Now We're Even

by Serena Thorn

After realizing it was Veronica to break in, Jake goes to her instead of Keith. And he only wants one thing in return for not going to her father. For her to work for him.

Title: Now We're Even
Summary: After realizing it was Veronica to break in, Jake goes to her instead of Keith. And he only wants one thing in return for not going to her father. For her to work for him.
Rating: Hard R/Soft NC-17 (vanilla smut)
Pairing/ Characters: V/Jake, Wallace cameo, mentions Keith, Clarence, Celeste, Lianne, Duncan, Vinnie, Lamb
Spoilers: 3x20
Word Count: 12,232
Disclaimer: Veronica Mars is not owned by me, but by Rob Thomas. I'm simply borrowing these characters for non-profit entertainment.
A/N: Thank you to ellavee for this prompt! Sorry it took so long to get it done.

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Now you might be asking yourself what would make Veronica Mars sell her soul to the devil. No, not the blue-eyed devil Neptune used to call Sheriff. A taller devil, the one who knew she had very recently broken into his home, had stolen from him and really did have the power to make or break anyone in Neptune.

Including when it came to those campaigning for the upcoming sheriff's race.

Yes, Veronica was so set on keeping her father at his post as sheriff and keeping him from knowing about her foray into B&E that she agreed to do Jake Kane's investigative bidding.

Her choices were simple, really, at least to hear Jake tell it. Everyone would, in theory, get what they wanted. If she agreed to work for him the footage would go away as though it never existed. She would get away with yet another crime, he would get his sensitive information back and with her help would be able to weed out the undesirables from his company in the process. In addition he would give Keith his public peace offering and would make sure he stayed reinstated as sheriff. Vinnie Van Lowe's campaign wouldn't stand a chance.

Because Veronica was a good daughter who wanted to protect her father from the heartbreak that was sure to come at seeing the footage Veronica knew now Jake did in fact have, she knew she didn't have a choice but to take him up on his oh so generous offer. At least not if she wanted to keep that tape between them.

Of course she could have turned around and tried to blackmail him in return with the confession she knew of his from the hard disk, but his could have been explained away with the fact that it was the 70's and he was in college at the time. Veronica's however would result in having her own father arrest her as his last act as sheriff.

For the first week she couldn't decide whether Jake was punishing her or testing her. The few cases he had brought her had been so easy that she had almost literally solved them in her sleep. As glad as she was he wasn't trying to turn her into another hired gun of his, she still wanted more. Someone other than Jake at Kane Software had to have some kind of skeletons in their closets.

Give me a congressman having a decade-spanning affair with his half-sister, don't give me a guy cutting out of work early because it's the only time he can see the kid he's so nobly trying to get custody of, Veronica would think with a groan to herself.

All in all it seemed that Jake hadn't been kidding about wanting to weed out the undesirables. It didn't even seem to be a question for him to keep the guy who was visiting his four-year-old son on but he fired the guy who was calling his bookie every hour when he was supposed to be in meetings the very morning Veronica gave him the information.

Admittedly she was a little impressed by that. She still couldn't understand why Jake felt it was up to her to do this for him when she was pretty sure the likes of Clarence could have found these things out just as easily, but she knew this was only the beginning.

It was a week later that he had her on the case of one of his female employees he suspected of moonlighting at The Seventh Veil. Instead it turned out she was just cheating on her husband with one of the bouncers there. Still, she ended up with her own pink slip just days later.

After that something clicked in Veronica's mind. The only reason he could have for specifically wanting her on these cases had to be about more than revenge. If he just wanted revenge or if he just wanted to enjoy having something to hold over her he could have found other ways. This was beginning to feel all too familiar. Like when she had found out he had been cheating on Celeste, though of course not realizing just who with at the time.

The day after her theory occurred to her, she breezed a little too casually into Jake's office and said, "You know, it's taken me a while to figure it out, but I think I finally did."

Deciding to humor her, he asked, "What have you figured out, Veronica?"

"Why you wanted me on this case. Why you wanted me here at Kane. Why you've even defended my being here to Clarence."

Jake stared up at her from his seat. He wasn't surprised, he had told her the reason. She was good at what she did, her investigative techniques were those he needed to clean house within his company. Even though the fact he had Keith Mars' daughter doing this for him was a nice bonus, it really wasn't for any ulterior motive.

"You devised this little scheme, with blackmail as the cherry on top, so you could trick me or con me or just plain get me to find my mother for you."

Jake almost laughed. For a smart girl she sure had a knack for being so very wrong at times. "I don't have any more desire to see Lianne again than you do."

It helped that she had known him for so long to be able to tell when he was lying. Now wasn't one of those times. "Then why did it absolutely have to be me?"

"There aren't many private investigators around here I can even partially trust." Really he was a little surprised it had taken her this long to ask but he had had his answer all the while since it was the truth.

"Celeste didn't seem to have a problem trusting Vinnie Van Lowe last year," Veronica countered, remembering that time all too well.

"And look at where that got us."

Veronica had to admit he had a point. "So is that why you're here and she isn't? Because of what happened with Duncan?"

"It's one reason," he admitted with a slight smile.

And then Veronica realized it. Jake wasn't wearing his wedding ring. And despite the fact he was still technically blackmailing her, since no more mentions of the footage had been mentioned lately, Veronica couldn't claim Jake was a bad guy. Shady at times, perhaps. But not evil. Unfortunately for her, her mind had a way of rationalizing certain things a little too well and to be fair she had done worse to him in the past than simply blackmail him. And if not for that footage, she would have done worse to him again that week previous.

Of all the things he could have asked or demanded of or from her, this personal private investigator gig hadn't been so bad. Okay, she couldn't tell anyone about it and that made some things complicated but at least she had her wonderful friends fulfilling their friendly duties and covering for her when she needed them to.

Having the night off gave her that much more time to think about these last few weeks. The downside of course being that she was kind of enjoying the irony of it all. Who would have thought that a Mars would be even slightly employed by a Kane? More specifically by Jake Kane?

And then just when Veronica thought nothing else could surprise her tonight in walked her employer. Jake Kane at the Java Hut? She wasn't the only one who was surprised.

She watched as he ordered what she guessed to be a coffee and smiled politely when his eyes found hers. She wouldn't let herself get nervous as he walked over, even if all she could think was that he was there to lay another case on her even though they had agreed that she was off duty tonight.

"I thought I might find you here," he said when he walked over to where she was sitting.

"Is everything ok?"

"Yeah. Yeah, it is. I just wanted to pass along my congratulations to your father."

Veronica nodded. "As well you should, I guess. I'll tell him."

Jake smiled sardonically as he cautiously took the seat beside her. Bringing his voice down to nearly a whisper he told her, "Actually, Keith didn't need much of my help after all as it turns out. Still, I think he'll appreciate my congratulations coming from you."

She knew it was too much to hope for, but she asked anyway, "So now that the elections are over does this mean I'm still in your debt?"

"I haven't given my public apology to Keith yet," he reminded her. "And I do have more work for you. But I would hope that this hasn't been too much of a hardship for you. Especially since your findings have actually made an improvement to my company."

That was the problem for Veronica though. Not that those deserving had been given the positions that had become available thanks to Jake actually wanting honest people working for him, but that she hadn't hated working for him. If she had hated it, if she hated him, that would have made this much easier for her. In that scenario she could go home to her father and not feel that she was betraying him. Instead she was convinced that she would feel exactly how she had when this began, that she was doing this only to protect him.

But Jake hadn't been cruel, he hadn't continued to even verbally dangle the footage over her head or make her feel threatened or worried. And she really had enjoyed seeing that she was helping to make a positive difference in what could have been one of the most corrupt businesses in Neptune. To be honest, right about then, she wished her father would trust her that much with looking into his deputies back at the department.

"I guess I'll see you tomorrow then, Mr. Kane," she told him with another polite smile. "And I'll give my dad the message."

"Thank you," he nodded before he stood again to leave. Admittedly, Keith Mars would never be his first choice for sheriff, but Veronica had kept her word to him so he knew he had to uphold his end of the deal. The fact he hadn't had to put his resources to work to the degree he had imagined had also helped. So he was out a couple grand. It still could have been worse. All the while he was also convinced that even Keith, despite his many faults as sheriff where he was concerned, had to be better then Vinnie Van Lowe. The fact that Celeste had once trusted Vinnie and it had resulted in Duncan running off to Australia to avoid kidnapping charges said it all, he decided.

Another reason Veronica was thankful her father was once again sheriff? No one was at Mars Investigations to catch her cutting out early to get to Kane Software to meet Jake. Oh, she had caught the looks from the secretaries over the last several weeks and she had seriously contemplated giving them something to gossip about, but she decided her reputation there had taken more than enough hits as it was.

When she went to Jake's office to give him the latest file the next afternoon she wasn't surprised to find him gone since she had heard that he had some meeting. Really, the question was when wasn't he in meetings. Of course this too led to her curiosity reaching the red zone. Alone in Jake Kane's office, she could go through just about whatever she wanted. She could also be a good girl and just leave the file and run the risk of someone finding it there on his desk.

Throwing a different sort of caution to the wind, Veronica took a seat in his big office chair, put her feet up on his desk and decided she would sit guard of the file until he got back. Briefly she toyed with the idea of texting him to let him know the prize was there but she had learned from her father not to interrupt meetings no matter how tedious they may seem.

Jake almost smiled when he walked into his office to find her there several minutes later. "They told me I had a visitor. I was hoping it would be someone who has business here."

"You're in luck," she grinned as she held up the manila folder.

"Is that the Taylor file?" he asked after taking another few steps towards her.

"Yeah. I know you weren't expecting it until tomorrow but it turns out I didn't need all day to dig up what you'll find to be quite the page turner."

"Well then how about I give you something a little more challenging?"

"Like?" she asked, not sure if she was liking his proximity to her. Sure it was his desk and his office but with just a couple more steps he was going to be blocking her in.

Jake leaned over her still outstretched legs and reached into his top right desk drawer as though she wasn't still sitting right there and pulled out three folders. "I want you to see what you can find out about these investors."

"Anything in particular I should be looking for? Mass amounts of money disappearing? These investors making their backyard tomato plots bigger?" she asked as she took her legs down and straightened in his chair. Even his tie touching her pant leg was enough to make her wonder just how comfortable he was getting with her and she wasn't sure if she was okay with it. Boundary issues on either end? She would worry about it later. Best not to analyze the man or what was going on in her own head while he was right there and still talking.

"What I expect you to find on one of those three men will make what you found on Randall seem like nothing."

"Care to give me a hint?" she asked, suddenly feeling herself growing nervous. If Randall now being known as the abuser he was would seem like nothing then just how much worse was this other suspect?

"There's a connection that I know one of them, I can't yet be sure which, but that one of them has to a mutual contact that they shouldn't be so well aquatinted with in the interest of company safety and personal peace of mind. For the record, this is probably the most important file you will return to me."

So someone else is sampling the secretarial pool, no surprise there, Veronica thought to herself. "I'll go get started then," she told him with a quick flash of her smile before she stood.

When she reached the door to the office, Jake told her, "Oh, and, Veronica. Whatever you find out about this person, I expect that you will not take the information to your father whether as a private investigator or someone in need of a sheriff's services."

"Why would I?" she asked, half fishing while half wondering why he would think she would when she hadn't yet.

"Just see that you don't."

Her curiosity reaching new heights, Veronica sat cross-legged on her sofa with her laptop just in front of her. So far nothing had come up for the first investor she had looked up. A few parking tickets, cutting it close with his mortgage, taking some long lunches, nothing really implying that anyone had to worry about him.

The second though was a little more interesting. Questionable donations of his own with seemingly no trail of where he got a lot of the money he was investing in Kane. Knowing he was one of Jake's older investors she knew she had to be careful with how far she dug, but she also remembered how insistent and serious Jake seemed earlier. Admittedly he was a pretty laid back guy unless it pertained to work so in a way it stood to reason but he had actually seemed worried earlier.

Worried that this money was coming maybe from South American drug lords or even their own local mob? It could end up being a black eye for the company so she guessed that could be it, but after her fifteenth brick wall at attempting to electronically follow the money she knew she would either need to call Mac or Clarence to help or give up and just give Jake what she had so far. She chose the latter when Jake's words about not going to her father repeated in her mind.

Part of her wanted to take a break after that, deciding that had to be what had Jake so wound up, but the one nagging question in the back of her mind stopped her. The question being: What if that investor wasn't the biggest threat?

It took almost an hour for her to find it, but Veronica knew she had found the motherload when she found the connection. Jake wasn't wrong, there was a mutual connection. A man in New York. Someone whose name repeatedly appeared in e-mails and in phone records, both of which all made and received on on the same days of the week and at almost the exact minutes on those days. And always just before certain deals went public.

After that her attempts to continue to follow the mass amounts of money being taken out of Kane were becoming blocked and almost impossible to track. Which to Veronica meant one thing. That someone was very definitely covering their tracks and quite likely taking the money for their own. Which in this case would mean untraceable offshore accounts.

She began to realize this had to be why he didn't want her going to her father. If someone was taking these amounts of money and pocketing them for themselves, Keith would be all too happy to blame Jake and call in the SCC or IRS or even the FBI given the seemingly obvious insider trading.

It wasn't a surprise, even if he was innocent, that he wouldn't want anyone else to know about this. If the likes of the sheriff - no matter which man was wearing the badge - knew, then it would mean the kind of press Jake never wanted. Even at best it would show that he hadn't been paying enough attention to his investors' and advisors' dealings which would still result in a black eye for his company.

But if he could get her on the inside to prove it then he could have it handled quietly himself. Just another day in the life of Veronica Mars, she decided. Now, of course, she also knew that she could keep it to herself and essentially throw Jake under the bus and let whatever would happen happen. Or she could go to him and save him from a Club Fed prison sentence since it was clear this investor was looking to set him up in one way or another.

Part of her wished she'd had to think it over just a little more before making her choice.

Despite feeling like she would likely regret it and feeling that she was betraying her father in a way, the next day Veronica waited until Jake had a break between meetings before heading, once again uninvited, into his office.

"One day I may have to teach you the art of knocking," he told her as he watched her close the door after herself.

"You'll thank me when you see what I have."

That got Jake to sit up a little straighter in his seat when he saw that she had her laptop under her arm.

A full minute of silence followed once Veronica had sat her laptop on his desk and showed him what she had found the night before. He couldn't claim to be too surprised since he'd had his suspicion that someone was stealing and likely setting him up in the process. But seeing some of it in black and white, finally having some semblance of proof, and thanks to Veronica Mars, was a little amazing. Veronica could have kept this to herself, she could have let him be set up and have who knew what follow. But instead she had been honest and brought this to him and seemingly had kept her word about not going to her father with it first.

"I couldn't find out where the money was going, or has ended up, or even find out if the guy who took it still has it. But you're seeing everything that I was able to find. Without help at least," she told him finally.

With a few keystrokes, Jake e-mailed her findings to himself to look over once he sent her back on her way, not wanting anyone to be able to figure out what she was doing there or that he knew what at least one of his investors was up to.

"What do you need me to do now?" Veronica asked him, wondering if there was about to be an even more extreme assignment he had for her. Wondering maybe even if he would have her get Clarence for him.

Handing her back her laptop, he told her, "Right now, I need you to continue to keep this to yourself. And I need for you to go back to Mars Investigations, or home, or wherever it is you need to be that isn't here for now. I'll let you know when I have something else for you."

Veronica wordlessly did as she was told and when she was back at her desk several minutes later she was a little relieved. Worried too at what might still be next, but she tried to put it out of her mind as she went back to her own assignments.

She hadn't expected time to get away from her as much as it had. Only when she was turning on her desk lamp did she begin to realize it had gotten dark. And soon after that a noise was bringing her attention to the door of Mars Investigations.

"Mr. Kane?" she asked even as her eyes were adjusting to the artificial light illuminating mostly the area around her desk. Still, it was pretty easy to tell that it was him.

"Veronica," he replied with a small smile.

"Come to hand deliver my next task?" she asked, somewhat hoping today had earned her a small reprieve. Who knew she would miss the test assignments he had given her more than a week ago?

"Actually, no. I came to let you know that I've handled the issue that you brought to my attention earlier. I don't feel comfortable talking about it in detail here, but I can say that it's been dealt with. Also, I wanted to ask you, in person, if you would care to join me for dinner tonight."

She wasn't sure she wanted the answer, but she asked, "Not to be rude, but why would you want me to?"

"To thank you. Properly. And as sort of a thank you, an apology and a farewell all in one. You're free to go and return to your usual workload when you choose."

"Free to go?" Was he serious? This was what he had been after?

"From Kane. But first, as I said, I would like to thank you over dinner. I would offer a drink or two as well if you were old enough, but in the meantime this will have to suffice."

"What about that other thing? That other part of our deal?"

With Keith still getting his congratulatory pats on the back at the sheriff's department, Jake knew which part of the deal she was asking about. "If you have my hard drive, we could settle it now since I happen to have the footage from that night right here," he told her as he lifted a small disk out of his side jacket pocket.

Veronica opened the desk drawer to her right and set the hard drive down at the edge for Jake. She wasn't surprised when he took it without handing her the disk. She guessed she should have known better than to even slightly trust him again.

Only Jake dropped the hard drive into his other pocket and held the disk in both of his hands. When he knew Veronica was watching, he broke it in half.

Veronica was still watching when he used his thumbs to break the two shards into two more pieces and dropped all of them into the trash bin beside her desk. Still unable to disguise her stun, she asked, "Where did you have in mind for dinner?"

"Would the Grand be alright?"

"Yeah. Okay." She was still surprised, and a little impressed. She was sure he might have a copy of the footage, it was hard for her to go back to trusting anyone overnight, but she was still impressed that he seemed to be upholding the rest of their deal. After another moment, she asked, "Did you want to meet there?"

"We can. Say, in twenty minutes?"

Veronica nodded, agreeing a moment later.

Jake sat at the bar ten minutes later, waiting for their table to be ready. Really he was waiting too to see if Veronica would even show. He wanted her to, that wasn't a question, but he did wonder if she would accept the offer he had for her. With Keith back as sheriff it would stand to reason something would have to be done with Mars Investigations since he likely couldn't keep it running and stay on as sheriff and it was clearly too much for Veronica to take on by herself despite her insistence to the contrary. There was no denying, especially not now for him, that she was an excellent investigator. He only hoped she would choose to continue to be, though now continuing to work for his side instead of against it.

When Veronica walked in she almost felt a little guilty she hadn't changed into something a little dressier for the occasion. She was sure Jake still had the same suit on, but somehow the black slacks and dark blue silk button down still didn't feel quite right. Shrugging it off, she continued towards the dining area until she saw him sitting up at the bar. Poor guy. Some things really never change, she thought to herself, convinced his need for the liquid courage had to do with her.

"Hey," she told him finally when standing beside him.

"Hey," he smiled to her, leaving his glass on the bar. "Right on time."

"I try. So, are we ready?"

He glanced to his watch. "We should be any minute. Let's find out."

Veronica was proud of herself that she managed to not jump out of her skin when they began their walk to the host stand and very definitely felt Jake's hand at the small of her back. Since when was this a date? Or did he always do this? Had he even thought about it? And why was she? It wasn't like she was still thinking back to how comfortable he had been with her when he was bending over her legs and not caring how many times they had just barely touched in the last few weeks. No way, no obsessing about anything from his tie falling against her pant leg or his hand on her back or anything in between.

"Ah, Mr. Kane," the host smiled. "Right this way. Your usual booth just became available."

"Usual booth?" Veronica whispered to him as they followed the older host.

"I didn't think you would want an audience tonight," he told her.

His usual booth from when and Celeste would come here? Well isn't that lovely. And doesn't make this any creepier at all. Nope. Not. At. All.

"Will there be any other associates joining you tonight?" the man asked as he laid down their menus for them.

"No, but thank you," Jake told him.

Associates? Jake's business meeting booth? Okay. That's better, she thought with a soft, subtle sigh. But why is that better? It's not like it's a big deal. We're just here to be thanked and eat and that's it. Who cares why he comes here and has a usual booth?

"Veronica?" Jake asked, pulling her out of her reverie. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, it's just been a while since I've been here. And you have to admit, this is a little surreal."

"It may get a little more surreal too. I have to confess something."

"What?" She was getting nervous all over again.

"I didn't just want to bring you here to thank you. I wanted to talk business."

She sighed. Business. Thank god. Not that anything else ever crossed my mind. "Business?"

"I've been thinking about this and I'm wondering, what are Keith's plans for Mars Investigations now that he's the sheriff again and your job there is a little more than one person can handle?"

"We haven't had time to talk about it much," she admitted. "Why?"

"First of all, know that I'm not asking for your answer right away. But, I would like for you to consider coming to work for me full time. As an investigator. Originally, yes, I was wrong in the way I went about bringing you on board and I admit that. But now, if you choose, I would like for you to stay of your own free will."

"Wait a minute. You, Jake Kane, want to hire me, Veronica Mars, to work for you as an investigator?"

"Yes. You've proven yourself in these last few weeks. Even after your father was re-elected and even now you're here instead of deciding that once that disk was destroyed you didn't have to see me again."

Deciding to change the subject slightly, she asked, "What is going to happen to that investor now? What exactly did I accomplish?" All she could think was that Jake had called Clarence. If he had, if she even slightly had blood on her hands, she would take that option Jake had laid out now that she knew it was there. But if he hadn't, well, then maybe she would consider the offer.

"It turned out he had been funneling money, the kind people who are paying attention notice, into an offshore account of his own and in the process was tipping off my competition. In short he is guilty of fraud, grand theft, insider trading, the list goes on. What I needed from you was for you to figure out exactly which man was behind it, once I had a name I knew I could have the rest handled. Now it's up to the SCC to see that I had nothing to do with it and for the FBI to handle that investor. He's definitely going to prison, it's just a matter of for how long."

Veronica knew she shouldn't have been. But she was a little impressed, again, with Jake. For the longest time she hadn't been able to shake the idea that he would want the man who had done this to be killed. Instead he had done the honest thing and let the authorities handle it. It was actually the exact outcome she had hoped for. And that once again left her unable to justify going back to hating him. Which had already become more difficult to try to do.

"Well then I just have one more question," she told him.

"Sure."

"Where's our waiter? Shouldn't we have at least gotten our drinks by now?"

Jake laughed. Clearly the staff was still used to him being there for so many meetings that they didn't dare disturb him or those he was with until he waved them over.

After they gave their server their drink and dinner orders, Veronica turned serious again and asked, "Before I really think about your offer, I have to ask even if it sounds like a stupid question. Are you really sure you'd want me working for you as an investigator? I won't be holding back whatever it is I find, be it background checks on potential future employees or who knows what else about current ones."

"That's exactly why I want you for this position," he told her. "There are already several things you could have held back, either to put me or my company at risk or even just because you weren't happy with having to work for me. But you didn't. And that is what has earned you this request."

"In that case, I know this comes pretty late and may not mean much now, but, I'm glad I was wrong about you, Mr. Kane."

He smiled. "That actually means a lot. I know I was wrong to blackmail you into helping me but I really couldn't think of anyone would could do a better job. Though I admit I wasn't sure if you would actually help me when you found out the real reason I was in need of it."

"If I hadn't told you what I had found I wouldn't have been any better than those I usually investigate or often despise. And you really have wanted to improve the caliber of your employees so I really couldn't justify you paying for something you didn't do. Again."

"To new beginnings then?" he asked as he held out his hand to her since they had yet to receive their drinks with which he otherwise would have toasted with.

"To new beginnings," Veronica agreed with a smile as she shook his hand a second later. Only when he stared at her she couldn't bring herself to let go right away. Instead her mind was immediately, once again, flashing back to his recent nearness to her over these past few weeks and how comfortable he had seemed in those moments. Leaning over her when she was at his desk, not pulling away as though he had been burned when their fingers had brushed those few times when he handed her those files and even just those minutes ago when he had put his hand on her, in such a subtle display of what could be considered affection as he led her to their table. And damn it, did he really have to smell that good? She couldn't tell if it was his cologne, after shave or just plain him, but it was getting harder to not scoot even closer to the middle of their semi-circle booth towards him.

Only seconds had passed, though to Veronica it could have been an hour for all she knew. All that could distract her and get her to take her hand back right then was the arrival of their drinks, which she suddenly hated having ordered a soda despite her still current teenage status. If anything should negate that damn statute a sudden onslaught of very inappropriate thoughts and conflicting emotions about one's former best friend's father and potential employer should be it. But no. He was the lucky one. He had his scotch. She would just have to fake it with sugar and pray he wouldn't figure it out.

"I do wonder though," Jake said finally, "how difficult do you think it would be to smooth it over with Keith if you decide to take me up on my offer?"

She laughed. "Wow. Me going from working for him to working for you? Officially? Openly? Yeah. Um. It'd be a Butter Pecan and Pistachio Almond night, that's for sure."

"Would I need to worry about him trying arrest me for something again?" he asked, actually succeeding in almost making a joke of their past for once.

"Not with what I pulled off today, no way. At least not unless he thinks you've turned me against him and there becomes a law against that. But I would have to request something along the lines of a really nice, or at least comfortable couch or reclining office chair, just in case."

Jake almost laughed, only stopping himself because he could tell Veronica may not have been kidding. "If it comes to that I could have the staff set up a guest room for you at the house."

"Perfect. So I become your employee and houseguest. Yeah, Daughter of the Year, absolutely," she told him as she pointed to herself. Where the hell is Logan? Or even Dick? They know better than to deny me alcohol in my times of need.

"Here, if you want to talk about it with Keith first, that's alright with me. I won't expect him to be happy about it or to not suspect the worst. But, should you want to include that I'm not the devil or tricking you or even blackmailing you at this point, I'm alright with that too. However, as it stands now you haven't accepted the position yet so maybe we don't need to have this part of the conversation yet."

Does he really have to keep saying position? This is getting way too confusing. "Deal," she nodded, realizing it was the perfect time too because their server was returning with their food. Though no sooner had the man left did she tell Jake, "You know, you've pretty much destroyed that relationship built on mutual animosity we've worked so hard on building."

Jake couldn't help but laugh that time. "I suppose you're right. Oh well. Maybe we're better off this way."

Veronica sighed for dramatic effect. "You just had to go and be one of the few decent, honest and upstanding businessmen Neptune has." Granted she hadn't forgotten about his past, how he had worked to cover up what he had believed to be manslaughter by calling Clarence to the house after Lilly's murder or his own extra marital affair and late nights at the Camelot with her own mother, but he was a good father and when Celeste was his other option she couldn't claim to blame him for it anymore.

Plus it had been years now since both of those incidents and now that she had truly been given that glimpse into his current life she was seeing nothing particularly objectionable. Even being there with her then, it wasn't a date. And even if it had been he still wasn't wearing his ring anymore, hadn't been since he had requested her assistance in his own special way. And there wasn't even a cheater's band on his finger. Not that she had been looking, of course. Clearly he and Celeste had parted ways some time ago, which implied he had only been wearing said ring for show when he first came back to Neptune. Another plus.

"Honest and upstanding, wow, now there are words I never expected to hear Veronica Mars describe me as."

She shrugged. "Things change."

"That they do," he agreed with a smile.

As they ate, Veronica tried to put the offer out of her mind, though she enjoyed the slight shift she could feel between them. Things seemed more relaxed almost, as long as Veronica could ignore that voice in the back of her mind at least. But one thing she couldn't ignore was that Jake seemed to be feeling it too. Even starting to joke with her, reminding her of the old days. Well, save for the fact there was no Celeste there to insult her or try to send her on her way. And she was liking it more as the minutes continued to pass.

"So have you given any thought to dessert?" Jake asked her finally when he realized she was slowing down with her chicken parmesan.

Veronica allowed herself a small smile. All things considered it had been a good couple of weeks. And a good night so far. So she told him, "Actually, I think I would rather have some coffee. At least if you still have Maurice working for you. He always made some of the best coffee from what I remember. And I kind of do want to give you my answer tonight, so that might help."

"Unfortunately, I've had to hire a new staff given all the time I spent away. And I've given them tonight off. But the good news is that I was the one who told Maurice how to make that coffee. So if you've got your heart set on it, we could head on over to the house once I pay the check."

Despite Veronica agreeing a moment later, it wasn't quite as simple as that. On their way out they ended up being spotted by someone that Jake knew and Veronica was convinced she had never seen before which led to Jake telling her it was important and to wait for him in the sitting area of the lobby.

It wasn't until Veronica saw a familiar face of her own that she minded.

"Veronica?" Wallace asked her.

She smiled in her sudden embarrassment. Here she had hoped no one she knew would find out about this, more because she didn't want to have to explain it. "Hey, Wallace. What's up?"

"Do not tell me I just saw you havin' dinner with Jake Kane. Do not tell me that."

"I wasn't planning to. But what, out of curiosity, brings you here tonight?"

"Logan said somethin' about- Wait a minute! That ain't the point! Are you - ? With him?"

"Wow. I don't even want to know what you're thinking right now. It was just a dinner with my boss. That's pretty much it. Not that I really need to explain myself or anything."

"Are you sure you're not high, Veronica? I mean, is that what this is?"

She laughed. "High on life maybe."

"Sorry, that took longer than I'd hoped. Some people don't seem to understand the concept of personal time," Jake said as he walked back up to Veronica.

"Wait a minute, this from the guy who practically lives at his office?" Veronica quipped, almost forgetting for a moment Wallace was still there.

Jake chuckled, not even noticing Wallace himself. "Yes. But it's settled now. So, if you're ready to go..."

"Yeah, I am." Turning back to Wallace, Veronica gave him a smile before she told him, "Night," and headed out with Jake. She was a big girl. She could take care of herself. And she was currently set on proving that.

On the one hand Wallace was glad at least that Logan wasn't bailing on him to go out with Veronica, which was what he had originally thought when he had seen Veronica there. And then when he saw Jake he figured Veronica had to be on some kind of stakeout or undercover mission. Instead, now, his mind was completely blown. And Veronica was right, even he didn't want to know what he was thinking as he watched her leave the Grand with Jake.

Slightly surprisingly, for Veronica, it really did end up just being coffee she followed Jake to his new home for. They had spent an hour sitting on the sofa while they talked more about the offer, about how Keith was likely to take the news that she was even considering it and how she would handle her cases at Mars Investigations should Keith decide to keep it running.

Jake offered to let her bring her case loads, as she needed to, to Kane since it was clear she could just as well there as Mars Investigations. Also he felt it safer than Veronica taking her Kane-related works to her father's office. He was beginning to trust her again, but it would be a long time before he could even fathom the idea of actually trusting Keith again.

Sure, they had been lucky so far as Keith keeping his distance, which Jake knew Veronica had him to thank for. After all it would have been all too easy to pick up the phone and report the burglary, but he hadn't. And in retrospect he was glad of that. Not only because it meant he didn't have to see Keith so soon but also because certain things very well could have continued to go undetected at his company and possibly land him in hot water once again. Instead he was in the clear and it was thanks to her.

And that night, after he had walked her to the door, they parted with no more than a smile and a handshake. Both of which Veronica had a harder time putting out of her mind than usual.

Over the course of the next week, the first week of her officially working for Jake, Veronica found herself still waiting for the other shoe to drop. For him to accuse her of something else, which this time would be an outright lie, or just to plain fire her if for no other reason than because he could.

But instead he had continued to be his not-so-newfound pleasant self, saying please and thank you and of course he had kept smiling at her. Which should have worried her, she knew. But she was too busy being confused and finding herself noticing subtleties she really wished she hadn't. Because they made her curious and her curiosity would lead her to a potential discovery and for once she wasn't afraid of the discovery itself, but rather the one she had already found. That if she was right and Jake's apparent interest in her wasn't purely professional anymore after all, then she might have to admit to herself that her own interest in him had begun to pass professional a long time ago.

Once again, shaking it out of her mind as though it were a bad dream, Veronica walked with purpose down the long hall as she ignored the stares of those who knew exactly where she was headed. File of the most recent applicant in hand, she was just about to knock on Jake's door when she could hear he was on the phone.

"Uh, no. It's for Veronica and me," she heard him say. Confused, she knocked despite her sudden want to walk right in as usual.

"Come in!" he called as he hung up the phone.

"Hey," she told him as she opened the door.

"Oh, Veronica, great. Is that what I think it is?" he asked, pointing to the folder in her hand.

She glanced to it, having managed to forget for a moment why she was originally there. "Yeah. What was that about?" she asked, indicating to the desk phone.

"Nothing," he lied. "Say, how would you feel about grabbing some dinner with me after work? Say, 8 o'clock at the Grand?"

She was skeptical, staring at him, wondering what he had planned. Really she was unsure if she should even consider it. But her curiosity won out and she answered, "Alright. I'll meet you there."

She left the office almost as soon as she had given him the file, wondering if him treating her to dinner, or at least offering to, was becoming their routine. She couldn't claim to hate it, it was kind of nice when she thought about it. Sure beat fighting with him at least, that was for sure. It also beat cooking for two when she was still ending up eating alone most nights.

The first thing Veronica noticed when she walked into the dining area was that the lights were further down than they usually were. And the only, very few, others that were there were on the other side of the dining room from Jake's usual booth. If it was supposed to be another business dinner then she would understand, he wouldn't want others overhearing their conversation which was clearly why his was a corner booth anyway. She could even justify the dimmed lights that way, if he didn't want anyone to realize he was meeting her there specifically. But one thing she couldn't figure out was the sudden onslaught of anxiousness she felt. Or the flowers on the table.

"Veronica, I'm glad you made it," he smiled as he stood as he watched her approach.

"Well I did have to clear my schedule, after all I do have so much else going on at the moment," she told him with a smile just slight enough for him to know she was actually kidding and maybe even considered this a better use of her time than whatever else she did or didn't have planned.

Jake considered it progress. He was getting used to seeing her around again, even happy to see her now. And he could sense at least some of that was true for her too. She was joking with him again and not just that once. The insults and snide comments had stopped, even on his end with Keith. He was coming to actually value Veronica as an ally and he knew all too well that continuing his war with Keith, even it was really more allowing Keith to continue his decade-spanning war with him, wouldn't be conducive to keeping Veronica happy.

"So is this some new covert mission?" she asked as she moved to the side to slide into the booth, inquiring to the lack of light around them.

"Uh, no. I just thought you might like this," he told her as he took his seat almost across from her, still not wanting to admit why he had really asked her there.

"So is this par for the course for you? Making weekly dinner plans with your new hires or am I special?"

He smiled. "I just want to know that you're not having second thoughts about it. And maybe get an idea of what I should expect since I'm sure you've told your father."

"Well I haven't been disowned, if that's what you're asking. But he does think you're up to something."

"I can admit he's right that I'm up to something. But it's not what I'm sure he has in mind."

"Really? And are you going to tell me what this so-called something is or do I have to find out for myself?" she asked with the barest hint of a smirk she was fighting to repress.

"I like having you around and I want to make this as easy for you as I can since this arrangement didn't begin as nicely as I would have hoped it would."

Veronica nodded. "I almost hate to admit it, but I've actually liked being at Kane. The irony, the clientele, the way it grates on certain peoples' nerves. It's fun. And I do appreciate the view."

He smiled, having decided it was the least he could do. "I appreciate you keeping Keith at bay. By the way, any thought on what will happen with the office?"

"Dad wants to keep it open, but it doesn't look likely that we'll be able to. Even if I had a second cell phone to take the Mars Investigations calls and could still work on certain things in between Kane-related business, neither Dad or I would be able to go after the bail jumpers or out of state whatevers. Especially not for things that would take more than a day."

Jake nodded. "Will you miss it?"

"Maybe sometimes. But I know I'm still helping people thanks to this new job opportunity and I know Dad's still helping people now that he's sheriff again and I know there are some cases he and I definitely won't miss. And besides, for reasons I'll never understand, some people like Vinnie's way of doing things. I'm surprised he hasn't come by to thank you yet actually. In one fell swoop you've pretty much doubled his business."

"And I hate myself for part of that, trust me. But in the end I think you and Keith are going to do better where you are. Provided Keith actually has moved on in certain cases."

She nodded. "I think he's had to. But I think you'll be waiting a while for that apology from him."

"I've gotten one from you. That's enough," he told her, hoping she had know how sincere he was. He never expected an apology from Keith and he had been happily surprised to get any sort of one from her.

"I guess we're kind of even then," she told him, suddenly wondering where this conversation might be headed if they kept being so nice to each other.

"How about we call it a night on the shop talk for now?" he asked her finally.

"Then what else should we talk about?" she asked, wondering if there wasn't more he was up to after all.

He shrugged slightly. "I haven't seen much of Neptune outside of the office lately. What's new since I left?"

"You could find most of that online, the Hearst Murder Mystery and all. I'm a little more interested in what was going on while you were gone. I'm not going to be faced with an angry harpy in the form of Celeste thinking I'm following in my mother's footsteps where you're concerned, am I?"

"No," he smiled, fairly sure he was right. "Come to think of it though, I'm surprised you've been able to agree to have dinner with me these nights. No friends of yours coming up, assuming the same? Well, aside from the last time I guess."

She grinned. "If we keep up this conversation, the way it's going, I may need you to contribute to the delinquency of a minor. Just fair warning."

"Where might you think this conversation is going for you to want a drink?" he smirked to her, enjoying the fact she seemed to be blushing.

"To a place that might end up circumventing the question of the dessert order and jumping ahead to one for, say, breakfast."

"If I remember correctly, you're a turkey bacon and eggs girl," he told her, still remembering making breakfast for her and Lilly back in the days of their sleepovers.

She took a deep breath. She couldn't believe he remembered. "What if I said I preferred French Toast now?"

"Done," he answered, his best poker face forward. "But first," he added as he chose then to wave over their server so they could finally give him their orders. Still, Veronica still couldn't help but wonder what else had been said in that conversation of Jake's she had all but walked in on earlier. Though she guessed she was seeing some of it then. The dimmed lights, the fewer witnesses than the week before, even the flowers in the center of the table. Really, it was starting to feel like a date.

The only problem in her mind was that she wasn't hating that prospect. Like a moth to a flame, as are the Reynolds-Mars women to a Kane, she thought to herself.

"Well I guess the next question will seem like an easy one," Veronica said finally as she decided to test the waters a bit, test Jake, and scoot closer to the middle of the booth and thereby closer to him. "How have you liked being back in Neptune so far?"

"Lately I've been wondering why I ever left," he answered, his eyes locked on hers.

She knew better than to ask why he had, she didn't blame him. She knew there wouldn't have been anything left of Aaron to prosecute if Jake had gotten his way and had even five minutes alone with him. Him leaving Neptune was the best way to make sure he wouldn't end up in jail himself.

"I have to admit, it's been kind of nice having you back. It kind of makes things feel just a little closer to normal."

That time Jake followed her earlier lead and moved to sit closer to her before telling her, "Well then how about we make this a little more normal and start thinking about dessert?"

"Our food isn't even here yet."

Jake just smiled and pointed to their left, to their server carrying the tray with their dinners.

"So, dessert, you ask?" Veronica smirked a moment later after their server had left. "That coffee from last week sounds pretty good. Especially since it goes with pretty much anything," she grinned as she swiped a shrimp from his plate and popped it into her mouth.

"Hey, if you wanted these you should've ordered them," he smirked back to her. "But you're right, it goes with fries just as easily," he added before taking one of hers.

"You know, people might start to stare, or at least notice, if you keep misbehaving like this," she told him, never minding that she had started it.

"What people?" he asked, still looking at her.

"Those people," she looked pointedly to the patrons a few tables down from them. "Or those people," she said as she looked to another pair to their right.

"Too busy staring at each other," he replied, his eyes never leaving hers.

Her heart beginning to beat a little faster at the realization of just how he was staring at her, she needed a change of subject and told him, "Our food will get cold if we don't eat soon."

Jake just stared at her for a moment, suddenly wondering if his house staff had picked up what one might need to make French Toast, at least sure he could make it if they had. She had said it first, that she was thinking about breakfast, which more than implied her considering - even for a moment - spending the night at his house. The idea of their sleeping arrangements was almost enough to make him smile again. Seeing this side of her for the past few weeks, knowing she didn't actually hate him anymore, that she was enjoying her time with him now almost put everything else from his mind. At least until he heard her speak again.

"Lose your appetite?" she asked, beginning to feel even more uncomfortable than she had when she had first started feeling like this was a date.

Only for the food in front of them, he decided. "You said you wanted French Toast in the morning, right?"

Oh. Frak. "Y- yeah," she managed, all too easily seeing where this was headed now that she was hyper aware. Or maybe she was being paranoid.

"I can do that," he answered just above a whisper before moving in and finally kissing her like he had dreamt of since she had first sauntered into his office those weeks ago, since the week before when he could so easily imagine how she would have looked under him, above him, beside him on his sofa. He had been subtle, but now she had given him an opportunity that he knew he couldn't ignore.

Surprised, though more than a little impressed, Veronica kissed him back. If she had been thinking she might have thought to be thankful for those lights being down or for there only being another three couples in the dining area. But instead she had Jake Kane directly in front of her, kissing her, touching her, and she was finding herself in absolutely no rush to stop him on any of those counts.

However, when the need for oxygen was becoming an issue, she did pull back and looked to Jake again. "You do realize you just kissed me, right?"

"Yes," Jake answered with a smile.

"I mean me. Not my mom, but me. You kissed me."

Jake nodded once. This again. He should have expected it, he knew. Still, he told her, "If I wanted to be here, or anywhere else, with your mother I could have found a way. But I'm not. I'm here with you, by choice and no, not because you're my second choice."

"Why? And how? How am I not your second choice, that is?" If it wasn't because of Lianne, Veronica could only think once again that Jake might be using this as another way to goad her father.

"Because you challenge me. You either like me or hate me based on my character, not my name." Celeste had been the one with the doubts about that when Veronica had been dating Duncan, never him. Though admittedly some of that was thanks to Lianne in the past.

He was right. As much as Veronica wanted to deny it, she couldn't. Though she was also a little thankful he hadn't added in the fact of the last few weeks and how she could have thrown him under the bus for the things he hadn't even been a party to. Instead she only looked at Jake, began to smile and told him, "Well then, Mr. Kane, in that case I think I'm ready to go get that dessert now."

Several moments later they were all but fused together at the mouth again even as Jake opened the door and they nearly fell inside the foyer.

Breaking the kiss when Jake realized they were inside, knowing at least one of them needed to lock the door, or get his keys out of the lock, he was still surprised to see her in his arms. Finally he asked, "Still want some of that coffee?"

"I think right now I just want to get upstairs before your couch looks any more tempting," she answered.

Jake agreed without a word and they made it up the stairs and to his bedroom without incident, kissing again almost as soon as he had tossed the door closed. The want for privacy was more out of habit, but he had an idea Veronica would appreciate it. Especially if she really did end up spending the night and the house staff came in before she had left.

"You know this is going to be really weird tomorrow, right?" Veronica asked when they were just beside his bed. "Between work and whatever else? And if someone sees me leave? And that's not even taking into account my dad finding out."

"Then let's not think about tomorrow," Jake told her as he bent to kiss her again.

Damn it, she thought to herself. She liked that idea. In fact, as her arm curled around the back of his neck she found herself really liking that idea. She liked it even more when Jake lifted her up to finally lay her down on his bed.

As he kicked his shoes off and she shucked off her own, Veronica started thinking again. Or at least as much as she could. This hadn't been how she had originally envisioned her night ending, of course. But some time between him destroying the evidence he had against her and kissing her back at the Grand, this had become a welcome alternative.

Still kissing her, Jake was happy to shrug off his jacket when he felt Veronica's hand pushing it off his shoulders. Tonight, she wouldn't be his son's ex-girlfriend or his own ex-lover's daughter. Tonight she was a girl who sure seemed to want him just as much as he wanted her. Tonight, she would be his.

Feeling Jake's hand moving up under her shirt definitely made it that much more real to her, but Veronica still wasn't about to stop him. Any other time she might be able to convince herself of the lie that she had never found Jake to be one of the much better looking fathers of Neptune or that she didn't want to be around him. But when his lips were kissing a trail down the side of her neck and she already had one leg hooked around his waist, it was a wonder she could even think of said lie.

The minutes that passed only further convinced Veronica that she had somehow lost her mind through this whole experience of working for Jake. But damn it, it felt good to have his breath fall over the crook of her neck as he moved his hands down to catch the hem of her top.

Jake really couldn't be sure how far she would actually let him go, but when her hands went to his belt once he had let her shirt hit the floor, the questions started to leave his mind almost as quickly as their clothes continued to fall to the floor.

"How many times did you just want to clear the desk and sit me on top of it?" Veronica asked him when he covered her body with his own when they were down to their underwear.

"Was I that transparent?" he asked her before letting his hands trail down her sides.

"You got there pretty fast tonight," she answered with a laugh.

"Damn. Oh well," he shrugged when his fingertips curled into the waistband of her panties and pulled them down even as he bent to kiss her again. It wasn't long before he worked his mouth down her body, Veronica failing to suppress her moans as he kissed, licked and suckled on the various parts of her skin being offered to him.

But even through the last of their clothes coming off and Jake losing himself in the taste of her, Veronica still couldn't shut her mind off. He may not have still been 'Duncan's Dad' to her, but he was still Mr. Kane despite his insistences for her to call him Jake. He was still more or less her employer, he was still the man that her friends would expect her to explain herself being seen with.

Veronica hadn't imagined, except maybe for a moment, that this would be her night. Being touched, being kissed, lying naked beneath Jake Kane in his bed, happily drowning in the scent of his cologne or after shave or whatever he was wearing that was making her head swim.

Jake hadn't been any more certain about how the night would end than Veronica. But as he slipped his tongue into her, he was becoming increasingly thankful that he had gotten his wish.

Finally, when she had one hand in his hair in the hope of keeping his mouth where she wanted it as he flicked his tongue over her clit, her other hand grasping the headboard behind her, his name was becoming her constant thought. Right up until it began to lose all meaning and her body tensed beneath his hands. And when she came the only thing left for her to think was that if this continued to be how her work days ended then she was happy to further embrace the would-be boss/secretary cliché.

Jake had to admit a bit of surprise himself when only a moment after he had gotten settled against the headboard Veronica was atop him, straddling him even as she laced one arm around his neck and lowered her hips to his.

"Guess this solves that pesky height issue," she told him, her eyes locked on his even as she rolled her hips to entice him.

He almost laughed, she was right about that. "You know this may only encourage your fantasies of me sitting you on my desk," he smirked as she moved to press her chest to his.

"I suppose we'll just have to deal with that later," she shrugged before she put her slender hands to Jake's shoulders and shifted until her hot core was positioned just right above his erection.

Veronica didn't want to think about how Jake already seemed to know how to touch her, when to let his hands and sometimes just his fingertips roam, or when to pinch or squeeze or kiss. She just plain didn't want to think and she was tired of waiting any longer than she already had. In a moment she sank down on his erection, slowly letting him fill her.

Jake let out a low groan, holding Veronica to him, waiting for her to move, hoping she wouldn't make him wait too long. Though in that moment he hardly had any complaints as her tight heat surrounded him. And when she began to move he let his hands slide down her back until they were grasping her ass.

Veronica took the hint and raised up again before moving in to return her lips to Jake's. He held her closer in response and down she slid again, nearly taking all of him that time.

Jake kissed her back, wasting no time in letting his tongue slip back into her mouth, eagerly taking the moan that escaped Veronica's throat when his hips bucked into hers.

Instead of being reminded of all the things she had already forced out of her mind more than once tonight, Veronica was only reminded that the man could kiss. Forget the need for a super squad of lawyers, Veronica was convinced Jake could manage a takeover with just his mouth (and not just because of his lovely way with words). Strong and sure, though not enough to overpower. But right then Veronica wasn't sure she would mind if he tried. Still, she ground into him, her body still pressed to his even as they fought not to have to abandon their kiss through their moans and sighs.

It was just another few moments before Veronica felt that all familiar heat wash over her, thrusting her hips into Jake's again, finally twice more before she came.

Even as she began to still in his arms, Jake continued to thrust up into her until just a few seconds later his own orgasm claimed him.

For a long moment as they disentangled themselves the only sound that could be heard in Jake's bedroom was that of them trying to regain their breath.

But then, as Veronica laid beside him, it really began to dawn on her that this wasn't a dream. This, this had really happened. With Jake Kane.

"Doubts already?" Jake asked when he saw Veronica glancing all around, clearly trying to search his floor for her clothes even in the dim light.

"Isn't this the part where you say what a mistake this was and send me on my way?"

"It would be," he admitted. "If I felt that way."

"So then you're not about to kick me out or blackmail me for a whole new reason?"

"No. And I'm not stupid. I know what I've signed up for here. If you want to stay you're more than welcome to."

"Is breakfast still part of the deal?"

Jake smiled. "Absolutely."

Now Veronica knew going into the office the next day would be interesting. Between having Jake drive her back to the Grand after their breakfast so she could get her car and knowing that the stares she would be getting from his secretaries would actually be deserved for once. Not that any of them needed to know that. Still, she was enjoying it. She couldn't deny that there was a certain allure to the most powerful man in Neptune wanting her.

And she also hadn't forgotten Jake's question. As to if she wanted to continue working for him. That afternoon, she gave him her answer.

"You're sure you don't want to think more about it?" he asked her.

"I'm sure. I like it here. I'm doing something good here too. I like that."

"So you're absolutely sure you want to keep working for me, even though it means finally telling Keith who signs your checks?"

"As long as he doesn't find out who's bed I anticipate sleeping in at least a few times a week in the same breath," she grinned.

Jake laughed, it was nice to know she hadn't planned on the night before being a one time thing.

"And the pay isn't so bad. And the boss, well, he has his moments."

"How do you think Keith will take the news that you're officially working for me?"

"Before or after he finds out about the donation you gave to his campaign to help him remain sheriff?"

That time Jake's laugh was born out of nervousness. "I thought we agreed he wouldn't know about that."

"Well, I'm sure he'll take it as well as Clarence when you tell him I'm staying. So I guess now we're even."

Jake thought about her words for a moment. She was right. There had been a time she had been ready to crucify him and then she had helped him. He had once been in love with her mother just as she had once been in love with his son. They had been friends, enemies and now in addition to becoming partners they had ended up becoming lovers. Or were well on their way at least.

"I guess it's settled then," he told her finally, smiling as he watched her move closer to him.

"Not quite. There is one other thing," she told him as she moved to the side of his chair.

"Oh?"

"Um hmm," she answered before bending down to kiss him even as she continued to move until her back was to his desk and she was fully facing him.

"Mm, you know I have a board meeting in a few minutes," he told her, though only half-heartedly breaking the kiss himself.

"Then I guess you'll be late getting to it," she told him before she slipped into his lap and kissed him again.

The End