The Detective and the Tech Guy

Authors: Steampunk . Chuckster & dettiot

Rating: T

Summary: A case of mistaken identity and murder brings Sarah Walker, Pinkerton agent, to sunny California. Protecting the heir to the Bartowski Electronics Corporation should be just business - but Chuck Bartowski fills out a suit nicely and makes a mean martini. Chuck lobbied to hire the Pinkerton Agency, but had no idea the detective they'd send would be as alluring, intelligent and fascinating as Sarah Walker. Will the detective and the tech guy solve the mystery, distracted by the riddle in their own hearts? An homage to The Thin Man movies co-written by Steampunk . Chuckster and dettiot.

Disclaimer: We don't own Chuck or The Thin Man series. And we're making no monetary profit from this story.

Author's Note: dettiot wrote this one, and the next one. It will be two parts! "The Detective and the Tech Guy Adjust, Part 1" is the name of the game. Stay tuned for more updates! - SC

XOXOXOXO

At this moment, Chuck Bartowski might be the happiest man on Earth. No, the happiest man in the solar system or even the galaxy. In every single galaxy, including those far, far away.

Grinning to himself, Chuck kept his eyes closed to fully savor this moment. The gentle sound of the ocean drifted in through the open windows, along with the softly-scented breezes. His back was warmed by the early morning rays of sunshine, and his front was equally warm, but from a much closer source of light and heat than the sun.

Sarah was curled up against him, her feet snuggled underneath his and her head resting on his outstretched arm. Yeah, it was a little uncomfortable, but it was worth it to have her so close to him, soft and warm and there. And to know that she wasn't going anywhere.

Chuck felt his grin grow even wider, which shouldn't be possible. But he had gotten a lot of practice at smiling over the last two weeks, ever since Sarah had shown up in his apartment and told him that she loved him. That she wanted to stay with him, that she didn't want their relationship to be a secret anymore. When she had made so many of his dreams come true in one perfect moment.

Not that this moment right now wasn't really, really good. It was a shame he was going to have to end it, but his body was crying out for the bathroom right now.

With as much grace as possible, he slid his arm out from underneath Sarah, pulling over a pillow to support her head as he moved away. She let out a soft little murmur but didn't seem to wake up, to Chuck's relief. He had suspected that Sarah wasn't much of a morning person, from things she had said while working for his father and then his own observations during their hurried trips together. But after two weeks together? He knew that Sarah Walker was grumpy if you woke her up.

Once he was out of bed, he padded into the bathroom and took care of his business, and then, since he was there, he brushed his teeth. Minty breath was bound to be appreciated by Sarah when she woke up. And coffee-he hadn't put fresh grounds into the coffeemaker last night, so he should run down and do that now. That way, they'd have piping hot coffee whenever they were ready to get out of bed.

Hitching up his boxers a little, Chuck walked down the stairs to the first floor and headed to the kitchen. He yawned as he got the coffee starting. Normally, he always filled the pot the night before, but his normal routines had been disrupted by Sarah's presence.

And what a wonderful disruption she was. One that he was thrilled by. But . . . but it had been two weeks and he still hadn't told his parents about Sarah.

Chuck looked at the coffeepot, willing it to brew faster so he could go back to bed and to Sarah. But his mind was poking at him now, making him think this over.

Of course after all that had happened, they'd want to take advantage of having all this time together. And there were adjustments to make with that change. Like discovering Sarah was a slugabed, or having to ask Sarah to leave the room while he was on a confidential phone call to a vendor. Not that he didn't trust Sarah, but he took any calls like that in private, even if his father was the only one in the room.

And hey, it wasn't like before. Because at least they'd told one person: Morgan. The three of them had dinner together a few nights ago and it had been great. They had sat for hours at the back booth in Morgan's restaurant, talking and laughing. They'd cleared the air over the whole sexting thing, explaining to Morgan why they had kept their relationship secret. And Morgan had understood.

"Don't get me wrong, I was kinda hurt," Morgan said after he finished swallowing a huge piece of shrimp tempura. "I didn't get why my best friend wasn't telling me that everything had worked out with the woman of his dreams, his own personal Vicki Vale." Morgan's eyebrows waggled and Chuck couldn't help laughing, even as he still felt a little ashamed of himself.

"But once I thought it over, I got it. I knew there had to be a reason, and you'd tell me in your own time," Morgan said, snatching up the last piece of sashimi.

"Exactly, buddy," Chuck said, resting a hand on Morgan's shoulder. "As soon as we decided to let everyone know, you were the first person I thought of telling. And that's why we're here tonight."

Chuck was pretty sure that Morgan was blushing under his beard. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Sarah look wistful for a split-second before she resumed her soft smile.

Thinking back on that moment now, Chuck realized that Sarah must be feeling lonely. She didn't have her coworkers to talk to anymore, she had moved away from any friends she had in Chicago . . . and while it was romantic to think that they could be everything for each other, Chuck knew it wasn't practical. Or healthy for their long-term future.

So maybe there was a way to kill two birds with one stone. While the coffee finished perking and he poured and prepared two mugs of high-quality coffee for himself and Sarah, Chuck took his cell phone off the charger and hit the contact for his sister.

It was time to start making up for his argument with Ellie by inviting her and Devon to LA. Time to have Sarah meet his family as his girlfriend. And time to move past the second honeymoon, as delightful as it was, to start this new chapter in their lives.

"Hello?" Ellie's voice was a touch guarded, as if she wasn't sure why her brother was calling her. And that made Chuck all the more determined to fix this.

"Hey, El. You got a minute to talk?"

XXX

Waking up to an empty bed was something that Sarah was used to. Or at least, it had been something she was used to. But now, after two weeks of living with Chuck Bartowski, opening her eyes and discovering that she was alone . . . it was enough to make the whole day feel a little bit off.

Sarah sat up, brushing her hair back out of her eyes. It was another beautiful day and she had the whole day ahead of her. Since it was Saturday, Chuck would be with her, at least. She wouldn't be alone all day, like she was right now . . .

With a frown, she gave herself a mental slap. There was no reason to get so maudlin, just because she was getting addicted to waking up with Chuck stretched out beside her, all warm and firm and close. At some point, they'd probably wake up apart, like when Chuck had a business trip or once she found a new job and moved out. Because as tempting as it was to stay, Sarah wanted to make sure their relationship didn't have to handle too many changes at once. It was huge that she would be living in the same city as Chuck. Once she started working again, they'd have to adjust to that, too. So moving in together just didn't feel right to her. Not yet.

Or maybe she was just a little bit scared. Of how easy it was, being with Chuck. Of how much she was tempted to stay here forever.

But right now, there was nothing to be scared of, Sarah told herself. It was a beautiful day and it was Saturday. They had the whole weekend ahead of them, and like any other couple, they had errands to run and workouts to complete. Chuck had started running more frequently, since she went for a run pretty much every day when the weather was good. And since this was California, the weather was always good.

She smiled a little to herself and hugged her knees to her chest. A lot of things were good. Like her relationship with Chuck. And her first meeting with Morgan-she had been nervous about meeting Chuck's best friend, but "the little bearded man" had been so welcoming to her and so happy for Chuck that her nerves were put to rest. As well as her lingering anger over Morgan's sexting scheme.

The only fly in the ointment was how hard it was proving to find a new job. Having to explain she had quit the Pinkerton Agency in order to prevent being terminated certainly turned off a few of the employers who had initially expressed interest in her. And anyone who had heard how she left Pinkerton and wanted her to break her non-disclosure agreements, she wasn't interested in that employer anymore.

Her thoughts were interrupted by two things: the sound of footsteps and the aroma of coffee. Sarah quickly fluffed up her hair and straightened out her t-shirt, but the smile that she could feel on her face was automatic.

When Chuck saw her, he smiled brightly. "Hey," he said, putting down the two mugs he was carrying before leaning in to kiss her. "Good morning."

"Mmm," she murmured softly against against his lips, savoring the taste of Chuck and mint. "Good morning," she replied, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him down on the bed.

He chuckled. "You want me over coffee? Who are you and what have you done with Sarah?"

"Ha, ha," she said, sticking her tongue out at him. "It's too bright in here-you need some Venetian blinds or something. I woke up and couldn't sleep anymore."

"But I like waking up with the sunshine," Chuck said, stroking her hair back. "And seeing the light fall over you first thing in the morning."

Sarah bit her lip, feeling a wave of love and happiness. The fact that she had this amazingly sweet man in her life still took her breath away. And it made her feel silly and giddy in ways that were very new to her. New, but very welcome. "Blinds are good for other reasons, too."

His eyebrows went up and a small smirk appeared on his face. "Oh, yeah? Is that a metaphor or something?"

She nodded slowly, letting her eyes drop to his lips. "Uh-huh. It's a metaphor for not having a grumpy, sleep-deprived girlfriend."

Chuck let out a snort of laughter. "Which is why I was surprised you were passing up coffee."

"You make me sound like some kind of coffee addict," Sarah said, pursing her lips a little before grinning at him. The thing was, she was an addict. But not to coffee, she thought as she leaned in for another kiss.

Chuck kissed her back, but now there was a slight hesitation in him. Like he wasn't fully committed to the kiss. That made her pull back, eyeing him. "What's going on?" she asked bluntly.

The question made him huff out a breath. "No getting anything past you. Okay," he said, shifting around and picking up the coffees, holding one out towards her. "I did something that might make you nervous, since I didn't really clear it with you first, but . . . but it's something we both want, so I thought, why wait?"

Sarah took her coffee but kept him pinned under her gaze. "Just tell me, Chuck," she said, trying to sound supportive and not like she was starting to freak out a tiny little bit.

"I invited Ellie and Devon to come to LA, so I could explain why I've been acting so weird lately. Namely, because I have a girlfriend and I want to introduce said girlfriend to them and the rest of my family." Chuck said it quickly and then took a large swallow of his coffee. He winced. "Hot. Hot coffee."

In the back of her mind, the flirtatious response she'd make about kissing away the hurt and making it better immediately popped up. But there was no way she was going to say that, not when she felt like a flock of butterflies were in her stomach.

They had been so caught up in this second honeymoon, like they had been in the blissful phase right after they got together, that Sarah hadn't really thought much about just how they were going to tell Chuck's family about her. Dinner with Morgan had happened spontaneously, after Morgan had dropped by unannounced and Sarah had been in the apartment with Chuck. But this? A planned dinner with Chuck's sister and brother-in-law-and with Chuck's parents?

A cold trickle of fear was going down her spine, creating all sorts of what-ifs and doubts in her head, and then she looked at Chuck. At the small wrinkle between his eyebrows, at the way he was pressing his lips together, at how his brown eyes were muted and without his sparkle. He was nervous, too. But not about telling his family about her-well, maybe he was, a little. But what he was more worried about was her reaction. About how she felt about this dinner party.

And the fact that she knew he was nervous, too-that she wasn't alone in this-made everything a little easier. Because nerves meant that this mattered. That this dinner going well was about more than just a pleasant evening with Chuck's family. It meant that they were starting things out right. Starting a new chapter in their lives, together.

Because he loved her. Just like she loved him. And they were going to love each other for a long, long time. Maybe forever?

Taking a deep breath, she pushed aside that thought for another time and reached for his hand. "When are Ellie and Devon coming here?"

Chuck's whole face lit up. "You're okay with this?"

"With telling your family? Yes," she said, because she really was. She wanted to remove that last barrier to being an honest-to-God couple. She wanted to know she could walk down the street with Chuck and hold his hand or kiss his cheek, out in the open.

She continued. "With you making plans without asking me about them first? No. And I expect you to make it up to me, Mr. Bartowski."

The teasing words, along with her saucy smile and suggestive tone, did exactly what she hoped they would. It made Chuck smile and lean in towards her, waggling his eyebrows in that cute-yet-seductive way of his. "Is that so, Ms. Walker?"

"Mm-hmm," she said, pulling him in for a long, slow kiss.

By the time he was done making things up to her, the coffee was cold.

XXX

As they stepped into the trendy French bistro, Chuck knew he was probably holding Sarah's hand too tightly. He was practically cutting off her circulation, but he couldn't help it. He couldn't believe that tonight, he would get to tell the people he loved most in the world about the woman he loved more than any other woman. The woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.

And that was definitely not something to be thinking about right now. It was too soon, for one thing. And for another, if he went into a room with his mother even thinking about marriage, she would know. And then she'd start thinking that Sarah was pregnant, and things would get very, very messy.

No, tonight was going to be a good night. Sarah looked beautiful, he was feeling good in his favorite suit, and Sarah had picked out his tie and had given him a long, scorching hot kiss to boot after she had tied it for him. They would go into the private room he had booked for tonight's dinner, and his parents and his sister and his brother-in-law and his best friend would all be thrilled to see Chuck so happy and to meet Sarah in a social setting.

It was going to be great.

"Chuck?"

"Yeah, Sarah?" he said, turning his head to look at her. "Am I holding your hand too tight? I'm sorry." He immediately loosened his grip on her hand, noting her tiny wince of relief.

"A little. But it was also pretty clammy." She paused and he could see her thinking, see her keen eyes narrowing as she deliberated over what she was going to say next. "You don't have to be nervous. They're your family-they love you. You don't have to be a detective to see that," she said with a small, lopsided smile.

He chuckled a little, feeling the tension ebb. "I know they love me. But that's the thing about family-knowing that they love me makes it harder sometimes, not easier."

Sarah gave a small nod and stroked his arm, and he felt his confidence building. He leaned over and brushed a kiss over the top of her head. "I love you," he said softly, gazing at her.

"I love you, too," she said, a bright smile flashing across her face, making her look so damn beautiful that Chuck felt his heart beat faster. He leaned in to kiss her softly, then straightened up before he got too distracted.

"Ready?" he asked, taking her hand and tucking it into the crook of his arm.

He could feel her press her fingers against his arm, as if drawing some support from him, before she nodded. "Ready. Although . . ."

"What is it?" he asked, leaning in close to her.

She looked up at him, nibbling a little on her lower lip, then gave him a small smile. "Just so you know, that suit on you makes me want to go back to your place and install some Venetian blinds."

It wasn't fair how embarrassed and flustered and turned-on he got at hearing Sarah Walker say "install some Venetian blinds." Because it was a metaphor-a shared joke, something that he had always wanted to have. Because ever since last week and their conversation, 'installing Venetian blinds' had become code for having sex.

Clearing his throat and hoping his ears weren't too red, he nodded. "Understood. Um, let's go," he said, leading her back towards the private room.

When they stepped inside, he felt a moment of relief that his parents hadn't arrived yet. It was just Morgan, Ellie and Devon. He couldn't help boggling at the sight of his big sister, her belly rounded from her pregnancy.

"El, you're glowing!" he said before he could help himself.

Eleanor Bartowski Woodcomb rolled her eyes with a grin. "Why do people always say that to pregnant woman? It's like it's the only adjective-"

Chuck could tell when Ellie caught sight of Sarah-and how their arms were entwined-by the way her eyes widened. Then she let out a squeal that only dogs could hear. "Oh my God! You and Sarah-you're dating?!"

"Way to go, Chuck," Devon said as he wiggled a finger in his ear before grinning widely. "That's awesome."

"Thanks," he said, looking at his sister. Searching her face for any signs of anger or disappointment. But all he saw was excitement and happiness.

Proving once again just how good a detective she was, Sarah leaned up and lightly kissed his cheek. "Talk to your sister," she whispered in his ear before dropping back and letting go of his arm.

"You're sure?" he asked quietly, gazing at her.

She nodded and smiled. "Devon and Morgan have a lot of Chuck stories they'd love to share with me, I bet." Her smile turned devious and she stepped over to his best friend and his brother-in-law.

It was hard to say whether Sarah wanted to let him have a moment with his sister or was just taking some extra time to collect herself before her official introduction as Chuck's girlfriend to his family. And he couldn't deny that he was a bit nervous about just what Morgan and Devon could tell her. But Ellie was grabbing his arm and pulling him to the other side of the room, past the lavishly-appointed table.

"I cannot believe this! I mean, I thought Sarah was great when I met her last summer, and you clearly seemed interested in her, but I had no idea!" Ellie was so excited that her words tumbled over themselves. She gripped his forearm and beamed at him. "Tell me everything!"

"I'm not telling you everything, Ellie," Chuck said with a laugh. "There are some things I won't tell my sister about my love life."

Ellie groaned. "Fine, Mr. Pedantic. When did you two start dating? Was it last summer? Was that why Mom was so pissed off about Sarah?"

"No . . . Mom just didn't like Sarah. I don't know why. I mean, Sarah's amazing."

He could hear himself sounding all dreamy and Ellie's wide grin confirmed that he sounded like a lovesick fool. But really, wasn't that what he was? So Chuck gave a mental shrug and continued explaining. "We didn't start dating until right before Christmas. We ran into each other in Paris, and . . . and everything clicked."

"But if you've been dating so long, why didn't you tell anyone?" Ellie asked, her brows knit together.

"Because of Sarah's job-she was worried about how it'd look, dating the son of a client and everything, even after the case was solved." Chuck sighed. "And she was right to worry-when her boss found out, he was all set to fire her before Sarah quit."

Sympathy immediately blossomed on Ellie's face. "That's so awful. So she's looking for a job now?"

Chuck nodded. "She'll find something. She's too good for some detective agency or law firm to not snap her up."

"And that's why you're telling all of us now about you two?" Ellie paused, then slapped her hand against her forehead. "No wonder you got so mad at me about Gwen. Chuck, you could have told me you had a girlfriend."

And here was the crux of the matter. "Could I, El?" he asked, making his voice as gentle as possible. "Wouldn't you have wanted to know all the details then? And when I couldn't tell you, the curiosity would drive you crazy. And the doubts about whether I was doing the right thing."

Of all the people on Earth, Ellie was one of a few who knew him best. But that went both ways: he knew her, too. He knew how curious and inquisitive his big sister was. How determined she was that he was happy. How much she wanted him to have more than his work, to have a way to break free of their mother's orbit. Because of all those things, he couldn't have told her about having a secret girlfriend.

Ellie's lips pressed together as she thought that over, then she let out a small sigh. "I suppose you're right. Just like what happened when I tried to set you up with Gwen, I would have kept pestering you-"

"Not pestering," Chuck interrupted her. "I know your heart is always in the right place."

"Because I love you, you big tall thing," Ellie said, making him laugh by bringing up an insult she had once hurled at him during a fight when they were teenagers. "But you're right-I would have pushed, and it's time for me to learn when to push and when to let it go." She smiled and rubbed her belly.

He smiled at her, ready to ask how her pregnancy was going, when he heard his father's voice. Turning around, Chuck saw Stephen and Mary Bartowski had just stepped into the room. His father had a smile on his face, while his mother's lips were pursed. Taking a deep breath and pausing only to take Ellie's hand and give it a quick, momentary squeeze, Chuck walked over to his parents.

"Mom, Dad, I'm glad you're here. There's someone I want you to meet. Although you already know her."

XOXOXOXOXOXO

Author's Note: Keep reading and leaving reviews! Thanks to everyone who reviewed the story after that flurry of story updates! It was very kind of all of you. More to come VERY soon! - SC