I still don't own Chuck. Not sure who does at this point. Maybe Subway.

The bad guys start to get desperate. Desperate people sometimes make mistakes. And Team B has more resources than the bad guys realize.

Warning: There is a mild love scene in this chapter. It's nothing too explicit – certainly not close to the edge for a T story. But, if you're squeamish about such things – or you don't want to read about Sarah and Shaw… Come on guys – just kidding, lol. One thing you'll never read in a BillAtWork story is a Sarah / Shaw love scene. Unless it was a dream. Hmmm. Maybe a dream…

I'll be sure to post warnings on chapters that have violent or sexual situations. I'm going to keep this T – but I might dance on the edge for a bit.

If you enjoyed this or any of the stories on this site, please take a second and send the author a review.

Taking It Slow

x-x-x-x-x

"Sonofabitch," he yelled in frustration. "You have got to be kidding me. She has a new boyfriend already? She's with somebody for five years. Then one day after he dumps her, she's got somebody new?"

"Yes, sir, it looks like it. He spent the night at her place. He's there right now."

"Are we sure this isn't just a rebound, one-night-stand?" he asked. "After all, we're trying to turn her into a party girl. Maybe it was easier than we thought."

"It's possible. But it doesn't seem too likely, given their profiles."

"This is a nightmare," he sighed. "An absolute freaking nightmare. Okay, this new guy – what do we have on him?"

"Nothing, I'm afraid. He works for the National Party. Center-Right politically. Apparently never had a serious girlfriend before. Zero criminal record – not even a traffic ticket. He's pretty dedicated to her. He fought off three guys last night."

"Great," he muttered. "A real fucking Boy Scout. Can he be seduced?"

"We'll try, sir. But have you seen her? If you were sleeping with her regularly, would you be a candidate to be seduced?"

"Seduced doesn't necessarily mean sex," he said like he was lecturing a third grader. "There is always money – power – fame."

"Yes, sir. We'll give all of those a try."

"Do that," he said. "If that doesn't work – we'll have to try something more… messy."

"Yes, sir, this Kate Bartowski is turning out to be a real pain in the ass."

"Why should that be a surprise?" he asked sarcastically. "It's in her genes."

x-x-x-x-x

Alex felt like he was floating on a cloud. He really didn't want to wake up. Whatever Colonel Casey had given him – wow – it was sure effective. He hadn't moved a muscle all night. But finally he woke up enough to notice that he wasn't alone. He must have moved some muscles because he was actually spooned into Kate. He could feel her soft rhythmic breathing as she slept. Alex suddenly noticed how Kate was dressed and became wide awake. She was wearing some sort of t-shirt. It felt silky against his chest. It had either ridden up or was short because his hand was resting on her bare stomach. Alex was afraid to know what else she was wearing – and he was far too nervous to reach his hand down to feel. Her legs felt bare as they touched his. His mind flashed back to the other night when Kate passed out. He got a brief glimpse of her panties when he was putting her to bed. He really tried not to look – but… wow. Her hand was lying on top of his firmly holding him close to her. His face was buried in her hair. Whatever shampoo she used - it smelled so… wonderful.

Kate felt Alex stirring. When she got into bed with him last night, she knew exactly what she was doing. She had this all planned out. Kate knew that the way she was dressed wasn't really playing fair. Tough. She was done playing fair. This stupid dance between them had gone on long enough. It simply had to end.

Kate really hoped that she could get Alex to make the first move this morning. For one thing, it would be good for him. He really needed to take a chance – and be rewarded. So, she was ready to do whatever it took to encourage him. And if that meant getting mostly naked and teasing him with the prospect of sex – okay. But one thing was for sure – she loved him. If there had been any shred of a doubt, it was answered last night when he threw himself at Hunter and his two friends. And she wasn't losing him to some slut like Amy, who was willing to shove her boobs in his face, without a fight. He wasn't getting out of this bed without either him telling her that he loved her – or telling her that he wasn't interested. And so far the plan seemed to be working – at least the prospect of sex part. She could clearly feel his… umm… growing excitement.

Kate rolled over on her back and stretched her arms over her head. She knew full well what that would do to her t-shirt. "It's too early," she moaned. And, indeed, the clock on the nightstand flashed a little past four. This was actually a little earlier than her original plan. But like Uncle Casey always said – there was enough time to sleep after you were dead. "Go back to sleep."

Currently, there were a lot of things that Alex could think of doing – but going back to sleep certainly wasn't anywhere on the list. When Kate rolled over, it caused their hands to drift down a bit. There now could be no doubt that Kate was, indeed, only wearing her tiny cotton panties. Alex really couldn't move his hand. Kate was holding it into place. But it was clearly into dangerous territory. Just a couple more inches and he could… Well actually, he was paralyzed anyway. All he could think of was how good she felt.

After a moment, Kate rolled over to face him. "Hey," she said softly. "Is your eye feeling better?" Actually, it looked a lot better. The swelling was completely gone. He still was going to have somewhat of a black eye – but not too bad. But right now, the eye wasn't that important. She knew that her shirt had ridden up dangerously close to – well, the point of no longer being relevant. It didn't really matter. She had no intention of wearing it much longer anyway.

"Yes," Alex whispered. Kate had taken her hand off his when she rolled over onto her side. Now his hand was resting on her hip. His fingers were resting on the top of her thigh. He knew that he should move his hand, this was far too intimate - but he was still paralyzed. Their lips were very close to touching.

Kate knew that she had him right where she wanted him. He couldn't move. Of course, she also was getting incredibly turned on. She wanted to start ripping his clothes off. It would be easy, he was only wearing boxers. She knew that this had to be over very, very soon – for both of their sakes. So she put her sexiest school girl pout on her face. It was time to move in for the kill. "Alex," she said. "Please be honest. What did Senator Casey want you to tell me?"

x-x-x-x-x

Chuck and Sarah had finally made it back to their hotel room. It had been a very long night – for both of them.

"At least now, we know," Chuck said.

"Yeah," Sarah replied tiredly. "I don't think there is any doubt. I've been an agent for thirty years – and that's the worst that a mark has ever acted."

"Yup," Chuck said soothingly. "I'm sorry that you had to go through that. Was it as bad as it sounded?"

"It was bad," Sarah sighed. "You should have let me shoot Shaw in the head like I wanted."

"I know," Chuck said. "But then we wouldn't know what they have in mind. Of course, we still don't."

"I'm going to take a shower," Sarah said. "Maybe I can scrub off some of those fingerprints. What do you think we should do?"

"I'm not sure," Chuck said. "I don't think we have many options. I really don't think there is any DeVan. The intersect has never heard of him. And Beckman told us that the fake update doesn't have any new information – so I think we can safely say that he either doesn't exist – or, even if he does, we can't ID him. Asimov clearly knows what's going on. He is going to see how many times he can play you into bed and how many positions. It's probably designed to make me even more jealous. He knows that I'm listening."

Sarah looked carefully at Chuck. "Are you jealous?" she asked. "That was worse than it's ever been. It was far more than you should be expected to take. I'm so sorry."

"Why should you be sorry?" Chuck asked softly as he put his arm around her. "Of course, I hated that. But you did too."

"I don't know," Sarah sighed. "I just am. I hate this business. If I had never dragged you into it…"

"Then we wouldn't be together," Chuck quickly interrupted. "Trust me, Sarah. We've been all though this more times than I can count. This is not your fault. I wouldn't want it any other way."

Sarah just snuggled into Chuck's side. He always knew what to say – or not say. "Thank you, sweetie," she said. "Me either. What do you think we should do?"

Chuck thought for a moment. "I think maybe we should just lay low for a few days. We'll have you avoid Asimov until we can figure something out. We'll just hang out in the room."

"Great," Sarah said. "It'll be like a second honeymoon. We'll order room service and scr…"

"Yeah," Chuck interrupted with a grin. "I actually get the concept of a second honeymoon."

x-x-x-x-x

Okay, there it was. Kate had gone as far as she could. If he couldn't say it now, she'd have to take the lead. That would be a little disappointing. But either way, this was getting resolved in the next few minutes. She was on fire.

Alex sighed. "I'll tell you," he said. "But, Kate – we're friends, right?"

"Of course," Kate said.

"I mean honest, close, life-long friends," Alex said. "I'd hate for anything to ruin that."

Come on Alex. Would I be lying here naked next to you if… "Okay," she said. "Duly noted. But please don't worry about that. We're all that and more. I don't think there is anything that could ruin what we have."

Alex took a deep breath. "Senator Casey wants me to tell you that I'm head over heels in love with you," he said. "She told me to ask you how you feel. That, at least, then I would know."

Kate's heart soared. It was all she could do to not get up and dance around the room. He said it. No, wait, he almost said it… but not quite. "Well," she said.

"Well?" Alex repeated in confusion.

"Come on silly," Kate said with a smile. "Are you going to take her advice? She's a pretty smart lady. She's going to be President. I think that she's absolutely right. Then, at least, you'll know."

Alex smiled back. "You're really going to make me say it," he said. "Aren't you?"

Kate touched her forehead to his. "Alex," she said. "Look, I know that you're shy. It's so incredibly cute. I know that this is hard for you to say. I'm trying to make it as easy for you as I can. In case you hadn't noticed, I'm lying here almost naked. And if you can't go first, I'll understand. I think I already know. But, yes, it would make me very, very happy to hear you say it."

Alex got quiet for a moment. "Kate," he finally said. "I should have already told you this. But I was too afraid to mess up the special thing that we have. That was stupid. I'm really sorry. So here it is. I love you. I think that you're pretty much perfect. I know that you're completely out of my league. But I'm head over heels in love with you. How do you feel? Is there any chance for me – for us?"

Kate had to blink the tears out of her eyes. "Yes," she whispered. "There is an excellent chance for us."

"Wait a minute," Alex said. "You made me say it. It seems only fair…"

Kate grinned again. "Fair enough," she said. "Yes, Alex, I'm head over heels in love with you too. I've never felt this way before. But this is going to be complicated. Do you think we could take it slow?"

Alex's face fell – a little. Taking it slow was code for she wasn't sure. "We can take it as slow as you need," he said. "I understand that you just got out of a long term relationship. But I hope that you understand something. I'm sure now. I'm always going to want to move to the next level. I hope you can have patience with me."

Kate's grin widened. "That's sweet," she said. "But I think that you misunderstood me. You're the one. I'm sure now too. By slow, I meant this morning. It's going to be our first time. I want it to be so perfect for you. Can we take it slow?"

Alex breathed a sigh of relief. "Okay," he said with a grin of his own. "I get it. You're teasing me. That's the way it's going to be huh? Fine, I can play."

Kate touched her lips to Alex's. The electricity jumped off their lips. Quickly the kissing escalated until their tongues were hungrily dancing. Alex was so cute. He clearly was hesitant to be aggressive. He reached for the hem of her t-shirt – but paused before lifting it over her head. So finally Kate just lifted her arms in a clear signal. Fortunately, neither was wearing much in the way of clothes. So it didn't take long before Alex's boxers and Kate's shirt and panties were lying on the floor. "I'm sorry that I teased you," Kate said with a grin when the latest kiss broke. "I was serious when I said that I love you. And I do want our first time to be perfect for you. But we don't have to go quite this slow."

Alex's grin changed. It almost looked sly. He grabbed Kate and rolled her onto her back – so that he was on top of her. "Let this be a lesson," he whispered between kisses. "Be careful what you ask for. This is a big step. Are you completely sure about this?"

Kate suddenly realized – Alex wasn't being hesitant. He was getting his revenge for her teasing him. Okay, so he had clearly won this round. It was time to surrender – live to fight another day – oh, and put out this raging fire that was presently consuming her. "Alex," she whispered. "I've never been so sure of anything in my whole life. I'm very sorry that I teased you – but please don't make me wait any longer."

Then suddenly it happened. They were one - very softly at first – but slowing gaining intensity. Alex was no longer teasing her – he had taken charge and was gently leading her. Kate had never felt anything like this in her life. It was so intense that she couldn't even describe the feeling. She was completely consumed by the fog. All she could do was lie there helplessly and try to move her hips to match his ever more urgent rhythm. Any coherent thought was driven out of her head as she completely surrendered to the intensity of the fire. And when her moment finally came, she lost all control. She was completely consumed by the wave after wave of pleasure that was hitting her. She didn't even know how long it lasted – but when it was finally over, all she could do was wrap her arms around his neck, hold on for dear life, and whisper, "I love you." And naturally, she heard it back – many times. That was quite possibly the very best part.

So much for taking it slow – maybe next time...

x-x-x-x-x

Elise had just dropped off Robbie at the airport. Naturally, he was pretty excited. Of course he had flown before – but never by himself. And that wasn't the only reason Robbie was excited. He worshiped his dad. And he was going to be helping him in the business. It was a right of passage sort of thing. And to be honest, Joe was more excited than Robbie was.

Actually, there was no need for Robbie to make this trip. The work had gone much smoother than expected and everything was basically done. There was the grand opening tonight – but the local manager was now doing most of the planning. But the honest truth was – Joe wanted to spend some time with his son. That's why Elise decided not to go to the grand opening. This would be the first one that she missed – but they needed this chance to be alone together. The two main men in her life off on their own for a few days. Elise was excited – for both of them.

Sure Elise was nervous. But what could go wrong? It was a direct flight to Denver. Joe was going to be standing there waiting for him. Robbie would be in Denver almost before Elise would make it back home.

When Elise finally got back home, she threw her keys on the kitchen table and sighed. Traffic had been murder. That's what a simple fender bender would do to the freeway. But at least, she could relax and make herself a cup of tea.

That's when she noticed the shadow. Elise hadn't been an agent for twenty years. And even when she was, she hated guns. So it wasn't surprising that she didn't carry one now. But she had a drawer full of knives. So she grabbed the biggest one that she could find and went out to investigate.

He was sitting calmly on the sofa, waiting for her. "Hello, Agent Walters," he said. "It's nice to see you. You're looking particularly lovely."

"Who are you?" Elise said as she brandished the knife. "I don't know any Agent Walters."

"Come now, Agent Walters," the man said. "Please put down the knife. It's rude. We both know that you're not going to use it."

"Get the hell out of here," Elise said. "Or I'm calling the police."

"I don't think so," the man said. "May I call you Elise?"

Without waiting for a response, the man continued. "He's a very nice looking boy you have, Elise. Very nice looking. It would be a shame if something were to happen to him. But Denver is a very violent city. I'm sure that you're concerned."

Elise's blood ran cold. The knife dropped out of her hand and to the floor with a clang. "If you touch him," she said with her voice shaking with anger. "If you touch a hair on his head…"

The man just smiled. "Again with the rudeness, Elise?" he asked sarcastically. "Please save the ridiculous threats. You don't even know who we are. You wouldn't know where to begin to look for us."

"What do you want?" Elise asked.

"Do you know what would be awful?" the man asked, ignoring Elise's question. "Just having a child disappear without a trace. That has to be a parent's worst nightmare. Don't you agree?"

"What do you want?" Elise asked with tears now filling her eyes.

"I mean the not knowing," the man said. "Is he alive? Did he suffer? That has to be the worst. I hope that never happens to you. It sounds horrible."

Now Elise was sobbing. "What do you want?" she asked.

"Relax, Elise," the man said. "This can have a happy ending. We just need your assistance with a small matter. It's simple really. It seems that Kate Bartowski considers you somewhat of a mentor. We'd like her to do some things for us – and she has been somewhat resistant. We'd like you to use your power of persuasion to convince her to perhaps see things our way. Just make a few phone calls, follow our instruction to the letter, and this is all over."

Elise tried to compose herself. "And that's it?" she asked. "What do you want from Kate?"

"We think she is far to reserved," he said. "A beautiful girl like that. She should experience life. Party a little. Get a little wild."

"You're trying to use Kate against Janice," Elise whispered – far more to herself than to this creep. "So, this is all over politics? You would kidnap a beautiful boy - ruin a beautiful young girl's life – all for politics?"

"More rudeness, Elise?" he asked. "We are going to have to work on your manners. What can I say? We don't think that Senator Casey would make a very good president. Besides, getting a little wild might be a good thing for young Kate. It didn't ruin your life, did it? Now are you in – or not?"

"Let me get this straight," Elise said. "All I have to do is make some phone calls?"

"Pretty much," the man said. "There is one more minor task. You'll need to wear this wire all the time. It has a bio-sensor so we'll know the instant that you take it off. We'll be monitoring your cell phone and computers. If you attempt to contact anyone…"

"I have to check on the Bartowski teens," Elise said. "The parents are expecting an email from me every day. If they don't get one…"

"Of course they are expecting it," he said. "And they'll get one. We wouldn't want anyone to get suspicious. Naturally, we'll be monitoring it. It's important that you go check on them once a day at noon. Of course, we'll be listening. It would be a shame to endanger them. Oh, by the way, the parents are in France. I'm afraid they won't be coming home again. Any questions?"

Elise just shook her head.

"Excellent," he said. "We'll send you instructions over the next few days. Oh, about that last minor task. You were rude to me earlier. Very rude. I actually have a couple of hours to spare. We have an empty house. Seems like a perfect opportunity to work on your manners. I think that maybe you should think of something to apologize to me. Perhaps some gesture to prove that we're friends. Don't you agree?"

x-x-x-x-x

Kate was sitting in her office. Well, technically she was sitting. She wasn't sure that her butt was actually touching the chair. It felt more like she was floating. She had never felt so good in her life. And the best part was that she got to tell Julie to back off. Julie was even happy for them – at least she pretended to be. Of course she wasn't going to be very happy when Uncle Casey asked her to introduce him to Hunter. Kate had never seen him quite so pissed. That might be fun.

Of course, when she said 'the best part', she meant the best part of the work day. Clearly the real best part was her morning with Alex. She had never, never, ever come close to feeling like that. Sure, Kate wasn't an expert. After all, she had now slept with a grand total of two men. But based on her small sample size, Alex was clearly in the major leagues. And she could tell that Alex felt the same way. And it was more than the sex. Oh, make no mistake - the sex was out of this world great. But the cuddling between and after was probably even better. It was something that she never got to do.

And the very, very real best part was that they were going to go home tonight and do it all over again. And they could now spend the whole night – and every night - together.

x-x-x-x-x

Chuck Junior was on pins and needles. He was sure this was a game of some kind. Why else would Aunt Elise hand him a note that told him to say nothing, wait for two hours, and then open and read it when he was sure that nobody was watching. But he did. After all, he liked games. He even went down to the safe room before he unfolded the note. After all, Mom always told him that room was secure, whatever that meant. The cast on his hand made it a little hard to actually get it open without tearing it. Aunt Elise had really folded it tight. But he finally got it. His eyes widened as he read the hand written note.

Sparky,

I promise - this is not a joke. It is deadly serious. I'll explain later but this is life or death. The lives of every single person that you love depend on you following these instructions to the exact letter.

DO NOT CONTACT ME. I'M BEING WATCHED.

Sweetie, don't be afraid – but these men are ruthless. I'm depending on you. You can call no one. They are almost certainly listening. There is only one person who can help.

Wait until dark. Take your mom's car and your brother. Tell no one! Leave your cell phones behind. Use only cash. Assume you're being followed. You have to be back by tomorrow at noon. Drive as fast as you possibly can to this address…

x-x-x-x-x