A/N: I'm so pleased that readers like this AU story. Thank you for the reviews, follows and faves. They really help to encourage me as a writer.

Continuing this little tale…


Caribbean Retreat

Chapter 3


Chuck found himself facing the woman who terrified his friend. This wasn't how he expected to meet her. He thought others would be there so that she wouldn't be able to hurt him. Instead, they were a long way from others, virtually alone here on the beach. What made it worse was that he'd not been able to hide his reaction to her name.

At first, she looked shocked at what was probably a look of horror on his face. Then, her eyes narrowed and she asked, "How d'you know the name?" Her voice had cooled considerably from the light-hearted one from before.

He wasn't going to risk lying. "My- My friend worked with you."

He could see the cogs turning in her head. Surprisingly, her steely gaze warmed slightly. "You're Bryce's partner?"

He nodded, not sure what to say to her.

She smiled crookedly. "He keeps you well hidden." He nodded again. She held his gaze, but the smile faded. "And he's obviously affected how you view my name. I really don't understand his antipathy to me being here." She looked sad about that as well as confused.

He felt sorry for her, but was still wary. "He's always been frightened of you."

She sighed. "Frightened is a strong word to use. He worked with me without such feelings causing problems."

"That's not how he saw it," he replied. "But you ought to talk to him about that."

"And you?" she asked. "His thoughts about me have affected you, too."

It wasn't a question, just a statement of fact.

"You represent the CIA," he said, wondering if he should even have said that much.

She sighed. "I've been given six months to consider my future. They want me back, but I don't want that."

He was surprised. "So, you're out of the CIA."

"Well, it's not official yet, but effectively, yes." She shrugged.

"Can I ask why?"

She looked at him for a few moments and then smirked. "I better tell you, or you and Bryce will concoct some outlandish reason."

He blushed but also nodded. She gave a single nod back. She didn't immediately tell him, though, but asked, "What has he told you about me?"

He wondered if she'd react badly to him telling the truth, maybe even hurt him, but then thought her reaction might be worse if she could see he was lying. "You're a killer. The deadliest person he ever met."

She looked down at her lap. He thought her eyes looked wet, but that must be wrong. "He's right. I have more blood on my hands than anyone should have. I'm a monster."

"The fact that you think that, means it's not true." He didn't know why he said that, but felt it was correct.

She looked up at him, surprise on her face. "You think that?"

"Yes."

She held his gaze for quite a while. It felt like she was trying to tell if he was lying. Then, she sighed. "Well, I don't, and nor would the loved ones of people that I've killed."

"Are you leaving because you've had enough of that?" he asked softly.

He wasn't sure if it was his imagination or not, but he thought her eyes were starting to water. She just nodded and looked down again.

"Good for you," he said. She didn't look up, but she nodded again.

He made a decision. It was one that Bryce might not agree with, but he wasn't here. "Bryce couldn't face opening the restaurant today, but if you want, I could rustle something up for you."

Her eyes locked with his again. She seemed to look into his soul with that gaze. "You'd do that for the killer that upsets him so?"

"I'll do that for someone who's taking a massive step, and who's probably not sure what to do away from a job that she's been doing for a long time."

She snorted. "Since I was a teenager. I've never done anything else."

"God! That's a huge change for you!" he said, all the awe back in his tone.

She shook her head, but didn't argue. She stood, which was extremely distracting. He got a full view of her. his jaw dropped. He couldn't help it.

She grinned at his reaction, and reached a hand out to him. "Come for a swim?"

A few minutes ago, he'd been as terrified of her as Bryce was, but just the very brief conversation seemed to have pushed such thoughts away. That could be her spy skills manipulating him, but he was sure that wasn't the case. He was back to feeling a connection with her. Her quick change from being guarded to open again was a bit jarring, but then he'd shifted quickly, too. Was that significant?

He stood and took her offered hand. It made him jump. It felt like a jolt of electricity passed from her up his arm. He looked at her and saw that it had affected her, too. "I don't know how we built up so much electricity here on the beach."

"Nor me," she replied. However, neither of them had let go. They turned and walked to and into the water, still holding hands. He had to admit, he liked the feel of her cool, slim hand in his.

She finally let go once she was up to her waist in the water. She dived in. He grinned and did the same.


Chuck's reaction to her name and the start of the ensuing conversation had been painful. Far more than she thought it should've been. But then, just like flipping a switch, he was suddenly back to being kind and considerate. It was hard to take in until she realized that she was behaving just the same. However, his words about her seemed so at odds with hers, and obviously Bryce's, too.

She pushed such thoughts aside and decided that a swim would distract them both from that topic.

As she stood, he looked at her bikini-clad body and his jaw dropped. Her form obviously both surprised and pleased him. It wasn't the sort of look she had suffered in the past; this was almost awe. Whatever it was, she liked the effect she had on him, but knew she had to pull him out of it for now. She grinned and held out a hand to him as she suggested the swim. She was pleased when he took it, although she did get a shock as they joined hands.

Once they were in the water, she found she was right about him being a swimmer. Chuck swam circles around her and when they both consciously decided to race, she stood no chance. That was significant, because she'd been much faster than anyone else at the Farm, and she thought she was fitter now.

When they stopped, close enough to shove that they could stand with the water at waist level again, she was grinning and realized that she'd never enjoyed herself so much. Maybe she shouldn't be surprised considering the life she'd led, but it made her look at him.

"What?" he asked.

She couldn't open up and tell him her tale of woe, but she said, "This has been fun. Thank you."

"Oh, you think that was fun, huh?" He deliberately splashed her. She reacted instantly and they got into an impromptu water fight. She was laughing a lot, and he was, too. It only ended when he got close and wrapped his arms around her, pinning hers to her sides.

It was a surprise, but she didn't struggle, instinctively knowing she was safe. "You probably don't know this, but I could easily escape," she told him as she gazed into his eyes. She didn't attempt to escape because she found this was really nice.

"Oh, really?" he replied, tightening his hold. That was it! She had been challenged. She easily slipped down out of his grasp as she submerged. Then, she grabbed him at his knees and pulled. He plunged into the water and she quickly swam away.

He surfaced quickly, but he was spluttering. She laughed out loud.

Then he swam toward her and she knew she was about to get pulled under, too. She didn't try to swim away, knowing he'd easily catch her, so she just took a deep breath before he gave her the same treatment.

After that, they left the water, hand in hand again. The grin on her face felt permanent. His grin matched it.

As they dried themselves, he said, "Hungry?"

She hadn't realized she was until he asked. She nodded.

Having collected up all their stuff, they walked off the beach toward the café. Hand in hand again.


Chuck bustled around the kitchen area. He wanted to make something special for Sarah Walker, but because Bryce hadn't done any shopping, there was no fresh meat or fish. "Vegetarian ok?" he asked the woman standing in the doorway watching him.

"Fine by me, but I really don't want you going to a lot of trouble," she replied.

He walked over to her and held her arms and looked into those gorgeous eyes. "Just another reason you can't be a monster."

Her eyes widened and then her beautiful smile appeared.

He turned back. He'd recently been experimenting with pizza and thought that might be worth doing now. "How about vegetarian pizza?"

"No fish?" she asked, teasingly.

He looked at her. "Is that a problem?" She shook her head, so he smiled. "Well, this is what I call my Caribbean pizza."

"Just no olives," she quickly said.

"Ok. Not a fan of olives?"

"Not at all," she replied.

"Noted. I don't use olives in this, anyway."

He got started. He didn't talk while preparing food. In fact, this was the first time that anyone but Bryce had been in here with him. However, he felt her eyes on him, which was a bit off-putting. "Go and choose some wine and get settled. I'll join you when this is cooking." She got the message and left him to it.

Once he had the pizzas in the oven, he joined her, as promised.

She looked up and smiled. "I just chose something I like."

He saw she had a bottle of Pinot Grigio open and two glasses poured. "That'll go well with it."

He sat opposite her. He wondered what it was that drew him to her so much. Were all female CIA operatives so attractive? It wasn't just her beauty, which was undeniable; there was something more about her.

Knowing what he did about her past, along with Bryce's feelings about her, he should be terrified. He should've run the moment he found out who she was, but instead he'd stayed with her and, well, basically fallen for her.

Sarah was watching him as he thought all this through. "You think being with me is a mistake," she suddenly said. He couldn't miss the sadness in her voice or her eyes.

He focused on her. He had obviously been wondering if it was, but hadn't come to that conclusion. He shook his head and answered honestly, "I should've run when I found out who you were, but I didn't. Bryce will probably freak out, but I'm glad I met you and we're still together."

She brightened and chuckled. "Together implies so much more." He blushed on hearing that, which caused her chuckle to morph into a full laugh. "God, you're so easy to tease!"

He knew he was, but somehow her saying it made him push back. "And would us being together be so bad?"

She stopped laughing and thought about what he'd said. "I'm no good for you, Chuck," she replied seriously.

That answer surprised him. It matched her earlier comments about herself. He decided to put her more at ease. "It's good for me to meet someone who thinks so little of herself. Makes me feel better about my own self-doubts."

She stayed quiet after that and he wondered whether he should've kept that to himself. Had he upset her?

"I want to know why the CIA was after you in college," she suddenly said.

He'd never talked about this with anyone but his sister, his dad and Bryce. Until today, talking about it with someone else was the furthest thing from his mind, but now as he thought about what she'd told him, he decided to open up. "I've never told anyone but family and Bryce. I must be mad telling a CIA operative."

"An ex-CIA operative," she reminded him. "There's no love lost between me and the Company."

It was good to be reminded. "Have you ever heard of Project Omaha?" he asked.

Sarah's eyes widened. "They wanted you for that?"

"I take it that you know of it, then."

She nodded. "Graham once told me that he wondered about me being a candidate, but decided I was good enough as I was and he didn't want to lose me."

"I was unknowingly tested at college to see if I was suitable," he told her. "They put everyone there through it. One of the professors at Stanford was a CIA scientist who ran the test. I scored higher than anyone else. My dad, who'd been missing for years, found out. He got in touch with me and my roommate, Bryce, to discuss it. That was when I found out that Bryce worked for the CIA. When he told me what was expected of a spy, I didn't want to join. The expectations of those going through the Omaha treatment sounded worse. They both thought my results would result in conscription, so after completing my degree, I… disappeared."

She said, "I know about recruitment from college, obviously. Unlike me, it's how most agents join the CIA. However, I hadn't heard about this specific test." She looked at him sadly. "I suffered conscription. It's not good."

"Just hearing what I'd go through at Camp Dreary was more than I'd be able to cope with," he said quietly.

She cocked her head. "What in particular?"

"Learning to kill or seduce people."

She blanched and looked away.

"I know you're good at both," he said. He felt he had to tell her this. "Bryce told me."

"Of course he did," she muttered.

He reached across the table and placed his hand over hers. There was that jolt again, but he ignored it. "I don't feel like you've tried to seduce me, Sarah."

Her eyes shot up to his. "In my head, seduction missions were worse than assassinations. Combining the two being the absolute pits."

"I bet," he replied.

"Unfortunately, I'm a gifted actress. I can play any part, so, yes, seductions were easy to do, just very unpleasant." Her lips curled slightly. "Strange that you mention it in connection with you, though."

He realized that he'd put his foot in it. "You didn't have to," he admitted.

Her face remained neutral as she just stared at him in silence. He wished he'd not confessed like that. Did it make her as uncomfortable as he felt? He waited for some sort of rebuke, but when she spoke, her words were about herself. "You don't want to be involved with me, Chuck."

She wasn't saying anything about how she felt about it. It'd felt like they were bonding when they were swimming, but now he felt clueless.

He was going to question her words, when his timer went off. He stood. "Pizza coming up." He hurried into the kitchen.


Sarah didn't know what she was doing. She was falling for this guy. She wasn't girlfriend material. Hell, she'd never been a girlfriend! She should just get up and walk out while he was distracted. She'd then find another island to move to.

However, her bottom wouldn't lift from the chair!

She tried to convince herself that was because she was both hungry and curious to find out what he'd cooked, and maybe his story was fascinating enough for her to want to hear it. There should be nothing more. However, she knew there was more to it than all that.

She'd never been attracted to someone before like she was to Chuck Bartowski. She wondered if that was because she'd let go of the CIA reins and was experiencing real life here. She decided that was part of it, but he was so different to anyone else she'd ever met.

Even with a huge secret like he had, he'd still been open with her, someone who he probably should have kept in the dark. That wasn't all, though.

The most significant thing was that he'd made her happy. Not just to be with him, but what they'd done together as well. He'd brought out a carefree side to her that she thought she'd lost a long, long time ago. All in all, this had been such a new and intoxicating experience.

She knew there'd be problems when Bryce found her with Chuck, but she felt so drawn to this attractive, curly-haired guy that she knew she'd weather that storm.

Chuck walked in with two large plates, slices of pizza on each. "There's more out there, but this is a start."

She looked down at the pizza that he placed in front of her. It smelled wonderful. She looked up at him. "What is it?"

He snorted. "That sounds like you're unsure about whether to sample it!"

She grinned. "No. I just want to know!"

He grinned back. "It's my signature Cajun vegetarian pizza, but slightly different today. In addition to the usual mango, I've added plantain too. I think it should be good."

She cocked her head. "Experimenting on me, huh?"

"Yup." He took a bite and smiled. "I think it's a winner."

She took a bite. It was delicious! She rolled her eyes. "Oh my god, Chuck!" she said, being careful not to spit any out.

"You like?"

She swallowed before answering. "It's amazing! Best pizza I've ever had." She looked at this gifted cook. "The fish dish last night was fantastic, too. Where'd you learn to cook."

His smile from her praise seemed to get washed away with that question. He looked down. "With my sister," he said in a subdued voice.

This felt like a touchy subject, so she didn't pursue it. "Well, you're brilliant. You know I'll be eating here every day that I'm here."

He looked up and smiled. "I might have to come out of the kitchen more, then."

"But then, who'd do the cooking?" she asked. He frowned. "Can Bryce cook?"

He laughed. "God, no! I'd never let him do that! But why'd you ask about that?"

She held his gaze as she answered, "Because I'd like you to sit with me."

The way he looked at her, made her stop eating. It felt like he would come around the table and kiss her. She found she wanted that more than anything.

"WHAT THE FUCK IS SHE DOING IN HERE WITH YOU?"

They both jumped and turned to see a very irate Bryce Larkin standing at the café entrance.


A/N: I guess Bryce is not happy.

A review would be nice, if you have the time.