"Please, Ianto? I know I said you could have the evening off, but with Gwen and Owen out of the Hub I really need you here."
Jack looked so adorable giving him the sad puppy-dog eyes that Ianto felt himself weakening. "How late are they running?" he said resignedly.
Jack seemed to relax slightly as Ianto relented. "They should be here within thirty minutes. Martha and the group upstairs wanted to get started on the background information so Tosh and I will be busy with them. All you'll need to do is let the others in and show them down to the conference room. I promise. Then you can go do what you were going to do." Jack paused expectantly but Ianto only nodded.
"Well then sir, may I suggest that you get back to the conference room. You don't want to keep your guests waiting. I'm going to change out of this suit while I wait for the others to arrive." Jack had been subtly quizzing him, trying to find out what his plans for the evening were, but Ianto just kept them to himself. "Will you be needing more coffee before I go?"
"Only if you have time. We can manage on our own if need be."
Tosh came out of the conference room and shut it's door firmly before walking down towards the two men. "Jack, I don't know how you deal with these people. They must be some of the most pig-headed men I've dealt with. Now they want to examine the beacon themselves. As if they would know what they were looking at. Thank goodness you know how to handle them because I'm really not up to the task."
Ianto caught Toshiko's eye and gave her a sly wink as Jack straightened up slightly. Overt flattery wasn't really her style, but she really needed another special computer upgrade, her third in three months, for the time-lock defensive system she was working on. It wasn't exactly in the budget so Ianto had suggested that she try stroking Jacks ego a little and see if he'd be more willing to give in. It appeared to be working. He had better get the requisition order written up in the morning, he thought.
Ianto caught the little smile Tosh sent him as she turned away and picked up the alien artifact from her desk. The metallic cylinder was creating a lot of interest with UNIT and various government agencies and some very important people were supposed to be meeting to discuss the possible impact and uses of the beacon.
Toshiko started back towards the conference room as Dr. Martha Jones leaned out. "Jack? Are you ready to start yet? The general wants to get a good feel for the device before the others get here."
Ianto shot a quick smile at Martha which she returned as Jack gripped Ianto's shoulder in a brief thank you gesture then jogged up the stairs to the conference room.
As the conference room door closed Ianto went to start the coffee brewing. He pulled out his phone to break the bad news that he was running late but would be there as quickly as he could. The person on the other end accepted the delay in stride. "That will give me a chance to get more gorgeous for you, love, but don't take too long. I don't want to waste all this beauty." Ianto smiled as he hung up.
He hurriedly changed one black suit for another taking time to secure his new cufflinks and shirt studs, and give his shoes one last buffing. He gathered up his clothes and went upstairs to the information office to wait for the new arrivals. He didn't have long to wait. He was in the back room hanging up his suit from the day when the door to the office burst open bringing in three gentlemen amidst an icy swirl of winter air. The first man through the door was talking loudly. "This damn weather is terrible. I haven't seen the sun since I set foot in this country. Who chose this godforsaken location anyway?" The man's two companions had stepped forward on each side of him, one handing over a file folder the other checking his watch.
Ianto stood watching, unnoticed in the doorway, which was amazing for such a small office area, and gave a silent sigh. More Americans.
"This is Torchwood? Where the hell is everyone. Goddamn it. There should be someone here to escort us in to this hell hole of a place. What sort of jackass runs this organization."
Ianto stiffened. You can insult the weather but not Torchwood or it's leader. As the man paused for breath Ianto spoke calmly, "Good evening gentlemen. Welcome to Torchwood."
Ianto found it almost comical as all three men jerked in his direction as he made his presence known. Their expressions one of confusion and uncertainty, which he suspected must be unusual for them, as they took in his attire. They stood silently watching him as he reached under the counter and pushed the button, locking the tourist office and opening the door into Torchwood.
"If you will follow me I will show you where the meeting is already in progress." The three men stood silently as Ianto came out from behind the counter and led them through the door in to Torchwood. "Gentlemen? This way," he said trying to hurry them along.
He led them down the lift in silence, then up the stairs to the conference room. "Would you gentlemen care for some coffee before I leave for the evening?" They nodded their heads still silent. Ianto turned the door knob and pushed the door open allowing the men to step inside before turning away back to the coffee machine. He glanced at his watch and tried to move a little more quickly. For some reason the story of Cinderella popped into his head. He felt it was almost midnight and if he didn't hurry he was going to turn into a pumpkin. He loaded up a cart with cups for the new arrivals and two carafes of fresh coffee and pushed it in to the conference room.
Tosh stood at the front of the room. A schematic of the alien device on the monitor beside her. "…sonic, using very long wavelengths of such a low pitch that sensors have difficulty distinguishing them. It creates something called a vortex ring which…" A pen went shooting across the table as Ianto started to hand around cups to the new arrivals. He turned to look at Jack who had apparently lost control of the pen he had been fiddling with. The piercing blue eyes were locked onto Ianto as Jack sat watching him.
Tosh continued with her presentation but Ianto could feel Jacks eyes on him as he continued setting out the coffee supplies. He knew he looked good and couldn't help the satisfied little smile that crossed his lips.
Jack seemed mesmerized by his appearance. The shining black shoes, perfectly cut black one button suit with no lapel, the deep red silk vest in rich contrast to the black mandarin collar shirt. The diamond shirt studs glinted in the light with a larger stud at the neck instead of a tie. Yes, he looked good indeed.
Ianto finished with his duties and glanced around the group of men and women sitting around the conference room table. More than one gaze was on him. He gave a little smile to Tosh and Martha and nodded to the group before leaving the room.
He heard Jack stand up and excuse himself from the group for a moment before following him, closing the door behind him. Jack walked towards Ianto.
"Formal wear this evening?" His voice was deeper than usual and Ianto felt a little thrill at the sexy huskiness of it, but moved determinedly over to his desk to get his overcoat. He didn't have time to play with Jack at the moment.
"Did you need something, Sir? I really am in a hurry."
"You look very nice. Extremely handsome." Ianto looked at Jacks expression expecting to see the usual light hearted flirting and suggestive innuendo. All he saw was sincerity. "This evening must be important to you."
The sad puppy-dog eyes were coming back. Ianto tried to steal himself against the effect, but knew it was a losing battle. Jack must know what sort of effect they had on him and was doing it deliberately. And since what Jack wanted, Jack got, Ianto decided to give in gracefully hoping the teasing would be minimal and to make a quick escape.
"I am taking my Grand-Aunt to the annual Holly-Ball. It's a charity ball raising money for area homeless shelters, food shelves and the like. It's a formal event held during the holidays with dinner, dancing and entertainment, which the men in my family have always escorted my Grand-Aunt to. This year is my turn and I have been looking forward to it for some time. I'm running half an hour late so now I really must go." He picked up his overcoat and slid it on before grabbing up a pair of gloves and heading to the door.
"Have a good evening and I'm sorry to have kept you so long. Say hello to your grand-aunt for me." Jack paused. "Do you think maybe you'll be stopping back tonight?"
Ianto turned back to see Jack watching him with hopeful eyes. He could feel the argument waging a war inside of him. Holly-Ball or blue eyes. He was running late and Jack had a general waiting. Neither one had time to dabble. Well, hell! He should never have turned to look at Jack as he silently lost the argument. He mentally berated himself for being so weak as he walked back towards him.
"One thing before I leave." He grabbed Jack by the front of his shirt and brought their lips together in a rough, hungry kiss. He inhaled the heady scent of Jack and knew he was lost. The passion that always simmered just under his calm exterior bubbled up and Ianto deepened the kiss, his tongue exploring Jacks mouth. He felt Jacks arms slide around his waist as he stepped closer. He broke the kiss so he could take a much needed breath and looked into Jacks eyes. Jack was breathing heavily, his pupils were dilated and Ianto knew Jack wanted him as much as he wanted Jack. He pushed in for another kiss more heated and passionate than the last one. He ran his hands up Jacks chest to roughly caress his neck and jaw before digging his fingers into Jacks soft hair pulling him deeper into the kiss.
Neither man heard the quiet cough or the soft "excuse me."
Ianto gave a start when a hand tapped his shoulder and pulled away from Jack. He turned a dazed expression towards Martha trying to shake off the sexual haze that was clouding his mind. He cleared his throat and straightened up away from Jack. It took only a second before his usual mild expression was back on his face.
"What can I do for you Doctor?" He could tell she was embarrassed to break them up but she was also happy to see them together. Strange woman.
"We need Jack back in the conference room." She was smiling at Ianto as she glanced at Jack. It was taking him a little longer to collect himself.
Ianto gave her a little smile. "Yes, of course. And I really need to be off. Have a good evening, Martha. Jack, I'll be back later." He cupped Jacks face in his hand before moving towards the exit.
Jack finally seemed to catch up. "Right. The conference room. Ianto enjoy your evening. I'll see you later." He jogged back up the stairs to the conference room uncaring that the front of his shirt was pulled halfway out of his waistband or that his hair was sticking out at strange angles after Ianto's rough administrations.
Martha sighed and smiled to herself as she followed Jack. She missed this place.