A/N: Thanks to all of you that have stayed with this story and particularly those that have taken the time to leave reviews and/or PMs. It has been great to see people enjoy the AU version of the lives of the characters we love so much.
Thanks also to the two betas involved. MarkeyDeSad for the first eighteen chapters and Captainrick944 for the last and this one.
This is the final chapter of this story, wrapping it up.
The Novelist
Chapter 20: Completed Novel
Sarah was happy to have Ellie Woodcomb as her editor. They worked well together. Since her first, she had always taken her novels to Ellie, proudly presenting each to her, confident that Ellie would like it and not be required to do much editing. In fact, Sarah had insisted on no editing without her approval, and Ellie had been happy with that after that first time.
This novel was different. Sarah was almost as nervous about giving it to her editor as she had been about her first novel. It wasn't that she lacked confidence in it, but that Ellie was going to be so upset about how it ended. She felt like a coward dragging her boyfriend along, almost as a shield against the wrath of Ellie.
"You have to be firm with her," Chuck said as they walked toward Ellie's office from the parking lot.
Sarah stopped and grabbed his arm to halt him, too. "When have you ever stood up to your sister?"
He flushed. "I… I…" His shoulders slumped. "Okay. I've never done that, but this is different."
She tipped her head slightly as she evaluated his response. "How so?"
"You're a super confident, successful author. Your success is your strength," he replied as if that was adequate as an answer.
"You know that's bull, don't you?" she said. "You don't know how much Ellie will want to edit to make it into the final product."
"Does she normally?" he asked.
"No, but she might want to with this one," she replied, then added, "Even after she gets over the fact that this is the last."
"Yeah, that's going to hit her hard," he conceded.
"Thanks for the confidence-boosting words," she said sarcastically, and set off again with Chuck trying to catch up.
When they entered Ellie's office, she was surprised to see both of them. "Is Chuck your bodyguard now?" she teased Sarah.
The memory of her being in San Francisco meeting her dad flashed through Sarah's mind, but then the reality of the situation today buried it. "Something like that," she replied with a sheepish grin.
Ellie just laughed, and as they sat opposite her, said, "So, you've brought it?"
Sarah nodded. Ellie always liked her authors to deliver their work to her if they could. Obviously, those who lived a long way away had to send it, but local authors delivered by hand. In the past, that would have been a weighty typed manuscript, but not anymore.
Sarah held the memory stick up. "All here."
Ellie reached for it, but Sarah held it back, which confused her friend.
"I need to tell you about it first," Sarah said.
Ellie was confused. "You normally like to see my reactions after I've finished reading."
"For the story itself, that's true for this one too, but there's something else I need to say first," Sarah replied, her nervousness increasing.
Ellie sat back. "Go on then."
Sarah inwardly took a deep breath. "This will be the last Rebecca Franks novel." There, she'd said it.
Ellie's reaction was instantaneous. "WHAT?!"
Sarah reached over and clasped Chuck's hand. He gave hers a squeeze of encouragement. "She leaves the CIA at the end of the novel."
Ellie was still reeling from the shock but managed to say, "That would be fine, but ending the series there is criminal. Does she go freelance or rogue or what? You can write about that."
"She leaves the whole world of espionage and becomes a normal citizen. And no, I won't write anymore about her," Sarah said.
Ellie snorted. "That would never work. She'd miss it all, and what would she even do?"
"Settle down with her man and find something else to do," Sarah replied, starting to get annoyed at Ellie's dismissive attitude.
"Oh shit!" Ellie exclaimed. "Is this my fault for making you add the love interest?"
Sarah hadn't thought about that before. The temptation to push the blame onto her editor was squashed quickly. "No. I'm bored with writing about her and just used him to give her the incentive to leave a job that she's always hated."
Ellie's eyes briefly scanned her walls. Sarah knew what was there. Framed book covers of all the novels Ellie had edited that had been successes. Probably a third of those were of Rebecca Franks. "You can't do this…," she said, but much less forcefully.
"Ellie, I haven't given up writing. I just don't want to write about her anymore."
Ellie snapped her eyes back to Sarah. "Have you started something else?"
"No," Sarah replied. "I'm taking a break from writing."
Ellie glared at her brother. "Your fault?"
Chuck was going to answer, but Sarah got there first. "I do want to spend some time with Chuck, but I need a break from writing. It's been intense." She almost smiled. The intensity had been more about Chuck's work, but writing about espionage kept thoughts of what he had to do at the forefront of her mind. "No more CIA for me. I'm wondering about trying a completely different genre."
Ellie's shoulders slumped. "You're known in this genre. It'll be hard to crack another."
Sarah's anger flared. "Stop pigeonholing me! I can write whatever I like."
Chuck took the memory stick that Sarah had been pointing at his sister as she ranted. He put it on the desk and pushed it across to Ellie. "All that's for the future, El. This is the now."
His calm voice got to both women. Sarah felt her love for him as his words soothed her. Ellie just looked at the memory stick for a few moments of silence, then her gaze slowly rose to his face. Sarah saw him looking determined at his sister, who nodded and picked it up.
Ellie then looked at Sarah. "Can I read this when I calm down and then call you?"
Sarah smiled and nodded. "Thanks, Ellie." She turned to her boyfriend and stood, reaching out her hand to him. The two of them silently left.
Sarah was back at her house, thinking about something she had said to Ellie. She did need a break from writing. That was absolutely true. Chuck would need to request time off if they wanted a vacation. She would suggest that when he came over later. Whatever happened, she didn't want to start thinking of writing again yet, so she would just chill out at home. She started that this morning, but then her mom started packing.
When Sarah walked into her mom's office, the older Walker looked up. "Don't you start thinking about helping. George will be over soon."
"Really? Not wanting your daughter to help?" Sarah challenged.
Emma sighed. "Okay. Pack the books from the shelves into the boxes by them."
"Do you want Chuck to help with your computer and tech equipment?" Sarah asked.
Emma shook her head. "I set all this up without his help. I'm not hopeless with these things!"
"Have you packed your clothes? Or is that something you want George to help with?" Sarah teased.
That got Sarah a glare. "All packed."
Sarah chuckled and started boxing books.
She hadn't expected her mom to move out so quickly and had asked her the day before whether it would be best to try staying with him for a while before moving everything over there.
"Dithering and 'testing the waters' is not for me, Sarah," Emma had replied.
"But rushing into things is what got you into a mess with dad," Sarah pointed out.
Emma had stopped and, with fists on hips, glared at her daughter before saying, "Don't you ever compare George to Jack!"
Sarah had to back off rapidly. She still thought this was rushed but wasn't going to say anything else.
By the end of the day, her mom would be gone. Not a million miles away, and they'd meet up regularly, but to Sarah it did feel a bit like being abandoned, though she kept quiet about that. Thankfully, Chuck would be over to stay the night.
Sarah was snuggled in Chuck's embrace on the couch after dinner. He'd held off saying much about the emptiness of the place, and Sarah hadn't seemed to want to talk as they ate. However, he felt now would be ok. "Do you think she'll stay?"
She let out a sigh. "I don't know, Chuck. I think she's rushing into this."
"Unlike us?" he teased.
She lifted herself off him and looked into his eyes as she thought about what he'd mentioned. "You're right. We did start our alternating sleeping arrangements quickly after we became lovers, but neither of us fully moved."
He grinned, "We both moved some things in with the other. Sleepwear, when we used that, toiletries and the like."
She gave him a mocking look. "If that's your idea of moving in, you're already done. You never need to go back to your apartment."
He held up his hands in defeat. "Okay. So, I have a bit more to move." They both grinned. Then he asked her, "When should I start?"
She raised a brow. "Start?"
"I'll have to get the NSA out to vet the place, ensure a secure network connection, and they'll want to set up my equipment."
She frowned. "You use laptops in hotels, so why all that at your home?"
"Rules are rules," he replied.
"So, you move everything but your computer equipment until they're done?" she asked. He nodded with a look of excitement. "Start as soon as you can," she replied, matching his mood.
"Tomorrow, then," he replied.
She frowned. "Don't you have work?"
"Not currently, so it's a good time for a move. I'll tell the general in the morning."
She pulled him in for a kiss, which deepened. They separated breathlessly.
"Bed?" she asked. He nodded, scooped her up, and carried her there.
As they lay next to each other, sated, Sarah couldn't believe how everything was working out. It wasn't long ago that she'd been single, solely focused on writing. Now, she was not only in a committed relationship, but would be living with Chuck. Not just the alternating accommodation, but permanently together in the same house. It was hard to imagine wanting anything else.
"We should go on a vacation," Chuck murmured.
She looked over at him. "I was thinking the same thing earlier. I was going to ask if you could get some time off, but that kiss took my mind off anything else."
He grinned. "We can make love when we're on vacation as well."
She swatted his nearest arm. "Yes, but I give my full attention each time, Mister."
His eyes lit up. "You really do!"
She leaned over and kissed him. "Again?"
"Let's finish this conversation first," he replied, but looked like he could be easily persuaded against that.
"So, when can you take time off?" she asked.
"Now would be good, but let's get me moved first."
She wondered briefly which she wanted first but decided he was right. "How long will that take?"
"Probably no more than a week. I can leave the keys to my old place with a real estate agent to sell it."
She pulled him into another kiss, which led to other things.
Chuck had headed to his place to start the process of the move. He'd already called the general, and she relayed the move request to the relevant people. She told Sarah to expect them to arrange the site visit.
So, now she was sitting on her own, waiting for calls from the NSA and from her editor. She hated waiting for calls. She should have gone with Chuck to help him, but he'd told her to relax. How was this relaxing?
She jumped when her phone rang. Snatching it up, she quickly looked at who was calling. It was an unknown number, so not Ellie. "Hello?"
"Is that Sarah Walker?" a deep masculine voice asked.
"It is. Who is this?" she replied.
"Alan Richmond, NSA services," the man replied. "We've been told one of our analysts is moving to your residence. We need to do a site survey and then arrange for a secure network connection before moving his equipment."
"Yes, he told me all that," she replied.
"When would be convenient?"
"How quickly could you come out?" she asked.
He chuckled. "I was told Mr. Bartowski was keen to move quickly. We could come out for the survey this afternoon."
"I'm in," she replied. She'd call Chuck to be with her.
"About 3pm?" Alan suggested.
"That sounds great. Chuck… Mr. Bartowski should be here then."
After the call ended, she rang Chuck, who said he'd be back by then, bringing what he could in his car.
She got up and made some coffee.
An hour later, her phone rang again. She saw who it was before she answered, "Hi, Ellie."
"I couldn't read it yesterday with all the meetings I had. Devon took me out for dinner, so I ended up reading it this morning."
Sarah looked at the time. !:34. "And you've now finished?"
Noticing the amazement in Sarah's voice, Ellie said, "I know, I got up really early to get started. I've only just done the first read-through. I'll go through it with my usual magnifying glass later, but wanted to call you first."
Sarah chuckled. The magnifying glass was a shared joke about her editing. "Go on."
"Overall, it's great. Probably your best. The love interest adds a great extra dimension to it."
She could sense there was something else. "But?"
Ellie sighed. "But the torture scenes are so graphic, and they make Rebecca seem like a blood-thirsty bitch."
"Ellie, she's an assassin and has tortured people before."
"Not so gruesomely, nor was it portrayed so graphically before," Ellie replied.
"She's not meant to be likable," Sarah retorted.
"The introduction of Mike has made her want to leave the CIA. Don't you think she'd be softening rather than hardening?" Sarah realized she'd not thought about that angle. "And your readers do like her. It feels like you are trying to turn them against her. Is that to stop them from wanting more of her?"
Sarah sat back. That floored her. She thought about Ellie's question. Is that what she'd done? Maybe subconsciously.
"You think I should tone it down?" she asked.
"Yes," Ellie replied firmly.
"She is very angry with Bruce, so will take it out on him," Sarah reminded her editor.
"That's understood, but maybe not the details of how she tortures him?" Ellie suggested.
Sarah remembered her mom's comments. "So, she can slice off his fingers as long as I don't capture that?" She chuckled after saying that.
"That would be good," Ellie replied.
"She is going to kill him, though," Sarah stated.
"I know. An order follower at the end. To make a clean break?"
"Definitely. Bruce will be her last kill," Sarah said.
"Tweak it and drop it in before I start the editing process," Ellie said.
"Will do," Sarah replied and headed into her office to start that.
Sarah had made all the changes she was willing to make by the time Chuck arrived. Against his wishes, she helped him bring his things in. It was mostly clothes and bathroom stuff, along with food from his kitchen.
"I want you to come and look through what I have there, in case you think any of it is worth bringing," he said.
She looked at him. "Such as?"
"Kitchen equipment, furniture…" he replied.
She nodded. "That's a good idea. Shall we go after the site visit?"
"Yeah."
"I also need to drop a revised version of the novel to your sister."
He frowned. "She's made you change it?"
"Soften it and make Rebecca's actions less explicit," she replied.
He looked relieved. "No chopping off fingers?"
"Did that upset you?" she asked.
"Yes, but I wasn't going to say anything," he replied, looking embarrassed.
She looked exasperatedly at him. "Chuck, you should've told me!"
"It's not my place to make you change your story," he said.
"What else didn't you like?" she challenged him.
He thought for a moment. "I thought the transition from ruthless, almost heartless agent to the free woman was a bit sharp."
She nodded. "That's sort of softened by the changes I've made. I've also added a section where she thinks about all that she's done, and is doing on this mission, and how she wants all that to end."
"Do you want me to skim over the changes before you give it to Ellie?" he asked.
She led him to her office and said, "I've got the changed or added text highlighted."
He sat and started reading.
She left him to it and took his cases into their bedroom. She'd let him unpack but didn't want them in the living room when the NSA turned up.
Then she walked into the kitchen and started sorting through the food he'd brought.
The rest of the day was busy. Reworking her novel and then Chuck reviewing it while she effectively moved him in was just the start.
The NSA site visit was almost a non-event but had set the date for the set up to their requirements, Friday, two days away.
Then, she and Chuck dropped off the updated novel, finding that Ellie was busy elsewhere, which Sarah thought would give them plenty of time to sort through his belongings before heading home.
As they walked into his apartment, Sarah asked, "Is there anything you really want to keep?"
"Well… my Hi-Fi is better than yours," he said, looking at her for a reaction.
She had no strong connection to hers. "Then bring it, and we'll dispose of mine."
He looked relieved and then looked around the living room. "My TV?"
She looked up at the monster on the wall. "Will we both be able to carry it?"
"It's not that heavy," he assured her. She wasn't so sure and looked dubiously at it. Then, he added, "But we can't take it in either of our cars, so I'll get some help."
She looked at his couch and chairs. They wouldn't match her… their living room. "Are you planning on leaving it partly furnished?"
"Yeah."
They didn't find much to take as Sarah had most things already. The equipment in his study would be transferred by the NSA team.
When Sarah wandered into the bedroom, however, she was overwhelmed with memories of being in there, making love to Chuck. A quick scan confirmed that there was nothing to take apart from the bedding that was still in place. She grasped Chuck's hand and looked up into his eyes. "One last time?" she suggested.
Making love wasn't what she'd expected to happen when they entered the apartment, but they'd leave very happy.
The other things they took were possessions Chuck couldn't part with, but as that was mostly DVDs and CDs, Sarah was quite happy. All would be welcome. They also took the bedding to wash.
As they finally walked to the car, Sarah had a thought. "Will you miss this place?"
He pondered that for a moment. "It was mostly a place I hid from the world. The only good thing that happened there we just repeated, and we will do that at your place… have done it."
She looked fondly at him. "It was fantastic, as always, and, yes, we will be doing that a lot at our place," she emphasized the 'our' to make sure he understood.
The following evening, Devon helped Chuck move his TV. It sounded simple, but they had to take it down from the wall in his old apartment and bring everything with them to put it up on arrival. Once they completed all that, Sarah had to admit she was looking forward to watching movies on that beast while snuggled up with her love.
Devon couldn't stay for dinner as he wanted to get back to Ellie, who he told Sarah was much happier with the novel now.
Sarah looked at her boyfriend. "Just your IT equipment left, and then you are fully in."
He nodded. "After that, I'll spend some time vacuuming and cleaning the old place, then hand the key over to the real estate team."
She hugged him tightly. "I love you, Chuck."
"Love you too."
On Friday, Chuck supervised the network setup and approved it, then he headed to his old apartment to make sure the IT equipment was handled to his satisfaction before being transferred back to the house. He could tell the men with him were bristling a bit at his involvement and seeming lack of confidence in their abilities, so he had to point out that he had heavily modified the equipment, and they wouldn't know what he'd done.
Once everything was moved and the men left the house, Chuck tested it all and made some final tweaks before he was happy with the new setup.
Sarah had watched him at work, loving how focused he was and, when on the keyboard, how fast he typed. This was his magic.
They prepared and cooked dinner together, enjoying working on it in unison. They then ate while holding each other's gaze, saying nothing, just enjoying the togetherness that they knew would continue now with no driving between homes.
They spent the rest of the evening snuggled together on the couch, watching movies, before heading to bed.
They were cleaning the old place when Sarah got a call from her editor. "I'm sorry. I know it's Saturday, but can we go through the edits I've made? Then, if you're happy with them, I'll send it for printing and start preparing the marketing."
Sarah had put the call on speaker, so wasn't surprised when Chuck said, "Go. Take my car. I'll finish here, and you can pick me up when you've finished."
"I don't know how long we'll be," she replied. "You might be waiting for ages. I'll get a taxi, and you can join us when you've finished here."
He wanted to argue about that but could see the determination in her eyes, so just nodded.
Sarah told Ellie. "We're cleaning Chuck's old place before he sells it."
"I'm so pleased he's moved in with you, Sarah. You're so good for him… You're good for each other."
Sarah grinned at Chuck. "We are…. I'll be with you as soon as I can."
It took a couple of hours to go through the changes Ellie had identified. None of it significantly changed the story, but tightened it in places, as well as correcting punctuation. Ellie did point out some changes to add more detail, which Sarah agreed were sensible, and they worked on those together.
Chuck arrived as they were nearing completion. He sat and listened, not wanting to get involved in the final stages. He was impressed with how well the two women worked together. They seemed to share thoughts occasionally. When they wrapped up, both women sat back, smiling at each other.
"I wish it was continuing," Ellie lamented. "I think you could keep Rebecca going for some time, even out of the CIA. There would be people with vendettas against her, for instance."
Sarah shook her head. "Sorry. I've had enough of her."
"So, what'll be your next project?" Ellie asked after sighing.
Sarah knew Ellie was asking about her next novel but smiled and replied, "Our new life together." She clasped Chuck's hand.
"Aww," Ellie said, her eyes sparkling.
"I guess we'll have to go on a book tour?" Sarah asked.
"Definitely," Ellie replied. She looked at her brother. "Want to come with?"
"If I have the time," he replied, smiling at his girlfriend.
"I need to pop to the toilet before we can go," Sarah said, standing.
After watching her walk out, Chuck turned to his sister. "I'm going to propose to her, El."
Ellie had to cover her mouth to stop herself from squealing. "When?"
"Tonight. Now all the tension over the novel is over," he replied.
"I'm sure she'll be overjoyed," she said.
He smiled. "I hope so." He knew Sarah would rejoin them soon, so he asked, "How are you feeling?" he pointed at her bulge.
Ellie placed a hand on her stomach. "I'm fine. I've been lucky. No morning sickness."
"Will you be able to do the book tour with Sarah?" he asked.
Ellie nodded. "By the time the book is launched, I'll have delivered. Devon and the little 'un will come with us."
Sarah walked in as Ellie was saying this. "We could always forgo the tour."
Ellie glared at her. "You are not getting out of that!"
Sarah shrugged and gave her a sheepish smile. "Can't blame me for trying." She turned to Chuck and held out her hand. "Come on."
As they left, Ellie watched and wished she could be with them this evening.
They bought takeout rather than having to prepare and cook dinner. Sarah sensed that Chuck seemed uncomfortable. She wondered if this was him regretting the decision to release his apartment? She didn't want to ask and make him more uncomfortable.
She mentioned her thoughts about her next novel. "I'm going to get mom's help to write a historical piece of fiction set in Egyptian times. There will, of course, be mystery, intrigue and adventure. What do you think?"
He brightened and nodded enthusiastically. " Sounds great."
She smiled on hearing that. They ate quietly after that, with her thoughts centering on the Nile in ancient times.
Once they'd finished, Sarah pushed her plate away and gazed at the man who'd filled her dreams since he'd entered her life. They locked eyes, and she saw his look change. Was that determination? And if so, what about?
Those questions were answered when he rose from his chair, walked around the table and dropped to one knee beside her.
'Oh my God!' she thought.
He grasped her left hand and looked deeply into her eyes. "I've been wanting to do this for some time now but wanted all the stress over your novel to be over first. Sarah Walker, you are everything I could ever want. I didn't know it before I met you, but as soon as I saw you, I wanted you in my life forever. All that we've gone through together has just reinforced that feeling. Will you do me the honor of accepting me as your husband and marry me?"
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a red ring case. He flipped it open and showed it to her.
She couldn't stop the tears of joy from flowing. She dropped to her knees, placing her hands behind his head, into his curls, and pulled him into a deep and lingering kiss.
When they had to breathe, he asked, "Is that a yes?"
"Yes, Chuck. Yes!" she gasped out.
They parted enough for him to raise the ring case again. The ring inside was everything she could ever want. He took it out and slipped it onto her ring finger. The large diamond on the white gold ring fitted her perfectly and looked amazing as she wore it.
She pulled him in for another kiss, not wanting anything more at that moment than his lips on hers and his tongue entwined with hers.
This proposal was the icing on the cake that was their new life together.
A stray thought flashed through her head. Maybe in the next novel, there would not just be romance but a wedding too. Then she refocused on the now and the love of her life, her fiancé.
A/N: I considered continuing this through the publication, the book tour, Ellie's delivery, and the wedding, but decided this was enough.
I hope you enjoyed this final chapter. Please take the time to leave a review of this, or the whole story, if you've been waiting until the end to do so. I'd really appreciate it.