CHARMING'S AUTHORS NOTE #1: Happy Thanksgiving America! To all of my fellow American's I hope you have a happy Thanksgiving and stay safe. So this story kind of just happened last night and again this afternoon. I wanted to write something for the holiday having never done that before so I cranked this little one-shot out. There's not much to say about this story, it's a tale about family and celebrating all that we have in our lives. This story was un-beta'd all the possible mistakes are my own. Well I hope all of my fellow American's enjoy thanksgiving and eat lots of Turkey; to all my international readers stay safe and enjoy your day.

I've Got Plenty to Be Thankful For

A Story by

CharmingCharles2896

The turkey had been consumed, thanks had been given, family had been hugged and, stories had been told. Chuck had just finished putting the girls, fraternal twins named Sam and Charlotte to bed for the night while Sarah finished cleaning up the kitchen. It had been a great Thanksgiving at the Bartowski household, which was a welcome respite from the normally busy lives of Chuck and Sarah Bartowski, owners and operators of Starkiller Industries. The Awesome's had flown in from Chicago with their three kids Stephen, Elaine, and Claira to spend the week visiting Burbank and Uncle Chuck, Aunt Sarah, and their cousins the twins. Uncle Morgan and Auntie Alex had come over with their daughter June; it was the first time all of the cousins had been together in years and they were loving every minute of it. Uncle Casey and Aunt Gertie showed up with a tray of Casey's legendary quiches; it was always so funny how Casey gave off this gruff unfeeling exterior, but as soon as the kids wanted to play he instantly turned into a giant fluffy teddybear. Emma and Molly came over, Molly was thirteen years old now and she was just an absolute firecracker. She was driving her mother crazy, but Emma was so grateful for having the teenager in her life, the chance to raise a daughter right, to give a little girl a normal life, unlike her biological daughter Sam now Sarah who never got to live hers.

Mary was back in town; she'd been away in Europe helping out some friends in British Intelligence for the last seven months. Chuck and Sarah were horrified when she showed up with her new boyfriend in tow, who just so happened to be the one and only Cole Barker. Casey laughed so hard when that bombshell was dropped that he nearly fell off of the couch; Chuck was all smiles towards Agent Barker once the shock wore off, shaking his hand and welcoming him to the family only as Chuck could. Sarah's first interactions with Agent Barker were tense at first, but Agent Barker was just as much a nice guy as he'd always been.

Seven Hours Ago…

"Hello Sarah, it's great to see you again; suburban life suits you and I never thought I'd say that about a legendary agent like you." Cole said with a smile on his face. Sarah didn't react to his words, which gave him pause, but he persevered and spoke. "I heard about what happened to you and I can't even imagine how hard moving on after that must have been for the both of you, but look at you two now!" Cole said as Sam, Charlotte, and Elaine ran through the kitchen. Sarah simply nodded icily towards the Englishman; Cole spoke once again nervously trying to get anything from the blonde.

"Say, what exactly do you remember about me?"

" I remember you hitting on me like a horny animal." Sarah said with a hint of a smile. "Other than that I don't remember much, I do remember you leaping in front of a bullet for me, thank you for that by the way." Cole simply nodded and chuckled.

"Yeah I was a bit of a dog back in those days, but I've mellowed out since then. I'm a one woman man now if you can believe it." Sarah finally gave Cole a real smile at the mention of his apparently dating Mary Bartowski of all people.

"Yeah, how did that happen?" Sarah said cheekily as she leaned on the counter.

"We were on a mission in Romania and she gave as good as she got from me. Every quip, every come on, every, single, line; she just had my number from the first moment we met. After that I was a goner, and we've been seeing each other ever since." Cole said as he looked over at Mary who was busy playing with her grand kids.

"I'm so glad you and Chuck figured things out; the two of you were so lovesick it was depressing. I was a cold bastard back in those days, but even I could see how miserable you two were." Cole said with a small laugh that Sarah returned in kind; she had remembered some of those days and Cole was exactly right when he said her and her future husband were miserable.

"Yeah things were hard back then, but he's stuck by me through it all; now we've got two wonderful children and we're hoping to have a third before too long." Sarah said as she watched her husband play with the youngest of all the kids, little June Grimes who was only four.

"Like I said I'm glad you two made it; now if you'll excuse me those quiches look delicious." Cole said eliciting a laugh from the head of the Bartowski household.

The Present…

Sarah was just finishing loading the dishwasher when she heard her exhausted husband come down the stairs and enter the kitchen.

"Well the dynamic duo is in bed for the night." Chuck said as he came up behind Sarah and wrapped her in a loving embrace, she couldn't help but pause what she was doing at the sink and luxuriate in the feeling of her husbands strong arms wrapped around her, his soft lips planting tender kisses down her neck.

"Careful Mr. Bartowski, don't start what you can't finish." Sarah said to Chuck causing the nerd to exhale a small laugh and smile into her neck.

"What, I'm just saying what I'm thankful for?" Chuck said in mock innocence, fully aware what kissing her neck in that fashion did to his wife.

"Are you now; well tell me, what are you thankful for?" Sarah asked as she spun around in his arms to face him, the feeling of his body pressing her against the counter.

"Well Mrs. Bartowski, I'm thankful for this house, inside which we've built a life together." Chuck leaned in and kissed his wife once before continuing. "I'm thankful for Sam & Charlotte, the two most amazing children a guy could ever ask for." Another kiss accentuated his words eliciting a smile from Sarah.

"They are pretty amazing." She said as she kissed him back with force of her own several times. Chuck simply nodded as his hands explored his wife's body. "So anything else you're thankful for?" She asked.

"I'm thankful for Bryce Larkin," That wasn't what Sarah was expecting and she gave him a look that told him exactly that. She hadn't heard Bryce's name in almost a decade so that was the last thing she was expecting. Chuck just pressed on in spite of his wife's confusion.

"Bryce Larkin may have royally screwed up my life multiple times, but by sending me the Intersect he ensured that the most badass, most brilliant, most sexiest woman in the entire world entered my life and turned everything on its ear." Chuck said bring the smile on his wife's face back with a vengeance.

"Most sexiest?" She said with a laugh and a quirked eyebrow.

"Are you seriously critiquing my grammar right now Mrs. Bartowski?" Chuck said whilst acting affronted, he wasn't, but Sarah would play along.

"What if I am, what are you going to do about it Chuck?" Sarah said with a voice that was just dripping with honey, making sure to click the 'k' in Chuck, which always got her husband going.

"Join me on the couch and I'll show you what I'll do about it little Miss Grammar Police." That got a chuckle from Sarah who followed her husband out of the kitchen; their lips locked the entire time. As the two soul mates arrived at the couch Sarah sat down in Chuck's lap, Chuck's back was to the hallway so in this position she'd be able to spot any unwanted eyes before they saw anything scandalous. By now the two former spies were getting pretty hot and heavy, Sarah's hands had already gone for Chuck's belt and his zipper had been promptly opened. For Sarah's part, she simply reached beneath her skirt to ready herself for the amorous events to follow.

"Mrs. Bartowski, doing it in the living room? How kinky, who knew I was married to such a freak." Chuck said with a smirk that drove Sarah mad.

"You love it, you big stud." Sarah said before sinking down on top of him.

"Not as much as I love you." He said as he felt her pace begin to pickup.

"Anymore of that and I may just have to move this to the bedroom and do obscene things to you all night."

"I love it when you talk dirty." He said before attacking her neck with numerous feather light kisses that sent jolts of lightning down to her center. The sound of little footsteps in the hallway pulled both parents from their lustful mood as Sarah quickly straightened herself out and stood to intercept the incoming seven-year-old.

"Mommy." Came the small voice of Charlotte Bartowski as she entered the kitchen clad in her favorite set of C-3PO footy pajamas. Chuck and Sarah quickly put themselves back together. Sarah, sure she had straightened herself out stood up and whispered into her husband's ear.

"I'll be right back." Sarah walked around the couch and went to her daughter; Charlotte or Charlie as she was normally called was just like her old man, tall for her age, curly brown hair, and warm brown eyes, but she had her mother's Eastern European looks, she was going to be a heart breaker when she was older and Sarah was dreading those days.

"What's wrong Pumpkin?" Sarah said as she got down and looked her daughter in the eye.

"I had a bad dream." Sarah's heart melted like it always did for her daughter.

"Aw come here." Sarah said as she pulled her daughter in for a hug and picked her up. "Let's get you back to bed." Sarah said as she carried her daughter upstairs back to her bedroom that she shared with her sister. As Sarah set her daughter down and opened the door she could see little Sam sound asleep. Sam was so much like Sarah, she was strong willed, extremely focused when she wanted to be, but she had a dry whit that contrasted her young age. Long blonde hair and blue eyes, but her fathers Western European looks; like Charlie, Sam was sharp as a tack and definitely going places. Charlie hopped back onto bed and Sarah crouched down next to her; she reached for Charlie's pillow and flipped it over.

"Mommy, why'd you flip my pillow over?" Charlie asked.

"Whenever I had a bad dream my Grandma always used to say that if you flip the pillow the bad dream stayed on the other side and you wouldn't have another one." Sarah said as she pulled her daughters star wars blankets over her and tucked her in; Charlie looked up at her mother as Sarah moved a stray curl out of her face.

"Mommy, can you sing to me?" Charlie asked as she often did when her mother tucked her in.

"I don't know, I wouldn't want to wake your sister." Sarah whispered.

"Come on, please, just a little bit?" Charlie asked and just like her father Sarah couldn't resist those big brown eyes; Sarah had no doubts that Charlie was going to be trouble when she was a teenager.

"Okay I'll sing to you, but just for a little bit." Charlie got a big smile on her face and her eyes lit up in excitement. Sarah simply shook her head with a knowing smile on her face as she suppressed a laugh and started singing.

"Pack up all my cares and woe," Sarah began with a silky smooth voice. "Here I go, singin' low, bye bye, blackbird." Charlie's eyes began to close as she listened to her mother's underrated vocal talents.

"Where somebody waits for me, sugar sweet, so is he, bye bye, blackbird. No one here can love or understand me, all those hard luck stories, they all hand me. Make my bed, light my light, I'll arrive late tonight, bye bye blackbird." Sarah didn't continue singing as she saw Charlie was sound asleep; Sarah never knew she could love something as much as she loved her two children. Sarah leaned in and gently kissed Charlie on the forehead.

"I love you, Pumpkin." Sarah stood and left the room, closing the door silently and making her way downstairs. As Sarah got back to the living room she found her husband sound asleep on the couch; he looked so peaceful, he'd tried to wait for her, but it had been a long day. Sarah stealthily sat down in her husbands lap and snuggled in close to him.

"There's the mother of my children." Chuck breathed sleepily as he smelled her vanilla scented bodywash.

"I hope I didn't wake you." Sarah said as she snuggled her head in against his chest.

"No I was just resting my eyes and waiting for my amazing kickass ninja wife to come back." Chuck said as his hand traced little circles along her back.

"Mmm, that feels nice." She hummed into his chest.

"So tell me, what are you thankful for this thanksgiving?" Chuck asked lazily.

"I've got so much to be thankful for; I've got two wonderfully smart children, the house that I always dreamt of, I have this amazingly loving family that is only growing larger." Chuck smiled. "Most importantly I'm thankful for you, my wonderful husband, my handsome nerd, my Chuck." Sarah said before looking up at him and kissing him passionately.

"Trust me Babe, I'm the lucky one." Chuck said before giving Sarah another kiss.

"No I am, it would have been easy for you to walk away, to forget me after what that man did to me, to us. It would have been easy to write me off as broken, but you didn't, and I thank god every day that he sent you to that beach to save me." Sarah said emotionally as she remembered those dark times. Chuck kissed the top of her head and reached out with his thumb to wipe away her tears.

"I'll always come back for you Sarah; rivers and roads Babe, rivers and roads." Chuck said referencing the Head and the Heart song that had become a favorite of his right after those dark days in 2012; Sarah was familiar with the song and it's meaning so she simply smiled into his chest.

"I've got plenty to be thankful for, I haven't got a great big yacht, to sail from shore to shore. Still I've got plenty to be thankful for." Sarah sang into his chest, Chuck simply smiled as he recognized the Bing Crosby song from the famous 1942 holiday musical "Holiday Inn."

"I've got plenty to be thankful for, no private car, no caviar, no carpet on my floor, still I've got plenty to be thankful for." Chuck sang back to her quietly.

"I've got eyes to see with, ears to hear with, arms to hug with, lips to kiss with, someone to adore." Sarah said tearfully as she simply snuggled further into her husbands warm, comforting arms. They both knew the truth in those lyrics. Had they lost a lot after that monster did what he did? Yes they had, but what they'd been able make for themselves in the wake of that tragedy more then made up for the pain of those dark times. They had a big family, a great house, a wonderfully safe job in the security industry; they truly did have plenty to be thankful for.

The End

CHARMING'S AUTHORS NOTE #2: So what did y'all think? I don't know where the Cole Barker thing came from, but it just seemed like a fun idea that i'd never seen before so why not. I never explained the children names, but the reason they're Sam and Charlotte is because it's a promise that the children will get the loving normal life that neither of their parents were able to have.

CHARMING'S AUTHORS NOTE #3: If you wish to opine feel free to leave a review, I really appreciate them all, good or bad as they help me gauge what the readers think of my work. For a lot of us writers it's a long and draining process to write something like this so your reviews really mean a lot.

UNTIL NEXT TIME :D