A/N: And the fun (?) begins.
The rough draft for Chapter 3 is finished, but it needs a little work.
Thanks again to P.J. Murphy for his beta work and advice.
So, how about some reviews? Let me know what you think and where you think this is going.
Nov. 24, 2010 - A Coffee Shop
Agent Roberts hadn't, as the cliché went, slept in days. He had taken a few days off and burned through more money than he intended to. He was trying to make that big score that would pay off his gambling debts. Instead his bookie's muscle was after him. He didn't dare go home, and he couldn't go to his bosses. Between a rock and a hard place would have been much more comfortable.
He received a call earlier this morning. Someone wanted to talk to Agent Carmichael but did not want to go through official channels. For the price of his debts, all he had to do was put two people in touch with each other. He rationalized that he wasn't giving away any secrets, but at this point he wasn't going to start asking questions. Like why.
He had been waiting in the coffee shop for an hour already. Three cups later and his stomach was screaming. The caffeine was not helping, either. He almost fell out of his chair when his phone rang.
"Roberts. Fine, I'll be here."
The call ended on the other end as he stared at his mobile phone. His eye caught movement at the front door of the shop. Very nice, he thought. On any other day he would have tried to put the moves on her. Ironically, she was moving towards him.
"Crap," he muttered. "I look like shit and they send someone like that."
"Robert?" she asked with a smile as she arrived at the table.
"No, Roberts. John Roberts, actually. Have a seat." Damn, she is hot was all he could think about as she slid the chair out and smiled.
She offered her hand, "Hannah," she said as she sat across from him. "I've been authorized to offer you thirty thousand. Will that be enough?"
Right to the chase. His eyes narrowed. Talk about too good to be true. "Thirty K for an introduction? What gives?"
She smiled again. "I don't think you really care, do you?"
He slumped back in his chair and rubbed his eyes. She was right, and the money would make things a lot easier for him.
"If it helps you, we don't need the introduction," she added. "Just a phone number."
That got Roberts' attention. "Say again?"
"I just need his phone number and can introduce myself. You don't need to be involved any further."
This couldn't have worked out any better. "That suits me just fine. No connections to me. However, it will have to wait until Friday."
"Why Friday?"
"Tomorrow is Thanksgiving and it would look odd if I checked in. On Friday, most people will still be out and there will be fewer questions."
She nodded. Roberts thought she was probably manipulating him, but to gaze into those playful green eyes made it worth the effort. "Very well. What time will you have it?"
"In the morning? Say 9:30?"
"Acceptable. We'll meet here to make the exchange." Hannah slid out of the chair, smiled at him, and headed to the door. He watched her walk all the way out, almost forgetting he just wiped out his gambling debts.
God, that skirt moves well.
Nov. 25, 2010 - Thanksgiving Day - Chuck and Sarah's Bedroom.
He awakened in the darkness. His voice was a strained whisper.
"Sarah?"
Slowly, he rolled on to his side, feeling for her. She wasn't there. Chuck tried to get up, but his head felt like cement. With someone putting a sledgehammer to it.
"Good Lord, how much did I drink last night?" he muttered to himself.
"Too much. But not enough to stop you from, well..."
Sarah was standing at the door with a coffee in her hand and a silly grin on her face.
"Sarah! You're naked! And you were in the kitchen like that? What about Morgan?" He saw the coffee in her hand and was pouty. "None for me?"
"Alex took him home." She tiptoed into the room, gently swinging a game controller by its cord. She smiled, enjoying the visible effect she was having on him.
God, that smile!
Chuck leaned on his elbows and watched her every movement, her ass swaying, the muscles of her long legs, that taut stomach…God, that navel! He smiled as his eyes moved upwards to take in the sight of her breasts slightly bouncing. His breathing got even shallower. He threw the sheet off, inviting her to join him. He missed being able to just look at her without fear of what's-his-name interrupting.
Wait. What? Did Sarah actually make him forget the name of his best friend since the age of six?
"Hey, where did you find that? Morgan and I looked all over for it." Chuck couldn't believe it. Morgan wasn't even there, and he was still intruding on them.
Her eyes twinkled. "My accomplice is quite good at hiding things."
"Say what? Why you evil temptress," he said with a hearty laugh. "I promised Morgan we could get some 'Call of Duty' in. I feel so guilty I've been neglecting him for weeks."
Sarah raised a devious eyebrow, "I don't think he really minded." She dropped the controller on the floor and towards the bed towards the bed. "THIS is for you. Extra strong. You're going to need it!" She held it out for him to take, but only enough to make him reach for it. She ran her other hand down his side, her nails gently tracing across his stomach. Her hand slid further down as she started to caress him, and the results were instantaneous. He closed his eyes and was quickly losing the battle of wills against the gorgeous blonde who was crazy enough to be in love with him.
"We have a few hours to kill before we have to start preparing the Team Bartowski Thanksgiving dinner," she purred as she emphasized what she wanted to do during those few hours. "Casey has a date and Morgan invited his mother, so Big Mike will be coming too."
Chuck groaned. More people to cook for. He still couldn't remember agreeing to all this work. Although considering what Sarah was doing to him right now, he was lucky to remember it was Thanksgiving. "At least it will be a spy-free evening."
"It should be interesting. John's date is Carina!"
Another groan. And she's doing this on purpose, he whimpered.
Sarah grew tired of teasing Chuck and straddled him. A few kisses and caresses in the right places by Chuck, and she was moaning as well.
Thanksgiving Dinner
With ten people coming, dinner was prepared Team B style: everywhere. Chuck was busy checking on things in each kitchen. He insisted on making the turkey at home, but he had several pies going at Ellie's and various odds and ends at Casey's.
Ellie agreed not to help. At least in Chuck's presence. Tasting, adding, stirring and disappearing before another Chuck kitchen patrol came by was her modus operandi for the evening. It wasn't that she didn't trust her little brother, it just was…she didn't trust her little brother.
"Becoming a regular hausfrau, eh, Bartowski?" needled Casey. But he had to admit, it smelled good. Much better than anything his hands ever produced. Admittedly, destroying a soufflé didn't make you welcome in the kitchen very often.
Chuck and Sarah's Apartment
She hadn't seen him since 'that night'. A quick look at Alex and she toned it down, remembering that they were a couple. And a cute couple at that. She came around the table.
"Hello Morgan," Carina said pleasantly and gave him a quick hug. She then turned to Alex and offered her hand. "And you must be Alex "I'm Carina, an old friend of your father's."
Alex accepted but looked confused. Chuck saw the panic on Morgan's face and hid his face in his hands.
"What is it, Chuck? Did you flash?"
Chuck looked at Sarah, "That would have been so much better." He wasn't sure which would be better. He pointed to Carina and Alex.
"Well, they were going to meet at some point," Sarah said in a demeanor that was in direct contrast to Chuck's state of panic. "Everything looks calm."
"I've never understood women, but calm ones can be very scary. And Carina takes it to a whole 'nother level."
"You're exaggerating. I'll bring in some hors d'oeuvres and assess the damage."
"Assess the dam… no-no-no, this isn't a mission."
The doorbell rang, and Chuck almost hit the ceiling. "Hi Yo! Saved by the bell."
Sarah stifled a laugh, "I'll let them in." She walked through the living room, crooking a finger at Carina, who joined her at the door.
Casey stared down Morgan as if he was planning to do nasty things to him. "Grimes, a word?"
"Ellie! Devon!" Sarah cried out cheerfully. "Come in!"
Morgan took his cue to scoot into the kitchen and the protection of Chuck. "Whew! Chuck, ya gotta have my back here. I think Casey suspects something."
"Suspects what, hon?"
Morgan's eyes went wide. "Alex is right behind me," he mouthed to Chuck.
"Yeah, bud, she is."
Morgan closed his eyes. Not for the first time, it was up to Chuck to defuse a ticking bomb.
"Alex, would you bring these out? Sarah forgot them."
"Uh, sure." She took the tray and stared at Morgan's back as she went into the living room.
"You haven't told her yet? I thought you said you were going to tell her, that it was like a knife hanging over your head. I could understand not telling Casey, but Alex?"
"I never thought we would all be together like this. It just never came up."
Chuck laughed incredulously. "Never came up? In what universe would that topic just 'come up'? 'Oh, by the way Alex, your Dad's girlfriend screwed me on my Star Wars bed sheets'." Chuck shook his head at his best friend's lack of common sense. "OK, just be a man, go out there, and be pleasant. You know Carina, so just leave it at that. IF it ever comes up."
"That's the problem, buddy. I 'know' Carina."
"Go. Just go. Sarah and I talked about the possibility of having to run interference."
"Sarah knows? I'm a dead man."
Chuck pushed Morgan out of the kitchen as the newest guests entered. "Hey Sis! Devon! Happy Thanksgiving!"
Ellie walked over to her little brother and gave him one of her squeezes. "Isn't this great, the whole family together?"
Chuck was starting to think Ellie would make a great femme fatale in a Bond film with the way she hugged people. "Yeah, sis. Losing consciousness here."
Sarah used the distraction to corral Carina, "What are you doing?"
"I swear, nothing," Carina replied with a slightly lascivious tone. "I played it like friends. They're a cute couple and I will do nothing to screw that up. I promise. Wait, you know?"
"Carina, Morgan is Chuck's best friend. They have no secrets. Chuck and I have no secrets."
"NO secrets?" Sarah wasn't going to get that past her.
"None. Well…shut up."
Sarah heard a strangled voice behind her. "I'm…a…dead…man!"
Sarah turned and saw Chuck suffocating. She smiled and moved in to dislodge him. "Ellie, can I borrow your brother?" She straightened out Chuck's shirt. "Didn't you have an announcement to make before Big Mike and Bolonia got here?"
"Oh oh, right, right." He turned to the room, "Hey, everyone. First off, Happy Thanksgiving!"
A chorus of "Happy Thanksgiving!" chants went up, even from Casey.
"OK, I need to play Beckman here for a sec." A few laughs and a grunt followed that. He looked around the room. "Your mission, should you choose to accept it… oops, wrong show, sorry…seriously, everyone, please check your weapons and by that, I mean get rid of them. We are having civilians for dinner." He did a full facepalm. "No-no-no, I mean there will be civilians here. So, please, remember your covers. No mission debriefs, no assassination stories. We're all civilians tonight. Sorry."
A few boos, a few laughs and a grunt met that announcment.
The doorbell rang. Sarah smiled and kissed Chuck. "Wow, that table looks really nice."
Chuck went to greet their civilian guests. "Ah, showtime."
Nov. 26, 2010 - Black Friday - Chuck and Sarah's Bedroom.
Chuck's phone vibrated, waking him instantly. He shut it off while trying not to disturb her. He had it all planned: his clothes were in the living room, he'd be out before she could tempt him into staying. It was dark. He whispered softly to her.
"Sarah."
Slowly, he rolled onto his side, and reached out a hand to touch her. He quickly balled his hand into a fist, and shook his head in annoyance.
The Plan! The Plan!
He held his breath as he slid out of the bed and moved out to the living room. He dressed quietly and smiled at how he beat the deadly, bad-ass spy sleeping in his bed. He grabbed his shirt, buttoning it as he stepped outside and shut the door, willing it to be silent. He headed over to the Herder he 'borrowed'. Although corporate policy was changed where employees couldn't take a Nerd Herder home…a change necessitated by an incident involving Jeff…having your best friend as your boss did have its perks. With nobody following him and no surveillance, he'd be able to get all of his Christmas shopping done.
"We'll see who's better at hiding things," he said with a smirk as he jumped into the Herder and drove off.
The Coffee Shop
Roberts entered the coffee shop a few minutes early; looking like he'd even found a razor. Hannah was already there, sitting at the same table. Damn, she's gorgeous. His heart actually skipped a beat. Having slept, his mind was even cognizant enough to notice her skirt. He was a bit embarrassed when she caught his eyes about two feet south of hers, but she merely smiled.
"Good morning, John"
"Hannah, you're looking very nice this morning. Did you have a good Thanksgiving?"
Her smile changed to a frown. "Sorry, I have another appointment. Could we skip to the exchange?"
His face fell. "Yeah."
She flashed him a bit of a smile when that happened. She felt a bit sorry for him, actually. "Have a seat. I'm sorry for being abrupt. I got you a coffee while I waited." She pointed to the cup at her left.
His spirits picked up a bit. "Thanks." He picked up the cup, but her hand reached out to his arm and pushed it gently back down.
"Sorry, but I really do have another appointment. Do you have the number?" She pushed her hair back around her ears and looked right into his eyes.
He pulled out a business card with a phone number written on the back and slid it over to her. She picked it up and flipped it over, reading John's name and number on the other side. She gave him a big toothy smile.
"I'll call you later, John," and gave him a wink.
She slid a small sealed envelope over to him. He picked it up without taking his eyes of her gaze and stuffed it down the inside pocket of his jacket. He finally took a sip of coffee and sat back.
Hannah collected her bag from the back of the chair and got up. She leaned forward and leveled her lips at his ear, giving him quite the show down her open blouse. "We are being watched by my people, so don't leave for another ten minutes." With that she stood up and walked out.
He took another sip of coffee and waved goodbye. His arm slowly comes down, resting the cup on his leg. It would be the last thing he ever did as his eyes fluttered closed. His arm dropped and the coffee fell to the floor. To everyone else, he appeared to have simply fallen asleep.
A Shopping Mall.
Humming to himself, Chuck made his way to the Herder carrying several packages when his phone rang. A few more feet and he could put his stuff down. He did not notice the van coming up the aisle from behind. Suddenly he felt a jab in his neck, and then blackness. The van stopped and two men jumped out. They picked him up and dragged him through the open sliding door of the van. A third man rounded up Chuck's packages and followed the others through the door just before it closed and the van sped off.
Hannah leaned over Chuck's unconscious face gazed at him with utter contempt. "I can't kill you. Yet." She sat back with a smile, "What? No funny, cute...," she mouthed the word 'adorable' "...comebacks?" She played with his hair. Slowly she traced the outline of his face with her finger.
The van took a turn down a side street several blocks away from the shopping mall and stopped. The side door opened and several packages were flung out, quickly followed by Chuck's watch. Hannah was about to toss Chuck's phone when it rang, yet again. She looked down and was ready to explode.
"That bitch! I knew it. You miserable, fucking liar!"
Her face reddened with the memory of her humiliation. If she wasn't sure before, she was now. She raised her arm and brought it down in a back-handed slap across Chuck's face. Her smile was replaced with an anguished sneer. She answered the phone and flung it out the door. The door closed again and the van sped off.
Chuck and Sarah's Bedroom.
Sarah refused to panic, even though she had called Chuck for the fifth time without getting an answer. But on the sixth call he answered, but all she heard was the sound of a car's wheels squealing. She hung up and called Casey.
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