a/n: Chapter 7, Master Classes

I don't own Chuck.

"Miss Walker," Chuck said, walking up to Sarah at work. She spun towards him, a smirk on her face. Something about the way he said, Miss Walker made parts of her flutter and jump the way no man ever had before.

"Can I help you… sir?" she replied. She watched him swallow. Oh, he was going to play a game, and now that she had called him on it, he was getting nervous?

"I have a problem," he said, looking a little nervous. "Someone has stolen something of mine."

"And you want me to get it back for you?" she asked, leaning in towards him. He nodded his head, looking around. "Is this… sensitive?" He nodded quickly, and inside she was laughing at him, seeing him barely hold it together. "Why don't you whisper it into my ear."

He leaned forward, his lips an inch from her ear, and as he spoke, his hot breath nearly made her shiver. "Someone has stolen my heart," he told her and then leaned back. The nervous look was gone, and in its place was a smolder that made her feel like she was losing her footing.

"And – and… you don't want it back," she said, having trouble concentrating. He shook his head slowly. "I'm afraid I don't understand."

He started to lean forward, but she lurched back, her heart racing. He had the upper hand, and he knew it, damn it. She was frustrated and thrilled at the same time. No man had ever made her feel like this, and she was fairly certain no other man ever could.

"Again, this is… sensitive," he said. She thought she might pass out the way he said it. She swallowed, nodded, and leaned forward as he did. Again, his lips stopped right by her ear, and for a second he said nothing. His hot breath, gently hitting her ear, made her shiver involuntarily, again. "I just need her to know I trust her with it," he said, pulling away.

She stayed there, frozen. He turned and walked away as she blinked several times. "Huh, seems Bartowski is leaving for lunch," Casey said coming up beside her. He took a look at her and shook his head. "Guess I owe him five bucks."

"What?" Sarah asked, snapping out of her trance.

"I bet Bartowski he couldn't get you to stop functioning, the way you get him to stop functioning," Casey told her. He handed her five dollars and she gave him a look. "He said he felt a little slimy doing it this way, and I should give you the money." Sarah shook her head. "How lewd was it?"

"He told me someone had stolen his heart, and he wanted me to give that person the message that he trusted her with it," Sarah told him.

Casey stood there and closed his eyes. "Roan would have a stroke, hearing that," Casey said. Then he opened his eyes and had an evil grin on his face. "You know I had him for seduction class, right?"

"Yeah, although why the NSA had you use a CIA trainer, I'm not sure," Sarah replied.

"I don't know either, but he kept failing me," Casey said, the evil grin growing. "What say we find a mission we could use Roan's help with, and introduce him to Chuck?"

"Casey, he'd try to influence Chuck and… oh… my… God!" Sarah said, the lightbulbs going off. "That is absolutely evil." Sarah shook her head. "We can't just throw Chuck at him… that's not fair to Chuck."

"Fine, ask him," Casey said with a shrug. "And, I mean, just ask."

"What's happened to you?" Sarah asked grinning.

Casey glared at her. "Or don't, see if I care. Christ, this entire thing is a damn disaster!" With that he stormed out.

Sarah stood there shaking her head. She pulled up some files on different potential Ring suspects, and her mouth dropped. There she was… Sasha, one of Roan's targets of the past. "I'll ask him," she said to herself. She began to laugh thinking what might happen.

}o{

Sarah didn't see Chuck most of the rest of the day. Even though he was a part of Walker's Reclamation, he was still the best at figuring out viruses. And Big Mike paid the company handsomely for him to figure out how to stop one that had infected many computers at the Buy More. Chuck was kind enough not to tell Big Mike there was a better than ninety percent chance that Jeff had infected the computers through some of the stuff he had been watching.

He was in bed, reading a graphic novel, when she sauntered in. "Bold move today, Chuck," Sarah told him. Chuck just grinned. "Was that suggested by Awesome?"

"What?" Chuck said, faux offended. "Naeiou," he responded. "More of a leave them wanting more move," he said with a shrug. He looked at her, seriousness on his face. "Did I go too far-" he stopped talking as her lips were covering his.

"No," she said a moment later, gently rubbing the side of his face with her right hand. "But it did remind me of something I want to talk to you about." Chuck shut his graphic novel and turned to her, giving her his undivided attention.

"I'm listening," he said.

"Okay, and feel free to say no… let me start at the beginning." She took a deep breath. "Do you remember me telling you about seduction?"

"Yes," he said quickly, making her grin. "What can I say, I have fond memories of that… conversation."

"You know we can practice again. Any. Time," she said, emphasizing the last two words. Chuck gulped. "The man who taught that class, failed Casey."

Chuck looked very confused. "Wait, this is a CIA class, right?"

"Yep," Sarah replied. "I have no idea why the NSA is trained by him, but they are." Chuck nodded, and she continued. "Roan, the instructor, failed Casey a few times."

Chuck fought to control his features so as not to laugh. Sarah continued, amused. "Casey saw, and would like to use you to get back at Roan. I told him no, but then I did some digging… it appears that a Ring agent named Sasha is telling people she has the cypher."

"That's not good," Chuck muttered.

"No, it is not, and we were thinking that maybe we could get whatever she's pawning, and switch it out with your fake cypher, then catch even more bad guys," Sarah continued.

"I like that," Chuck told her. "So, what's the problem?"

"Casey wants you to meet Roan and… you know… do that thing you do," Sarah told him.

"What thing is that?" Chuck asked, confused.

"Your style of seduction," Sarah said. "Chuck you have a charm and a wit that… God, and it's not seduction, it's almost…"

"An infection?" Chuck offered.

"No, that's Jeffster," Sarah said, shuddering. "They infected those computers, didn't they?"

"Probably," Chuck admitted. "So, I have to listen to one of his classes, that you have already taught me, is basically what you're saying."

"That's right," Sarah told him.

"And it would probably frustrate him," Chuck continued.

"What are you thinking?" Sarah asked.

"I'm thinking how you all but admitted in the past that you didn't know what you and Bryce had, because he may or may not have used seduction on you. And that maybe Roan deserves some lessons on how to really treat people. I'm thinking that maybe I should do this."

"You're really incredible, you know that?" Sarah asked.

Chuck shook his head. "Nah, ma'am," he said doing his best southern accent. "Tis the love of a good woman, is all."

"Nerd," she said, leaning into him, giving him a brain-tingling kiss.

"Thank God you are so into nerds," Chuck said, as she pushed him onto his back.

"Admit it, the nerd is into me," Sarah said.

"Not yet," he replied, waggling his eyebrows.

}o{

The next morning found him sitting at the bar in the kitchen, making coffee for them both. He felt her arm snake around him, and she gave him a kiss on the side of the head. "Mmm, makes me coffee in the morning, what did I do to deserve this?"

"I did something bad," Chuck admitted. Sarah sat down beside him quickly. "Not intentionally bad, but… subconsciously, I was very… bad." He swallowed. "I had a dream."

Sarah picked up her coffee to take a drink to hide the grin. She looked straight ahead so Chuck could not see her. "Well, you better tell me all about it, and don't leave out any details."

"I'm sorry, I feel terrible, I was so disrespectful," he said, his head down. "You… you had on this Orange Orange uniform. And it was low-cut, you see, and apparently, I was working at the Buy More, and you came in. Did I mention low-cut?"

"You did," she replied, trying not to laugh.

"So, you saw me, and started walking toward me, like one of those cheesy attempts to get guys to watch a TV show," Chuck continued.

"So very sexy like? Wind-blown hair, half-lidded eyes?" Sarah asked, still not looking at him.

"Yeah," he said, hanging his head lower. "And… and then, you began to crawl… in your low-top tank top. Did I mention it was low-cut?"

"You might have," she said, dying inside, using all her training to school her features. "Did we… do anything?"

"Just a kiss," Chuck replied. "God, wasn't that enough?"

"Chuck I have one question for you," she said, making her tone as hard as she could, turning to him, hoping she had a stern expression on her face. He turned to her, looking like a scolded child. "Did you like what you saw?"

"What?" he asked, shocked by the turn of events.

"Did you like what you saw?" she asked again, grinning. "I can probably get one of those outfits, you know, if you'd like for me to."

"I liked it," Chuck said.

"Okay," she said, standing and heading toward the bedroom. "I'm going to get a shower." Chuck just sat there a moment, and then he bolted across the courtyard.

He knocked on Ellie's door, and Devon opened it. "Chuckster!"

"We gotta talk," Chuck said, barging in.

"Hey, Chuck," Ellie said.

"Ellie," Chuck replied, nodding.

"Oh, it's one of those talks, huh?" Ellie said, smiling.

"Sorry, it's just… well, I've done something terrible, and it seems like maybe Sarah isn't bothered by it," Chuck said. Ellie stared at him. "I had a dream about Sarah, dressed in… provocative clothes."

"Your brother is an idiot," Devon said to Ellie.

"You don't understand," Chuck began.

"Yes, Chuckster, I do," Devon replied. "You think I wear these bicycle shorts all the time because of the support they give?"

"I try not to notice them," Chuck said in a strangled voice.

"I do," Ellie said, sipping her coffee, making Chuck's eyes widen. "What?" she said, putting down her drink. "Chuck, do you love her? Would you die for her?"

"Well, yes," Chuck replied.

"Why did you say it like that?" Ellie asked him.

"Why would you ask that about this?" Chuck asked.

"Chuck, when you're with someone, it's okay to notice them. Fantasizing about your partner is okay, especially when you tell her about it, and she has no problem with it."

"She offered to get one," Chuck told them.

"Dude, what is the deal?" Devon asked.

"Her whole life… she's been used," Chuck said softly. Ellie gave him a look. "Ellie… people have taken advantage of her, and I don't want to be that guy."

"Okay, this I get," Ellie said. "It's real simple… don't." Chuck gave her a look, and she smiled at him. "Baby brother, treat her with respect, with the awe and reverence that you do, and if she wants to dress a certain way for you two… enjoy."

"She's right, Chuckster," Devon said. "Be you, with her, and remind her what she has. It's okay for two people to do anything they want, but don't take advantage of her, which I know you… you won't."

"Cause if you do, I'll kill you. I like Sarah," Ellie told him.

"I do too," Chuck replied. "I do too."

}o{

Some hours later, Chuck and Sarah pulled up to a house to find Casey sitting there, waiting for them with a disgusted look on his face.

"What happened, you two get lost?" Casey growled.

"Well," Chuck began, as Casey shut his eyes realizing the moron was going to tell him what happened, instead of just taking the insult and moving on with life. "Sarah and I saw this beautiful spot that would be such a great picture."

"Okay," Casey said, wanting to move on.

"And after we took it, we just got caught up in the scenery, and the nature, and…" he cut himself off, clearing his throat. Casey glared at him, as Sarah listened with an amused look on her face, waiting to see how much he was going to tell. "We lost track of time."

"I see," Casey said, reaching over and plucking a wildflower out of Sarah's hair, making her eyes widen. "Well, I commend you two for protecting the cover."

"What's this cover he keeps talking about? The one you steal at night?" Chuck asked her.

"See, I thought you'd do something with protection," Sarah began. Casey growled, turned, opened the door without knocking, and walked into the house. Sarah began to laugh.

"Oh, God, protection…" Chuck said, his eyes wide.

"Calm down… I told you I have it under control," Sarah said.

"No, not that, but… I owe you an apology," Chuck began. Sarah gave him a look. "I need to stop trying to protect you like I have been. I've been… I've been trying so hard to not be like everyone else that I've been over doing it-"

She stopped him by stepping up to him and kissing him. "I love you, Chuck," she said softly, grinning. "I love how you try and protect me, and you're fine. Besides, I really enjoy watching you spiral. If that's mean…"

"It's not," he said, grinning. "So, should we go inside?"

"Let's," she said, taking his bicep, and walking in beside him.

}o{

After several hours of listening to Roan, Sarah, and Casey argue about how to seduce Sasha, he had decided he'd had enough.

"Why even seduce her?" Chuck asked. Roan stopped in mid-sentence, turning toward him. "I mean, I get that's what you do, and who you are, but there are other ways. And besides, you don't have to seduce people that way. There are other ways of approaching people."

Roan scoffed. "My boy, you have no idea," he began.

"Maybe not. All I know is I don't need all of that stuff," Chuck told him.

"And that is why you'll never have anyone," Roan replied.

"Oh, really?" Chuck asked, smirking. "I guess you're no one," he said to Sarah.

Roan looked at Chuck and then to Sarah. "You think that young lady is with you?" Roan shook his head. "Agent Walker, please tell this young man the truth, that you are using him."

"I'm not using him," Sarah said to Roan. "I don't have to tell him, because he knows it."

"He…" Roan said, looking at Chuck. "Got… you?"

"Yep," Chuck replied, crossing his arms. "Although, got is a very possessive term that I don't like-"

"He got me," Sarah told Roan, cutting in.

"But if that's the word she wants to use, then by all means, I got her," Chuck finished.

"So smooth," Casey chided.

"I don't believe you," Roan said. "I don't believe-"

"You know what I love most?" Chuck asked Sarah, ignoring Roan. She turned to him, as Roan went silent. "It's the early morning while you're sleeping. All of the day's trouble has left you, you don't have the worry and concerns of the CIA. The things you think you did, that you beat yourself up over, have left your face, and you're at peace." Sarah swallowed, and Roan's eyes widened. "It's in those moments that your beauty nearly blinds me. It's in those moments that you… your aura, your presence, your spirit… it nearly consumes me. It's then, when you pull me close, that I get lost in you, and I'm not talking some sexual thing. I'm talking about you, Sarah. I get lost in you, and I sometimes forget I exist, and don't really care that I exist."

She got up and started toward Chuck. "While that's all well and good, Charles," Roan began, as Sarah walked past him, grabbed Chuck by the neck and pulled him into a kiss. Casey stood there, arms crossed, a satisfied smirk on his face. "It's obvious that…" Roan tried to continue, but no one was paying attention to him. "This is merely her solidifying…."

"Ain't no act," Casey said.

"No," Roan admitted. "No, it's not."

"Better be glad she hasn't turned it up a notch, or she'd be ripping his clothes off," Casey said.

Sarah wrapped a leg around Chuck, making Roan's eyebrow go up. "You were saying?" Roan pointed out.

"WALKER! BARTOWSKI!" Casey yelled, making the two of them spring apart. They both wiped at their mouths and looked a little embarrassed.

"I need to go fix my makeup," Sarah said, walking away.

Chuck turned to watch her go. "How long have you practiced that soliloquy?" Roan asked, a little in awe.

"Didn't, just spoke from the heart," Chuck told him. Roan shook his head.

}o{

The mission went off without a hitch. Chuck talked to Sasha's bodyguards, distracting them. Casey poured Sasha a drink that almost instantly knocked her out. Sarah quickly grabbed Sasha as she fell, switching out the necklace with their version of the cypher, as the bodyguards came to check on her.

Casey told them she had been drinking a lot, and apparently it had caught up with her. The bodyguards seemed curious, but with no apparent reason to drug her, and nothing missing, they quickly returned her to her room.

Roan followed Chuck, asking questions, taking notes, seemingly perplexed how Chuck not only survived, but thrived in the real world. Chuck told Roan perhaps it was time he told someone how he really felt, from the heart, and not lines that he told others when they got too close.

As their time came to a close, Roan pulled Chuck aside. "I think you should know about a move I call… The Montgomery," Roan told Chuck.

}o{

He approached her door, roses in one hand, wine in the other, wearing a white dinner jacket. He put on his best smile and knocked on the door. The door opened and his mouth dropped in awe of what he saw. The occupant was barefoot, in pajama pants and a tee shirt, a huge smile on his face. "Bryce, you shouldn't have," Chuck said, taking the roses and wine. "She doesn't really like roses," Chuck said in a low voice with a bit of a wince. He gave them back to Bryce. "Good to see you, and thanks."

"Uh, wait!" Bryce finally spit out. "I'm here to see Sarah."

Chuck pressed his lips together and widened his eyes. "Yeah, she's a little busy right now, but I'll let her know you were here."

"But we have a mission," he argued.

"Oh, right now? Are you going as a waiter?" Chuck asked.

"No, but I wanted to see if she'd rather I be part of a cover couple with her," Bryce admitted.

"Ohhhhh," Chuck replied, crossing his arms, his grin growing. "Sarah," he called. "We have a mission tomorrow."

"Oh, good," her voice called out.

"Can I come in?" Bryce yelled at her.

"It's both of our apartment," Sarah replied. "Mine and Chuck's, so…"

"No," Chuck replied, a satisfied smile on his face. "Out of curiosity, if you were going on a mission with her, what would I be doing instead?"

"Serving drinks," Bryce replied, a little crestfallen.

Chuck gave him a look, lips pressed together, cheeks slightly blown out, and his eyes wide. "Welp, guess that's what you'll be doing tomorrow night."

"I need somewhere to stay," Bryce tried one last time. Bryce's head jerked as he reached up to feel the needle in his neck. "That'snotnice," he mumbled, as he hit the ground.

"Nice shot, Casey," Chuck said, as Casey scooped up Bryce.

"I'll put him on the couch, and we'll deal with this reject in the morning," Casey replied, heading toward his apartment. "Night."

"Night, Casey," Chuck called after Casey. Chuck opened his door, and went back inside the apartment. He didn't see Sarah anywhere, so he climbed up on the bed, and grabbed his game controller. Sarah came in, wearing the very specific Orange Orange outfit he'd dreamed about. "Whatcha doin'?" he managed to get out.

Sarah went to all fours on the bed, crawling to him. "Testing out this dream of yours," she said, as the controller tumbled out of his hand. "Oh, you'll lose progress on your game."

"Worth it," Chuck said, as she reached him, her lips locking onto his. "Just to be sure, there seemed to be a little something extra in that kiss."

"Oh, there was, Mr. Bartowksi. It's a national security matter."

"Well, if it's for my country," Chuck began.

"Even more important, it's for your girlfriend."

"That is so much more important," he mumbled.

"You are getting so good at understanding me," she said, nibbling on his bottom lip.

"That's me, your understanding boyfriend." His hand slipped under the bottom of her tank-top, watching her shiver as his warmth touched her cool skin.

"I went to all this trouble to put this on," she said, huffing, and then grabbing the bottom of it, pulling it off and flinging it.

"Whosyamomma!" he yelled, as she pushed him down on the bed.

a/n: Thanks for reading