A/N: Last chapter. I hope you've enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it. And yes, there's another sequel in the works. Patience...they'll get there. ;) ~wolf

**** XXX ****

"Good. I know you keep your promises. Good night, John."

He smiled into the phone. "Good morning, Jos."

When they hung up, both of them laughed. They still hadn't gotten to the damn file.

**** XXX ****

Chapter 6

Reese was antsy. It had been ten days since they'd spent the night on the phone together and he hadn't been able to see her. The numbers kept coming in and Carter was constantly busy with her own work. They'd talked a few times on the phone but they were always short and work related. He was going crazy. According to Taylor, though, she wasn't much better. She wasn't sleeping well. She'd snapped at him about coming home late from school. She just wasn't herself. Taylor tried to convince him to move up their plan just to keep him from getting grounded, but Reese was adamant about doing the whole thing on her birthday.

Three days…he could make it three more days.

Taylor had laughed when he'd said it. "You both might explode before those three days, man."

Reese wasn't sure he was wrong.

**** XXX ****

Today was the day.

Reese pulled some jeans and a sweatshirt out of his closet and headed to the bathroom, mentally going over his checklist like a good soldier: He'd been to the grocery store. He'd picked the tickets up from Finch. He'd called to verify the reservations. He'd made sure the car was ready.

Everything was in place.

So why the hell were his nerves on edge? Because you're so afraid you're going to screw this up, that's why.

He stared at himself in the mirror as he shaved. He absolutely was not going to screw this up. He knew he wasn't wrong about the signals she'd given him; he wasn't that out of practice. It was all a matter of tactics…he understood tactics. It's Operation: Carter.

And if she ever found out you referred to this like that, she'd kick your ass.

Reese tapped his razor on the side of the sink and grinned. Might be worth telling her that just to get into hand to hand combat with her. Only one way that would end up if he had anything to say about it.

He checked his watch and wiped his face. Time to get things moving.

**** XXX ****

Reese stood outside the door to Carter's apartment and bounced on his toes, nervous energy radiating from him. He tried some deep breathing to settle himself. It might be easier if they'd actually had more of a chance to talk during the last few days, but they hadn't and he had to deal with that.

He took another deep breath and knocked. He heard Taylor yell that he'd get the door and it swung open. "Hey John. Mom! It's John!"

Carter walked out of the kitchen and smiled at him, shaking her head. "I can see that. Are you going to invite him in or leave him out there?"

Taylor stepped aside, blushing. "Yeah, sorry. C'mon in."

"Hey stranger. Sorry about my son, I swear he normally has better manners than that." She glared at Taylor who had the good sense to look away, grinning. "He's done nothing but talk about this game all week."

Reese put Taylor in a light headlock. "I've been looking forward to it too."

"You know, girls like football too."

He cocked his fingers at her in a "c'mere" motion, not letting Taylor go. She raised an eyebrow but walked over to him.

He leaned down, invading her personal space. "I don't doubt you like football, Carter, but I thought you might like an afternoon to yourself on a Sunday more…no teenage distractions. I promise, next time, I'll get an extra ticket. Or we'll leave this one.." he rapped Taylor on the top of the head and heard a muffled 'Ow, damn it!'…at home." He winked at her and smiled.

She covered her mouth to keep from laughing, then pointed at him. "You're on. That might be fun. As long as you leave out the headlock."

"You're no fun." He let Taylor up and looked over at him. "Get your coat."

Carter flicked the kitchen towel at him. "You have no idea how much fun I am."

"God, Mom…can you please stop?"

When Taylor came back into the room, struggling with his coat, Reese turned him towards the door and looked back to wink at her. "Carter?"

"Hmmm?"

"Enjoy your afternoon. Oh…and Happy Birthday." With that, he closed the door behind him.

He and Taylor bumped knuckles on the way down the stairs.

**** XXX ****

Reese looked over at Taylor in the passenger seat as he buckled his seatbelt. "I give it about twenty minutes before the angry phone call from your mother."

Taylor laughed. "You think it'll be that long? I give it ten."

They split the difference.

Fifteen minutes after leaving the apartment, Reese's phone started buzzing in his pocket. He winked at Taylor as he answered. "Carter, we haven't been gone that long. You can't tell me you're bored already."

Taylor snickered next to him.

"You wanna explain to me why there is a monster of a man standing outside my door insisting that you sent him and that I should go with him?"

Reese couldn't tell if it was fear or irritation in her voice, neither of which he wanted her to feel. He knew she was armed, but he hoped she'd give the man at the door a chance before she shot him.

He cleared his throat. "Tall guy, looks like a linebacker?"

"That's him."

"Did he give you one of Finch's cards?"

"Yes. Says he works for one of his companies. How many does the man have?"

"Go with him, Carter."

"Where am I supposed to be going, Reese?"

Uh oh.

"Do you trust me?"

There was a pause on the other end that scared him just a little bit. And then her voice dropped. "You know I do."

"Then go with him. It's all part of it."

She sighed. "Part of what?"

"Go with him. He's part of your birthday surprise."

"My what? John, what did you do?"

"Enjoy your day, Joss, from me and Taylor…and even Finch. But mostly me, just so you know. You deserve this. Please."

He hung up without hearing her response and hoped that she really did trust him enough.

Taylor leaned over and grinned. "Dude, if she doesn't kill you, you are so in."

**** XXX ****

It was close to 6pm when the door to Carter's apartment opened and she floated in. He heard Taylor greet her with a quick hello and a "wow, Mom, you look awesome!". Reese smiled to himself. He wanted to see her, but not yet; he wanted her to come to him.

He listened as she and Taylor talked for a few minutes and then he heard her ask, "What's that amazing smell?" Followed by Taylor, "That's John. He's cooking dinner."

He wasn't sure, but he could have sworn he heard her squeak out a "what?" and then silence. He chuckled and went back to stirring the pot cooking on the stove.

He knew she was there before she made herself known.

"You're cooking."

He looked over his shoulder and took her in. She was holding the book and flower close to her chest and, Taylor was right, she looked amazing: relaxed, soft…beautiful. "You're very perceptive, detective."

"In my kitchen."

He shrugged and kept stirring, trying not to let her see how amused he was. "Works better than the bathroom."

"And it smells incredible." She moved towards him, peeking around him into the pan.

"You know, you keep being surprised by the fact that I'm cooking and I might get insulted."

She ran her hand down his back. "I'm sorry. It's just surprising to see you so comfortable in my kitchen. And that didn't come out right either." She sighed. "I'll just shut up before I talk myself into bread and water."

Reese chuckled. "You won't; I really do understand. I don't do it often. It's no fun to cook for myself."

He watched as she boosted herself up on the counter next to him, setting the book and flower down gently near her. She didn't mention them, but he knew better than to think she wouldn't. He turned back to the saucepan.

"And yet, here you are in my kitchen, cooking. Is this part of the surprise?"

He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. "It is. Thought you might like to have someone else cook for you today."

She was quiet and he turned his head to look at her. "Was I wrong?" His brows drew together when she just stared at him, her eyes darting between his, reading him.

When her hands reached out and fisted in his sweatshirt, he knew he hadn't been wrong. She pulled him gently forward.

"No, you definitely weren't."

She pressed her lips against his, startling them both. The clatter of the spoon against the pan made her grin against his mouth. He took the opportunity to cup her face in his hands, breathing her name against her lips. He shifted, settling himself between her legs, and angling her face so he could deepen the kiss. The kiss he'd been wanting for so long. Leave it to Carter to take the initiative. He felt every slide of her lips, every touch of her tongue against his, down in the depths of his heart. When she ran her heel against the back of his knee, he was afraid his brain was going to short out. He pressed forward and tunneled his hands through her hair, gripping it gently. She moaned against his mouth and wrapped her arms under his, gripping his sweatshirt again at his back, pulling him tighter against her.

"Oh my god…I didn't know I needed to knock before coming into the kitchen!"

They jumped apart like a couple of teenagers, both of them wiping their mouths and looking at anything but each other.

Jos glared at her son, but smiled, a blush coloring her cheeks. Reese turned back to the stove, grinning.

Taylor scratched his head and looked between his mother and Reese. "Um, yeah…sorry…how long until dinner? I'm starving."

Reese cleared his throat. "Just a few more minutes, I think."

"OK, good. I…um…" Taylor gestured over his shoulder. "I'll be out there. In the living room. Playing a video game…you know…with the volume up."

He ducked and laughed as Reese threw a kitchen towel at him.

When they were alone again, Carter jumped down from the counter and picked up the towel, running it through her hands. Reese could feel the tension in the kitchen increase as she walked towards him.

"John…"

He turned around, a spoon in his hand. "Taste?" He didn't want to hear her excuses; he wanted to believe she meant the kiss, at least for a little while. Tonight was about her birthday…he could lick his wounds later.

She kept her eyes on him as she took a quick taste. "Oh my God…that's delicious!"

"Again with the surprise. You're not doing my ego any good tonight." He smiled down at her.

She took his wrist in her hand and ran her thumb over his pulse point. "It really is delicious. And your ego is just fine."

She slipped her fingers up through his, gripping his hand. "About before…"

Reese swallowed. Here it comes. "It's OK, really. You don't have to explain…." He looked down at their hands, trying to reconcile the fact that she was about to let him down gently with the picture of their fingers entwined.

She cocked her head and caught his eyes. "I think I do."

"Jos…"

She chuckled and tried to glare at him. "You know, for a man of so few words you just won't stop talking tonight. Now, keep your damn mouth shut for a minute, will you?"

One corner of his mouth twitched up and he nodded.

"Before you get it into your head that I regret what happened …I don't…so don't…just don't."

"You don't." It wasn't really a question. The other side of his mouth pulled up.

He could tell she was fighting a smile too. "No, I don't. I think my timing sucks; but no, of course I don't."

He pulled her hand against his chest. "So, that means that it might happen again."

She looked away and finally let the smile come through. "It might."

He nodded and threw his arm over her shoulder. "OK. Good."

She elbowed him lightly and laughed. "Are you gonna feed me? I'm starving."

Reese turned and inspected the meal on the stove. "Yeah. Why don't you go get Taylor, I'll bring out dinner."

**** XXX ****

"John Reese, if I had known you could cook like this in the beginning, I would have fought Finch for you."

Reese chuckled as Carter pushed back from the table. "I'm glad you enjoyed it."

"Yeah, no kidding, John. That was really good." Taylor wiped his mouth and stood. "So good, I might even consider clearing the table."

Carter gasped and clutched her chest in mock-shock. "No! Who are you, what have you done with my son?"

"Mom…if you keep that up, I'll just go to Kev's. We have a test on Monday." He smiled at her and cut his eyes at Reese quickly.

Reese glanced at her. "If it's OK with you that he goes, I'll get the kitchen."

"You two are up to something." Her eyes darted between the two men.

"It's your birthday, Mom."

"Yeah, Carter, it's your birthday."

She rolled her eyes and sighed. "Fine, fine. Taylor, be home by ten, please." She turned and pointed to Reese. "And you? Stay here, I'll get the kitchen; you cooked."

He stood before she could protest. "No, you won't. You'll have a glass of wine, relax, and let me take care of the kitchen."

Taylor snickered and Carter threw up her hands. "Now I know you two are in cahoots. Taylor, get out of here before I change my mind."

He didn't have to be told twice. "See ya, John! Thanks for the game!"

"You're welcome, T."

Reese turned to her and held out his hand. "Come with me."

She took his hand and he brought her into the kitchen. Opening a bottle of wine, he poured her a glass and handed it to her.

"I had wine?" She took a small sip and closed her eyes. "Wait…I had good wine?"

He smiled. "I wasn't sure so I picked some up." He grasped her shoulders, turned her around, and leaned his chin on her shoulder. "Now, go relax, Jos."

Squeezing the hand on her shoulder, she smiled. "If you insist…"

"I do. Go." He gave her a soft shove.

As he watched her walk out of the kitchen, his heart tightened and his stomach clenched. He was quickly falling in love with that woman and he had absolutely no idea what to do about it.

**** XXX ****

Twenty minutes later, Reese walked out of the kitchen with his own glass of wine and found her curled under a blanket, the empty wine glass on the table, and her eyes closed. He couldn't help but smile as he sat down at her feet.

"I'm not asleep. I'm resting my eyes." She grinned. "Between the carbs, the wine, and my amazing day, I'm pretty sure I won't wake up until Wednesday once I do fall asleep."

He pulled her legs onto his lap and covered her toes with the blanket. "Good. You need to relax." Without thinking about it, he started massaging her calves over the blanket.

"Oh, wow…that feels good. It's the one thing I missed about today: a good massage. Today was so amazing, John. I don't know how to thank you. Everything was perfect."

He stopped his hands, which caused her eyes to pop open. "You stopped." She leaned her head on the back of the couch and smiled a sleepy smile at him.

"Back up a second. What did you mean about missing the massage?"

She waved her hand in dismissal. "It's not a big deal. The therapist ended up calling in at the last minute with an emergency."

"They didn't call me. I would have arranged something else for you."

She leaned forward and ran her hand over his jaw. "Relax. The mani/pedi? The facial? The mud. The whole thing? John, it was incredible. I was basically boneless after it all. It was an amazing birthday present. And dinner? Wow." She blew out a breath. "A girl could get spoiled by all this attention."

He shrugged. And then it hit him. He swirled his finger in the air. "Turn around."

"Excuse me?"

He lifted her legs and stood, swinging them to the other side of the couch. She giggled as she turned on her butt. "What the hell are you doing?"

He sat back down behind her with her nestled between his legs. "It may not be the same, but you're getting that massage, Jocelyn Carter."

"Oh."

He heard her breath catch when he pressed his hand on her back and pushed her gently forward. He started low, pressing his thumbs in and running up her spine. Splaying out his fingers, he ran them against her ribs and around her sides. She tensed up a little but he leaned forward and whispered, "Relax, Jos. Just trust me."

She nodded and he felt her let out a breath. She wrapped her arms over the outside of his knees and ran her hands down his shins.

Reese fisted his hands and used his knuckles against her spine again, running them on either side. When he reached her shoulders, he gripped them gently, using his thumbs along her neck first.

He faltered at the sound of her moan, but caught himself. He definitely wanted to hear her do that again.

He tightened his grip on her shoulders and worked out the knots he found here. His hands ran down her arms, pressing into muscles and working back up to her shoulders. He used his thumbs again, running over her shoulder blades and into the muscles surrounding them. He hit a particularly sensitive spot at the base of her neck that made her flinch.

"Sorry." He lightened his touch and she tightened hers on his legs.

"Don't be. You have amazing hands. You sure it was the CIA you worked for and not some spa in Europe?"

He swallowed, hard. "Yeah, I'm sure. Just picked things up here and there."

He felt rather than heard her laugh. "I'll bet. Seducing some double agent, huh?"

"More like getting the kinks worked out after getting into it with some guy twice my size." He reached around her neck to her jaw, stroking gently, using his thumbs behind her ears, turning her head so slowly she barely noticed.

"Did that happen a lot?" Her voice was getting softer he noticed; she was getting sleepy. He smiled, realizing he'd lulled her into being comfortable in his arms.

He dropped his voice slightly, leaning towards her ear. "Not so much that I had to retire. I'm pretty scrappy."

"Mmhm. I've noticed that. My Man in a Suit." She tilted her head and looked at him, grinning. He didn't miss the possessive tone in her voice and it sent a rush down his spine.

Her eyes were hooded and sleepy and she teased his ankle under his jeans with her fingers. He didn't think she even realized she was doing it, but he was very aware of it.

He pulled lightly on her shoulders. "Lean back; you look like you're going to fall over."

She swallowed as she watched him, but leaned back against his chest. He pulled the blanket up over them and wrapped his arms lightly at her waist. He brushed his nose against her cheek. "It's OK, we're just sitting here."

She leaned her head against his shoulder and nodded. Her hands reached out of the blanket and covered his.

They were quiet for a while and Reese listened for her breathing to even out. He entwined their fingers and when she tightened her grip, he realized she wasn't asleep like he'd thought.

"John?"

"Hmm?"

"Can I ask you a question?"

"Of course."

"In the limo tonight…there were flowers and the book…I just wasn't sure…" Her voice trailed off quietly.

He tightened his arms around her. "Wasn't sure about what?" His voice was barely above a whisper and he leaned down to watch her face. Her eyes were closed, but she bit her lower lip out of nervousness.

"I found the flowers, the Asters, in the book…and their meaning. Or meanings, really."

"Mmhmm. And?"

She brought their clasped hands together and kissed his knuckles, holding his hand against her mouth. "Did you mean it?"

He took a deep breath, knew she felt it against her back. He also knew the only answer he could give her was the truth. "Yes."

Her head nodded against his shoulder again and he heard her breath hitch. He pulled her tighter against him. "I just wanted you to know, Jos. I've left so many things unsaid in my life. I couldn't do that with this."

She didn't say anything for a few minutes, but the silence wasn't awkward.

"Jos? I didn't give you any of the flowers to make you feel uncomfortable. Especially the ones tonight."

She sniffed and nodded. "I know."

"Then take a deep breath and try to get some sleep, OK? Nothing has to be decided tonight. I'm just happy to be here with you on your birthday."

She shifted in his arms and snuggled down a little lower, her cheek resting against his chest. "I'm very happy you're here too."

When he was sure she was asleep, Reese slid out from behind her and leaned down, lifting her in his arms. He carried her to her bedroom, pushing the covers back with one hand, and laying her down gently. Pulling the blankets back up over her, he ran his hand softly over her shoulder.

Squatting down, he placed a kiss on her cheek. "Whenever you're ready, Jos. I'll be here." Another soft kiss to her lips and he stood, watching her shift and roll to her side. Her eyes opened slightly and focused on him. They watched each other for a moment before she sent him a small smile.

Reese winked and backed out into the hall, closing her door with a soft click.

The smile stayed on his face as he pressed his hand against the door. "Good night, Jos."

Love and patience. Like the flowers. He had them both in abundance.

END?