Author's Note: Thanks for the all the reviews and favorites. I'm glad you liked the first half. Here is the final half as promised. :)
There was rustling at the window before McG shoved his pack inside and dropped down to the floor himself.
"Hey, Jaz."
She was so happy to see him that she had to blink away tears. But McG being McG dried them up pretty fast.
"Well, Top looks mighty comfy where he is right now. The two of you make a cute couple."
"Knock it off or I'll work on making your life difficult. I can play the jilted girlfriend every time you step off base. You'll be awfully lonely."
He shivered at the thought. He had no doubt Jaz could put a kink in any of his attempts to find female companionship. Deciding to keep his mouth shut for the moment, he dropped to his knees and opened his pack before lifting Top's shirt.
"Good job with the bandage. Walk me through what happened while I look him over."
"We were rappelling down the building when a bullet apparently hit something on the ground and a piece shot up and under his vest on that side. He didn't realize it had actually penetrated. Thought it was a graze. He wouldn't have told me about it but I saw all the blood."
"Were you surprised that he didn't plan to tell you? You guys are always telling me that you're fine even when you're bleeding like a sieve."
She had to admit that was true. It must be hard to be a medic to a team of hardasses. She had never thought of it that way before.
"There was no exit wound so I dug in after the bullet. I got it out with no issues but I didn't want to close it until you looked it over."
"You did a good job. I'm going to start an IV for fluids and pain medication. Once that's done I'll numb the area and close it up."
"Okay. I'll get out of the way."
"No, you can stay there. He looks comfortable and I have a good view at this angle. No reason to disturb him until the pain meds have kicked in."
She sat silently while he started the IV and got everything up and running. Once again she wasn't quite sure what to do with her hands especially now that they had an audience. She finally ended up resting them on the arm Top had closest to her.
"Jaz?"
"Yes, Top?"
"You okay?"
"I'm fine. You on the other hand are about to get your wound professionally closed."
He opened his eyes and she saw nothing but dilated pupils. She looked over at McG.
"How much pain medication did you give him?"
"Lots. You already dug around inside without medication so I thought he deserved to be really pain free this time."
She had no argument with that statement but was certain Top would want to be more aware of his surroundings.
McG cleaned the area thoroughly and she watched as he started to suture it closed. He was much calmer than she would have been. She was so glad she wasn't the one closing the wound.
"You're really pretty, you know?"
Jaz looked down and instinctively covered Top's mouth with her hand while McG chuckled.
"He isn't lying, Jaz."
"It doesn't matter. He wouldn't normally say something like that to me. It isn't fair to take advantage of him while he's drugged."
"It's not like you're stripping his clothes off."
"I know but it still isn't right."
Top reached up and pushed her hand away from his mouth.
"I don't say things I don't mean," he insisted.
She felt the heat of a blush and heard McG chuckle again.
"You two realize that we're all well aware of what is going on between you, right?"
"There is nothing going on," Jaz insisted.
"Sure. Late nights hanging out in the common area together on the couch, sitting next to each other at the picnic table looking at the stars, doing little things for each other to make your lives easier, and always looking at one another first when things go wrong. Yup, nothing going on there."
"He has a point, Jaz. Up until recently I had never given the whole family thing much thought, but if I could do it with anyone, it would be you."
"I know you're going to regret saying these things later, Top."
"Adam."
"Huh?"
"Call me by my name."
"Probably not a good idea."
"I'm a dying man. You should honor my final request."
McG was loving every second of their conversation while he was closing the wound. In real life neither of these two were smooth operators when it came to the opposite sex. It always amazed him just how good they were at playing a couple when undercover but how terrible they were when they were just being themselves. It was fun observing their conversation. Or would this classify as their mating ritual? He just knew he could get lots of use out of this later as blackmail. The rest of the guys were going to love hearing about it.
"Okay,. . . . Adam. I still stand by my previous statement that you're going to regret what you're saying."
He lifted the arm on his uninjured side just as McG started covering the sutures with a bandage. He took his hand and stroked it down her cheek.
"I'll regret nothing. I might not normally be able to act on my feelings but that doesn't mean that I don't feel them."
Jaz was taken aback. It was hard for her to believe what he was saying. He was too good for her and she knew it. Yes, she had come a long way since her childhood when she had felt like a worthless human being just because she was born a female. But that didn't mean she wasn't aware of her weaknesses. Connecting with people was hard for her. She had finally managed to build a deep connection with her team, but after she lost Elijah, she had found herself pulling away from them to protect her heart. She had never lost anyone she cared about before and it had messed with her more than she had expected.
But when her team had rescued her in Iran, that process had reversed itself, and she was more intertwined with them now than she had ever been with anyone in her life. It scared her. She had so much to lose now. Her life had been much less stressful when she only had to worry about herself. Back in those days she knew if she died no one would really care. But these men? They would care. They would mourn and she would do the same if something happened to them. But she had to acknowledge to herself that losing Top would likely destroy her.
"How are you feeling, Top?" McG asked.
"Pretty darn good."
"Excellent. Time to go home."
Jaz helped McG get Top into a seated position and together they got him to his feet. He wasn't very steady.
"See, McG. I told you. Way too much medication."
"I'll handle getting him up the stairs if you're willing to take point."
"Nothing I'd like better."
She gave him her pistol and look his long gun.
"Preach, we're ready to come to you," McG reported.
"Okay. Amir did get the residents out of the house so you are good to come out the front as planned."
"Great. I'm not sure we could have gotten Top out the window. We're starting the stairs now. See you in five."
Jaz pulled her gun up and walked to the door leading to the main level of the house. It was locked but she made quick work of it. She took a step out and cleared the rooms one by one returning once she was sure they would be safe.
"Clear," she called out to him.
McG was supporting most of Top's weight as they walked up the stairs and onto the main level. Jaz escorted them to the front door where Amir was quickly pulling up with their ride. She walked back and quickly relocked the basement door. The goal was for the occupants to never even know they were there. In this case the blood that had soaked into the basement table could have made that impossible. Fortunately for them, she was able to knock over a jar of pickled beets that soaked into the wood and obscured the blood stain completely.
It was pitch black outside as they carefully walked Top toward the van. A few minutes later Jaz found herself alone in the back of the vehicle with him. She wasn't sure how that happened. She looked down at Top's head pillowed in her lap once more.
"McG, are you sure you don't need to be back here to keep an eye on him?" Jaz asked.
"No, he just needs rest and time to heal. Just relax. We have a long drive ahead of us."
Not what she wanted to hear. If Top kept talking to her like he had been, the way he did in her dreams, it might break her heart when things returned to normal. Fortunately for her he slept through most of the early part of the trip. Once he was awake it was clear discomfort was setting in. Not surprising considering the condition of the "roads". She found herself stroking her hands through his hair again since it seemed to make the lines of tension on his face relax. She was surprised when he took one of her small hands in his larger one and kissed the back of it before pulling it to his chest.
"Get some rest, Jaz. You've been up longer than the rest of us," he instructed her.
She shook her head, "I'll sleep when we get home."
Dalton stroked his thumb gently across the back of her hand watching her closely. She had been awake for almost a full 24 hours and somehow she had managed to complete the mission, care for his wound successfully, and assist with their escape. She was a hard person to take care of.
"Do any of you have a blanket?" he asked his team.
After some rustling around, McG leaned over the back seat and handed one to Jaz. Dalton looked up at her.
"I'm going to change position and sit between you and the backseat."
Jaz didn't blame him. Laying flat on his back on these "roads" had to be uncomfortable. Plus he couldn't see anything coming from his current position. She helped him up and he was soon sitting hip to hip with her. He covered them both with the blanket since it was getting chilly in the higher elevations they were traveling.
"Sure you're okay, Top?"
"Just a little cold but the pain meds are still taking the edge off."
"I bet," she said with a smile. He had certainly been given enough medication and he was still acting like he was under the influence.
Dalton saw her stifle a yawn about two hours later. Now that they weren't doing anything, exhaustion was setting in. Based on McG's snoring the rest of the team up front was taking turns catnapping too. He slid an arm around Jaz's waist. She stiffened at first but then relaxed. He pulled her closer to his uninjured side until her head rested against his shoulder. Over time he felt the tension slowly leave her body and she melted into him. He rested his cheek on top of her head. All was right in his world. Suddenly he realized that he never wanted there to be a time when he wouldn't be a part of her life. When exactly had that happened? The little ninja had snuck her way into his heart and he was sure she didn't even know. Heck, he had just realized it himself. The rest of the trip was spent plotting out the most important mission of his life.
Four Years Later
Jaz and Adam were making the biggest decision of their lives. The funny thing was that they were both at peace with it. Not a single doubt. They had already been to see McG, Amir, and Preach individually at their homes and had received nothing but heartfelt congratulations and wishes for a happy future. Of course the three men were well aware that over the last three years Jaz and Adam had become a couple. In fact they had prodded and corralled the two of them in that direction. Apparently they had been taking too long getting to that point on their own. Later they learned that there had been a bet of some sort amongst the rest of them. Something to do with how long it would take them to realize they belonged together. Since they were holding up the payout, each member of the team started trying to maneuver them to make sure they would win the challenge. McG ultimately won which was something he still lorded over the rest of them to this day.
The transition to being a couple had been seamless. They had managed to walk the tightrope of being on the same team, following the military chain of command, without letting that spill over into their off-duty lives. Adam was the boss when they were deployed and she was the boss when they were back in the States. It might seem like a weird arrangement but it worked for them. They weren't exactly a traditional couple.
As they stepped off their plane in DC they were both surprised to see Director Campbell waiting for them. They walked over to her and noticed the warm smile on her face.
"Adam. Jaz. It's good to see you."
"Patricia, this is a surprise. I thought we were meeting in your office tomorrow."
"We are, Adam, but not for the reason you're thinking. It has come to my attention that you both are planning to leave the military."
"It has, huh?"
"Yes. I think sometimes you forget that I'm now the Director of the DIA. Not too much gets by me including when two of my operators become a team off the field as well as on."
Adam looked over at Jaz who was looking at Patricia in shock. He had told her that he doubted their relationship was a secret but she hadn't believed him. She figured if anyone knew the truth they would have been placed on separate teams. It was a situation neither of them wanted. Thus the decision to leave the military behind.
"You don't need to resign your commissions. You are two of this country's best and for more than three years you have managed your personal and professional lives beautifully. When we meet tomorrow we are going to talk about how to best accommodate your new situation. Assuming you both want to stay."
Adam knew that they both loved what they did and that they would be more than happy to stay in the field. He could tell Jaz was ecstatic that this was an option for them. They both thrived on action and adrenaline.
Patricia walked over to Jaz and looked her in the eye, "I understand congratulations are in order."
Jaz's smile lit up her whole face. It was one of the few times Patricia had seen her blissfully happy and she watched as Adam's joy lit his face as well. It would be interesting to see how these two tackled their biggest operation yet: parenthood.
"Come see me tomorrow and we'll iron out the details of how to move forward. You both deserve happiness and I'm going to do my absolute best to make sure you get it."
