Don't own the characters

A/N: Thanks for the reviews. Again if anyone has a title happy to hear about it.

Sorry short update, had to do some academic writing got to get an article out for publication.

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Ty returned home explaining to Melissa that he had to leave and go undercover for a week. She was not happy, as he had predicted, "You were suppose to have this time off."

"I know babe, but I wouldn't do this if it wasn't important."

"What's more important to you Ty, your job or me?" She asked him.

"Melissa you are the most important thing to me in this world. But right now you are asking me to let innocent people die by doing nothing. I can save them."

"And just you?"

"I was undercover with this group before. My cover is still open. I can go back under quickly, and we only have a week to save them." Ty hoped that Carter was not overhearing this conversation. It was against the rules to share any details with anyone outside of the team about the mission, unless Carter was the one sharing the details.

"And what am I suppose to do? Remember my cousins wedding? Or the dinner party we are throwing?"

"I should be back in time for the wedding, but I'm sorry can we reschedule the dinner party?"

"No Ty I cannot call my family and our friends a day before the dinner party and tell them we cannot have them over. It's not right. I'll just go ahead with it."

"I'm sorry."

"Just be safe." Melissa said walking away from Ty leaving him standing in the living room. She went to the bedroom closing the door.

Ty walked down the hallway knocking on the door to the guest bedroom. He assumed Carter was asleep and that was why the door was closed. He needed to talk to him before he took off.

Carter had been awake and was trying to find the right time to excuse himself and return to the safe house. When Ty knocked Carter called out, "It's open."

"Hey." Ty said walking into the room. "Shouldn't you be resting not pacing. I have some clothes and your laptop here."

"Good, can you carry them out to the car."

"Why?" Ty asked.

"Because you are giving m a ride back to the safe house."

"Carter don't be stupid. You need to take time to recover."

"I can do it at the safe house." Carter said not backing down.

"And who is going to keep an eye on you? You can barely move without wincing, and there is no way you can redress your wounds yourself."

"I can get Jamie to do it. She'll be there."

"Great idea, have her worrying about you and Dean at the same time while trying to sit back and help coordinate an undercover operation. Her first time doing it alone. Great idea, it'll help her to have to multitask like that."

"I can't stay here."

Melissa heard the two men yelling and she walked to the room to find out why. She heard Carter say he couldn't remain in the house.

"Carter please stay." Melissa said shocking both men by showing up in the doorway. Neither of them heard her walk up on them.

"It's fine. I can take care of myself." Carter said wavering slightly under Melissa's glare.

"Before or after you injure yourself further? Or put your team in danger by not being at your best because you returned to work too soon not giving your body time to recover? "

"It'll be fine." Carter tried.

"NO it won't you can barely stay awake more then a few hours at a time. You do not need to be recovering sleeping on a couch. Stay here, if anything I'll feel safer. I always am scared when Ty's gone. Alone in the house. And you can help me by being here. It'll also help to know what is going on and you can at least let me know he is doing ok. So please stay."

Carter backed down he wanted to leave, but Melissa was a force to be reckoned with and she had some valid points about endangering his team. "Thank you."

"You are welcome. Ty leave the man alone so he can get some rest." Melissa left the room leaving the two men to themselves.

"She's one persuasive tough woman." Ty said smiling at Carter, "And that is why I love her."

"Be careful Ty." Carter said sitting down on the bed.

"Will do boss." Ty left the room going to pack for the next week that he would be gone.

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"Do you think they know anything?" Jamie asked Dean resting on the couch next to him.

"No. Carter suspects, and warned me away, but he isn't sure."

"How do you know?"

"Because if Carter knew he would never allowed us both to remain on this team."

"He seriously would get rid of us for hooking up?"

"Yes." Dean answered.

The conversation ended when Ty walked into the room. "Welcome back from vacation." Ty said sarcastically dropping his duffle bag on the floor.

"What did you do the past couple of weeks?" Jamie asked.

"Played home wife." Ty said smiling, "But it was nice to spend time with Melissa."

"And suck up to the boss." Dean said smiling at Ty.

"Hey you would have done the same."

"Yeah but Carter never would have accepted my offer. He's seen my place, and tried to force a cleaning lady on me."

Ty laughed at Dean. "What about you Dean, how was the family?"

"Same old family. My dad still the most boring person on Earth. Try to get me to play golf."

"What about you Jamie?" Ty asked.

"Nothing. Hung out around the house. Went on a little trip. No where special."

"Can we concluded what I did on my summer vacation discussion now?" Dean asked, "We do have work to get done."

"We are just waiting on the car the Captain promised us, with a trunk full of merchandise." Ty said explaining why they were wasting time on small talk. It was something they rarely did because they usually didn't have time. However, since Ty already had all the documents he needed for his cover, and it did not take long to fabricate documents for Dean they had time to kill.

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Carter was laying on the bed on his back, his laptop open next to him. Unable to focus on work, he started the video up again. The video that on some nights was a comfort, a memory of long ago when he was happy. But on most nights, the video was a reminder of the sadness that overtook him. Seeing all that he had lost leaving him with nothing more to lose, it was like a demon haunting him. He never ran from this demon though because despite the time that has passed he still missed her every second of every day, and still loved her.

Watching the video he tonight he needed to see the only woman he had ever loved. Being around Ty and Melissa, reminded him of her. It made his chest ache more than usual. Missing what he once had, the good thing, the one great thing he had done in his life. The thing he lost, and he needed to act like he still had that piece. Because he has been losing more and more pieces of himself ever since the chunk she took when she died.

Watching the video, he put it on loop so he could watching again and again without having to move. He had the volume on low so as to not disturb Melissa with the video. Closing his eyes, he let her voice soothe him. It was almost as if she was there with him. He could smell her and almost feel her. He fell asleep to her voice, her laugh, all of them giving him comfort that he needed to drift off.

Melissa went to check the doors and windows like she always did when Ty left. She was not lying when she told Carter that she did not feel safe when Ty was gone. As she was walking back to her room she heard a woman's voice filter through the door of the guest room. Knocking softly she opened the door finding Carter asleep on top of the covers. She frowned, he never seemed to find his way under the covers. She grabbed a throw out of the closet covering him. She watched the movie play on his laptop. It was a younger, less haggard Carter, and a beautiful brunette woman. They were laughing and playing around. She wondered if this was the wife he mentioned, it had to be. She watched them seeing a different side of Carter. It became very clear that she nor anyone else knew very much about the man that was sleeping in her guest bedroom.

Leaving the movie playing she closed the door behind her letting Carter rest. Returning to her own room she grabbed the picture of her and Ty at their wedding. She smiled at the memory of that day. It was one of the happiest days of her life. Despite the strain she and Ty had in their relationship recently, she still knew that marrying Ty was the right thing to do.

Turning the bedside lamp off, she went to sleep playing her wedding day over in her mind.

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