This is not an original story. It was written during the middle of season 2. The original story assumed a sequel that never happened. So there will be some brand new content in this rewrite and several new chapters at the end.

Warning: There is a lot of adult content in this. This story was a sequel to The Fake Relationship. If you read the original, this is going to have a different feel. It's more of a re-write than a simple re-mastering. It is basically the story of Chuck and Sarah figuring out how the dual nature of their relationship, and especially their marriage, is going to work. They are simply different people, have different perspectives on things like sex, duty, and sacrifice that need to be reconciled. Both will come to realize that in order for them to be happy together, there is some middle ground that needs to be found.

This is most likely the last T chapter. Once the story changes to an M rating, it is going to disappear for most of you since the default page only shows stories T and below.

I still don't own Chuck.

If you enjoyed this or any of the stories on this site, please take a second and send the author a review. It only takes a second – and it really, really makes a difference. That's probably more important than ever now that the series has ended. If you want to keep the Chuck fandom alive and continue to read about these characters, you really need to think about rewarding the people whose hard work make that possible.

The Hook

x-x-x-x-x

Sarah made sure that she waited for Chuck to go to work before she got ready to go see Seth. She knew that he would notice the extra effort that she would need to make herself look extra sexy. He knew where she was going today. The last thing that she wanted was to rub his face in it. As she was doing her makeup she sighed. What she wouldn't give to be able to be doing this for Chuck. He would be so appreciative. That was for sure.

The very thought put a smile on her face in spite of her dread of this mission. "How did I get so lucky?" she asked herself as she decided what outfit to wear. She knew exactly what outfit she would have worn for Chuck. The pale blue blouse had never failed to get a reaction out of him. Even when he was trying to pretend that they didn't have a future together, his eyes gave him away every time. Every once in a while she would wear it just to see his reaction. A little evil maybe, but she was never disappointed. Not one time. Sarah slid the blouse to the side of the closet. Seth was never going to see that one. That was for damn sure. "Besides," Sarah again said to herself with a grim smile as she picked out one of her newer blouses. "Seth won't care what top I wear, as long as he can see down it." To emphasize that point she reached down and unbuttoned an extra button. He wouldn't have to struggle to see down this one.

As Sarah was getting dressed she couldn't keep the silly smile off her face as she thought back to last night. It had to be killing Chuck. But all he was thinking about was her safety. She had never met a man like that before. Well, Bryce didn't count. He wouldn't have minded who she flirted with at all. Hell, he would have put some extra condoms in her purse just in case. Chuck was different. It bothered him. A lot. They both knew it. That's what made this so hard for him. But he was willing to put on a brave face because he knew that is what she needed.

When this was over, she promised herself to think of a special way to make it up to him. The problem was that the way to make something up to him that immediately came to mind she had used last night. Oh well. The way he was sitting on the side of the bed moaning at the end clearly said he probably wouldn't mind a repeat performance… or two. Maybe a surprise weekend in Vegas would be fun. Then her eyes settled on her engagement ring sitting on her dresser and her happy mood vanished like your breath on a cold morning. She had to call on her training to fight to keep the tears from forming. Yup, she was going to have to figure out something very special. Chuck deserved it.

Sarah didn't talk to herself that often, only when she really needed a pep talk. But this seemed like the day for it. "Come on Sarah," she finally said to herself firmly. "Get your damn head in the game before you get him killed."

x-x-x-x-x

Sarah stood in the hallway of the hotel just outside of Seth's room for a long moment trying to get her game face on. Finally she took a deep breath on knocked on the door. She almost didn't have time to get her dazzling smile in place before Seth opened the door.

"Hi, Sarah," Seth said with a grin as he quickly pulled her into the room. "I've been waiting for you."

It was time for phase one, to get this guy on fire. It would be the easy part. Seth was pretty much always on fire. "I couldn't wait to get here," Sarah said as she put her arms around Seth's head and pulled him into a long kiss.

Where yesterday she had let Seth be the aggressor, today it was Sarah that pressed her tongue against his lips. Naturally it didn't take Seth long to respond in kind. Their tongues danced for a long while as they engaged in the extended hot and heavy kiss. Finally Sarah could feel the event that she had been waiting for. Predictably Seth's hand entered her blouse and slide inside of her bra. She allowed his fingers to barely make contact around her breast when she broke the kiss and took a step back.

"Slow down a little," Sarah said with a soft smile. "Don't you think I can tell what your plan is? You're trying to make me lose my resolve here by having your magic hands get me so hot that before I know it I'm helping you put on the condom."

"What resolve is that?" Seth asked with a grin of his own.

"I think that you know," Sarah answered as she patted his bed with her open hand. "I'm staying out of this bed until we've decided if we are going to go forward."

"What is it going to take for me to convince you that I want that too?" Seth asked softly. "Whatever it is, I'm willing to do it."

That sounded like the right answer. Sarah was ready to find out if he meant it. "Okay, Seth," she said. "That sounds nice. I want to be convinced. But it's been five years. You're going to have to convince me that I can trust you."

"How can I do that?" Seth said with a grin.

"Well, for one thing," Sarah said with a smile. "You could start by not checking for loose change inside my bra every time I get within arms length."

"Sorry," Seth said with a sarcastic smile. "But I really don't see how you can blame me. You are just so incredibly hot."

"Let's start by talking," Sarah said with a grin. "We'll see how it goes from there. Trust me, when I'm ready for something more physical you'll be the first to know. What are you doing in L.A. anyway?"

"How about you go first?" Seth said.

"Fine," Sarah said as she sat down in a stuffed chair making sure that she leaned forward so that his eyes would be permanently affixed to the cleavage she was flashing him. "That's fair. I'm working. There is an employee at the local Buy More in the plaza. Her name is Anna Wu. Her dad is Vice President of Taiwan. I'm making sure that nothing happens to her."

"Wait a minute," Seth said with a confused tone. "Sarah, you're the top agent in the whole agency. Are you telling me that they have you babysitting a diplomat's kid? I find that hard to believe."

Here was going to be the hard part. If he didn't buy this part, the whole deal was probably not going to work. "I used to be the top agent," Sarah said sadly. "Not any more. Not for a while now. My career didn't go so well after you left me."

"I'm sorry," Seth said with a nod. "That must hurt. I know how much your career meant to you. And for the record, it was you that left me."

His sympathy would have touched Sarah, if she didn't realize that it was purely a play to get her in bed. Maybe change the subject. "I'm really not looking for a fight," she said sharply. "But the way I look at it, you left me when I came home that day and found you and Laura in bed."

"I know," Seth said softly. "I'm sorry. You'll never know how many times I've kicked myself for that bone headed move. What can I do to get a second chance?"

Sarah was actually embarrassed. How could she have ever fallen for this load of crap? Sure, he was good looking… but come on. "Try and be the man I fell in love with," she said shyly as she looked at the floor. "That's all I've ever wanted."

"I'd like that," Seth said gently. "What is it going to take for you to believe that?"

Now they were getting someplace. So she put the sexy pout on her face. "I don't know," she said sadly as she looked at Seth. "I wish I could tell you specifically. But I can't. I do know that you're going to have to let me get to know you again without expecting sex. Maybe we could pretend that we just started dating."

"I'll really try," Seth said with a smile. "But I remember how great the sex was. I hope that you don't blame me for wanting it again."

Sarah resisted the strong impulse to put her forefinger firmly down her throat. Instead she forced the shy smile on her face. "It was great for me too," she agreed. "I've missed it. I've missed you. Let's work on getting back to that, okay?"

"Okay," Seth said softly with a smile. "You might have to tie my arms down. But okay."

"So," Sarah said trying to lighten the mood and get back to her objective. "What are you doing in L.A. anyway?"

"I'm sorry, Sarah," Seth said sadly. "I'm working. I really can't say."

That was definitely the wrong answer. He couldn't be allowed to get away with that response. "Okay, Seth," Sarah said angrily as she got up and walked towards the door. "It was really nice to see you again. Maybe we'll do it again in five more years."

"Sarah, wait!" Seth called as she approached the door. "Please…"

Sarah stopped at the door but didn't turn to face Seth.

"I'll tell you."

x-x-x-x-x

Chuck was working on computers in the cage. He figured if he stayed buried in the cage, he had a much less chance of biting someone's head off. Not surprisingly, no one challenged him for that spot. Not only did no one like working in the cage, nobody wanted to get in his way. The look on his face told everybody that today was not a good day to mess with him. Loud and clear. Even Morgan, who normally was incredibly tone deaf to those sort of situations, seemed to get it. Finally Casey poked his head into the cage.

"Hey, tiger," Casey said trying to sound chipper. "How's your day going?"

"Great," Chuck said sarcastically. "She's in his hotel room right now. I wonder how many clothes she still has on."

"I thought you were going to trust her," Casey said with a laugh. "What happened to that? Besides, I'm sure that she still has some clothes on. Maybe."

"I trust her," said Chuck with a sigh as he shot Casey a sideways glance at his shot. "I do. I don't mean that. I just feel awful that she has to go through all this demeaning crap. Coming on to a guy that she can't stand. I'm thinking that maybe it's just better if I go to the bunker. It's probably going to happen anyway. It would save everybody a whole lot of trouble."

"You need to let Sarah make that call," Casey growled. "Trust me on this one. She is willing to make a hell of a lot more sacrifices for you than just flirting with some guy."

"I know," said Chuck. "But maybe I shouldn't let her."

That got a laugh. In fact Casey couldn't stop chuckling for a long while. "Do me one favor," he finally said as soon as he could. "Give me a little heads up when you're going to tell Walker what you're going to 'let' her do."

"This I want to see."

x-x-x-x-x

"Come on baby," Seth said as he hurried over to Sarah and put his arm around her. "I'm sorry. Please come back and sit down."

Sarah had always hated it when Seth called her baby. The nickname was demeaning. Sarah Walker was nobody's baby. Although it might be kinda nice to hear Chuck say it. She had to dig deep and remember why she was doing this in the first place to not simply keep walking. "Seth," she said sternly as she narrowed her eyes. "Are we just wasting our time here?"

"Please," said Seth softly. "It's been five years. Please cut me a little slack here. I'm really trying."

It was time to put up of shut up. "Fine," Sarah said sullenly as she stomped back over to the chair and sat down. "But this is the last time. Now, why are you here?"

"Okay, Sarah," Seth said as he looked around the room nervously. "I'll tell you. But I have to warn you. This isn't classified information. It's the kind of information that can get you dead."

"Go on," Sarah said firmly with little attempt at putting any humor into her voice. "I'm listening."

"This isn't exactly a sanctioned mission," Seth said softly. "I'm working with a special group within the Intelligence Community. About a year ago we sent an agent to stake out the Buy More. We were looking for an ex agent named Bryce Larkin. About six months our agent disappeared without a trace. I need to find out why."

Special group within the intelligence community? Is that what they're calling that disgraced group of traitors these days? She instantly knew why Seth was here. It was great news. That meant he didn't know about Chuck. Maybe she could make sure that never happened. "Wait a minute," Sarah said in a surprised voice. "You mean my Buy More? The one I've been watching for the past year? What is this agent's name? What does he look like? Maybe I've seen him."

"It's a woman," Seth said as he reached to the table grabbed a picture and handed it to her. "Her code name is Lizzy. Have you ever seen her?"

"No," Sarah said as she pretended to study the picture. "But maybe I can help you. I have access to all the surveillance footage for the past year. Why don't I see what I can find out?"

"Why would you do that?" Seth asked cautiously. "You know that this isn't sanctioned, right?"

"Like I care about that," Sarah said with a scoff. "I've been babysitting a spoiled brat rich kid for the past year. My career is over. What do I have to lose? I thought that you wanted to try and get back together?"

"I do," said Seth with a smile. "Very much."

"Okay, Seth," Sarah said excitedly. "Maybe this is the break that we need. Here's what I'm thinking. We'll work together. If you will let me help you crack this case, I'll start to trust you again. I'll go with you to your next assignment and we can be together. Wouldn't you like that?"

"I'd like that a lot," Seth said with a smile. "Can you stay the night?"

What an asshole. He was perfectly willing to allow her to unknowingly commit treason by helping Fulcrum. Then he wanted her to climb into his bed and creatively thank him for the opportunity. Can you believe it? "Seth," Sarah said warningly. "I'm not sleeping with you until I can trust you."

"Okay," Seth said with a laugh. "I get it. No sex. I just want to hold you in my arms for the night. Would that work?"

Sarah knew Seth. No matter what he said, the odds of him not trying something if they were in bed together approached zero. But this would definitely seal the deal in his mind. Sarah knew that she had no choice but to agree. But she needed time to get Chuck prepared emotionally. And maybe Beckman would have some suggestions on how to play this. So a stall… "I can't tonight," she said quickly as she stood up to leave. "How about tomorrow? Would that work?"

"Absolutely," Seth said as he stood up and kissed Sarah with the same passion as their greeting kiss."

"We're going to be together again," Sarah said as she walked to the door, making sure that he couldn't see the smirk that was plastered on her face. "I can't tell you how many nights I've dreamt of this happening."

"Me too, baby," Seth said as Sarah left the room. "Me too."

x-x-x-x-x

As soon as Sarah left Seth picked up his cell phone and dialed a number.

"Hi, Laura, it's me."

"Yeah, I miss you too."

"It's going fine. It was kind of boring until yesterday. You'll never guess who I ran into."

"Sarah Walker, do you believe it?"

"I know."

"She actually wants to try and get back together."

"I know. She's absolutely crazy. She thinks that we're still married."

"Come on, baby. You're not going to tell me that you're jealous. I just want to get her on her knees one last time. I need to see if she's improved any."

"You're right. She would have had to, wouldn't she? She was pretty horrible at it. Maybe you could give her some pointers. After all, you're the best. She always looked up to you. And she was always willing to learn new things. You have to give her credit for that. And you also have to admit, she's smoking hot."

"No, not yet. She's playing all hard to get."

"She's coming back over tomorrow night. How about our normal bet that I can seal the deal tomorrow?"

"Don't worry about that. She's ready. Trust me. If I had really pushed I could have had her top off just a few minutes ago. Maybe I can keep her going for a few days. That would give you long enough to get out here and walk in on us. Maybe offer to give her some lessons."

"Yup, that would be a hoot. We have to make that happen."

"You're right, baby. Turn about is fair play."

x-x-x-x-x

When Chuck walked into the room, Sarah was waiting for him. The look on her face told him right away that something was wrong. Chuck walked up and quickly embraced Sarah. They stood silently for a long moment until Sarah broke the embrace.

"Come sit down," she said softly as she pulled Chuck into a kitchen chair and sat across from him. "I need to talk to you. I need to explain to you about what's going on and about me and Seth."

"I thought that you couldn't talk about it?" Chuck asked in surprise. "I thought that talking about it would mess you up."

"Maybe," said Sarah sadly. "But right now not talking about it is messing me up even more. I'm so proud of you for putting your jealousy aside. But you deserve to know what is going on. Things went better than expected this afternoon. We have to be at the Orange Orange in an hour for a briefing with Casey and Beckman to talk about what to do next. And there is something that I want you to hear from me before that. I have to know that you know exactly what is, and isn't, going to happen and are going to be okay with it. It's not nearly as bad as it sounds."

"Sarah," Chuck whispered. "What is it?"

"I have to spend the night tomorrow with Seth."

x-x-x-x-x