across the chest.

"She's so beautiful. Why the hell have you been hiding her from me?" Ellie chastised, bracing her fists on her hips as she shot him a stern glare. Chuck was at a loss, rubbing the welt that was growing under his shirt. Sarah realized she needed to come to his rescue.

"It's my fault," she rushed out, raising her hand to draw attention away from Chuck. Ellie looked more than surprised, pulling her chin into her chest. "Chuck told me what you mean to him and how much your opinion matters. I was… I was nervous. Our … relationship is new and meeting his family is a big step. I was afraid I might not meet your approval. But, the thought of spending our first Christmas apart…" she trailed off for affect. The best lies were based on the truth, and there was far more truth in what Sarah said than she first realized. As she looked on at Chuck's sister, she did feel those nerves; worried that she may not gain Ellie's approval. It was more than just for the purposes of keeping up appearances. For some reason she found she actually wanted this woman to like her, approve of her.

Ellie pressed one hand to her chest and the other to cover her mouth, her eyes teeming with unshed tears. "Oh my gosh," Ellie breathed out, moving to fan her face with her hands. "You're gonna make me cry." It was then that Ellie moved in for another hug, this one less aggressive and more tender. Sarah had to admit that, while she was not much of an expert, this woman gave great hugs. This time she was not as hesitant to reciprocate, giving Ellie a proper hug in return. The older woman pulled away, gripping Sarah's shoulders as she stood to look at her.

"I can already see that he's happier with you than I've ever seen him. So, for that alone you have my approval." Sarah was taken aback by that statement. They had been there for less than two minutes. How could Ellie possibly be able to tell how happy she did (or didn't) make him? Sarah turned to regard Chuck and could see him staring at his shoes, his neck and ears taking on a noticeable red hue. Sarah didn't quite know what to make of this development. Was he embarrassed in general by the situation or had his sister actually hit on something? It couldn't be possible for her to have any sort of real effect on him in only a few hours, could it? That would be crazy. Certainly their afternoon together had been surprisingly pleasant, all things considered. She'd laughed and shared more with him that she ever had with anyone else. Was he having an effect on her too? Those were probably questions better left unanswered.

"Now," Ellie continued, taking a moment to wipe tears from under her eyes, "let's get inside before my nosy neighbors call the HOA over excessive hugging or something," she chuckled and led the way into the house. As they stood in the foyer, Sarah tried to take in all she could of the beautiful home. To the right were a set of French doors that led into an office. The rest of the ground floor was fairly open. To the immediate left was a formal living room, with a large couch and two high backed chairs flanking the large stone fireplace. Beyond the living room was a formal dining space with enough seating for six. Directly in front of them, she could see through to the back of the house where there was another living space, but this seemed more casual, with overstuffed chairs and couch. The wall was brick with a built in fireplace and an alcove for storing wood. Above it was mounted an enormous widescreen television.

"Oh, Ellie. Your home is so beautiful," Sarah gushed, as she turned in circles to take it all in.

"Awww. Thank you. We like it. We wanted a place where we could come home from a long day and just relax, you know? We wanted a place that was functional, not some art gallery. We've gone to some of our co-worker's homes and I'm afraid to touch anything or sit down. I don't understand how people can live like that," Ellie expounded, shaking her head in disbelief. "Well, please. Come in. Sit down. Can I get you a glass of wine?"

"Oh, Chuck. That reminds me. We've got the wine in the car. Could you go grab that?" Sarah asked, giving him a broad smile. Looking between his sister and his supposed girlfriend, he debated whether it was wise to leave them alone together. Seeing as how it was Sarah's suggestion, he figured he'd chance it and nodded his acknowledgement before heading out to the car. He was gone less than a minute and when he returned, he saw Sarah and Ellie sitting on either end of the couch in the back family room.

"Ho. Ho. Ho," he exclaimed, hefting the box onto the coffee table. "I come bearing gifts." Ellie popped open the box and gasped at the contents.

"Oh my God. I love you both so much right now," she cooed, pulling a bottle out of the box and admiring it. "Ooo. A Riesling. Do you drink white wine, Sarah?" she asked, turning to look at the younger woman.

Sarah gave a shrug and a wry smile, "If it's wine, I'll drink it."

Ellie gave Chuck a soft, approving smile, "You did good little brother. I can tell her and I are gonna be best friends. She's a woman after my own heart." With that Ellie dashed to the kitchen to grab some glasses and a bottle opener. Sarah was left in a daze. It may have been an off handed comment, said in jest, but the implications still caused a knot in her stomach. A "best friend". She'd made acquaintances in her life, but none that she'd consider a "friend", much less enough to consider one of them to be the "best" among them. The prospect thrilled her but at the same time filled her heart with dread. She was lying to this woman; coming into her home under false pretenses. In years gone by, it would have been second nature to Sarah, lulling people into her confidence and then leaving town in the middle of the night without looking back. But this was different; it felt different. She wasn't a conwoman any longer, but yet here she was, conning Chuck's sister. Technically they both were, she and Chuck. Granted, the stakes were different in this con. She wasn't after money or tangible valuables. This time she was making memories, gaining experiences that she'd never dreamed possible. She wasn't hurting anyone, until it was all over that was. When she and Chuck parted ways, she would leave all of this behind, having only the memories to comfort her. Maybe this time the only person she'd be hurting would be herself.

Sarah was startled from her thoughts when Ellie placed three glasses on the table and brandished a cylindrical, black and chrome device. Sarah watched as Ellie placed the device on top of the wine bottle and, with the press of a button, there was a whirring sound and the cork was removed. Sarah couldn't help but gasp.

"That is the coolest thing I have ever seen," Sarah raved with child-like enthusiasm.

Chuckling, Ellie started to pour. "Right? You can thank your boyfriend for that little gem. Best birthday present ever," Ellie beamed, gesturing with her head toward Chuck.

"They say that diamonds are a girl's best friend, but I have to say, that thing right there is a top contender," Sarah joked, bouncing her eyebrows. Ellie barked out a laugh and Chuck even seemed to get out of his own head for a moment, chuckling at the comment. Sarah felt pleased that she was able to get Chuck to smile. She could tell he was nervous, and the truth of the matter was, so was she. From her experiences, he tended to ramble when he was nervous, so the fact that he was quiet either meant he was deep in thought or so scared that his mouth wouldn't work. She hoped it was the former and that it wasn't a sign that he was having second thoughts on the agreement.

A door opened down the hall and a deep voice called out across the house. "Hey, Baaaaabe? Have you seen my cell ph-" Coming around the corner, a tall, blond man with broad shoulders and a chiseled jaw stopped in his tracks when he saw them. His hair was still a little damp and his shirt was unbuttoned down to the middle of his stomach, which Sarah couldn't help but notice.

"Chuckster!" the man shouted, stepping up to Chuck and giving him a back-slapping hug.

"Hey, Devon. Great to see you," Chuck said, though his voice was distorted from the beating his back was receiving. Devon pulled away and then noticed Sarah sitting on the couch near his wife. He did nothing to mask his surprised expression as he turned to Chuck.

"Dude! Outstanding," he exclaimed, punching Chuck in the shoulder. While Chuck clutched his shoulder, wincing in pain, Devon made his way over to Sarah, extending his hand.

"You must be Sarah. I'm Devon, Ellie's husband. We've heard…. Well, nothing. We've heard absolutely nothing about you," he confessed, exchanging a glance with his wife, who was rolling her eyes in exasperation. "But you're here! That's awesome! Welcome. I see you've already broken out some of the vino. Hey, Chuck. Can I get you a bruski or somethin'?" Devon asked, turning to look at Chuck. Sarah couldn't help but chuckle quietly, sticking her tongue between her teeth as she met Chuck's gaze.

Chuck gave a long blink, trying to compose himself after Devon's mildly embarrassing display. "No. I'm good actually. I'm uh… I'm gonna have some of their wine. Thanks though." Chuck gave him a rather forced grin but Devon just pointed at him and gave a nod as the nearly shirtless man made his way to the kitchen.

"That's my husband," Ellie deadpanned, rolling her eyes for Sarah's benefit. "I love him to pieces, but sometimes he's a little lacking in the social graces." Sarah and Ellie both shared a chuckle, taking a sip of wine. "Mmm. This is really good. You got this at World Market?" Ellie asked, looking between Chuck and Sarah.

"Yeah. Yeah. World Market," Chuck interjected, pointing at the case with the company logo. "We picked out a good selection, I hope."

"So, you were there with someone. I assume that someone was you?" Ellie inquired, grinning at Sarah. Giving Chuck's sister the "guilty as charged" look, Ellie just shook her head in amusement.

"So, since Chuck has decided to keep you such a secret, tell me, how did you two meet?" Ellie asked, glancing between the couple.

"Yeah, Sarah," Devon interjected, plopping down in one of the chairs. "No offense, but you're kinda outta his league, if ya know what I mean?"

"Devon!" Ellie gasped, mortified by her husband's rude behavior.

"No. I'm with him," Chuck chimed in, pointing at Devon, nodding his head in agreement. "She is way out of my league." Chuck ignored the glare he was getting from his sister, but he noticed that Sarah didn't seem to appreciate his self-deprecating humor as much as he'd hoped. She looked a little sad or disappointed and Chuck realized he needed to get this train back on track. "But, I'm going to make the most of it until she comes to her senses," he declared, raising his glass of wine in toast. They all raised their glasses in toast to that, the mood lightening slightly. Sarah's smile returned and Chuck felt some relief wash over him.

"Mmmm. Well, this wine is really good. Sarah's obviously got great taste. Where'd you ever find her?" Ellie asked in jest.

"Eh, I just picked her up on the side of the road on my way up here," Chuck stated matter-of-factly, taking another sip of wine. He caught the look of abject terror on Sarah's face, but he just gave her a wink.

"Oh, come on. You've gotta make a joke out of everything. Seriously, how'd you two meet? Let's have it," Ellie said, waving her hand for him to hurry up with his story.

"Oh. Right. The story," Chuck began, chancing a glance at Sarah. "Well, it's not really all that exciting. On occasion I stop at this little independent bookstore around the corner, Volumes Books and Gifts, and grab a coffee on my way into the office. One day a few months ago, I noticed they had a new employee working; at least one I'd never seen before. She'd made somebody some fru-fru drink with whipped cream on top and apparently the nozzle on the spray can was defective because it splattered whipped cream everywhere. It was all over the counter, her shirt… in her hair. Everywhere. On top of that, the jet from the can caused the drink to splash all over her pants and shoes. She really looked like she was having the worst day ever, and yet still, she was the most beautiful woman I'd ever seen." Chuck shot Sarah a wide smile, as he continued his story. "From then on, I started going every morning, just in the hopes that I'd get a chance to see her. I tried to be funny and witty, but naturally I fell flat on my face. Still, every time I stepped up to the counter, she greeted me with a smile. She remembered my name and always asked if I wanted my usual."

Sarah was just as enraptured by the story as Ellie and Devon. She was amazed at how he could come up with such a believable story off the top of his head. Or, maybe it wasn't so spontaneous. Could he have been thinking about it as much as she had, ever since they formed their plan? If they had actually met under the circumstances he was suggesting, what would she have done? Would she have found his failed attempts at being funny charming enough to want to pursue a relationship? Her answer shook her to her core. Maybe. Throughout her interactions with him today, she had found his nerdiness and self-deprecating humor quite charming. He wasn't overtly flirting with her, at least it didn't appear so to her, and maybe that was the best part. He was respectful and that was a quality that she was not accustomed to. Chuck was kind and generous, almost to a fault, and he didn't expect anything in return. If circumstances had been different, Sarah didn't know if she would have been open to a relationship with anyone, but if she were, she'd like to think she'd be lucky enough for it to be Chuck.

Feeling inspired, Sarah jumped in to continue the story from her perspective. "That's not entirely true," she confessed, drawing everyone's attention, especially a wide-eyed Chuck. With a wry smile, Sarah continued. "He didn't fall flat on his face. In fact, I found him to be quite charming. He was always so kind and considerate. It was so easy to get him flustered but he never took himself too seriously. A lot of guys would come into the store and ogle me or flirt with me relentlessly, and it was positively exhausting. I'm sure you know what I mean, Ellie," she asked, turning to the older woman. Caught a bit off guard, Ellie blushed but nodded in agreement.

"Oh, she knows," Devon insisted. "Guys are always flirting with her, checking her out. I mean, I can't blame 'em. She's muy caliente," he growled with a salacious wink. Ellie just gave her husband a "tsk" and rolled her eyes. Sarah chuckled and Chuck just looked uncomfortable, so Sarah took pity and continued.

"Well, Chuck was never like that. He was always respectful, maybe a little too respectful," she teased, grinning mischievously. "When I realized that he would never make the first move, I took matters into my own hands. Instead of putting his name on his cup, like I did every morning, I put my name and phone number."

"Oh my God. What did he do?" Ellie asked, biting her bottom lip, practically on the edge of her seat.

"I walked into the door-"

"He walked into the door-"

Both stopped mid-sentence as they realized they had both come up with the exact same answer. They met each other's gaze and, for a long moment, the room fell into silence. Neither of them noticed the look that Devon and Ellie shared, looking between the new couple and then giving the other a knowing smile.

After clearing his throat and shaking himself out of his thoughts, Chuck picked up the telling of the story. "When… when I saw her name and number on the cup, I was filled with a mixture of unadulterated joy and pure panic," he confessed. Sarah seemed a bit taken aback, wondering where he was going with this, but Chuck was looking at his sister and hadn't noticed. "I just assumed Sarah was being nice to me because she was great at customer service. Women like her don't typically give me the time of day. So, when I saw her name and number there, I was shocked, obviously. But then the fear set in. What could I possibly have to offer someone like her? At the time, I was still trying to make ends meet, getting my company off the ground. What happened in college didn't exactly give me a lot of confidence either," he confessed with a sad smile. "As I was weighing whether or not I should call her, I failed to pay attention to where I was going as I was leaving and walked straight into the glass door." Rolling his eyes, he sighed in exasperation at himself and took a large gulp of wine.

Sarah was caught up in the magic of the story telling and jumped in while Chuck was drinking. "He didn't stop in or call me for days after that, so I assumed that he was avoiding me." Ellie snapped her head to glare at Chuck, huffing in anger. "But…" Sarah quickly interjected, trying to stave off Ellie chastising her brother. "But, one day when I got off work he was waiting outside for me. He was holding a white gardenia, which is my favorite flower. I had no idea how he knew, but there he was. He looked so nervous but he explained that he'd had a work thing or something, which was why he hadn't come in for coffee for a while. And on top of that, his office mate had thrown out the coffee cup with my number on it. He looked so miserable, I couldn't be mad at him. That night, he took me out to dinner. What was the name of that place?" Sarah asked, looking at Chuck to jump back in to help her with some details.

"Oh. Oh, right. The restaurant. Oh that was umm… El Compadre," Chuck stammered out, caught off guard when she put him on the spot.

"Oooo. I love their margaritas," Ellie gushed, her eyes lighting up at the memory. Sarah nodded her agreement, even though she'd never actually been to this restaurant.

"I assume it was Morgan that nearly ruined things by throwing out the cup. But what was this 'work thing' that was so important that you made her think you ditched her?" Ellie challenged, giving him a raised eyebrow.

"That was when I had those meetings with Dataguard," Chuck reminded his sister, but didn't expound on the details of the meeting. That seemed to appease Ellie's curiosity and a lull fell over the conversation.

"Ellie, your decorations outside are so beautiful. Very festive," Sarah chimed in, feeling uneasy with the silence in the room.

"Oh. Thank you. Yeah. We love Christmas. The decorating, the music… the food," she emphasized, chuckling. "Do you and your family do a lot for the holidays?" With that question, it felt like all the air got sucked out of the room. Ellie could instantly tell from the look on Sarah's face, and then Chuck's, that she stepped into a touchy subject. "I'm sorry. If I said something -"

"No. No, it's OK," Sarah reassured her with a weak smile. "I'm… I guess you could say 'estranged' from my family. It's a long story, but I haven't really done… Christmas in a very long time. So, I guess the answer is no."

"Oh, Sweetie. I'm so sorry," Ellie apologized, her face racked with sorrow for the younger woman. Sarah gave her an appreciative smile and took a sip of her wine. "Well, you've come to the right place. I will make it my mission… our mission," Ellie stated, gesturing to her husband and brother as well, "to show you the best damn Christmas you've ever had" she declared, slapping her knees in finality.

"Oh, Ellie, that's not necessary. You don't have to do anything special-"

"Nonsense! This is happening. Not just for you, but for all of us. I think we all deserve to have an amazing Christmas. Like the ones we remember as kids." Ellie and Chuck shared a smile, as they silently reminisced. "I just wish we had white Christmases here. It just doesn't feel like a real Christmas when you can see palm trees outside." The others around the room hummed their agreement, but sat silently in contemplation until Devon clapped his hands, starling everyone present.

"I got it! Snow's not coming to us, but we can go to the snow." Everyone looked on in bewilderment, waiting for Devon to reveal his plan. "Squaw Valley," he stated, as he made gestures like he was slaloming down a ski slope. Ellie gasped, covering her mouth with her hands as she bounced in her seat.

"Oh my God, Devon! That's brilliant! Christmas at Squaw Valley! We could spend a couple of days there skiing and shopping and just enjoying the snow. Then we can come back here and decorate the tree and make cookies. Ah! I love it!" she squealed, clapping her hands.

"Tell me you love it?" Ellie asked, looking hopefully between Chuck and Sarah.

"Well, uh.. It .. it does sound really nice, but I'm afraid I don't have any clothes with me for that kind of weather," Sarah stated meekly.

"Oh, pfft. I'm sure Chuck'll get you whatever you need." Chuck tried to open his mouth to interject but Sarah broke in.

"I couldn't possibly ask him to-"

"Dear, the man drives around in a two-hundred thousand dollar car. I think he can swing it," Ellie deadpanned, giving her brother a challenging look.

"Well, I mean… of course I'd be more than happy to, I just don't want to push Sarah into going if she's not comfortable with it. Would you… would you like to go?" Chuck asked, giving her a soft smile.

Sarah looked between Chuck and his family, trying to gauge their reactions. They all seemed to be excited by the idea, even Chuck. The thought actually excited her too, more than she would have imagined. Perhaps it was the company that she'd be sharing it with that made the difference. She could just imagine a snowy alpine town, all decorated for the holidays. Worrying her bottom lip between her teeth, she met Chuck's gaze. He seemed to sense her apprehension, knowing that she didn't like owing people things, but when he nodded ever so slightly, his smile reaching his eyes, Sarah was helpless to resist.

"It does sound pretty great. Are you guys sure about this?" Sarah asked hesitantly, looking between Ellie, Devon and Chuck. Ellie's only response was to practically dive at Sarah, wrapping her in an "Ellie hug".

"I'll make all the arrangements. I'll plan for two days and nights, just in case. It's only a few hours drive from here, so if we leave in the morning, we can be there before check-in and do some shopping. I'm so excited!" Ellie exclaimed, practically vibrating in her seat. Jumping up, she raced to the kitchen, which was adjacent to the family room they were in, and opened her laptop that was on the small breakfast table.

"Ellie's a force of nature. It's best to just smile and nod and stay out of the way unless instructed otherwise," Devon whispered conspiratorially to Sarah.

"I heard that," Ellie said in a sing-song manner as she busied herself on her laptop.

"And she has ears like a bat," Chuck chimed in, not bothering to whisper.

"Keep it up, Bartowski. I know where you're sleeping tonight. Oh, that reminds me. Devon, go help Chuck bring their stuff in before it gets too late. I was gonna order pizza, if that's OK with everyone?" Ellie asked, glancing up from her laptop. Everyone nodded in agreement but Chuck raised a hand.

"Can you make at least half of one of those veggie with no olives, please?" Chuck asked, calling into the kitchen. Ellie gave him the "OK" sign and got back to her work.

"Aww. You remembered," Sarah cooed, giving Chuck an appreciative smile.

"Well, of course. You're my… girlfriend. I'm supposed to remember those sorts of things." Chuck gave her a sheepish grin and shrug.

"Alright, Chuckster. Let's go grab your stuff," Devon suggested, patting Chuck firmly on the shoulder. Chuck rolled his eyes for Sarah, making a funny face as he pushed himself out of his chair, causing her to giggle. Sarah watched him leave through the front door, a smile on her face the whole time. This was only the beginning of their Christmas week and she was already happier than she could remember. She joked to herself that she may explode before the week's up.


A/N; Ok, so that wasn't so bad. But now we seem to have an unexpected Christmas excursion of skiing and fun in the snow to look forward to tomorrow. But, their evening is just getting started, so stay tuned for more.

I really want to thank all of you for your reviews. I tried to thank you all individually but that quickly snowballed with so many of you. I'll still give it the ole college try but if I don't get to you, please know that I truly appreciate all of your comments and kind words. It's such a wonderful problem to have.

See you next time. Stay safe.

JW