A/N: I'm so glad that this story is getting such great response from those that had time to leave reviews. Thanks to all that did.
Thanks to Captainrick944 for another beta. His fantastic "Orion Cyber Security Systems," that I beta for him, is sadly only one chapter away from finishing, but the one he published yesterday and the final one are really good.
Last chapter, Chuck and Sarah, with help from Casey and the British, captured La Ciudad. They also found out about the termination order given to Casey and have to work out what to do, although they do have six months. Their relationship is strengthening too.
This chapter rewrites "Chuck Versus the Wookie," so you know who'll be joining them…
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Chapter 4: Red
Stephen had to reevaluate his approach after his conversation with his son had gone so very wrong.
Initially, he'd thought it was because that CIA woman had gotten to him, but when he thought about how Charles had been when he was young, how they'd interacted back then, and what it must have been like after his father seemingly deserted him and his sister, he had come to realize he, Stephen Bartowski, had messed up. Messed up the relationship, even though that wasn't really his fault, and messed up this first interaction after fifteen years.
However, it wasn't meant to be a father/son bonding interaction. He still couldn't let himself be exposed to the world, but it was supposed to be a helpful, guiding session. Instead, he'd reacted to another CIA woman interfering in their lives, reacted to her presence there, and gone into overly protective mode. On top of that, he wasn't used to interacting with others now; trying to do that here had backfired badly.
He doubted he'd be able to contact Charles again, at least not this way.
Damn!
Chuck and Sarah woke together. Due to the mind link, both knew the other was awake. They were still in the same position as when they went to sleep, her arm around him with her hand on his chest.
When they'd gone to bed, it had seemed comforting, what they needed after the last couple of days. Now it felt awkward. She started to ease her arm off him, but he gripped it, holding her hand tight to his chest.
'Sorry,' he thought. 'I just want a few more seconds to cherish for the rest of the day.'
She knew she should discourage this, but just thinking that was enough for the mind link to let him know she wasn't going to. She was enjoying it herself, so she pulled herself that little bit closer, her hand pressing against his chest and her cheek against his neck.
Then, the noise that had woken them both, sounded again. The window creaked.
Chuck sensed the person easing it open before Sarah due to his range being longer. The woman was thinking, 'Blondie, this isn't like you.'
'Shit! Red, here!' Sarah thought in panic.
Chuck 'read' the woman's name from Sarah's troubled thoughts about her, although he could see 'Red' was a nickname. Then he 'saw' her face in Sarah's memory and flashed on it. What he saw wasn't as bloodied as when he flashed on Sarah, but full of drugs. He also saw an Argentinian passport in the name of Maria Elena Alberdi, but Sarah's memory said that wasn't who she really was. This woman was a DEA agent.
'She's the best, but she's also difficult,' Sarah thought as she slipped out of bed.
The woman had just managed to open the window enough and started to slip in when she was grabbed and dragged in, slammed on her back, and had a hand around one side of her throat and a blade pressed against her carotid.
'Chuck, would you mind pulling off her mask?' Sarah asked.
He did and found that she was actually a beautiful redhead with bright blue eyes.
"Hello, Red," Sarah said in an icy tone.
"You're getting better, Blondie," the woman acknowledged.
"No, you're getting sloppy," the blond agent stated. "And very unwelcome."
"I could see that," Red observed.
Chuck nearly gasped at what the redhead imagined they were doing. He would absolutely love to do that with Sarah Walker, but 'seeing' it vividly like that was a shock.
'Not now, Chuck,' Sarah thought at him and then focused on the woman beneath her.
That got his mind whirring. What did she mean by 'not now?' The obvious additional question being, 'when?'
Sarah read Red's mind. She had a mission but needed help. She'd come seeking it from her.
"I won't help you on a mission, Red," Sarah hissed, "So you can just get lost."
"Found a new lover, then?" Carina teased. "Better than the last?"
'Last?' Chuck asked.
'She means Larkin,' Sarah replied. 'You can read her mind as easily as I can.' Then she thought about the implications of that statement. 'You might not want to, though. Sewers are cleaner.'
The redhead looked over at him. Her thoughts about him very obvious. Chuck blushed just at what she was thinking.
'Told you,' Sarah reminded him. She looked at the woman. She 'read' her cover name, but knew she shouldn't know it. "Your cover?"
"Carina. Carina Miller. You?"
"Sarah. Sarah Walker."
"So, Sarah Walker, what brings the CIA to Los Angeles?" Carina asked.
"What do you think? A job," Sarah replied. She thought at Chuck, 'She can't know anything about you or the Intersect, Chuck. Follow my lead.'
'Will do,' he thought back.
"What you were doing didn't look like work, Sarah," Carina teased.
Chuck then saw Carina's thoughts. He would absolutely love to do that with Sarah, but 'not now,' whatever that meant.
'Block her out, Chuck,' Sarah advised him.
Chuck thought that was a very good idea, so he tried hard to do so.
Sarah said to Carina, "If you're here, it means you need something."
Carina thought about it at the same time as saying it. "A diamond." Both Sarah and Chuck got the very clear thought that stealing this diamond would require Sarah's skills.
"I'm not helping you, Carina." She stood up, releasing the redhead. "Get out and don't come back."
Carina smirked. "I'll let you get back to your 'snuggling' for now, but you will help. Our bosses will make that happen." Carina was sure of that. Her DEA leader had assured her of that assistance.
Carina left the way she came in, leaving Chuck and Sarah looking at each other.
'I'm not sure I want to be around that woman,' Chuck thought.
'You know she'll want to get you into her bed, Chuck,' Sarah warned. "It's what she does.'
Chuck caught a trailing thought. 'But you don't want me, Sarah, so why try to take me away from you?'
She pulled him back to the bed. '"Want" and "can have" are two very different things, Chuck.' She got herself under the covers. He followed suit, but his mind was full of her admitting she wanted him. She'd previously told him they couldn't be together, and then there was that throwaway comment, 'not now.'
She lay facing away from him, and when he settled down, facing her back, wanting to ask a question, she made a decision. She reached back and took his hand and pulled it around her, placing it on her stomach, pulling him to spoon her.
'I don't know when, Chuck, but hold onto that thought.' She wished she knew, but at least now he knew she had feelings for him.
'Is this to put me off Carina?' he cautiously asked.
'You have to make your own decision about what to do when she pounces on you, and believe me, she will. I just wanted you to know how I feel,' Sarah replied.
He tightened his grip around her, his palm covering her belly. What she'd thought was wonderful. He could hardly believe it. Best night of my life!
Sarah smiled on 'hearing' that. Having his arm round her was special to her too.
Sarah's phone buzzed the next morning, waking her up. Chuck still had his hand on her stomach. It felt so good being cradled like this. She knew she shouldn't encourage him like this. It was so very unprofessional, but it was good for the cover if his sister walked in on them. Of course, that was very unlikely, but she ignored that.
She reached out and grabbed the phone and saw who it was. She answered it, "What is it, Casey?"
"Beckman and Graham want to talk to us at 7:30."
She looked at the time, 7:05. Luckily, Casey's apartment was only over the courtyard. "We'll be there," she replied.
"She didn't ask for Bartowski," Casey stated.
"Well, if she didn't say not to bring him, I will."
He grunted and ended the call.
'Do I have to let you go now?' Chuck asked. She could sense his reluctance.
'Less than twenty-five minutes before the meeting says "yes,"' she replied. She lifted his arm off her and slid out of bed.
As she hurried to grab clothes to head to the bathroom, she felt him watching her and smiled at his thought. 'You did say I was allowed to look at your legs.' She waggled her backside as she walked out, then wondered why the hell she did that.
Chuck dashed in for a quick shower after her, then they headed over to Casey's apartment.
Sarah was very glad that Ellie and Devon were either out or fast asleep, so they did not slow them down at all.
Casey, standing in his Buy More uniform, was waiting for them. As it wasn't time for the call, Sarah asked him, "Did you have the surveillance switched off for the courtyard as well as Chuck's room last night?"
"No," he replied with a frown. "Why?"
She didn't answer that question but asked another, "Should it alert you to movement?"
"Yes," answered Casey, who was now becoming concerned. "I got no notifications. Should I have?"
She answered this one, "Yes, Casey. We had a visitor. Had I not heard anything, and had it been a real threat, I could be dead and Chuck taken from us. I suggest you check out that equipment."
He was going to ask who it had been when his laptop screen lit with the callers from DC. Beckman looked disapprovingly at Chuck but said nothing.
"We've been asked to assist in the retrieval of a diamond," Graham started. "The diamond is heavily guarded inside of Peyman Alahi's Malibu compound."
Neither Chuck nor Sarah flashed on the guy's name.
Graham continued, "Mr. Alahi is an international financier for the opium cartel, which is why the Drug Enforcement Administration has asked us to cooperate." Chuck guessed that drug financiers were not in the Intersect. Sarah knew what was coming.
Beckman stated, "You'll assist Carina Miller, from the DEA, in acquiring the rock."
'Acquiring?' Chuck asked Sarah rather than speaking out loud.
'Yeah. Stealing,' she replied.
Graham continued, "You'll take Chuck to Alahi's compound to get his Intersect data on the alarm system. Set up the grab for the following day."
Sarah's pointed out, "Sir, Carina is a tremendous field agent, but... we can't trust her. Chuck is way too valuable."
Graham ignored her. "Alahi has friends outside the opium trade. We've received intel that he plans on moving the stone within the next seventy-two hours."
Casey spoke up, "Uh... I've had dealings with Carina in the past, too. She could be a bit of a... wild card."
Graham stared at him. "We're aware of what happened in Prague, Agent Casey, which is why you and Agent Walker will return the diamond to us. Under no circumstances should Carina be entrusted with it."
'Don't ask about Prague,' Sarah urgently thought at Chuck, who kept his mouth shut. He didn't have to ask; he saw it and smirked.
Chuck and Sarah headed back to their place to change before going to work, so rushed straight passed Carina, who was standing waiting in the courtyard. She tried to stop Sarah but failed. Instead, she looked at the third person to come out. Chuck heard her thoughts as she spoke to Casey, which he was now too far away from to actually hear. 'Hello, Casey. Nice to see you with your pants on.' Knowing Casey's embarrassment in Prague, Chuck was not surprised at the comment. This woman was trouble.
'Oh, she is. Big trouble,' Sarah confirmed.
They should have worn their work clothes to go into the meeting, but Sarah hated wearing hers any more than she had to, so she needed to change. Chuck only had to put on a tie.
She didn't think anything about stripping down to her underwear with him in the room. She had her back turned to him. He didn't look away quickly enough. He couldn't take his eyes off of her, thinking, 'So gorgeous!'
By that time, she'd put on her blouse but still had to button it up and hadn't got into the skirt. She stopped, turned, and looked at him, still trying to put on his tie, but fumbling. His eyes dropped to her legs.
She walked toward him and helped him with his tie. She then stood on tiptoes and gave him a peck on the lips. 'You really know how to make a girl feel good, Chuck. Thank you.'
'You know the thought is not just about how fabulous you look, don't you?' he asked.
That made her think of her life and rather spoiled the moment.
Both Casey and Carina were gone when they set off. Sarah was relieved. In her car, he commented, "You like her, but dislike her as well."
She sighs. "She's a friend of sorts, but everything is a competition to her."
He thought about her earlier message that Carina would try to have sex with him. Flattering though that might be, he was neither the sort that would do that, nor was he 'available.'
Sarah had just been about to set off when she 'heard' why he wasn't available. She gasped and turned to him. "This cover relationship is important for your safety and to enable you to stay here in LA, so keeping it looking real is important for that, but we can't express feelings for each other to Graham, Beckman, Casey or Carina." She paused and held his gaze. "However, you are right. What we have is indeed more than what most couples have. Our bond is very strong because of this mind link."
He looked into those beautiful eyes for a second. "I would have fallen for you without the link, Sarah."
She took his hand. "Maybe, but you would not have known me like you do."
He puffed out a breath. "I still know very little about you, Sarah. You have so much bottled away from even yourself. Casey's the same, even this Carina."
"It's what we do to cope with what we have to do," she said a little sadly ,but then looked at him. "But you know things I have never told anyone."
"I can also see how much what you do upsets you, Sarah. You're not the cold agent you present."
She thought about that. She'd seen herself as Agent Walker for ten years now. A cold-blooded killer, a weapon of the CIA. She hadn't warmed to many. Bryce, foolishly; Carina, Amy and Zondra, partially, although the latter was also a mistake. Other than that, she had been cold to many in the agency. She'd even heard that some called her the Ice Queen, and she hadn't corrected that. Now, Chuck Bartowski was saying she wasn't that. She thought briefly about her last mission but quickly buried it again; it was too full of pain for her.
She looked into the brown eyes that drew her in so easily. "I'm pretty cold and ruthless, Chuck," she asserted.
He shook his head. "No, Sarah, that's the job. The role you play, if you like. That's not why you are good at protecting me."
She snorted slightly. "I haven't been good at that, Chuck."
Chuck ignored that comment. "I can feel you care for me, Sarah. You may not be falling for me, but you care. I think that makes you better at protecting me than Casey."
She knew he was right. This assignment was mostly about protecting the Intersect from getting hurt, but it was more than that to her. She did care for Chuck, the man. Her personal drive was to protect Chuck himself, not the Intersect in his head. That was why assisting Carina and putting Chuck himself in danger was so wrong. 'God, he's even in danger from being around Carina, the female predator.'
Chuck was shocked at that last thought. "Really?"
Sarah sighed. "She does get through men at an alarming rate."
"Protect me from her, Sarah," he implored.
She laughed. "If she only wants you because she thinks I want you, then maybe I just have to convince her that I don't."
She didn't close her mind off from him this time. If he hadn't 'heard' them, he would feel despondent listening to her words, but her thoughts stopped that. "You DO want me?"
Holding his gaze, she said, "I told you my feelings for you are growing, Chuck. We just can't do anything about it."
He didn't believe that. "Sarah, you sleep with me every night. There is no surveillance in my room when you're there. Why couldn't we?"
"Would you be able to hide the fact we had?" she asked. "Would I?"
"You can do anything, Agent Walker," he replied. She smiled at that. He really thought that.
"Maybe I can, but this would be new for me, so I don't really know." She thought for a few moments, then asked, "Are you frustrated, Chuck? And if so, is sleeping in the same bed with me making it worse?" She'd not thought of this before.
This wasn't something he felt comfortable talking about. He shifted to their communication from where he wasn't troubled like that. 'I've not done… that… for over five years now, Sarah. Not even sure I can remember how,' he joked.
Sarah instantly felt sorry for him. This wonderful man had been hiding himself away from women and not getting any relief for over five years. However, he hadn't answered her question. 'Is sleeping in the same bed as me hard for you, Chuck?'
He swallowed hard but then told her the truth, even though it still didn't answer the question. 'Sarah, being with you is the best experience of my life. You're my dream girl. I may want more when we are together at night, but I do get to hold you, or you hold me. It's wonderful.'
She swallowed, too. His honesty and openness were quite overwhelming. She had to be the same. 'I've never done that before, Chuck. I like it as well.' She wondered why in this form of communication it felt safe to be honest. She would never have spoken such words.
'That's the same for me, Sarah! I could never tell you how I feel about you out loud,' he declared mentally.
She leaned over and kissed his cheek. 'We need to get going, but remember this, particularly if Carina tries anything. I do want you, even if the job is preventing it.' She was glad to let him know. 'I don't know if that helps at all, though."
'Fills my heart with happiness,' he replied.
She smiled and started the engine.
Sarah was tidying up the paperwork for the Wienerlicious when Carina walked in and threw down some for her mission in the gap Sarah had created.
"I can guess what Casey's doing here, but what about your boy toy? Chuck, is it? How does he fit in? Other than how I saw him last night, of course."
Sarah sighed. "That's you making assumptions, Carina. Incorrect ones. Our cover is boyfriend/girlfriend. What you saw was just cover."
Carina snorted. "Not much cover, Sarah." Carina's thoughts gave a very graphic image of what she thought happened in that bed. Sarah turned away as she blushed while thinking, 'Damn you, Red."
"Speaking of boyfriends. I'm sorry to hear about Bryce."
Sarah was surprised that Carina genuinely was sorry for her. "Thanks. It's, uh... it's been hard." She could hardly say it wasn't, but being with Chuck was easing it.
"Of course. Getting dead is an occupational hazard." Carina's mind and words shifted again. "So, what's the assignment here anyway?"
Sarah instantly clammed up. "It's top secret."
"So, I'll guess I'll just talk to Chuck about it," Carina said, standing up. "I'm sure he'll be more forthcoming."
Sarah saw both meanings in Carina's thoughts. She didn't like the sexual one, but the assignment one was the one she absolutely had to prevent. "That's not happening either."
Carina was about to start moving, but as Sarah knew her thoughts, she was one step ahead of her and stuck out her leg, which Carina tripped over.
Sarah knelt down beside the fallen woman, hissing, "I will help you, but you do NOT interfere with my team, got it, Miller? I will not tell you so kindly next time." Carina grunted. Sarah saw no acknowledgment in the woman's thoughts, so she knelt on Carina's hand, hard. "I haven't heard you agree to my terms."
"Alright," Carina winced. Sarah saw defiance in the woman's thoughts but no clear idea of what she was going to do.
She got up, letting Carina go. Just in time, as it happened, as the Wienerlicious manager walked in at that point. Carina walked out, glaring at Sarah.
Sarah took a quick comfort break and called Chuck.
"Hi, Sarah," he responded, sounding happy to hear from her. That made her smile, but she had to warn him.
"Chuck, Carina might be coming over. I've told her to leave you alone, but she might not. Obviously, say nothing about the Intersect… or us, but be careful. As I said earlier, she's not to be trusted."
"Ok. Got it," he replied.
He saw Carina walk into the store. All the staff took notice, just as they did when Sarah walked in. 'Figures. The two most beautiful women they've ever seen,' he thought.
Carina scanned the store and spotted him, heading straight for him. He was distracted by Lester and Jeff, whose thoughts he wished he could tune out.
'She's going for Chuck, damn it!' Lester thought. 'Why not me?' Chuck knew the answer to that.
'I'd like to lick her all over,' Jeff thought.
Chuck managed to shoo them both off before Carina arrived at the Nerd Herd desk. "The cover jobs you two have aren't very impressive."
Chuck bristled at her words. "I'm the Nerd Herd leader," he replied.
"I bet you lead with a firm hand," she replied. The image she thought of him slapping a woman's backside was vivid. "I bet your site visits leave your clients breathless." Why did the next image have to be Sarah lying on one of the Wienerlicious tables gasping with him between her legs?
He shook his head but was thankful for the desk phone going off. "Buy More Nerd Herd; how can I help you?"
Carina thought of Chuck with a brunette this time. She was bent over at a printer, with her shirt pushed up, and Chuck pressed against her rear. He had to force that thought out as the man at the other end described his problem. Thankfully, it was complicated, so Chuck dove into a lengthy discussion with him. Carina got bored waiting and wandered off, after picking up one of the business cards on the desk.
Chuck called Sarah just before the lunch peak time started. "God, her mind's a gutter!"
She chuckled. "Do you need some soothing?"
"I need my head washed out with bleach!"
"I'm going to be busy for the next two hours. Come over after that?" she suggested.
"I miss our… connection, Sarah, and your calming… ideas."
She knew exactly what he meant. Their mind link was a calming thing in their lives, which was surprising. Having someone else in your head should be the opposite. Maybe it was the other person involved. That would explain it for her; Chuck was a calming influence on her, but surely her mind couldn't be so for Chuck.
She saw the first group of customers heading toward the shop and closed her mind to their thoughts. In two hours, this lunch rush will have ended and then Chuck would be coming over. Something to look forward to.
"The problem is that I have an amazing memory for images, Sarah." Chuck shook his head. "I can't get her thoughts out of my head!"
Sarah thought she was used to Carina, but the thoughts she could see in Chuck's memory stunned her. She sat opposite him while he ate his hot dog. "Chuck, you really need to learn how to block thoughts out, but you also need to learn how to avoid projecting every thought my way!"
"I'm managing to block out some of the noise in the Buy More, but not all thoughts. I certainly don't know how to stop mine from leaking out."
So, that was when she started to train him in how to bury thoughts. It wouldn't help him block thoughts out, but he said he was starting to get that under control. She spent the next hour coaching him. Thirty minutes in, she got a call from Casey. "You got the moron with you, Walker?"
"No morons over here," she replied. "They all left some time ago, but Chuck's with me."
Casey grunted. "Ok. Prepare him for the visit tomorrow. Miller with you as well?"
"No, thankfully."
"I hope she's not going it alone," he replied.
"She needs our help, Casey. Otherwise, she would never have come here."
"True."
After work and dinner, Chuck and Sarah continued the 'lesson,' and he was getting better at it.
Sarah admitted that if it wasn't for Carina, she probably wouldn't have been so desperate for this. 'Most of the time, I find your thoughts soothe me. I don't know why.'
His eyes lit up. 'Yours do for me as well!' Then wondered, 'Maybe it's just the use of our link that does it.' He found this idea a bit disappointing.
She frowned. 'Why the disappointment over that, Chuck?'
'I like to think our connection is special. I don't just mean the link. I mean..' he pointed between them. 'Us. you and me.' He looked down at his hands in his lap. 'Sorry, projecting my feelings for you again.'
She placed her hand over his. 'That connection is there, Chuck. I feel it too.'
He looked up into her eyes. Those gorgeous eyes that he could just stare at for a long, long time. He couldn't look away, and she felt the same. 'I think I've completely fallen for you, Sarah.'
She could feel that coming across. He made no attempt to hide it. She only just stopped herself from reacting. Her mind was feeling drawn to him as well. She had to steer them away from this, or they'd end up in bed doing exactly what Carina had been imagining. They also needed Casey to hear them, as they were sitting in the living room. "Chuck, we need to talk about tomorrow."
"Really? Now?" he asked, surprised because he thought they'd already talked it through earlier.
"Yes, now," she replied, sounding somewhat angry. 'We've been silent for a long time. Casey will start to get suspicious.' She could see uncertainty in his mind. 'I'm not angry, but need to sound exasperated,' she explained.
He grasped the issue. "Ok. Run me through it. Again."
They spent the next hour doing just that.
One additional thing she told him was, "At the mansion, I need you to stick by my side. Carina likes to improvise, and things can get sticky fast. She likes trouble, and she looks for it." She thought about a time in Pakistan, when she had to save Carina. It was pretty grim.
"Okay, I get it. Carina is not to be trusted," he commented.
They finally got ready for bed. As they climbed in, Chuck gave her some bad news. "I'm the overnight Nerd Herd on-call person tonight. Hopefully, my phone won't go off, but just warning you."
Sarah sat up. "You should have swapped with someone. We can't have you tired tomorrow."
He looked exasperated. "Come on, Sarah. No one would swap at such short notice."
"If you get any calls. Tell them to come into the store tomorrow."
"I might not be able to do-" he started. She glared at him, and he said. "Okay, I'll try."
She lay down, facing away from him. He started to put his arm around her, but she thought, 'Keep your hands close to that phone, Chuck. I don't want to be woken by it ringing and ringing.'
He rolled over and did that. 'I'm sorry, Sarah.' He got no reply.
At around midnight, the phone rang. He got to it quickly and took it to his chair, facing away from Sarah. He quietly answered, but Sarah lay there listening anyway. "Hello to you too, ma'am." He paused. "Yes, I'm the on-call Nerd Herder for all Nerd Herd Computer emergencies." There was a long pause as he listened to the problem. Sarah was finding this frustrating, so she 'read' his thoughts. 'A broken computer would be a serious problem for a writer. I need to go and help.'
Sarah didn't like the sound of this. She was going to tell him not to, when a hotel name appeared in his thoughts, and he said, "And what is your room number?" He memorized it and ended the call.
"Chuck! You can't just go out like that!" she was sitting up, hands on hips.
He made the mistake of looking at her and immediately caught sight of her legs and almost faltered. He shook his head. "It's my job, Sarah. It's what I do."
She could see he was determined and that it meant a lot to him. "I'll come with you, then." She grabbed her trousers and a top, throwing them on over what she was wearing before he could argue. She was ready before he was.
As they walked to the hotel, he repeated what he'd already said on the way over. "You really don't need to be with me, Sarah."
"Protection, remember," she replied once again.
When they got to room 903, Sarah ushered him away from it and knocked.
The door opened to Carina dressed in a flimsy nightgown and probably little else. "Hi, Chu-" she started and then saw a very angry Sarah Walker glaring at her. Sarah had already read Carina's mind, so knew exactly what she had planned. She pushed the redhead back into the room. The two followed the stumbling DEA agent.
"Care to explain yourself, Red?" Sarah demanded.
"I- I needed some help," Carina stammered. However, Sarah read her mind. 'Act helpless. Think of a way to get rid of her.' That was more like Carina, Sarah thought. Carina's next thought was not a surprise, 'Embarrassing them both should do it.'
'Get ready, Chuck,' Sarah warned.
"So, you can't do site visits without a chaperone, huh, Chuck?" Carina taunted.
'Weak,' Chuck thought.
Sarah chuckled. "You are pathetic, Carina."
That got to the redhead. "Not as pathetic as trailing round after him!" she snapped back.
'You might want to look away unless you want to see her body, Chuck.' Sarah leaned forward and ripped open Carina's gown. The completely exposed redhead was surprised but then posed towards Chuck, who hadn't looked away.
Sarah was surprised and extremely impressed with the nerd when he said, "She's got nothing on her, eh, Sarah. Of course,…" He looked fondly at his cover girlfriend. "She's got nothing on you." He didn't sing that, but he thought the rest of the lyric from the Birth Control song, 'she's a lie.'
Sarah had never heard 'She's got nothing on you" by Birth Control, or the band, but she understood his meaning. She beamed at him. 'Me too, but thanks, Chuck.' Then turned a frown at her old friend. "Reduced to calling for IT help in the hope of getting laid. You really have sunk to a new low!"
"Get out!" Carina yelled.
"No computer, no stay," Chuck threw over his shoulder as he walked out.
Once they were in the elevator and he'd put down his case, Sarah took hold of his face and gave him a long kiss on the lips. He took a while to react but then let the touch of her soft lips consume him. Both could sense how the other was reacting to it. The kiss ended when the door opened on reaching the first floor. She grabbed his hand, and he just managed to pick up the case before she pulled him out.
As they reached the car, he finally managed to get himself together enough to ask, "That was amazing, Sarah, but why?"
She faced him, still surprised at herself for doing it, but also how good it had felt. "Chuck, that put down was absolutely perfect! Cut right to her self-esteem. I don't know how you managed to do that faced with her stunning naked body."
He couldn't say the words out loud but thought them immediately. 'I've only seen you like that in her thoughts, but I already know you're stunning beyond belief.'
She just stood, shocked for a few seconds. 'You imagine I look better than that and weren't just conning her? Even when her body was totally on show, and you've never actually seen mine?'
He felt her doubt. 'Sarah, you are far more beautiful than Carina, and what I have seen of your body is far lovelier, too. I don't need more to know your body far outclasses her. Besides…' he wasn't sure she needed to hear this, but it was relevant. 'I'm in love with you. No other woman can draw my attention now.'
This was new. 'You said you were falling for me, Chuck. This is so much more.'
He grasped her hands. 'I know I can't expect anything, Sarah, but when you exposed her, it felt nothing. Apart from wishing it was your body I was seeing.'
She knew they shouldn't do this, but his thoughts broke through her barriers. She couldn't hold back. Her fingers found their way into the curls at the back of his head, pulling him down slightly as she raised up and crashed her lips to his. He immediately dropped the case and wrapped his arms around her without any hesitation this time.
Both of them let the feel of the other's lips take over their senses.
Sarah had kissed many men, and some women, but most had been part of missions, done with great reluctance and a lot of disgust. However, even those she'd chosen to kiss, including Bryce Larkin, were nowhere near as good as Chuck Bartowski. His soft lips were so sensual and made her want more of them. If she could go without breathing, she doubted she would ever want to part from these lips. She could also sense his feelings.
Chuck was in heaven. And while the kiss in the elevator was amazing, it was also confusing. But after sharing his thoughts with her, this kiss came with her unbridled desire. She wanted this kiss as much as he did, which made the sensation that much stronger. He couldn't stop himself from lifting her up and continuing the kiss.
When Sarah's feet left the ground, she felt his deepening feelings for her. She, herself, felt as light as she physically was. She dropped one hand down to his back to pull him closer. She couldn't get enough of him.
Their mind link gelled completely. Each completely experiencing what the other was feeling.
Neither had opened their lips, both frightened of what that would lead to in this hotel parking lot, but each knew the other wanted more. Of course, this was more than what most couples would 'know.' They could feel it and see it in the other's mind, enhancing the whole experience even further.
They eventually had to part their lips to breathe. Chuck didn't put her down, and she kept her hands and arms on him. They rested their foreheads together, struggling to catch their breath.
"This is a bad idea, Chuck, but I want to take this further," she admitted.
"I know we shouldn't, Sarah, but I want you so much...You can disable the surveillance now, can't you?" he said. They were completely aligned on what would happen when they got back to the apartment.
As she drove them back there, the anticipation rising, she couldn't stop her imagination from running riot. If kissing Chuck without opening their lips was so fantastic, what would it be like with their tongues together? That alone made her tingle all over. This connection of theirs made a huge difference, but she already knew that Chuck was an amazing kisser. What would follow the kisses would probably mean she'd never want to leave that bed. For now, she had to stop thinking about that and focus on the road.
For Chuck, the journey home, even with Sarah's scary driving, could not finish quickly enough. What they would do when they got there, he never thought it would happen. It may not again after reality crashed down on them, but the anticipation was so great that such thoughts were completely washed away. Sarah was not holding any thoughts from him, and her desperation for it boosted both his expectations and confidence.
On arrival, because Casey would see the recording of them, they walked to the apartment separated by a couple of feet and the case he was carrying. However, their thoughts were meshed, both desperate to get to his room.
Once in the room, Sarah immediately checked the surveillance, ensuring it was off. As soon as she turned, they were in each other's arms again. This time, their lips opened as they crashed together. The kiss that followed was so much more powerful than the last. Both put everything into the kiss. Passion and feelings for each other were exchanged freely. 'Seeing' how the other was thinking and feeling their sensations made the kiss even more special. Chuck's love for her blossomed in her mind as well as his. Her feelings for him surged out of buried depths. She hadn't ever experienced anything like this.
They stopped to breathe, and she thought at him. 'If kisses are that good, we have to find out…'
They hastily stripped each other. He stopped moving after she was completely naked, just to look at her. If it hadn't been for their link, she would probably have found the delay unacceptable, but he wanted to confirm his thoughts from earlier. She posed, and he was stunned seeing her like this. He gushed, 'So, so much more gorgeous than her, Sarah. You're absolutely breathtaking!'
She loved his thoughts of her body, but she wanted more, so, she pushed him onto the bed and dived on top of him.
The feeling of flesh on flesh when they kissed again made it even better. Neither wanted more for a while, just luxuriating in the feelings in their own bodies along with the feelings the other was sharing.
After a few minutes, however, Sarah was ready for the next experience. She pushed herself up. Chuck knew exactly what she wanted and that they needed no prophylactics. They rolled over together, which itself felt great, but then he touched her breasts. 'Oh God, yes, Chuck!' The sensation was electric. Knowing how much he loved his hands there, making it even better.
She gazed into his loving eyes. 'I'm ready, Chuck.' He already knew that, of course.
He was slow and gentle. She couldn't hold in the gasp at the start.
Sharing their feelings as they kissed and touched each other had been amazing, but nothing could compare to making love. Sarah instinctively knew that it would have been wonderful with Chuck, but with the shared thoughts, she could experience it from his perspective too. That was unbelievable, feeling it both ways.
Chuck knew making love to the woman he loved would be the best thing he'd ever experienced, but this? He was experiencing Sarah's body's reaction as well as his own. Nothing could ever surpass this. Heaven had nothing on it.
They could feel what worked best for the other and guided each other to experience it. They each felt the buildup of the other, as well as their own. Sarah didn't have to but still thought, 'Now, Chuck. Now!' They finished together, and the explosion of the shared release was out of this world. Somehow, both managed to keep quiet, knowing Ellie and Devon were in the next room, but both felt completely overwhelmed by the experience.
He didn't want his weight to crush her, so he slid to his side of the bed and lay on his back. Both were breathless. Neither could speak or even think for quite a while.
Eventually, Chuck started to get his thoughts straight. 'Wow!'
Sarah grinned at him. 'That all you can think?'
'My brain may not function for a while after that,' he replied.
The warmth that spread through her was wonderful. 'It just confirmed my decision to stay with you was the right one,' she teased.
He chuckled. 'And I am so glad I didn't take Carina up on what she had to offer.'
'You do know you can now experience what any woman is feeling when you have sex with them,' Sarah pointed out.
Chuck hadn't thought of that, but it made no difference. 'I don't want to know. It was more than just being able to read your mind, Sarah. We made love in our heads as well as with our bodies.'
She paused and thought about that. He was right. They guided each other, helping the other get the best experience. They did indeed make love in their heads too. Mental sex as well as physical. She rolled over and leaned in to kiss him. 'I had thought it should be just the once that we did this, but that's not possible now. We will have to be careful, but this has to happen again, Chuck.'
He looked into her beautiful eyes and just nodded, unable to think or say anything. He loved Sarah Walker before this, but nothing had prepared him for what they'd just experienced together. He reached over and pulled her to him.
They kissed again, then she lay her head down in the crook of his neck. Her arm and leg splayed across him felt so right. 'You ok with sleeping like this, Chuck?'
'I never want to sleep any other way, Sarah.'
She hummed and focused on the warmth between them. She tried not to think about the mission coming up. She gradually drifted off to sleep.
Spooning a clothed Sarah Walker had been a wonderful way to wake up, but having her lying naked on him was so, so much better. Chuck just lay there, still struggling to believe what had happened.
Sarah woke to his thoughts and the feeling of her naked body pressed against his. Nothing could have prepared her for feeling like she did. Not just physically, but mentally too. She knew they should definitely not have done that from a handler/asset point of view, but she just didn't care. It was the best experience of her life, and she was so glad she hadn't stopped them.
'Morning, gorgeous,' Chuck thought.
They needed to work out how to work around this, but she leaned up and kissed him. 'Morning, gorgeous to you as well.'
Having this angel thinking that of him felt so good. She might be an angel of death some of the time, but for him, an angel all of the time. Before this mind link, he would have had doubts about her words, his lack of self-confidence telling him she was just saying what he wanted to hear, but now he believed her.
'You better, Chuck. We need to work on that self-confidence thing.'
He hugged her tighter. She was definitely good for him.
At Alahi's Malibu compound, Carina was obviously trying to appear as if nothing had happened the night before. Chuck was surprised that her thoughts were free of it too. Before she headed off to the scan the place, Sarah thought at him, 'She buried the negative thoughts away.'
'Yeah, I should have guessed that.'
'Last night will definitely not have gone down well. She's probably never been rejected before.' Sarah found she really liked the idea of Carina being on the receiving end of that.
As she turned to walk away, Chuck thought, 'I love you, Sarah Walker. Take care.'
Sarah paused for a second. Having someone caring about her was almost as disconcerting as the connection. 'You too, Chuck.' She then continued.
Carina turned to Chuck. "Listen, I'm sure Sarah's warned you about me. That I improvise, take risks."
Mentally she was thinking about taking another risk with him. He squashed that thought down. "Yeah, she might've mentioned something about that."
"Mmm. Did she also mention my record? How I took down the Quintana Gang in Colombia?" As she said it, she thought about it. It was not a pleasant set of images, but she did succeed against many odds. Of course, some of that might be her embellishing it in her memories. "So, trust me. Got it?"
He didn't at all but nodded.
"Great." She looked around and pointed. "Now, see that man over there? Peyman Alahi, his house, his party, his diamond... for now."
Chuck saw the guy, bare and very hairy-chested. "Are you talking about Senior Wookie over there?"
Carina chuckled. "Just grab a drink, and look casual."
Sarah walked up to them. 'Give me some time to talk to her, please, Chuck.' Chuck walked away. The two women started walking slowly in the same direction as Chuck. Sarah told Carina what she'd found. "There's a southern egress with two armed guards and three more by the garage exit." Like Carina, she made no mention of the previous night.
By this time, they reached a now motionless Chuck Bartowski. Carina kept walking. A stray feeling of disappointment leaked out as she did.
Sarah stopped by Chuck. "You ok?"
Chuck turned to her. "Yeah. I count six SVB-54 explosion-protected security cameras with infrared surveillance."
She could 'see' he didn't flash. 'No, they sell them at the spy shop in the Buy More Plaza,' he thought at her.
Carina rejoined them, having finally squashed down her upset again. The three of them casually wandered around the grounds.
"Thermal imaging cameras- north and west walls," Chuck observed.
Sarah replied, "Someone really doesn't want us getting in there."
Carina suddenly walked away quickly. "Let's go for a little stroll." She headed to a door seemingly not in a camera view and opened it. They all walked into the building and down the stairs. At the bottom, they found a glass door leading into a room full of valuable items on display. Carina used a device to find the electronic key combination and opened the door. This felt wrong to Chuck, far too easy after all the other security.
The diamond was the central display. Sarah 'read' Carina's mind. She was just going to grab it. "No, Carina," Sarah cautioned her.
Chuck was not paying attention to them. He read other thoughts. From three men approaching. 'We've got company.'
Sarah looked around, but that glass-walled room held no cover.
The hairy-chested man walked in with two security guards. "So, you like my diamond?" he asked them.
"Yeah, really pretty," Sarah responded in the best blonde bimbo tone.
"You're not supposed to be here," he replied.
"Oh, I'm really sorry, but the door was unlocked," Sarah continued, simpering.
Carina said how much she admired him as well as the diamond, and Asahi waved his men away, ignoring Chuck completely. He walked in and stood between the two women. Both Chuck and Sarah were disgusted by his thoughts about the pair of them.
Carina asked, "So, what would I have to do to get this thing on my finger?"
Asahi replied, "It is said that he who owns the Nadan-I-Noor rules the world."
Carina gushed. "Wow. So, what if, like, someone tried to steal it?"
"It's impossible to steal," he replied. "Because if touched, the vault will seal itself off; the gas will fill the room; and after that, my security team would eliminate the threat." The image of people being shot was very clear to Chuck. However, that wasn't the only protection Chuck and Sarah 'saw' in his head.
Sarah thought at Chuck, 'I'll distract him, draw him out. You get Carina out of here. We'll discuss what to do tonight.'
It sickened Chuck to see the man pinch Sarah's bottom, but she played her part well and just squeaked and said, "I saw some really cool paintings outside. Can I have a look?" He guided her out.
Chuck turned to Carina. "The guy wearing the fur sweater failed to mention one fairly significant security detail. 20,000 volts of electricity protecting the stone."
Carina frowned. "Hmm, problematic. How are you going to fix that?"
The thought and words came together and surprised him. He responded instantly, without thinking, "I might use compressed air to knock it off the pedestal. However, we have to get out of here while we can, Carina. Tonight, we'll plan what to do tomorrow."
She ignored him, scanning the room. Her thought and action were instantaneous. She grabbed the fire extinguisher, and before he could stop her, she'd blasted the diamond off the display. Chuck only just managed to grab it. She threw a velvet bag at him and rushed to the doorway that had a panel sliding down as gas poured in from the sides of the room.
Sarah was out of range for him to 'hear' her, but he projected. 'Get out of there, Sarah! Carina has triggered the trap.' Then he followed the redhead, only just sliding out in time.
He saw Asahi on the ground. The two women were fighting with the guards but quickly dispatched them.
Sarah grabbed chuck's hand, pulling him up the stairs.
As they burst out to the pool area, Sarah snarled at Carina, having 'read' Chuck's mind on what had happened. "Are you crazy, Carina? This was only supposed to be recon."
"So, I made a split-second decision," Carina snapped back.
They then had to fight their way through men to escape. As they did, Sarah used her watch to contact Casey. "Carina improvised. She snatched the diamond. Meet us on the beach."
"I'm on it," Casey responded.
As the three reached the beach, Sarah called to Carina, who was running ahead of them. "Hey, Carina, what now?"
"You two run for it," Carina replied. "Give me the stone. I'll take the heat. You can double back and get me out."
Sarah knew Carina but didn't have to say anything to Chuck, whose range reached the redhead. 'She lying, Sarah.'
'I know.'
Carina stopped as they caught up. She reached her hand to Chuck. "Chuck, trust me," she said in a sultry tone.
"Never," he replied, tossing the diamond to Sarah.
Carina glared at him, then ran toward the water pressing on her watch.
'She has a remote-controlled jet ski,' he told Sarah, but they could both see it now.
Casey turned up just as the guards reached the beach, and they jumped in the four-wheel drive car he'd used, while he shot at the men.
As he drove them away, they told Casey what had happened and what Carina had tried. Chuck had 'read' her plan in her mind. "She was going to give it to her boss, claim all the credit."
Casey grunted. "And move up the DEA's covert ranks."
Sarah was in the back seat, changing her clothes. Chuck knew why, but for Casey's sake, sounding nervous and unsure of himself, asked, "What... what are you doing?"
She growled, "Can't believe I have to work my stupid hot dog shift. If I call in sick again, I'll get canned."
'I love you in that outfit, Sarah,' Chuck told her.
Sarah had to hide her grin in case Casey saw. 'Maybe I should let you take it off me later,' she thought back.
Chuck's brain froze.
Sarah's phone rang. She saw who it was and she quickly answered it. "What?"
"You owe me a diamond," Carina replied.
"We owe you nothing," Sarah growled. "You left us to die!"
"I knew you'd get out of it," Carina snapped. "But that diamond is mine… and the DEA's."
"We're handing this to our bosses. You have nothing. Not only that, you'll get no help from the CIA or NSA again," Sarah informed her.
"Bitch," Carina snapped and ended the call.
As they pulled up to Echo Park, Chuck watched as Sarah opened the velvet pouch and shook out the diamond. Both flashed on it and then looked at each other. 'You say it, Chuck. I can't know,' Sarah told him.
Chuck turned to the NSA agent. "The diamond that we stole from the wooly mammoth - it is not a drug diamond. It belongs to an Afghani terrorist group. It is way more dangerous than we thought."
Casey grunted. "They won't give up on that. They'll probably go after Carina, thinking she got it. Serves her right."
Chuck reacted instantly. "We can't let her die."
"Hazzard of the job," Casey replied.
Sarah saw the anguish in Chuck's head. If she was honest with herself, she didn't want her old friend to die, either. She called Carina to tell her what they'd found.
"Sarah?"
"Carina, that diamond is not what you thought," Sarah told her.
"I'm not alone, Sarah," Carina replied. Her tone told the blonde agent as much as the words. "You have to bring me the diamond… Please."
Chuck's eyes widened. 'Carina's been taken by the bad guys?'
Carina never showed fear, so the desperation in her tone was surprising to Sarah. Added to that, Chuck instantly wanting to help the woman who'd abandoned them was getting to her as well. Before Chuck said anything, Sarah told Casey what she'd heard.
"Do you believe her?" he asked.
"Yes," she replied. She placed the diamond onto Casey's lap. "Here, you take the diamond. I'll go find her."
"I'll come too," Chuck said immediately.
Sarah glared at him. "And how is that keeping the Intersect safe?" 'I don't want you getting hurt, Chuck.'
Chuck looked at her in anguish. "I can help." 'I couldn't live with myself if I lost you, Sarah. I might be able to help, but keep out of sight.'
Casey glared at Chuck. "You go into your apartment, and don't you dare come sniveling to me worrying about Walker. She can take care of herself."
'Please, Chuck,' Sarah added.
Casey stalked to his apartment to talk to Beckman and to make arrangements for the diamond to be collected.
Chuck watched Sarah drive away, feeling that something awful was going to happen. He looked into the courtyard and saw that Casey was out of sight. Chuck opened the Nerd Herder and jumped in, following Sarah, heading for Carina's hotel. He knew both of them would be pissed at him, but the woman he loved might be in danger. He had to go.
Sarah didn't have to go to Carina's room. She heard her voice coming from the hotel lounge. She walked in, confidently. There were three men sitting in there, along with Alahi standing beside Carina with a gun to her head.
Carina nodded to her. They looked at each other. Even without reading Carina's mind, Sarah knew the redhead was ready to move when she gave her a signal.
Alahi asked, "Do you have what I want?"
Sarah said, "You can have it when you release her."
"Not how this works," he replied with a smirk.
"Ok." She reached into her pocket. "I'll let you have it first." She nodded to Carina and whipped out her gun, shooting all three seated men, while Carina grabbed Alahi's gun and twisted it from him.
'Sarah, two men behind you.' Sarah ducked as one of the men swiped at her. She quickly pivoted on the ball of her left foot and swung round to shoot both him and the other one.
Looking back, Carina had Alahi on his knees with a gun to his head. "The diamond?" she asked Sarah.
"Safe," Sarah replied.
She turned as she felt Chuck's mind juddering. Walking up to him, she quietly said, "You shouldn't have come, but thank you. Go back to your car and wait for me. I'm fine now."
He staggered off but headed to the toilet first. All that blood was making him feel sick.
Sarah phoned for a clean-up team and someone to take Alahi away. Looking at Carina, she saw respect in the redhead's mind. Well, she had taken out five men. "I ought to take you in as well, Red."
The thought of running flashed through Carina's head, but then her confidence returned. "You won't, though."
"No, I won't. Get out of here. And don't go looking for Chuck."
As Carina walked past her, she said. "Good luck with keeping your hands off him, Sarah." The following thought of Sarah bent over a table with Chuck screwing her silly from behind, hit her. In the past, she would have been disgusted at Carina thinking that, so soon after what had happened, but after last night, she thought that might be something to try next time Devon and Ellie were out. Then, she remembered she could only disable the surveillance in Chuck's bedroom. 'Have to be his desk, then.'
Facing Casey's laptop again, the three of them heard what Beckman and Graham had to say.
"Capturing the Nadan-I-Noor Diamond has dissolved Peyman Alahi's credibility," Beckman stated. "On top of facing a jail sentence, his network has fallen apart."
Graham added, "We were also able to thwart the purchase of $26 million of surface-to-air missiles the Afghani terrorist group was planning on buying. No diamond, no cash, no sale. Job well done, people."
Sarah knew Chuck was still struggling with all the death she'd dealt out.
'I know you needed to do it, Sarah, but I'm not used to it.'
'I know,' she replied. She squeezed his hand. The mind link, or just Sarah's concern, started work soothing him, easing his pain.
An hour later, Chuck was feeling better. Having Sarah alone tonight would help too.
They had a light meal while they heard Ellie and Devon preparing to go out on a date. As Sarah watched them go, her excitement rose. However, she wasn't sure if Chuck would feel the same. 'Do you feel like a night in bed, Chuck?'
He 'saw' she didn't want sleep. 'What you're thinking about would certainly wash away any negative thoughts about today!'
She physically turned to him and said for Casey's benefit, "I'm bushed. I'm sorry, I just need some sleep."
Chuck could see the excitement in Sarah's face. It made him excited too. "Me too. Today was a little too intense for me."
They headed to the bedroom. Sarah switched off the surveillance and turned to Chuck. 'Carina gave me an idea today.' She let him see what she was thinking.
'I'm sorry, Sarah. Clearing my desk would be difficult, and it is attached to the wall, so it wouldn't give you enough room. Your head would need to go through the wall.'
She was disappointed. 'Maybe have to bend over while kneeling on the bed, then.'
'I have something else I want to do first,' he replied.
The image she got was not something she'd expected, but she was all for it. She quickly stripped off and lay on the bed. She was soon gasping. He was so good at it, but then he was reading her mind, knowing what gave her the most pleasure. Once again, his enjoyment of what he was doing down there enhanced it further. As she cried out his name and gradually recovered, she knew they had all the rest of the evening and night to explore each other more.
They faced two challenges now. In addition to working out what to do about the termination order, they had added keeping this real relationship hidden from Graham, Beckman and Casey. However, for tonight they'd put those worries aside and revel in their feelings for each other. This was so, so good!
A.N: Two become one, in another way.
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