Author's Note: So, I wrote this story a couple of years ago and haven't gotten around to posting it. I can tell I wrote it awhile ago because as I skimmed over it I noticed I head jump in each chapter – that is, I give an internal dialog to more than one character in a chapter or scene. That's a big no no I discovered later on, and kind of bugs me to read it now, but I'm going to let it be. And don't even get me started on my punctuation. I suppose it's a good thing when your editing improves over time (even though I've got a LONG way to go), but it makes my older stuff harder to read for me, I get distracted by noticing all my mistakes. LOL

Sorry, off on a tangent there.

Back on course, this is a story I wrote in response to Nicole's Noir fantasy back in 2008 I think it was, maybe 2009. Anyways, I was inspired by the thought of the EJami affair it showcased and while the show didn't do a satisfactory conclusion for me, I came up with my own. Ah fan fic, born out of fan frustration every time. LOL

This story is set in the Noir period – late 1920's, early 1930's and is very EJami centric. There are other characters in the story, but this is an intensely EJami story. It's probably my most intense story after Wayward, if you've read that. This is actually a trilogy which starts in the middle of the story with "Helpless". Then I go back to the beginning with "Temptation" and then finally jump ahead to the end with "Desperate". I'm posting them in the original order I wrote them, which is out of chronological order, because I think they read better that way. I hadn't intended this to be a trilogy, but my readers at the time really wanted more, so I came up with the jumping timeline idea.

So, after this story I'll post "Temptation" as the second part of the trilogy, so stay tuned, won't you?

A big thank you to everyone who takes the time to read and comment on my stories. I appreciate it more than you know and it helps to push me on to write more stories. I have another big story coming up which I'll be posting soon as well – "An Unkindness of Ravens", so keep an eye out for that one as well.

But in the meantime, I give you my Noir Trilogy – please enjoy.

HELPLESS

Chapter ONE

Sami looked up at the sound of the door opening, holding her breath as she did each time until she saw who it was and then had to let it go in quiet disappointment.

"Maybe he's not coming hon," noted Esme with a compassionate smile at her friend.

"I know," said Sami, giving a longing look at the door.

"And you shouldn't care so much either, one way or the other," the other woman cautioned her, concerned for her.

"I know," said Sami softly, looking down at the man's coat in her hand and wishing it was that easy.

She'd started working in the cloak room at the Club Marlowe just over six months ago to help make ends meet. The club was open day and night and often Sami found it hard to remember that there was daylight outside smoky interior of the club. She didn't mind though - the job was simple enough and it gave her a chance to have a glimpse into the lives of far more glamorous people than she would ever hope to know. Her husband Lucas was a private investigator and things hadn't been going so well for him lately job wise. Hers was the only steady income they had at the moment and a job in the cloak room didn't exactly rake in the big clams. But it was enough, just, to struggle on by.

She'd married Lucas when she was very young, only seventeen in fact and they'd been married now for just over five years. He was the first man to show and interest in her and her parents were keen for her to hurry up and get married before she became an old maid - a fate worse than death to be sure. Lucas had been sweet to her and he was a chance to get away from her old life of being under her parents control and start a new one, independent of them. To her youthful way of thinking being married and making a home with the man you loved had a heady glamour to it.

The reality was something different again.

She loved Lucas, she really did. He was a good man and did his best by her. Sami had never thought that she lacked for anything in this world. She had a loving husband, a home, albeit a modest one but that was all she'd expected anyway and no doubt there would be children to be getting on with in due course. She shared her lot with so many other women that she knew that it never occurred to Sami to question it, that there could be any other kind of life for her. Sure she went to the movies and watched those fancy actors up on the screen and sighed, imagining what it would be like to live such a glamorous life. But even though she was young and somewhat sheltered Sami knew that wasn't how real life was. A handsome stranger didn't ride up on his white horse and sweep you off your feet. She knew enough about life to know that simply didn't happen.

Until he walked through that door that was and changed everything she thought she knew about life and more importantly… everything she thought to be true about herself. Had it really only been three months ago now… it felt like a lifetime…

oooOOOOooo

Sami looked up at the sound of the door, a polite smile on her face as she stood at the counter ready to greet the latest patron of Club Marlowe. It was her first night shift after having worked days for the last three months to get to know the ropes. Her breath hitched a little in her throat as the man moved into the light, her eyes widening. He was the most handsome man she'd ever seen, impossibly perfect features and dressed so snappy that Sami was just sure that he was a movie star of some kind.

He walked up to the counter and their eyes met for the first time. Sami felt something like an electric shock go through her as her blue eyes met warm brown ones. The man seemed to be a little taken aback as well, neither one speaking for a long moment, just staring at the other wordlessly. A round of applause from inside the club signalling the end of the new singers latest set broke the spell, forcing Sami back into reality.

"Coat sir… may check take?" she stammered unevenly and then blushed furiously at how she'd messed up the simple question.

She cleared her throat nervously and tried that again.

"May I check your coat sir?" she asked, cursing the breathlessness in her voice, looking away in embarrassment.

"May yes you," he answered her and her eyes widened, her eyes locking with his again at his gentle teasing of her and the sound of his voice.

It was rich, deep and smooth with a definite accent.

"You're British!" she said in surprise and then realised she was being too forward so mumbled an apology, "Sorry."

"Last time I checked," he nodded in amusement and then leant forward in a conspiratorial fashion, his voice low as he addressed her, "… and it's not all that bad."

"Oh no!" said Sami hastily, horrified that he'd thought she was making fun of him being English and complain, "No, I meant sorry for asking not… not sorry for you being a limey… I mean a pommy… ahh… I mean English."

The words tumbled out of her mouth as she tried to make correct her mistake but she seemed to be making it worse somehow. The man's lips turned up into a smile as he listened to her stumbling apology.

"What's your name?" he asked her quietly, ignoring her attempted apology, searching her face with great interest.

"EJ!"

They both looked over at the sound of the other man's voice and Sami tensed to see it was her boss Phillip Kiriarkis. She looked up at the newcomers face anxiously, worried that he was going to say something about her strange behaviour and get her fired.

"You're late," Philip chastised him, "The rest of us are waiting on you."

"You can't rush greatness Philip," he informed the other man and gave a little wink Sami's way and she looked away, embarrassed.

"Well check your coat and hurry up," said Philip gruffly, turning back around and heading back into the club.

Sami held out her hand for his coat and EJ slowly handed it to her but as she went to take it from him he stretched out a long finger and rested it over the top of hers. Sami's eyes widened and she went to snatch the coat from him but he held onto it tightly with his other hand and only let it slip slowly from his grasp, the finger on her hand dragging lingeringly over the top of her hand, turning the simple gesture into almost a caress.

"Tell me your name," he demanded of her huskily.

Sami bit her lip, her heart pounding in her chest and shook her head, in silent refusal.

"EJ!"

The sound of his name being called impatiently from the other room made EJ frown, not taking his eyes off her. Sami was the first to look away, hastily grabbing for a ticket and giving it to him. EJ gave a small smile, accepting the token from her and then without another word turned and walked away. Sami released the breath that she hadn't even realised she'd been holding when he was gone and slumped against the counter, trying to regain her composure after such an encounter. She'd never had anyone affect her like that before in her life and her head was still spinning from it all.

It was like she was falling and couldn't do anything about it somehow. It took the next three hours of calling herself every kind of fool under the sun to eventually get herself back under control. She was a married woman and had no place allowing any other man be so familiar with her. Although it wasn't like he'd actually done anything but it somehow felt like he had, even though he'd barely touched her. Sami didn't like this feeling of confusion at all and would be glad when her shift was over and she could go home to Lucas… nice, safe Lucas who didn't make her stomach tie itself up in nervous knots or her palms go all sweaty.

She only had twenty minutes left in her shift and Sami began to believe that she wouldn't see the Englishman called EJ again before she went home and tried to convince herself that she was very happy about that fact. With only eight minutes to go before her finish time he reappeared though and stood in front of her counter, smiling down at her. Sami felt her nerves tighten but this time she was better prepared to with stand that chocolate brown gaze.

"I hope you had a pleasant evening sir and that we'll be seeing you at Club Marlowe again," she said, her standard goodbye to all the patrons that came and went.

"My evening was… full of surprises," he informed her warmly, a little twinkle in his eyes, "And how was yours?"

"Oh," said Sami, her eyes widening, no one ever asked how her evening had been before, "Um… it was my first time."

Sami blushed again as she blurted out the information - like a man like this would even care.

"Ahh… thank you," she finished off uncertainly, feeling like she was in church all of a sudden and trying to remember all her best manners in front of this posh gentleman.

"Your first time eh?" he chuckled and gave her a mischievous look, "Well, well."

"Your ticket," she said quickly, thinking she couldn't blush anymore if she tried at the moment.

EJ reached a hand into his jacket pocket and for the first time she saw the flash of a wedding ring on his hand and was surprised at the feeling of disappoint that shot threw her. She couldn't understand it, after all she was married so what did it matter if this complete stranger to her was married as well? He handed it to her but Sami made very sure that there was no contact this time, scurrying off with it into the cloak room to fetch his coat. Not that she really needed the ticket. She knew exactly which his coat was. It was exquisitely cut and far more finely made then most of the other coats that were in there. There was a weight to it when she picked it up that spoke of its quality.

Hidden from view behind all the racks of coats and throws Sami found herself ducking her head and inhaling deeply from the expensive material, breathing in the smell of the man waiting on the other side of the counter. There were traces of good cologne and smoke and something that was most likely just him. Sami started, horrified at what she was doing and hurried back to the counter, wanting to get rid of the coat and of the man who it belonged to. Sami handed the coat to him with a bright smile but he shook his head and didn't take it.

"That's not mine," he informed her.

Sami frowned, absolutely sure that it was.

"Ah I'm sorry sir," she said hesitantly, looking up at him worriedly, "But yes it is."

"Haven't you heard the expression 'the customer is always right' miss?" he asked her calmly and nodded at the coat in her hands, "That isn't mine."

Sami bit her lip, not knowing what to do now.

"Why don't I come back there and see if I can find it for myself," he offered, his voice smooth and his expression inscrutable.

"Only staff can come back here sir," she said quickly with a shake of her head.

"Well I guess it will be our little secret eh?" he said, moving confidently towards the part of the counter that was on a hinge, lifting it up and moving to her side of the counter before she could protest again.

He headed determinedly towards the back of the little room, quickly disappearing in amongst the rows of coats and hats. Sami looked around herself anxiously, certain that at any minute Mr Kiriarkis was going to appear and fire her for letting this happen. She needed to get him out of there and quickly so she hurried after him.

"Sir!" she called out urgently but trying to keep her voice low, "You can't be back here sir."

She came to an abrupt halt when she got to the back of the room and found him standing there, patiently waiting for her.

"EJ," he corrected her evenly, "Call me EJ."

"You have to leave now," she informed him, looking nervously back over her shoulder and refraining from calling him anything.

"Why won't you tell me your name?" he asked her softly, his eyes moving back and forth over her face with an intensity that stole her breath.

Sami just stood there and stared at him, suddenly unable to speak. The man started to walk towards her and she felt frozen to the spot, helpless to do anything but stand there. She should have turned around and ran back out of the cloak room. She should have told him to stop looking at her like that… she should have done a lot of things but she didn't. EJ drew closer to her, stopping directly in front of Sami, looking down at her and holding her gaze steadily. Sami was breathing a little irregularly, looking up at him wide eyed not knowing what he was going to do next and not knowing what she wanted him to do.

"I'm going to kiss you know," he informed her, his voice low and certain, starting to drop his head.

Sami didn't think, she just reacted, pulling back her hand and slapping him hard across the face. Her palm stung at the force of the impact and the sound echoed in her ears. Sami put her still tingling hand to her mouth, looking up at him in horror. She'd never hit anyone before in her life and she was suddenly terrified what he was going to do now, certain at the very least that she would lose her job which she simply couldn't afford. EJ didn't say a thing, just blinked rapidly a couple of times. Even in the low light of the cloak room she could see the clear imprint of her hand on his tanned cheek. He bent lower, his face serious as he studied her face very closely now and once again Sami was helpless to do anything about it, just staring back at him. It felt like he was peering into her very soul, the intensity of the look he was giving her and Sami felt stripped bare in front of him, as though he could see into her very soul.

"Tell me your name," he asked one more time, his voice deep and liquid sounding and Sami felt herself drowning it.

"S… Sami," she stuttered and if he hadn't been already so close to her he wouldn't have been able to hear her.

EJ tucked a lose strand of hair behind her ear, his hand lingering on her cheek. Sami didn't know how this was happening. She'd only ever kissed one man, only ever been with one man and that was her husband. She'd been a good girl before she was married and she and Lucas had waited until they married before becoming intimate. It was the way it was meant to be, the way a lady behaved. A lady didn't hide out in the back of cloak rooms with a married man while her husband was out trying to work and support them both.

She felt his fingers gently caress her face before he moved his cheek to touch hers, nuzzling against her skin ever so gently. Sami's eyes half closed at the soft sensation, never having had a man be so gentle with her before. Not that Lucas was rough per se… it was just… different. Sami knew the right thing to do was to pull back but she simply couldn't bring herself do the simple gesture. He pulled back then ever so slightly but only so he could lightly brush his nose against hers. Sami found herself holding her breath, wanting more but frightened by that fact.

He moved then, closing that last little distance between them and for the first time in her life Sami was kissing a man other than Lucas and she couldn't believe how different it was. The kiss began softly, almost tenderly but then she felt his tongue run along her bottom lip, pressing for entrance and she granted it, without letting herself think about it. His tongue moved confidently into her mouth, seeking out her own, tasting her deeply. His hand threaded into the soft pale blondeness of her hair and pulled her closer, intensifying the kiss. Sami's hand went to the front of his shirt and was shocked to feel how rapidly his heart was beating despite his outwardly calm exterior.

"Samantha," he groaned, drawing her closer to him as he pulled back, breaking the kiss and looking down at her, his voice unsteady now, "Samantha."

oooOOOOooo

And that was how it had started, the sound of her name in those rich tones, rolling off his lips. The door sounded again and Sami couldn't help herself yet again looking up hopefully and put a brave smile on her face when an older, elegantly dressed woman walked through the door.

"Good afternoon madam," she began politely, "Welcome to Club Marlowe, can I check your…"

The next words caught in her throat as the man who had been holding the door open for her walked through into the foyer now. Their eyes met and her heart began to beat a familiar tattoo at the sight of him.

"… coat," she finally managed, dragging her eyes off EJ and smiling determinedly for the older woman.

She nodded and exchanged a token for her fur coat and then EJ was standing in front of her, his brown eyes full of promise.

"Good afternoon sir," she smiled up at him, her whole body tingling in anticipation, "Welcome to Club Marlowe, can I check your coat?"

"Yes may you," he replied cheekily.

It was their private little joke, alluding to their first meeting and they both smiled at the memory. Sami held out her hands and he handed her his coat, fingers touching hers in the hand over. Sami gave him his token and with a last look over his shoulder he headed into the club, leaving a smiling Sami behind him.

"Hon this is going to end badly," Esme warned her, appearing just in time from out the back to see EJ leaving.

The other woman looked up and the disappearing back of the gorgeously built foreigner and shook her head.

"But then I guess some things are worth the risk huh?" she said wryly, looking at the dreamy look on Sami's face.

"Esme…" began Sami, looking over at her friend.

"I know the routine," she sighed, knowing full well that EJ would appear again after making a token appearance inside and he and Sami would leave, like he'd done every day that Sami worked, "Can I cover you for lunch?"

"Thanks Esme," smiled Sami, "You're a real doll for doing this."

"I hope you'll be singing the same tune when the limey drops you like a hot potato," said Esme, having seen him make his moves before.

Sami frowned, unhappy at the thought of that. She'd been determinedly not thinking about the future or what all of this even meant other than she'd never felt more alive in her entire life.

"Just don't say I never warned you sugar," said Esme, seeing the sudden doubt on the younger woman's face, "He's a player with a capital 'P' and I don't want to see you get hurt."

"It's not like that with us," protested Sami with a shake of her head.

Esme's eyebrows shot up and she gave her a sceptical look but there was no more time for her warnings or Sami's doubts because EJ had reappeared then. He grinned down at her as she looked up at him in surprise; he'd barely been in there five minutes.

"I can't wait to be with you a minute longer," he told her throatily, his eyes riveted to hers; "Can you come now?"

Sami looked over at Esme in quiet enquiry and Esme shrugged - she could only give the advice, she couldn't make anyone take it.

"It's your funeral hon," she shrugged.

"Thank you," grinned Sami, her doubts fading as they always did when EJ was in the room with her.

Sami quickly moved to the other side of the counter and EJ crooked his elbow and she took it, neither one of them giving Esme a backwards look as they hurried from the club.

"Of course," muttered Esme as they disappeared for an early lunch break that she rather doubted was going to include any food, "There are worse way to go."