A special thank you to Rachael and others for encouraging me to do this fic...I appreciate and am humbled by the faith you have in me...I hope I don't let you down. Another thank you to those who helped me work out the Flynn problem...going down the rabbit hole of altering timelines can be a bit daunting and mind blowing, so thanks for hashing it out with me.

As always, your reviews are much loved and appreciated.

Happy Reading...I hope you enjoy it.

Chapter 1: A New Beginning

"To think I escaped prison for this."

Wyatt bristled at the sound of Garcia Flynn's voice as it cut through the bunker like an icy dagger. It had been months since he had heard it…months since that sonofabitch had reduced Lucy to tears with his false accusations that she had betrayed him...and even if she had, could he really blame her? After everything he had done, would it have been so terrible if she had handed him over to the authorities? Whatever Lucy's protestations to the contrary, Wyatt had staunchly been on Agent Christopher's side of that argument. No matter what Garcia Flynn's motivations for his numerous crimes, he belonged behind bars. The way Wyatt figured it, he had already done him one hell of a favor but not following orders and shooting the murderous asshole in 1954. Yet, here they were, welcoming him, with not so open arms, into their home…their safe haven. He never would have believed it possible, but Lucy had insisted. How the hell she had convinced Agent Christopher that this was a good idea, he would never know.

And that wasn't even the worst of it…after all that they had gone through to try to help him, after all the laws they had broken to get him out of prison, after the many risks they had taken to ensure his safe passage to their hideout, Garcia Flynn had the gall to stand in their doorway and deem himself "not impressed." Wyatt had meant it back there in Nazi Germany, he trusted Lucy…but this?

This was a tall order.

Just moments before he had been enjoying his new-found domesticity with Lucy, but with the entrance of Flynn all revelry had ceased. Unfortunate too, since the bunker had been a dismal dwelling for them all over these past few weeks…months, even. At first, Wyatt had believed the dank, depressing atmosphere of the bunker stemmed from the fact that Lucy wasn't there. But after securing her safe return to the team, the whole place almost seemed lonelier. She wasn't herself, she hardly smiled, spoke, laughed, or joined in any fun. Her nights were spent reading off by herself or staring up at the ceiling in her room, quietly contemplating God knows what. One thing Wyatt did know, Rittenhouse was to blame and he was damn sure determined to make them pay for whatever the hell they did to her. It had been months since he had told her he was open to exploring possibilities with her, but that exciting yet daunting prospect was suddenly and horribly cut short when they took off with Lucy.

About three months ago, they had naively believed they had won - most of the upper echelons of Rittenhouse "royalty" had been exposed and imprisoned. The Mothership, Mason's crown jewel, was under lock and key with the Federal authorities. All that was left was one more mission…a promise really…to restore the life of Amy Preston. Lucy's sister had been erased from existence…interestingly enough because of their newest roommate who was currently skulking in the corridor. So, when the opportunity arose to get her back, Wyatt wanted nothing more than to be there, supporting Lucy every step of the way. She had had "something to do first," she had said…would "only be gone an hour" - but when that one hour had turned to several, Wyatt had been naturally worried…no…not worried, he had been damn near terrified. He, of all people, knew too well that sometimes your worst fears are confirmed and the thought of losing Lucy like he had lost Jess had sent him into panic mode. He was just about to exit the LifeBoat when he saw the bomb…by then, it was too late.

He didn't remember the explosion. His last memory was that of trying to call Lucy before his entire world went black. When he had come to, the pain coursing through his body was more than just physical. What had once been their base of operations was a burned-out shell, Lucy was missing. After an exhaustive search, Homeland Security presented him with a file…not unlike the file he received upon learning of Jessica's death. Lucy was classified as: Missing, presumed dead. The photographs showing the interior of her home, her last known location, were troubling at best. Her cell phone, easily tracked, had been left behind amongst the other contents of her purse that were strewn all over her kitchen floor. Chairs were overturned, a vase was broken and trace amounts of blood…Lucy's blood, were found on the scene. There were no leads as to her whereabouts, no witnesses to her apparent abduction and or murder and after six long weeks, everyone had given up hope of finding their historian alive.

Everyone except Wyatt.

They didn't understand. He knew she wasn't dead. Wyatt knew that as surely as he knew that the sky was still blue…which was harder to determine these days since they were living in a damn hole in the ground. The sympathetic looks, the morose expressions on what remained of the team from Mason Industries angered him. He was pissed beyond measure at Agent Christopher, Rufus, Mason…really just anybody who dared to tell him that he needed to accept the fact that Lucy could be dead. Whatever had happened to her, she hadn't gone quietly…and for that, Wyatt was proud. Lucy fought and he knew her well enough to know that she would continue to fight, with or without his help. Still, he was beyond furious with himself for letting Lucy go out all alone when they knew that Rittenhouse was still out there…injured, yes, but still obviously able to deal them a devastating blow.

And Lucy's loss had been devastating.

Without her, Wyatt had felt lost. He stuck to a routine everyday so that he wouldn't go insane with the not knowing. He wanted nothing more than to go and find her himself and absolutely hated that he had to rely on government agents who didn't even know her to head up the search party. They wouldn't be as thorough as he would be, but Agent Christopher had refused to authorize his petition to join in the investigation over her disappearance, citing that it was "too risky" for him to do so.

He didn't give a damn about that.

Risking a court martial, Wyatt tried to break himself out of the bunker until FINALLY, the Lifeboat was repaired, the computer systems back online, and a lead appeared. When he did find her again, nothing could have prepared his heart for the surge of emotion that stole through him as she leapt into his arms and wrapped her own around him for dear life. He had lost Jessica, but despite the odds, he hadn't lost Lucy.

The next few weeks with her were touch and go at best. After worrying himself for so long over her whereabouts, he could hardly believe that she was safely tucked away just down the hall from him. Those six weeks without her had been hell, but Lucy, had had it much worse. Not only was she blindsided by the revelation that her own mother was Rittenhouse, she had been told that everyone at Mason had been killed. From the little she divulged about her experience with that sadistic cult, Wyatt surmised that they had been trying to break her. Given his training as a special ops soldier, he knew all too well the types of tactics employed to break prisoners of war…and the thought of Lucy going through any of that made him physically ill. She may have seemed normal to everyone else, but it didn't take a trained psychologist to realize that she had been through hell and back. She might not have given him a play by play of her entire six weeks of torment, but it was enough that she had confessed to killing an innocent man to prove her loyalty and admitting that she had no plans to return from 1918 that made Wyatt determined that if he ever got his hands on the Rittenhouse trash that did this to her, he would make them suffer for it.

Was it any wonder, then, that after those first few weeks of a sad and depressed Lucy, seeing her dressed to the nines, singing her heart out, and looking happier than he had ever seen her in 1941 Hollywood, had him completely mesmerized? She wasn't just happy, she was stunning. The joy she projected as she sang, put him in mind of the story she had told him about how she had almost left school to pursue a career with a band. He had laughed it off as a bit of a joke then, but seeing her perform…that was a Lucy Preston he had never seen before and wanted very much to know. Not that she wasn't already incredible, but seeing a whole new side of her after all of their time together made Wyatt hungry to see more. After so many months of dancing around the fact that there was more between them than just friendship, they had finally stopped fighting their feelings for one another and dove headfirst into the world of possibilities.

After that night, Wyatt didn't think that anything could dampen his mood. The two of them had laughed and smiled non-stop since the moment they stopped the world together in Hedy Lamar's guest house. Coming back to the present, didn't change things, as was typical on their other missions. Instead of retreating quietly to her room, Lucy pulled out the game boards and challenged everyone who dared to a game of checkers…another hidden talent of hers that Wyatt had been both impressed and amazed by. This change in Lucy affected the entire atmosphere of the bunker; it seemed warmer, brighter…until that all too familiar voice called out and sent the temperature in the room plummeting to the dismal cold of a winter's day. Wyatt's smile, the one that had seemed permanently etched to his face since that conversation by the pool, faded as Garcia Flynn emerged from the shadowy corridor. Unable to stomach the sight of that sonofabitch pompously looking around their humble home and complaining that it wasn't up to his standards, Wyatt leapt up from his comfortable perch next to Lucy and stormed off, regretting he had ever been part of the plan to break the man out of prison.

"Just keep him on a short leash." Wyatt spat out to Agent Christopher as he made his way past the trench-coated Flynn.

A movement behind him, made him realize he was being followed, but the voice that called out assured him that he was in no immediate danger, quite the contrary. "Hey, Hey" Lucy breathed out as she jogged to keep up with him.

Wyatt stopped with a huff and turned back towards Lucy…his frustration apparent all over his face. Lucy, however, looked beautiful, standing in his shirt, the dying rays of the sun illuminating her fresh face. Hell, she was radiant, even. He could get used to seeing her like this.

Lucy gave Wyatt a look of grim understanding. She knew he hated the idea of busting Flynn out of prison and since it had been her idea, she was feeling his frustration all the more "I know. I know." she continued soothingly.

"It's just seeing Flynn here with us. I don't like it." Wyatt admitted ruefully. Lucy offered him a sympathetic frown, but it didn't change the fact that the man who had tried to murder them for a better part of a year was now, officially, their newest bunkmate.

"I don't like it either." Lucy agreed, "but he's on our side now…he can help us." It was hard for her to determine who she was trying most to convince…herself or Wyatt. She had no real reason to trust Flynn…but somehow, she did. He had coerced, manipulated and threatened her her and her team, but he hated Rittenhouse more than anyone she knew…and after spending six weeks under that evil organization's thumb, she knew it would be short-sighted to disregard Flynn as a possible ally.

Her unspoken fears that it would prove to be a disastrous decision were echoed with Wyatt's next utterance, "Yeah, he can…but will he? I mean, he's got what he wants…so now what?"

Lucy knew Wyatt was right. There was nothing to coerce Flynn with now that he was out of prison. What would keep him from turning on them all and murdering them in the night? As Wyatt had said, he believed that they were responsible for landing him in prison in the first place…and technically he was right. It had been Agent Christopher's doing…she had secretly set up the ambush while Lucy went to meet with Flynn in order to hand off the promised information on who had murdered his family in exchange for the Mothership. Flynn had no reason to believe that they hadn't all been in on that plot and so what better way to exact revenge than to double cross your double-crossers?

She couldn't blame the man for holding a grudge, if he did hold such a grudge, but as he had tried to murder them several times…even going so far as to strand them in 1754…they were kind of even. Still, she believed that Flynn's hatred of Rittenhouse far outweighed any hatred he might feel for them and it was that belief…that tepid hope, that spurred her to throw caution to the wind and make an uneasy alliance with their former enemy.

That shaky trust however, was a huge risk…and she knew it…and more importantly she knew that Wyatt didn't agree. In an attempt to smooth things over with him, she turned a bit playful,

"Can we forget about Flynn for just like…a minute, because we have each other?" Lucy mimicked teasingly, her face dropping slightly when she approached him as old insecurities fought their way to the forefront of her mind, "Don't we?" she asked uncertainly. "I mean, last night…it was…"

"It was pretty...pretty amazing" Wyatt finished for her, a smile spreading across his face, the upset he had felt about Flynn slowly disappearing as Lucy drew nearer.

"That's what I thought too!" Lucy laughed in relief, grateful to hear once more that at least on that, she and Wyatt were on the same page.

He reached out and placed his hands on her hips, delighting in the thrill of doing so. He had denied himself the chance to hold Lucy like this for so long, the act of just casually reaching out and holding her seemed to make him come alive in ways that he never thought possible anymore. His heart pounded in his chest as she smiled at him. That was a look he would never get tired of…a happy Lucy Preston. Since meeting her over a year ago, she had been weighed down by anxiety and loss. She hadn't asked to be a part of all of this mess…she had run out of Mason Industries terrified at the thought…but they had pulled her back in – guilting her over her love of history. After that first disastrous mission, she had gone home to find her sister gone and so smiles on Lucy Preston were a bit of a rarity. Sure, she would delight over meeting one of her historical heroes, laugh at Rufus' jokes…even offer him a grateful smile every once in a while, but the sad truth was, Lucy Preston was often on edge…they all were…and so to see her positively beaming was quite a sight to behold.

"So… "Lucy began impishly, "what do we do now?" she asked with a quirked brow.

"Well..." Wyatt murmured, his playfulness coming back full form now that Lucy was here with him, "we're already living together. That's a pretty big step."

"Yeah. Nowhere to go but down, right?" Lucy asked with a giddy smile on her face. She was happy, deliriously happy…but as happy as she was, she couldn't help but feel a little insecure about where she stood with Wyatt. She may have only been joking that they had nowhere to go but down, but the truth of the matter was, that was what scared her most about being with Wyatt in the first place. Since almost the first moment she met him, she had known that he had been mourning the loss of his wife, Jessica, for five years. He had blamed himself for her death and wanted nothing more than to fix that one terrible mistake that had led to her murder.

Three months ago, he had stunned her by declaring himself open to possibilities. Possibilities of what…he wouldn't say, he only told her he wasn't ready to say goodbye. That had been enough for Lucy. Then. Out of all the relationships she had ever had - and granted, there hadn't been many - her relationship with Wyatt was the most important of her life. She had been forced to imagine, for six horrible weeks, what life would be like without him and she wanted no part of it.

After their incredible time together in Hollywood, Lucy knew without a doubt that for her, there would be no one else like Wyatt. Their time together had been something out of a dream…but maybe things had moved too fast. Wyatt, after all, had still mentioned Jessica in that conversation by the pool…still admitted that her death had caused him tremendous pain and regret…add in the fact that he had gone on a desperate mission to save her not so very long ago…and she felt like maybe Wyatt would resent her someday for pushing him into something he wasn't ready for. Sure, he had been the one to kiss her, but a kiss was a bit different than sex.

Okay, a LOT different than sex.

Maybe she was emboldened by the champagne, maybe it was just everything…her, Wyatt, the crackling fire, that long-awaited kiss that absolutely took her breath away by its loving tenderness…whatever it was, she had completely surrendered herself to the possibilities that she had wanted with him for so long. So, when they stood there, gazing at each other in breathless awe after their first real kiss, transfixed by the desire in each other's eyes, it only took her a moment to consider that what she wanted, more than anything in the world, was Wyatt.

She was a little less sure, however, about what he wanted.

While she had no regrets on her side for what happened in 1941, jumping straight into his arms had been unchartered territory for her…forget the fact that they were co-workers and technically on the clock, this was a man who, despite his once spoken desire to "focus on the present," had steadfastly argued that he would never find love again – Jessica had been his one and only.

His lightning bolt.

So where did that leave her? Where did she fit in in the grand scheme of things? Would he ever love her as much as he did Jessica? Oh God…what if he didn't? What if she never quite measured up to the woman he had lost? Would he be unhappy? Would he regret that he ever betrayed the memory of his wife, by trying to move on with someone else? What if they came back from a mission and she was suddenly alive again? What would that mean for them?

"I can hear you thinking." Wyatt muttered with a smirk as he gazed down at Lucy, his hands wrapped around her waist. "Don't tell me you're still worried about a Human Resources violation?" He pulled her a little closer as he whispered in her ear, taking care to assure her that the coast was clear before planting a kiss on her forehead. "Because I hate to break it to you, ma'am…we're going to be breaking a hell of a lot more rules around here." He added with a devilish grin.

Lucy nodded her head with a forced smile, attempting to reassure herself and Wyatt that all was well, but not quite able to get her face to project that same level of feigned confidence…and Wyatt noticed.

"Hey, what's wrong?" he asked seriously. He pulled back away from her slightly, his eyes serious and fixed on hers searching for…what, he didn't know exactly, but what he did see there scared the hell out of him.

There was doubt.

"Lucy," he asked as he swallowed hard and lowered his voice, checking the corridor to make sure no unwanted ears were eavesdropping on their conversation. "Are…are you having regrets…about…about us?"

"No!" Lucy answered immediately, causing Wyatt to smile in relief. "I…I just want to make sure thatyouare sure. I…I don't want to pressure you into anything you aren't ready for."

Wyatt scoffed as he shook his head and grabbed her by the hand, "Come with me." he said softly as he tugged her away from the spinning fan.

She followed in his wake, her small body draped in the flannel shirt he had given her because she had been too cold in the common era during their game of checkers. Wyatt kept a firm, but gentle grip on her hand, pulling her along anytime she hesitated or tried to bombard him with questions. Once outside the door to his bedroom, he stopped, turned and folded his arms across his chest, frowning at her slightly. "Okay…" she asked with a quirked brow, "why are we standing outside your bedroom?"

"Open the door." Wyatt said simply, heaving out a sigh as Lucy cast him a curious glance.

Hesitating slightly, Lucy wrenched open the door to the bedroom, looking back at Wyatt as she did so, trying to judge from his expressionless face whether he was doing a terrible job at seducing her or whether he had some horrible surprise tucked away in the recesses of his and Rufus' shared room. What that surprise could possibly be, she had no idea, but as Rufus was famously untidy, it was with more than a little trepidation that she crossed over the threshold and into the bedroom, determined to keep her eyes trained to the floor…or at least to Wyatt's side of the room lest she accidentally spy a pair of Rufus' unmentionables hanging from his cot.

She needn't have bothered, however, for when she stepped across into the room and lifted her gaze to where she knew Wyatt's bed had been, she discovered it wasn't there at all. Gaping slightly, she cast a glance around the room to find that not only was there not an unruly mess spilling over onto Wyatt's claimed piece of real estate, there was no claimed side of the room at all. Instead, both cots had been pushed together and made up into one large bed, centered along the back wall that was decorated with a very rustic American flag mural.

Biting her lip to hide her smile, Lucy turned slightly to Wyatt who was still standing by the door, arms crossed, observing the scene with the hint of a devilish smirk. Quirking her lip slightly, Lucy tilted her head back to the bed and teased, "So…you and Rufus, huh?"

Wyatt rolled his eyes at her joke, though it was clear from the grin on his face that he wasn't the least bit annoyed. Sticking his hands in his pockets, he admitted, "While you were in the shower, Rufus and I did a bit of redecorating, yeah."

Lucy nodded slowly, understanding what Wyatt was getting at, but hardly daring to presume anything…it could be that this was an arrangement made just for tonight, after all. "So…" was all she managed to get out, hoping that Wyatt would fill in the rest.

"So," he sighed as he took a step into the room, "I was just thinking…we already live together…but why not just actually live together? Rufus and Jiya are always kicking one of us out of our rooms anyway…why not just…" Lucy frowned slightly as she cast her eyes down to the floor, sending a jolt of panic through Wyatt, "Unless you…you don't want to?"

"No…it's…it's fine, Wyatt." Lucy nodded.

"Then why do I get the feeling that it's not fine?" Wyatt said with a bit of hesitancy.

Heaving a sigh, Lucy clenched her eyes shut and felt all the burden of her insecurities crashing down upon her like a fifty-ton weight. This was silly, she knew it was…but if she didn't say something, she would always be wondering…always be feeling like…

"Always be feeling like what?" Wyatt asked with real concern.

Lucy opened her eyes and saw that Wyatt was stooping slightly to look at her directly, alarm written all over his face. "Did I say that out loud?" she gasped. As Wyatt nodded, Lucy groaned slightly as she spun around took a seat at on a chair situated next to the door at a small table. She covered her face with her hands to hide her momentary embarrassment before clasping them in her lap and wringing them nervously, "Wyatt, I…I just want to make sure you're ready for this. I…I know we sort of jumped right into the deep end but we don't have to…"

"We don't have to what?" asked Wyatt who was feeling more and more unsure of his attempt at a surprise by the second. "Lucy, I…I thought you weren't having any regrets?"

"I'm not!" Lucy insisted, but with Wyatt's doubtful look she continued with a hope to reassure him, "It's not meI'm worried about." Her eyes followed Wyatt as he moved towards her and took a seat opposite her. "You spent six years mourning Jessica…and we…we've been together for less than 48 hours…I just don't want you to feel pressured into doing this because it's convenient."

Wyatt bit his lip in regret. His quip about Rufus and Jiya had obviously given Lucy the wrong impression, "I didn't mean for it to sound that way" Wyatt explained, "I was just trying to…" he trailed off, seemingly at a loss for words.

"It's not that I don't appreciate it, Wyatt…I do. But it wasn't that long ago that you were trying to save Jessica…I just want you to be sure that this is what youwant. I mean, we went from possibilities to living together...are you sure it's not too soon for you?"

Wyatt didn't say anything for what felt like an eternity. When he did speak, his voice was wracked with emotion, "You're right. Maybe it wastoo soon for us." Lucy nodded, her heart breaking slightly as he confirmed her worst fears. "Or maybe" Wyatt continued, "it had just been too damn long." Lucy's eyes darted up to meet his as he grasped onto her hand, "I have no regrets about what happened in '41, Lucy." And to further emphasize his point, further he added firmly, "None."

Tears welled up in Lucy's eyes as she nodded swiftly, angry at herself for allowing her stupid fears to ruin what Wyatt had obviously intended as a happy surprise. "I'm sorry." She muttered as she attempted to calm herself, "I just know how you felt about Jessica…and I guess, I just…I don't want you to…I mean, I don't expect to…"

"Lucy…" Wyatt muttered gently as he leaned forward attempting to interrupt her.

"No, Wyatt…let me say this…I need to say this." Lucy said firmly, doing her darndest not to look at him as she did so. Wyatt sat back reluctantly, something that was not lost on Lucy. With an exasperated sigh, "Wyatt, I just…I need to know for my own peace of mind…that night you stole the Lifeboat to save Jessica, you said it would be worth losing all of this…" she swallowed hard, "losing me…" she covered her face with her hands almost embarrassed to admit that she was threatened by a ghost. "I just need to know…would you do it again…now?"

"Lucy, if you had asked me to stay…" Wyatt began. Lucy, however scoffed and rolled her eyes as Wyatt lunged forward from the chair and knelt before her, turning her gently to face him, "I mean it, Lucy. I thought I was only risking my own feelings." He rubbed a rough hand across his neck as he stood up and began pacing the small room. "You were still engaged to Dr. Whatshisface…"

"Noah" Lucy supplied.

"Yeah, him." Wyatt paused as he gave her a knowing look, "I just…I thought things might be easier…that if I had Jessica back that maybe what I was feeling for you would just…" he swallowed hard, "It wasn't until that night that I realized that you might have had feelings for me too…but instead of asking me to stay you…"

"I wished you luck." Lucy muttered. She had wanted to ask him to stay, of course she did…but as Wyatt had rightly pointed out earlier, she had still been engaged to the man she didn't even know and under the distinct impression that Wyatt only saw her as a team mate and friend. Her own self-doubt had exacerbated his…weren't they quite the pair?

Smiling sheepishly at herself, Lucy looked up at Wyatt…Wyatt, who had been spent the morning turning his bedroom in their bedroom, Wyatt who was now looking at her with so much love and concern it made her go a bit weak in the knees.

"I guess I kind of ruined your surprise…" Lucy admitted with a sigh as she looked around the rearranged room. "I'm sorry, Wyatt."

"Don't be sorry, Lucy." he implored. "I understand why you were worried…there's not a day that goes by that I don't kick myself for not being a little more honest with you…and myself."

"That makes two of us." Lucy conceded with a smirk. "To think that you would have never had to steal the Lifeboat if I…we…had just admitted what we felt."

Wyatt frowned as he took a step away from her, "I needed to try, Lucy." he admitted ruefully, "Otherwise…I would always be wondering..."

Lucy's heart nearly stopped in her chest. The same fear that had nearly paralyzed her as she sat, trapped in that sinking car so many years ago, had come back full force. The silence of their room roared in her ear like the thunderous icy cold water that pounded down upon her as she struggled vainly to unbuckle her seatbelt. She didn't want to ask the question that most weighed on her mind, yet she knew that if she didn't, she would never be able to fully trust their relationship, no matter what Wyatt said about lightning bolts from the heavens. With a hesitancy that spoke to how very little she wanted to hear what could very well be a hard truth she asked, "And…and you don't wonder anymore? If Jessica came back right now…"

Wyatt let out a heavy sigh as he turned away from her, "I don't want to think about that, Lucy. Why do we have to think about that?" he added angrily. "Why can't we just…" Wyatt bit his lip in frustration, speaking more to the wall than to Lucy when he added, "In the unlikely event that we came back from a mission and Jessica was suddenly alive…I would be married and you…"

"I would be the other woman." Lucy said with a soft sob. "But Wyatt…don't you see? You needto think about that. We need to think about that. With what we do, anything is possible." Lucy swallowed hard as she weighed her next words, hardly believing she was going to risk her happiness with Wyatt over a hypothetical that could very well never happen. She hated the idea that at any moment, it could be ripped away by the return of his wife. She would never ask him to divorce the woman he had made vows to, the woman he had intended to spend the rest of his life with…but she also couldn't carry through with a relationship if, in the unlikely circumstance, the wife he had loved and lost was suddenly not so lost, causing her to step aside. No matter what they felt for each other, Jessica would hold claim over him, legally and she wouldn't have the heart to stand as an obstacle between them…not after he had mourned her loss for six years. She didn't want to ask him to make that choice…but what would happen if Wyatt had suddenly found himself married again? What kind of choice would he make? No matter how much she feared his answer, she needed to know. Taking a steadying breath, Lucy painfully confessed "I just…I need to know where I stand…with you."

Wyatt didn't respond. The silence seemed to stretch beyond the centuries as they stood there gazing at each other; Lucy's face stained with tears that she had shed…both happy and sad… while Wyatt's was wrenched in agony as he considered what the consequences of Jessica's improbable yet disastrous return would mean for his fledgling relationship with Lucy. He knew she was right…it wassomething they would need to think about, no matter how much he didn't want to. It had taken one mission, one failed mission to erase her sister from existence…would it be thatcrazy to think that one mission could change their entire future together?

Yes…it would be that crazy.

He had already done everything he could to try to bring her back and it hadn't worked. She was gone…and therefore not a threat to her or to them. There was no need to worry. He wanted to tell Lucy everything would be okay, that she had no reason to worry about his devotion to her, that she made him happier than he had been in years, that his life had meaning again now that she was here with him, but whatever assurances he had wanted to offer Lucy in the face of her fears and insecurities, would have to wait.

He had just opened his mouth to speak when the sound of sirens reverberated off the metal walls of the bunker. A knowing look was shared between them, each of them silently communicating to the other that no matter what was happening between them, no matter what Rittenhouse had in store for them, they would face it as they always did…together.