freshoffthefarm | [Manderly] ... a return to the beach castle

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[Manderly] ... a return to the beach castle

Having become rather adept at packing for a weekend at Manderly, Annie managed to do his & hers bags in less than fifteen minutes. Considering that they'd just spent their Christmas holiday there, she had a feeling that most of the furniture hadn't even had a chance to gather dust.

Really, she needed this. It wasn't the same as being at home and relaxing; she needed the beach castle and the actual beach, even if it was January. She needed to be away from the DC area and away from people who would ask questions if she saw them. Away from her cell phone and away from well meaning friends.

She moved down the stairs with ease, placing both bags by the front door and then stepped into her shoes before going to look for her phone so she could call her husband. It was easier to take just one car, but if he wasn't going to be able to leave the office until later, she figured she may as well call and find out now.

Dialing his direct office number, she waited.

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Clay leaned back in his desk chair having just gotten to the middle of whatever stack of paperwork he was working on when his phone rang. Annie'd told him about her plans to go out to Manderly for the weekend and he readily agreed. But as he got more and more involved in his day the less likely it seemed that he'd be getting out by lunchtime.

He glanced at the caller ID, and hoped she could wait until three. There was something about the drive that he looked forward to. Clay picked up the phone, and couldn't help his smile as he answered, "Hey."

That kind of smile was audible over the phone and she responded in kind. "Hey."

It was obvious that he was busy and she sank down onto one of their red couches, pulling her feet up under her backside as she got comfortable. "I take it that you're not walking out of the office and promising to bring Trish back a sand dollar. Am I right?"

"Unfortunately you are. A few things got out of hand overnight. I will be able to get out by three though. Can you wait?"

He didn't want to miss the drive, but if she said she couldn't he wouldn't be too upset.

There wasn't disappointment in her voice, even if she felt it just a little. The small difference between a noon departure and a three o'clock departure meant the difference between walking on the beach in the afternoon and having to wait until the morning.

The real difference between the two was that she'd married the Director of the CIA.

"I'm not leaving here without you, you know that. The drive is half the fun."

"Alright. I'll be out of here by three and in the driveway by three thirty. I promise."

God help any traffic or idiotic driver that stood in his way.

"I'll understand if you're a little late, you know," she said, her smile returning. "Please don't use your defensive driving tactics to run offensive people off the road."

She knew him too well.

"I'll try but no promises."

His goal was to get home. If someone got in his way, oh well.

He earned a genuine laugh, something she hadn't done in a quite a while - probably since Christmas when he played the piano while she drank his good scotch.

Yeah, she'd been pretty giggly that night.

"I'll see you at three-thirty."

"See you then," He said before hanging up his phone.

The rest of the day was spent finishing his paperwork and eating his seventh floor catered lunch at his desk. He did manage to have his coat on and in the lobby of the building by one minute after three. Luckily, he didn't have to use those defensive driving skills, and he did pull into the driveway exactly at three thirty, quite proud of himself.

Annie had decided that her skills would have been better used on the couch, napping. Still not cleared for regular duty, she found it easier to slip into a light sleep in places other than a bed when no one else was around. The couch in the living room wasn't her favorite, but it was where Clay would find her when he got home.

When didn't see Annie waiting outside for him suitcases in hand, he figured she'd taken it upon herself to relax in the house and begin the weekend a little early, even though it wasn't in the ideal place. He wasn't surprised in the slightest to find her asleep on the couch.

Clay did announce himself though, not wanting a repeat of the shoe incident. "Annie? I'm home, right on time."

Stirring a little when she heard the door open, she sat up with a start when she heard him say her name. Thankfully, she wasn't wearing heels, so there wouldn't be a repeat of the shoe incident. Thankfully.

Annie pushed her hair out of her face once she realized that there was no immediate threat and gave him a smile twinged with sleep. "Hey." Glancing at the clock, she smiled. "Welcome home. Do you want to change first?"

There was no way she was going to make him drive four hours in a three piece suit.

"Give me fifteen minutes then we'll get on the road." The happiness at taking a long weekend was evident, he needed it too.

Clay headed upstairs and changed into a dark blue dress shirt and khaki pants, and came downstairs to meet Annie again.

"Ready?"

Rinsing her glass where she'd gotten a drink of water, she set it in the dishwasher and nodded as she turned. The sight of him in his version of casual wear never failed to make her smile.

"I am. Let me grab my sunglasses." Taking them off the side table, she put them on. "Whenever you are."

Clay took their suitcases and set the alarm, "Let's go enjoy our weekend."

He led the way outside, letting Annie lock up while he put the bags in the back of his car. He was even happy that he had the foresight to fill up the tank before going home. Now they could get to Manderly with little hassle.

Once the alarm was set and she'd locked the door, she took a deep breath as she walked toward the car. At the back end, she waited until he'd shut the trunk before she slid a hand down his arm and gave his cheek a kiss.

"Thank you."

"You don't have to thank me, really."

Clay got in the driver's side and started the car. He'd really take any reason to go to Manderly as a valid one, though he wished it would be something that would cause Annie a lot less pain.

"I know," she said as she walked to the passenger side, already feeling the stress of the last couple of weeks start to leave her body.

Once inside the car, she pulled her seat belt on and added quietly, more to herself than him, "I just wanted to."

Before he put the car in gear, he leaned over the console and kissed her back, "I told Arthur I wasn't answering my phone. Anyone who needs me has to come get me. I figured it will make them think twice."

Then he pulled out of the driveway and they were on their way.

"You're just too good to me."

Once they hit the open highway, Annie shifted in the seat to be a little more comfortable and reached out to take his hand. Four hours of straight driving didn't bother her if the music was his favorite classical on low and she could close her eyes and relax.

Clay decided not to talk much, in favor of letting Annie relax. He did, however, hold her hand when he didn't need to shift gears.

She wasn't actually sleeping, just laying back a little with her eyes closed. Listening to the ground roll by underneath the tires was soothing to her and feeling his hand in hers was calming.

When time had passed, Annie opened her eyes and lifted her head. "Almost there?"

"Almost at our favorite Food Lion." He said a little happier than he'd expected. Going to the grocery store had become something of a tradition, except that time he was there to babysit Manderly during the Hurricane.

"Mmm," Annie said with a stretch and a yawn, though the stretch was considerably limited due to the interior of the Aston Martin. "I'm craving twinkies."

"Then Twinkies you'll get."

Clay watched her stretch out of the corner of his eye as he pulled into the parking lot of the Food Lion, the last stop before getting to Manderly. While inside, he also picked up a few bottles of his favorite merlot and food for the weekend.

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