Chapter 16 – Three Little Words

A/N: A quiet chapter, as we get close to the end.

Crowds were streaming towards Machine High and traffic had come to a complete standstill. While passersby were fixated on the smoke and explosions coming from campus, they couldn't help but notice the couple walking against the crowd with their two dogs.

It wasn't just their physical beauty - and they were all extraordinarily beautiful - but it was the way they moved.

The man and the woman held hands and as the crowd surged around them, sometimes they would unlink their fingers to let others pass, sometimes one would be ahead or behind the other, but they always would join hands smoothly again, sharing soft smiles as their fingers sought out and intertwined together.

Their four legged companions moved easily with them as well, and if a few people thought that the smaller, sleek dog winked at them if they stared at the foursome a little too long, they shook their heads as they walked by, telling themselves that they were just imagining it.

XXX

Harold Finch had to sit down.

He had wandered aimlessly through the city, until his body screamed for relief.

Suddenly a pay phone rang.

Heart sinking, Finch hobbled over.

A mechanical voice gave him an address.

Mystified, Finch crossed the street. There was a small park, nestled behind two buildings. Unless you were looking for it, you would never know it was there.

"Thank you," he murmured softly.

As he gratefully sank down on a park bench, the Coach thought about what an extraordinary night it had been. Every high and low had been experienced; grief and joy, hate and love, trust and betrayal, heroism and cowardice, secrets and revelations.

There had been laughter and tears, hope and despair, tragedy and triumph.

And finally, there had been the realization of an epic, life changing love between two incredible people that he was proud and humbled to call his friends.

As he slipped away into the crowd, Harold knew that John Reese and Jocelyn Carter would face their pasts, and their future, together.

For a moment, Finch let the feelings of loneliness and loss flow over him, but then he shook his head, closing his eyes.

His loneliness was caused by the choices he'd made and his loss by the secrets he still kept.

"Harold?"

The Coach opened his eyes, startled at the soft, wondering voice.

He had to be dreaming.

It was Grace, her red hair glowing in the early morning light.

"Grace – I – I'm sorry, I'll leave," Finch started to stand up, but she shook her head. "No, sit, Harold, please. You look exhausted."

She smiled at his bewildered expression at her sudden appearance. "I'm doing a series of paintings for the community group that takes care of this park for their annual auction. They wanted views of the space at different times of day, and I decided to capture the park just as it was waking up."

Grace held up her sketch pad and Harold couldn't help but smile at the detailed rendering. He knew that the talented artist would work tirelessly until that sketch became a vivid portrait.

"It's beautiful. Your work – everything," he whispered, gazing at her, "is so beautiful."

"Thank you…" Something flickered in her eyes, but then she smiled again, sadly this time. "Take care, Harold."

Before she could walk away, the Coach clumsily jumped up and touched her arm. "Grace – please, don't go. I – there's something I need to say to you."

"Don't –" She took a deep breath. "Whatever you had to say, you should have said a long time ago, Harold, before you –" Grace looked away, blinking back tears, "- left me."

"You're right, Grace. I should have."

Grace slowly turned her face to his.

"What I did was stupid, selfish and cruel. Sorry is such an inadequate word, but I am deeply, deeply sorry."

He took her hand, the last words of the man who died on that stone plaza echoing in his mind. "It was lovely to see you again, Grace."

As Finch stumbled away, her soft voice called out to him. "Harold. Wait."

The Coach turned around. Grace pulled a Thermos out of her bag. "It's probably lukewarm, but it looks like you could use the caffeine."

They sat down on the park bench together and Grace poured him a cup.

Finch sighed as he sipped it. It was lukewarm, but this morning, it was the most delicious tea he had ever tasted. "Thank you." He took a long deep breath. "I've had the most extraordinary evening…I'd like to tell you about it, and… some other things I should have shared with you a long time ago."

XXX

John Reese couldn't stop smiling, he just couldn't.

Those muscles, so rarely used, were aching in rebellion, but each time Reese would try to stop smiling, he'd start grinning again.

He just couldn't help it.

Being with Joss, walking with Joss, holding her hand –

Every time their fingers linked again, his smile became even wider.

The dark red shawl showed off her black catsuit beautifully, framing the curves of her full breasts rising out of the suit's deep v-neck, hugging her tiny waist and then shimmying back and forth across her luscious bottom in a way that was driving Reese to utter distraction.

Her hair spilled over her shoulders, gleaming in the early morning light, her skin was glowing and even the bandage over her eye gave her a rakish air, telling the world that she was someone who was ready for anything.

She was beautiful, but it was the sense of calm exuding from Joss that made him smile most of all.

Reese knew that Joss still had a lot to deal with concerning the death of her father, but he could tell that something had been lifted off her shoulders, that she no longer needed to hide her past from the ones she cared about the most.

She squeezed his hand and he turned his face to look at her, Joss gave him that little nod.

Reese's grin got even wider as they walked down the street.

XXX

Lyric's was on a side street, several blocks from Machine High. Normally busy, the narrow, tree lined lane was deserted as crowds headed towards the school.

As Reese, Joss, Bear and Antonia turned the corner, they heard the sound of a trumpet playing. Reese smiled at Bear, and Bear let out a short happy bark.

A teenage boy put the instrument in its case on a small sidewalk table and called out. "Travis! John and Bear are here, and they've got baes with them!" He rushed over, gave Reese a huge hug, and then bent down and hugged Bear, ruffling his fur.

Reese introduced Joss and Antonia to Darren McGrady, and as he led them to the sidewalk table, a tall, serious looking young man, hand in hand with a slim, beautiful young woman walked out of the diner. "It's good to see you, Mr. Reese," he smiled softly as he shook Reese's hand.

"I asked you to call me John, Travis, please."

"I feel strange calling my principal investor by his first name," he protested. "Lisa, Darren and I wouldn't have this place without you."

"I just gave you some money, you made everything else work."

Introductions were quickly made all around, and as Reese and Joss sat down, Darren's watch beeped. "Gotta go. Rehearsal before first period. Nice to meet you, Ms. Carter, Ms. Marconi. " With the awkward grace unique to teenagers, he closed his instrument case, swung his backpack over his shoulder, clasped his brother's hand and kissed his sister-in-law on the cheek.

Leaning down to Bear, Darren whispered loudly, "Go ahead, Romeo." He patted Bear's flanks, then winked at Reese. Laughing at their expressions, he headed off towards the subway.

"We'll bring out coffee and broth," Travis said. "Anything you want – it's on the house." The couple slipped inside the diner.

"We met Travis a few years ago," Reese told Joss. "He was trying to do it all, take care of his brother, manage a chicken joint and go to culinary school – a real culinary school," he added with a smirk. "Some punks tried to take advantage of Lisa, he drove them off, got targeted by them. They tried to kill him, then grabbed Darren and Lisa."

"And you and Bear and Finch helped them. That's what you were doing earlier last night, wasn't it?" she tilted her head at him. "Helping people."

"Yes." Reese leaned forward. "I know it sounds strange…"

Joss smiled. "No…" her gaze drifted up towards a billboard advertising a yellow sports car, "that actually explains a lot."

She squeezed his hand as Travis and Lisa carried out platters with carafes, cups, bowls and utensils. Lisa poured coffee for Reese and Joss, while Travis poured out a warm beef broth for Bear and Antonia, placing their bowls on the sidewalk.

Lisa and Travis laughed as Reese, Joss, Bear and Antonia all sighed in appreciation at the steaming liquids. "Why don't we just start bringing stuff out, and you all just relax and dig in?" Travis said, as he took his wife's hand again.

"Sounds good to us," Reese said.

They watched the couple share a brief kiss as they walked back inside the diner.

Joss said softly, "They're good together."

"They are. Travis loved Lisa for a long time, and she loved him, but it wasn't until they were in danger that they realized how much they cared for each other. Since then, I don't think they've spent a day apart."

Reese leaned over and poured more broth for Bear and Antonia, who had already emptied their bowls and were eagerly awaiting more. "They're good people; smart, talented, hardworking and they're slowly but steadily gaining a loyal clientele here."

"Baring, of course," Antonia looked up from her bowl, "little things like a shootout and a building exploding nearby keeping your customers away."

Bear gave her a wry glance. "I'm sure they'll add a contingency plan to their operations manual for the next time that happens, Antonia."

Antonia snorted. "They'd better hurry. Judging by the firepower Blanket Boy had in that weapons bag," her eyes twinkled at Reese, "stuff like that happens around you guys every week." The Mob Enforcer's ears twitched. "I'm jealous."

"Here we go," The McGradys walked out with two huge platters loaded with food and the four friends didn't say anything for a long time.

XXX

"So…" Grace said slowly, "you used football to determine if people were going to commit murder."

"You don't seem at all surprised by that, Grace."

"Harold, I'm a Carolina girl. Football is…" a look of wonder spread across her face, "our opera. A grand story played out in front of a passionate," she smiled, "fanatical audience every week."

"Yes…" Harold nodded, with a smile, "I've never thought of it that way, but you're right. And just as one play can determine winning or losing, there's that one moment when someone goes from thinking about murder to actually deciding to do it."

Harold had explained how he had created a system as part of a secret government program that identified people who could be victims or perpetrators, and how football's heightened emotions, calculated strategies and stunning bursts of violence facilitated the development of methodologies and scenarios that helped the system he called the Machine pick out those people from the billions of pieces of data it examined every day.

"As the Machine grew and developed it created its own methodologies and strategies, but in the beginning, I used football to help the Machine learn, to have it place a bet, as it were, on victory or defeat, and to apply what it learned to the next game. It worked, exceedingly well."

Grace leaned forward. "But if it worked, what happened to the program?"

"It got shelved – officially it was over concerns about privacy and shifting priorities, but the real reason was that saving individual human lives was deemed a bad investment – high costs/low return - it wouldn't influence votes, draft legislation or get funding appropriated. The Machine was assigned to another program, and the lives it could have saved, were forgotten. In order to cover up the real reason the program was halted, it was deemed a colossal failure - and so was I." The Coach's eyes flickered with the pain of that memory.

The artist nodded. "So there was anger, sadness, disillusionment, but you also had a new obsession," she said softly with a smile. "Football."

"Yes," Finch smiled back. "To my astonishment, I had absolutely fallen in love with it. I managed to get a coaching position at Machine High," his smile quickly faded, "and that's when I let my pride and my ego take over."

He shifted, looking out over the empty park. "In the beginning, as you know, we lost every game in spectacular fashion. The administration, especially our School Board Head, Alonzo Quinn, supported me. The young men, who were committed, dedicated and hardworking, defended me. The faculty and staff, particularly the Cafeteria Lady, Mr. Reese and the Security Head, Mr. DeHond, encouraged me. And you, especially, Grace, even though we had just met a few months earlier, were there for me."

Finch lowered his head, looking at the ground, "But it wasn't enough. I knew that I was the problem; I was the reason we were losing. I was desperate to be successful; I couldn't abide being a failure again. One afternoon I had visited you while you were painting along the river –"

"I remember that day," Grace nodded. "You brought me ice cream."

"Yes, and as I walked along the promenade, I heard a pay phone ringing. Something told me to answer it. A voice gave me a series of letters and numbers, then a string of numbers."

"The Machine called you?"

Finch nodded. "Despite the reassignment, the Machine still held on to its mission – both of them, and it was still evolving. I had the Social Security number of a runaway named Theresa Whittaker, and now, the plays of our next opponent. We won the next game, and Mr. Reese and Mr. DeHond, who have some rather unique talents, helped me save a young woman's life. I told myself that we were saving those lives that the government had deemed irrelevant…" his voice trailed off.

Grace took the empty cup out of his hand and she sat there, waiting.

The Coach finally turned back to her. "…and that winning a few football games while we saved those lives didn't really matter."

"Why did you leave me, Harold," she asked quietly.

"I'd never met anyone like you before, Grace. You were," his voice softened, "the woman that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. You saw things in me that nobody had ever seen before, and while the support of others was important when we were losing, it was you who truly helped me persevere, to keep working until we did win. I told myself that I needed to leave you to protect you, that the work that I was doing with Mr. Reese and Mr. DeHond was dangerous, that you could be targeted by one of our foes, or perhaps, even by the government, if they found out what we were doing, but the real reason was that I couldn't bear for you to find out that I was a fraud and a liar, that I really wasn't earning those victories honestly. So I," he shook his head, "became an even bigger fraud and liar by making up a flimsy excuse about things moving too quickly and leaving you."

Grace sat there for a long time and then she reached into her bag again and pulled out an orange. "Tell me about your evening, Harold."

Her small fingers started peeling the fruit as he began to talk.

XXX

"Need a lift?"

Bellies full, the four friends stood in the delivery area behind Lyric's.

"Thanks for taking the call, Fermin," Reese smiled.

Fermin Ordoñez's head leaned out of the window of his yellow cab. "The last time you got into my cab, John, there was a bit of trouble, but, "he smiled, "with such a beautiful woman by your side, perhaps this ride might be more peaceful?"

"If you think I'm trouble, Fermin, I'm nothing compared to her," Reese smirked, while Joss gave him that look.

"Ah, beautiful and dangerous, a perfect combination. Please, get in. I want to hear how you met such an intriguing woman."

Antonia turned to Bear. "I need to pay some associates in the old neighborhood a visit. I could use some backup, if you're interested."

"I would be honored to accompany you, Antonia," Bear nodded. Making their goodbyes, the two dogs climbed a fire escape and disappeared.

"Where to next, John," Joss asked as they slid into the cab.

Reese's smile was soft and shy. "I have…someplace that I want to show you."

He gave an address to Fermin and the cab pulled away.

XXX

"So the Machine never gave you your Counselor's Number because they never planned on killing him."

Grace glanced down, her lips quirking as she realized the half peeled orange was still in her hands. She began peeling the fruit again, as she continued to listen to Finch's tale.

"That is correct. Mr. Quinn's and Mr. Simmons' plan was to implicate Mr. Fusco in the theft of funds and the destruction of Machine High, and they wanted him very much alive. He had some…issues during his time on the police force and there was also some speculation regarding his involvement in the disappearance of a fellow HR Counselor, a man named James Stills. Ms. Carter discovering their plot forced them to change their plans suddenly."

"And the cameras were disabled so the Machine wasn't able to observe their activities," she handed an orange section to Finch.

"Correct, and while the explosives would have destroyed the surrounding neighborhood, that was based on a miscalculation of the men setting the explosives, not intent on their part," Finch nodded while he took a bite of the fruit.

"So," Grace chewed thoughtfully, "the Machine is 'never wrong'," she crooked her index fingers in the air, "but it's not perfect…so why do you think you have to be?"

"I…" the Coach sat there, blinking at her.

XXX

Fermin had dropped them off in front of a high stone wall covered with ivy and climbing roses. As John took her hand, Joss noticed an old sign almost covered by the lush vegetation proclaiming the place as 'Edgerton Park'. He swiped a card and a wide gate swung open and they walked in.

There was a graceful street in the middle of the park guiding you forward. Huge oaks, maples and sycamores shaded ten large private homes, five on each side of the street, their lush gardens bursting with color. The park was dominated by a three story mansion at the end of the street, surrounded by a wrought iron fence, and as they approached, Joss knew they were near the river.

The mansion glowed in the morning light. Painted a pale yellow, the massive trees threw varying shades of light and dark on the building, their thick branches and broad leaves turning its color from light gold to a shimmering bronze as they shifted and moved in a gentle breeze.

Joss smiled as John led her to the mansion's front gate. Instead of a latch or a keyhole, there were three glowing panels; two rectangular ones and then a smaller squared shaped one. Reese pressed his hand to the largest rectangular panel and the gate slid open.

As they walked along a stone driveway, Joss could hear the sounds of the city disappearing, buffeted by the lush plantings, the sound of the river and the birds swooping overhead. The narrow deep back yard had a multi-car garage, a boat hangar, and as the yard sloped down to the river, Joss could see a long boat launch cantilevered over the swirling, rushing water. Each floor of the mansion had a sweeping balcony overlooking the backyard and Joss could just make out a glittering glass building on the roof.

"You all live here – you, Finch and Bear," she said softly.

"Yes. Bear actually owns the place. He had a distant relative, who was a silent movie star," they both smiled at the irony of a dog who could talk, being in silent films. "His 'owner', who was actually his manager, built the mansion and the park and they lived here after leaving Hollywood. Over the years, as their fortune dwindled, they sold off sections of the park for the homes you saw as we walked in, and the mansion started to fall apart as their health began to fail. Ultimately, Bear found out that he inherited it via an attorney and he came to the US, planning to live here with his future mate, Jessica, but she left him for someone else and his partner tried to kill him. Both he, and this place, were in pretty bad shape when I found him."

"He told me how both you and Finch nursed him back to health and helped him get the job at Machine High." Joss squeezed his hand. "He said that you gave him a purpose."

"We all helped each other, and we all worked to fix this place up, still working on it. Bear's on the first floor, Finch is on the second and I'm on the third."

They entered a side door and stepped into a small elevator. As they rose, Joss imagined that the Security Head's lair had a full sized movie theatre so that he would watch his beloved war games simulations, that the Coach's place had shelves full of leather bound books and that the Cafeteria Lady had –

"Oh, John, this is incredible."

They stepped into a wide open space. A huge gleaming kitchen ran along the front of the building and there were two sitting areas, one a more formal living room, while the other was more relaxed, meant for sprawling and watching sporting events on an extensive media center. Joss smiled as she viewed a gleaming door off to the side of the kitchen; most people would mistake it for a walk-in freezer, but Joss knew that it housed weapons even more deadly and fascinating than the ones he had in his weapons bag, and she itched to get her hands on them.

John followed her eyes and he smiled at her. "There's a firing range in the basement."

Joss chuckled. "Of course there is. Show me the rest."

The back of the apartment had two bedrooms with a shared bath on one side and a large master suite on the other, complete with a luxurious bath and walk-in closets. French doors from the master suite led you out to the balcony overlooking the river.

Joss gave him a teasing smile as she leaned against the railing. "All your conquests must have been quite taken with this place, John."

Her smile faded as John stepped close to her, his blue eyes darkening. "I've never brought anyone here, Joss."

He slowly reached out with one hand and traced the edge of the shawl. Joss felt his masculinity envelop her body, claiming her, and she couldn't help thinking of seeing his long, muscular naked body, magnificently gleaming in the moonlight, moving with incredible grace and power.

She wanted to see it again, wanted it to see it move over her and around her, and finally, Joss wanted to see it inside her.

John was very much a man and Joss was very much a woman, and as they stared at each other, she knew that they were both very much aware of the large bed in the room behind them.

He took her hand. "Let's go up to the roof."

XXX

Grace sat back. "So are you telling me that you stopped preparing for these games, Harold? That you just let the information you get from the Machine tell you what to do? You sit back and it does all the work?"

"Of course not! I prepare thoroughly, go over every detail from beginning to end. I always have, Grace, that hasn't changed. The information that I get from the Machine is the final piece of a very detailed, intense and thorough process."

"And if you didn't use the information from the Machine anymore, relied on your team and your preparation, Harold? What do you think would happen?"

"We…would probably win. But…we could also lose."

Grabbing her sketch pad, the artist tore off the detailed rendering and threw it up in the air. A sudden gust of wind caught it and the drawing pinwheeled away into the distance.

"Grace! What are you doing?" The Coach started to stand up to go after the drawing, but Grace caught his arm, her grip surprisingly strong.

"It's gone, Harold. I lost it. You lose things; drawings, games, people, but isn't that what life is all about? Winning and losing, learning from both? I've read about your young men, Harold – they are true student-athletes, who go on and attend the finest universities here and abroad. They're good men and they're good citizens. You've given them so much, but losing, recognizing that it doesn't defeat you, it doesn't define you…that could be the greatest gift that you could give them. After all, didn't you win from losing?"

Finch stared at her, then he smiled. "How…did you become so wise, Grace Hendricks?"

Her smile was sad. "I lost you, Harold. I had to go on…and I did."

She pulled out a package of homemade cookies and some bottled water. "Tell me about your next opponent."

XXX

"We still have a lot of work to do up here, Joss."

He watched her take in the view, from the gleaming river, to the tall skyscrapers, to the surrounding neighborhoods and finally, the park itself. She nodded slowly. "I can see why this was called Edgerton – it was at the edge of the city at that time."

Reese nodded. "Back when this was built, it probably seemed impossible that the city would grow up around and beyond this place."

She smiled. "It's no longer at the edge of town, John, but it is an…oasis. Living here would be very peaceful and calming, especially after saving people, or," her lips quirked, "dealing with a bunch of high school drama."

Reese smirked. "Knowing I was coming here after certain days in the cafeteria definitely saved a few kneecaps, Joss. Why don't I show you around?"

They examined the extensive mechanicals, Joss' eyes lighting up as she ran her hands over the gleaming machines, some dating back to the mansion's original construction, while others were fully computerized, various lights gleaming like jewels in the sunshine.

There were three rickety lawn chairs in one section of the roof, and under a makeshift awning, there was a small, child sized hammock, an overstuffed easy chair and a large recliner.

Reese showed her the greenhouse, which was also original to the mansion. "We reglazed the glass and resoldered it – Finch is an excellent welder – and we'll be able to use it this winter. Eventually, there will be a real patio area up here and an outdoor kitchen."

His eyes cast over the roof. "The garage is practically falling down, the yard is a jungle and this area over here," he pointed to a large dark patch of land just outside the fence, "was a maze, but it's all grown over now. Apparently, Bear's relative and his manager had some pretty wild parties down there." He raised his eyebrows at Joss. "Bear could have a few more pack mates that he doesn't know about."

Joss laughed. "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner – Bear might need to have a few more bowls ready for some surprise guests!" She touched his arm. "Show me the garden, John."

Reese led her over to a series of raised beds, bursting with a variety of vegetables. He felt his ears turning red as Joss read aloud the tags on several of the robustly growing plants.

"Juicy Joss…" a large, bright red tomato, with glistening, smooth skin.

"Carter Cutie…" a golden cherry tomato, whose narrow flowers swung in the breeze like a long ponytail.

"Homicidal Jalapeno…" a forest green, bullet shaped pepper, with light green striations around it.

"Delicious Detective…" a small graceful eggplant, rich purplish brown with a dark pink end.

Joss' voice grew hushed. "Jocelyn's Heart..."

Her hand reached out and touched an exquisite dark red tomato, plum sized, with a distinct, heart like shape. "John…" She turned to him, her eyes sparkling with tears. "It's beautiful."

Reese's voice was a whisper. "It's small, yet rich and bursting with flavor. It doesn't fall apart or get mushy. Great for cooking, but I think it tastes best…unadorned…fresh and warm from the garden,"

Reaching out, Reese plucked one, putting it in Joss' hand.

He led her to a two-seater rocking chair at the back of the garden, nestled under a huge trumpet vine.

XXX

Grace's sketch pad was covered with Finch's square, neat printing and her graceful script.

"Yes…I agree with you, that scenario could work. Coach Donnelly can get fixated on one play, or even one player, and that can definitely work to our advantage." He smiled at her. "I've missed this, Grace...I missed you – I'm sorry," he said softly, "I have no right to say that."

Grace said nothing for a long time, then she softly said. "I've missed this too."

The sun had warmed up their seating area, and she took off her jacket, rolling up her sleeves and exposing a small tattoo on the inside of her left elbow.

"Frescoes, Firenze, Filipepi* – that was my last guess," Finch said, gazing at the three small letters inked there. "And I was wrong again."

"Three of my favorites, but yes, you were wrong again." Grace tilted her head at him. "You were so determined to find out what those letters meant, Harold; you even developed an algorithm to try to figure it out." She smiled at him. "You do know that I was joking when I said that I'd marry the man who could."

The Coach smiled back. "I had to try."

They gazed at each other and then Grace said softly. "Try…one more time, Harold. What do you know about me? You. Not some formula or algorithm, what you know about me."

Finch stared at the woman he had never stopped loving. "I know that you're brilliant and beautiful and unbelievably talented. I know that family is incredibly important to you. I know that even though you hate New York winters that you always go to church, every week, in spite of the weather. I know that one of your guilty pleasures is reading the Southern Vampire Mysteries**. I know that you're a huge Gamecocks*** fan – "

The Coach stopped.

Slowly he said, "Faith….Family….Football."

There was a swooshing sound. Grace's sketch suddenly dropped from the sky and landed at their feet.

XXX

This was what he had dreamed of, Reese thought.

Warm sun, a clear blue sky, the gentle creak of the rocker as it swayed back and forth, the red shawl fluttering lightly in the breeze, Joss' slender, strong fingers intertwined with his.

Reese got up, and knelt down in front of Joss, slowly unzipping and removing her high heeled boots, smiling as she wriggled her red tipped toes in the sunlight.

Lifting his head, he gazed at her. "I'm going to court you, Joss Carter."

Her big brown eyes got even bigger, then she gave him that little nod. "I'd like that, John Reese."

Reese reached out and cupped her cheek, and while his hand had shook before, now it was still and steady, with the calm and wondrous certainty that someday, Jocelyn Carter was going to be his wife.

Slipping back into the chair, he leaned forward, gently touching his lips to hers.

"I love you, Joss."

She pressed Jocelyn's Heart into his hand.

"I love you, too, John."

Her small hands slid up his pale lilac shirt and paused over his heart, as she kissed him back.

Smiling against his lips, Joss murmured, "When do I get to see the firing range?"

Reese laughed. "Soon, Joss…but why don't we just sit and enjoy the view?"

She gave him that look, then her eyes softened as she gazed at him. "For a while, I guess we can."

She shifted, leaning against him as he put his arm around her.

They sat there for a while, and then Joss said with a soft sigh, "This is nice. You could spend the whole day up here."

Reese kissed her hair. "You could."

And with her head on his shoulder and her heart in his hand, they sat there for a long time.

*Alessandro di Mariano di Vanni Filipepi, is better known as Botticelli, the famed Renaissance painter. He is known for many works, including The Birth of Venus, which is at the Uffizi in Florence.

**Also known as the Sookie Stackhouse Novels,Carrie Preston played Arlene on the HBO series, True Blood.

***University of South Carolina football team

A/N: Folks remember Darren from the S1 episode Wolf and Cub; Travis was his murdered brother, who's alive in this tale and Lisa was the young woman Travis defended. She gave Reese information about where to find the perpetrators at the comic book store.

The next chapter, Wedding Crashers, will be posted on January 7. Just two more chapters to go!