A/N - A short little chapter just may give a hint as to what will happen, or it may not. ;) lol Thanks for reading and please let me know what you think. Next chapter should be up no later than Saturday.

Chapter 15

Lake Tahoe NV/CA Labor Day Weekend 2010

"Are you sure you want to do this Sarah?"

"Absolutely, sweetheart. You're starting training camp in about a week and I'm just being a good wife and doing what I can to help make sure my husband is ready."

"You're the best wife I could ever hope for sweetheart, and then some. By the way, you look really cute in that uniform."

Sarah smiled and did a pirouette for him as best she could, considering she was on skates. Unbeknownst to Chuck, Sarah had gone online to purchase a few items before their weekend getaway. Sarah purchased a woman's ice hockey uniform, complete with the pads, a helmet and hockey skates. When packing for the trip, she dug out Chuck's Team USA home and away jerseys from the Olympics and packed all of Chuck's hockey gear as well, included two of his hockey sticks. She hid her purchases in her luggage and told Chuck that he should bring his gear in case he had time for a little practice. Sarah called ahead and booked the ice skating rink for a private session on Saturday morning before the regular sessions started and asked that a hockey goal be put in.

Sarah was wearing her hockey gear and one of Chuck's Team USA jerseys. It was way too big, but she managed to tie it up around her hips so it wouldn't go down to her knees. Chuck was wearing his other jersey and just smiled amusedly at her.

Sarah had the puck in her hand and showed it to Chuck. "Are you ready Mr. Bartowski? Or are you afraid your wife is going to beat you?"

"Oh, is that a challenge Mrs. Bartowski?" he said with a wink. "Bring it on. You can go first."

Sarah gave him her most seductive smile and blew him a kiss.

"That's not fair."

"What's not fair?"

"You doing that."

"What did I do?"

"That." Chuck was waving his hand at his wife while he said it.

Sarah smirked at him. "You never said it was against the rules."

"I don't recall ever discussing any rules."

Sarah laughed and said "All is fair in love and one-on-one ice hockey."

Chuck laughed and said. "Bring it on Mrs. Bartowski. I want to check out your moves."

Sarah looked at him coyly. "I thought you did that last night, and this morning. I thought your moves were outstanding Mr. Bartowski."

Chuck turned red. "OK. I'm sufficiently distracted now. I'm enjoying replays of last night and this morning in my mind. Let's start before I my mind melts."

Sarah laughed and smiled. "First one to eleven." She was standing at center ice and dropped the puck at her feet. The inaugural Bartowski v. Bartowski One-on-One Ice Hockey challenge had begun.

Sarah started forward with the puck doing a pretty good job of stick handling as Chuck skated backwards getting closer to the net. Being seven inches taller and 90 pounds heavier, Chuck had a rather large advantage over his much more diminutive wife in comparison. Sarah tried to slide the puck between Chuck's skates and go around him to pick up the puck again. Chuck simply stepped in front of his wife and she crashed into him and Sarah fell on her bottom. She thought she had run into a wall. Chuck turned around and retrieved the puck and came back and helped his wife up.

"That's not fair," Sarah complained.

"What's not fair? That was a normal body check that happens many times in every game."

"OK, Mr. Bartowski. Let's see what you've got."

Chuck stood at the center circle and dropped the puck at his feet. He skated toward Sarah and when she tried to reach in and steal the puck, he simply pushed the puck slightly out of her reach and went around her to the left. Sarah, seeing that she was beaten, grabbed Chuck and held on to his waist. He just kept on skating, dragging his wife with him and tucked the puck into the net. Score CB 1 SB 0.

After scoring, Chuck reached around and picked up his wife and gave her a big kiss on the lips, which Sarah returned. Chuck smirked "Don't worry, I'll never do that with one of my teammates after scoring a goal."

Sarah laughed and pulled him down for another kiss and said "Oh, I'm not worried. My lips have exclusive rights to your lips for that kind of thing."

Chuck smirked. "That I know and I'm also glad that my lips have exclusive rights to yours."

They headed back to center ice for the next several rounds. Sarah tried and tried admirably and showed some pretty good skill, but she couldn't come close to what Chuck could do and the score was soon CB 10 SB 0. Sarah asked Chuck "Would you please teach me how to do a slap shot?

Chuck smiled and said "Certainly sweetheart." He went to his bag and pulled out a few more pucks. Chuck demonstrated the proper technique and where to have the puck in relation to her body. Sarah took several tries and finally got one in the net. She jumped up and raised her hands over her head in a classic goal scorers pose. "Not bad Mrs. Bartowski. I'll go retrieve the pucks while you enjoy your success." There was still one puck behind Sarah that Chuck didn't see. After collecting the pucks from around the ice, Chuck made it to the net and bent over at the waist with his backside facing out to retrieve the pucks in the net. Sarah called out "Don't move sweetie," and fired the puck at the net which hit him square in the ass. That caused Chuck to stand up straight quickly and hit his head on the crossbar of the goal and he sat down hard on the ice and lay down on his back. It was a good thing he was wearing his helmet. Chuck grabbed his head and started moaning in pain. Sarah, suddenly fearing that she had hurt her husband skated over to him and kneeled down next to him. "Chuck, are you OK?" He immediately reached out and grabbed her and pulled her on top of him and kissed her hard on the lips. When they broke for air Chuck started laughing and Sarah slapped him hard on the chest. "Oh, you're going to get it for that Mr. Bartowski."

"Is that a promise Mrs. Bartowski?"

That caused Sarah to start laughing and they quickly started kissing again, this time more passionately. After breaking for air, Chuck smiled and said "As much as I would like to continue this, I think I would rather wait for a place that is much more private."

Sarah nodded. "I guess you're right. Don't you want your prize for winning?"

"Being married to you is the greatest prize I will ever receive. I had in mind doing something else with the rest of our time here."

Sarah raised an eyebrow. "What's that?"

"We have our figure skates right? Sarah nodded. "I want you to teach me how to do a triple axel."

"I've never completed one in completion, Chuck."

"You've done it in practice, right."

"Yes, but why do you want to learn it?"

"You've taught me all the other triple jumps, so I thought it would be fun. We can do one together."

Sarah chuckled. "It's hard to say no to you. OK, let's give it a shot."

They went off the ice and took off their uniforms and changed their skates. They each had stretch pants and shirts on underneath and they headed back on the ice. After skating around the ice holding hands and doing some warm up jumps they stopped in the middle of the ice. Sarah explained how the jump worked and the takeoff and why it was so difficult. Chuck just laughed. "How can it be that difficult for someone with such a wicked slap shot?" Sarah slapped him on the arm and smirked. "OK tough guy. Let's see if you're laughing after you try it."

The both started by trying a double axel and had no problems with it. "OK, sweetie. Are you ready to give it a try?" Chuck nodded.

They skated side by side and built up some speed and then both took off and spun 3 ½ revolutions and landed. Instead of a clean landing, both two-footed it, but it wasn't a bad attempt. "Not bad sweetheart. We both need to try to get a little more lift on takeoff. Their next try wasn't any better but wasn't any worse. Chuck pulled Sarah in for a kiss. Sarah said "What was that for?"

"Do I need a reason to kiss my beautiful wife?"

"No, of course not."

"Good. I was just giving you a reminder of just how much I love you."

Sarah grinned. "You always know what I need. I love you too." They leaned in and shared another kiss. "Are you ready to do this?"

While Chuck and Sarah were on the ice practicing their figure skating, the general manager of the rink came into her office which overlooked the rink. She looked outside her window and watched the two mystery skaters. Her assistant walked in. "Who are those two skaters? It looks like they know what they are doing." I don't know their names," came the reply. A woman called a few weeks ago and paid $5,000 to have the rink for two hours each morning this weekend before we opened. I can look up her name if you want." "Don't bother right now, I want to watch these two for a bit."

This time Chuck and Sarah caught perfect edges and launched high into the air, easily completing the 3 ½ revolutions before landing perfectly on the ice, their trailing leg extending beautifully. Chuck and Sarah stopped and looked at each other. "Did we really just do that?" They skated into each others arms and kissed hard, hardly believing what happened.

The general manager dropped the pencil she was holding. "Did I just see what I think I did?" Her assistant said "They just landed side by side triple axels. Who are those two?" The GM picked up her phone, set it on video and waited. Sure enough, the two skaters tried and succeeded again and even a third time. The GM looked up a phone number and forwarded the video to a friend of hers. After waiting a few minutes, she called. "Hello?"

"Hey, it's me. Did you see the video I just sent you?"

"No? Please take a look at it. I know you're looking for someone to replace Walker and Larkin. These two may be it. Call me back." She turned to her assistant. "Have they been here for long?"

"They arrived about an hour and a half ago. They were playing a little ice hockey first. It was really cute. They were wearing matching Team USA Olympic hockey jerseys with number 39 on it. The name was something like Boutruski or Brotrawski, something ethnic."

"Bartowski. I remember him from the Olympics. Could that be him out there or are they fans wearing replica jerseys?"

Just then her phone rang. "Hello Diane."

"Where did you get this video?"

"I took it myself about fifteen minutes ago. They're at my rink right now. Do you know who they are?

"If I didn't know better I could have sworn it is Chuck and Sarah Bartowski but it couldn't be. He's a hockey player getting ready for the NHL and Sarah's retired and going to medical school. I was at their wedding. They're too far away to tell for sure."

"Would it help to know that they were playing a little ice hockey earlier wearing matching Team USA Olympic jerseys with the name Bartowski and the number 39 on the back? It was really cute."

Diane Beckman almost dropped her phone. "Do they have a hard time keeping their hands off each other, Sally?"

Sally Miller, the GM laughed. "It's almost disgusting, but absolutely adorable. I've never even met them but it is obvious that they are head over heels in love with each other."

"That's them alright. Would you do me a favor?"

"Certainly, Diane."

"Would you please go down and ask Sarah to give me a call? She changed numbers when she moved to Palo Alto and I lost her new number. She did give it to me."

"No problem Diane. Talk to you later." They hung up.

In the meantime, Chuck and Sarah kept on working on their throws. They even landed a few throw triple axels. After skating around the rink some more enjoying each other's company and kissing every chance they got, they decided to head back to their hotel as their time was up for the day.

While changing back into their shoes, Sally came up to them and said "Excuse me, sorry to bother you. But are you Chuck and Sarah Bartowski?"

They nodded.

"I'm Sally Miller, the GM of this place. I was enjoying watching you skate. We have a mutual friend, Diane Beckman."

Sarah smiled. "Whoever is a friend of Diane is a friend of mine. Pleased to meet you Sally."

"Pleased to meet you and Chuck, too. This is my assistant, Nancy Green."

They exchanged pleasantries.

"I hope you don't mind, but I sent a video of you landing those triple axels to Diane. At first she didn't think it was you because she thought you had retired."

Sarah laughed. "Oh, I've retired alright. We just do this for fun and exercise. Chuck's going to the Ducks' training camp in about a week and I'm very busy with medical school."

Chuck added "We just like to do this for fun. It helps me appreciate everything she accomplished in figure skating and the same for her with ice hockey."

"Well, it's nice to meet you. Diane asked me to pass you a message. She misplaced your new phone number and was hoping you'll give a call."

"Thanks. We will be sure to call her. We'll be coming back this time for the next couple of days. Hope to see you then."

"Thanks. See you later."

Chuck and Sarah packed up their gear and headed back to the hotel. Since it was a nice day outside, they donned their swim suits and headed for the pool. Sarah was wearing a green string bikini that covered just the right areas and Chuck in board shorts. A waiter came by and took their drink orders.

Sarah decided to call Diane.

"Hello," Diane answered.

"Hi Diane, this is Sarah Bartowski. I heard you wanted to talk to me."

"Hi Sarah. So nice to talk to you. How's Chuck?"

"Great, Diane. We're taking a long weekend before Chuck reports to training camp in Anaheim."

"So, contrary to the video I just saw you two aren't trying to become pairs figure skaters?"

Sarah laughed. "It's just something we do for fun, but it shows just what a great skater my husband is."

"You're not so bad yourself, Sarah."

"Thanks. Besides, if we were going to make a comeback, you'd be the first to know. We'd want you as our coach."

"Thanks Sarah and thanks for resending your current phone number."

"No problem. How's everything with you?"

"You know me. Just looking for the next Walker and Larkin. After seeing that video though, I thought I had found them in the form of Bartowski and Bartowski."

"Funny, Diane. Although it does have a nice ring to it."

"Thanks again for calling and I'll let you get back to your mini vacay. Take care Sarah."

"You too, Diane. Good bye."

"What did Diane want? asked Chuck looking up from his Hockey News magazine.

"I think she was hoping that Bartowski and Bartowski were going to be the next Walker and Larkin."

"That's funny. You two spent years training together and we're supposed to be a team because we have some fun on the ice? Although I like the sound of that name."

"I told Diane that too and made sure she knew I was retired. I'm getting warm. Care to join me in the pool?"

Chuck stood up and reached down for Sarah's hand and helped her up. They dove into the pool and enjoyed the cool water. Chuck swam underwater and between Sarah's legs, put her on his shoulders and stood up. Sarah started laughing and said "Do you remember the chicken fight we had with Ellie and Devon?"

"How could I forget? That was a lot of fun, although it took me awhile to forget seeing my sister naked."

"Well, Devon did get a good look at me."

"Yeah, but he's a doctor. He's used to seeing naked women."

"Maybe so, but I prefer keeping my naked body for your enjoyment and your enjoyment only."

"Ditto for me. But you had to admit it was fun and I did get to have the most beautiful woman in the world naked and on my shoulders. The best part is I'm the only one who gets to look, touch, kiss and caress, etc., etc.

Sarah chuckled. "That's very true and I love that you belong to me in the same way. Do you feel like trying something?"

"What's that?"

"I'm going to stand on your shoulders."

"OK Sarah. Just be careful."

Sarah put her feet on Chuck's shoulders and squatted down with her hands in his. She slowly straightened her legs and stood straight up. It was almost like a lift in pairs skating for her. While standing there, she noticed a young family in the shallow end of the pool. "Look, Chuck, over in the shallow end. That'll be us in about ten years."

Chuck looked over at them and smiled "One day Sarah, one day."

He moved to the center of the pool and said, "ready Sarah? It's time to get down. Hold your breath."

Chuck leaned back and let go of Sarah's hands. She fell back into the water and made a big splash. After emerging from the water, she splashed Chuck and said "You're going to get it for that."

They laughed and splashed until Chuck swam over and captured Sarah in his arms. She faked struggling and snuggled into his arms and gladly accepted his kiss. They eventually climbed out of the pool and dried off before returning to their room to get ready to go out to dinner and enjoy a show.

The weekend was over way too fast and they reluctantly packed their bags and drove back to Palo Alto, stopping for dinner on the way home. As they drove past the Palo Alto Municipal airport Sarah got an inspiration. "Have you ever wanted to learn how to fly, sweetheart?

"Yeah, when I was younger. I never had the time or the money to do it then. What about you?"

"I've always thought it would great to learn how to fly. I have an idea."

"What's that?"

"We both get our pilot's licenses. We live near an airport and you won't be far from the Fullerton or John Wayne airports. So, if we can fly a plane, we can see each other more often during the season. It won't be much different than driving into the City."

Chuck instantly beamed. "That's brilliant, Sarah. I was wondering how I was going to be able to survive without seeing you very often during the season. This will solve that problem. It will be so much easier and quicker than driving to SFO and taking a commuter flight."

"I know. I was wondering how I would be able to survive without you too. I don't sleep well anymore unless I'm snuggled up to you with your arms around me. You've spoiled me for life."

Chuck smiled and said "I'm going to be the happiest man in the world making my wife feel spoiled. I love you. I'll call tomorrow to get us started on lessons."

They drove home, unpacked and crawled naked into bed. After making love, they snuggled up in their favorite position and Sarah said "I love you Chuck. I know you'll do great in Anaheim. I'm going to miss you terribly when we're apart but know this – I am yours and you are mine and nothing will ever change that. I will look forward to when we are home together and I'll be looking forward to your calls and texts every day."

"I love you too, Sarah. I too will miss you terribly when we're apart. I will be thinking of you every free moment of every day and I will be calling you and texting you throughout the day. And I'll make sure I get home to you every chance I get.

They fell asleep knowing that no matter what changes may occur in their lives, they will face them together.