I do not own Blindspot or its characters.

They had been driving for nearly two hours when Kurt shut off the radio and turned to her. "Jane. We need to talk."

"My five favorite words," Jane joked, hoping to keep things lighthearted, but the serious expression on his face told her there was no deterring him. She sighed as she turned to face him. "What's wrong, Kurt?"

"Have you . . ." Kurt hesitated. "Have you thought any more about my offer?"

She'd scarcely been able to think about anything but that. "Of course I have. It's incredibly tempting, and it was beyond generous of you to offer, but have you thought about the consequences?"

He looked at her blankly, and she sighed. "Marriage fraud is a crime, Kurt." She shouldn't even need to tell him that. "You could face up to five years in prison and a huge fine, and that's if they don't tack on more charges like making false statements. Which I'm sure Weitz will do. He won't miss a chance to make an example of the assistant director of the NYO."

"That's only if they find out," Kurt countered. "But if we get our stories straight, it will be nearly impossible for them to prove. Jane . . . we can do this."

"Nearly impossible to prove?" Jane asked in disbelief. "Kurt . . . if we start divorce proceedings the minute I become eligible for citizenship, you may as well hang a giant flashing neon sign above your head saying you're guilty."

He hadn't considered that. "Okay, then we'll stay married longer," Kurt argued doggedly.

Jane simply shook her head at him. He had been like a dog with a bone since he took up her cause. And she shouldn't have found that as endearing as she did. "How long, Kurt? We've already gone from six to eighteen months. Now you're proposing adding, what, four years? five? to that?" That was longer than some people managed to stay together for real these days.

"However long it takes," Kurt insisted. "Come to think of it, it would probably be best if we stayed married until after your citizenship is official. It would invite less questions that way."

"Sure," Jane agreed sardonically. "Why not? We could combine the 'Welcome to America' and divorce parties that way. Save money."

Kurt hid his amusement at her sarcastic retort. "I'm being serious here, Jane."

"So am I," Jane told him, all traces of flippancy gone. "Kurt . . . even if we put on the most convincing act imaginable, INS will talk to our families and friends, our coworkers. Reade and Zapata and Patterson know we didn't get married for the right reasons. Pellington knows. Nas knows. We—"

"Has Nas bothered you in any way since we've been married?" Kurt demanded. "Because if she has . . . if she does . . . I want you to tell me." He was sure Pellington would back him in doing whatever was necessary to remove Nas from the NYO and sending her back to the NSA. Where she belonged. Intelligence sharing was one thing, but having to work with such an unscrupulous woman day after day grated on him. Pellington had suggested that it would be wise to have her where they could keep an eye on her, and Kurt had conceded that he had a valid point, but there were limits to his tolerance. Threatening his wife was at the top of the list.

"No," Jane assured him. "We've barely spoken to one another since then." Though Nas's eyes spoke volumes. She understood the phrase 'if looks could kill' in a whole new way. "My point is that too many people know about this for it to work, Kurt. We might be able to write off anything Nas says as a disgruntled ex-lover of yours, but we can't ask the team to put their careers on the line to lie for us. Or Pellington. There's just no getting around the fact that we got married for the wrong reasons."

Kurt winced at her description of Nas. He knew it was fair, but god, he still hated that his judgment had been so poor. He nodded slowly. "So we just need to convince INS that no matter why we got married, we're staying married because we love one another." It shouldn't be that hard to do. He did lo-care deeply about Jane, after all, and clearly she felt the same about him, or she wouldn't be so worried about his future.

"You never stop, do you?" she asked, echoing the question he'd once asked her. "Kurt . . ."

"I guess I don't," he parroted right back to her without missing a beat. "Jane . . . just think about it. That's all I'm asking." For the moment, at least. He would find a way to convince her, no matter what objections she raised. She wasn't going back into Keaton's hands while there was breath in his body.

For the rest of the drive, Jane did just that. Kurt clearly wasn't going to let this go, and she was growing tired of being the rational one in this relationship when all she wanted to do was fling herself into his arms and say yes. After all, from her perspective, it wouldn't be an act. She already loved him, so the odds that she could extricate herself from this marriage without getting her heart broken were nil anyway.

And she would make him happy, Jane thought defiantly as she chanced a sideways glance at his profile. A darn sight happier than a lot of actual wives made their husbands. For as long as he would allow. She would do everything in her power to make sure he never regretted his selfless offer.

Kurt could see that Jane was deep in thought, her forehead creased with that little crinkle that he found endearing, and he didn't speak again until they were approaching the outskirts of town. "We made good time, so we're a little early," he told her. "We can't check into the B&B until three, so if there's anything you'd like to see before then . . ."

"What about that?" Jane said, pointing to an approaching sign on their right. "Dynamite Hill Recreation Area. That sounds interesting."

The sign said to take the next left, so Kurt obligingly flipped on his signal and made the turn, following the signs until he reached a large parking lot with surprisingly few spaces left. Clearly, they had stumbled upon a favorite attraction.

Jane was thankful for the cold-weather gear Zapata and Patterson had insisted on as they traipsed through the snow toward the sound of children shrieking with laughter. She paused on the edge of the hill and watched as children and adults alike whizzed down the slope on their brightly colored sleds. She'd seen such scenes on TV, of course, but to actually witness it in person . . .

Jane's eyes were alight with an almost childlike wonder as she took in the scene before her, and Kurt couldn't take his eyes off her as she drank it in. The simple amusements he'd taken for granted growing up were obviously completely foreign to her, or if she ever had gotten the opportunity to experience them, the memories were firmly locked away.

"That looks like fun," Jane said, almost to herself, and the older couple she had paused beside turned to look at her.

"You've never been sledding, dear?" the gray-haired lady asked, surprised.

"No," Jane told her, not taking her eyes off the laughing throng. "At least . . . not that I can remember. I have amnesia."

"That's a shame," the woman said sympathetically. "Childhood memories are some of the ones I treasure the most."

In her case, childhood memories were some of the ones she hoped most never to recover. Jane smiled at the woman as Kurt wrapped a comforting arm around her waist. "Well, I'm here on my honeymoon, so I hope to start making new ones to treasure."

"Well, this is a great place to do it," the woman assured her. "And congratulations. We came here on our own honeymoon over thirty years ago, and the Adirondacks are still one of my favorite places to vacation."

"I can see why," Jane said. "It's so beautiful and peaceful here." She had been awed by the sight of the majestic mountains during the drive. She held out a hand. "I'm Jane . . . Weller, and this is my husband Kurt."

"Nice to meet you," the woman responded. "I'm Amy Matthews, and this is my husband Rob. And these two little scamps—" she motioned to the two boys she had been keeping an eye on who were trudging toward them, "are our grandsons, Jeremy and Joshua. Boys, what do you say you let these nice people borrow your sled for a couple of runs? If you'd like, I can even call my daughter and have her take some pictures of you." She gestured to the bottom of the hill where a lone woman was standing with a camera snapping shots. "She's quite a good photographer, if I do say so myself. And this way you'll have memories to look back on that nothing can take away from you."

Kurt's first instinct was to say no, but Jane was looking up at him so hopefully that he didn't have the heart to refuse. "If you're sure it wouldn't be any trouble . . ." he began.

"No trouble at all," Amy assured him. "The boys could use a rest, and Susan loves to take pictures. It's a favorite hobby of hers." She quickly made the call to let her daughter know as Kurt helped Jane onto the sled. "Ready whenever you are."

Kurt pushed off and quickly jumped on behind Jane, wrapping his arms tightly around her middle as the sled began to pick up speed, and they whizzed down the hill, her delighted shrieks making him laugh aloud himself. He'd forgotten just how much fun the simple pleasures in life could be. Or maybe it was who he was with that made this time so much more special.

They quickly made their way back up the hill to do it again, and this time Kurt laid down on the sled, letting Jane push them off, and she laid down on his back, holding tightly to him as they rocketed down the hill. "That. Was. So much fun," she enthused, and he was struck by how different she looked at the moment, how young and carefree. It was as if the weight of the world had fallen off her shoulders, and he found himself wanting to see that look on her face much more often going forward. He would have to make time for the two of them to do something fun now and again.

"Congratulations, you two," Susan said as she walked over to them. "Mom told me you're here on your honeymoon. Would you like to see the pictures I took?"

"We'd love to," Jane said happily, and Kurt moved closer to her as the two of them looked at the pictures on the camera screen. In the first few shots, she was leaning back into him as they careened down the hill. It was evident she was laughing, but what surprised him was the matching broad smile on his own face. He couldn't remember the last time he had looked like that.

The next set were of their second run, and they sported similar expressions, though he had his head turned toward her slightly the entire time, making sure she was okay as he steered the sled down the hill.

"These are amazing," Jane told Susan. "You're really talented."

"Thanks," Susan said with a laugh, "but you guys made my job easy. You're really photogenic, and it's clear you're very much in love. I predict many happy years ahead." She busied herself shutting off the camera and pulling out the memory card, not noticing the awkward silence that fell between Jane and Kurt. "Here." She held the card out to them. "I make it a point to carry a lot of these with me wherever I go, so you can have this one. I insist," she added when they started to protest. "Consider it my wedding gift to you."

"Thank you," Jane and Kurt chorused as Kurt took the card and carefully zipped it into a pocket of his jacket. "We really appreciate this, Susan."

The three of them made their way back up the hill side by side, but this time as they walked, Kurt reached for Jane's hand and held it tightly the entire time. She felt warmth bloom in her chest at the small gesture, and she couldn't help but hope it was a sign of even better things to come.

This honeymoon was off to a great start.