Author's Note: Both Jacob Mallard and Gail Patonia are © me, Amanda Rohrssen. I blame this chapter on the movie Alfie. If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend that you do. :)

"Sorry I'm late; I had to stay after," Jacob explained apologetically as he sat down across the table from her.

"Oooo, in trouble with the drill sergeant again?" Gail Patonia inquired, resting her elbows on the table and neatly folding her hands underneath her chin.

"You could say that," he replied. "Have you ordered yet?"

"No." She sat back in her seat with a small smile. "I waited for you."

"Well, considerate and beautiful, there's something you don't see every day."

Jacob was well known at SHUSH for making trouble, but he was also well known for his sweet talk. He had already dated over half of the female trainees. Some of them he was still dating. But not a one of them knew about the other. At least not yet.

Gail blushed. She was not particularly stunning as far as looks went, not particularly popular, and wasn't particularly a ready conversationalist unless she had known you for a long while. That was why she could not believe that out of all the men to have asked her out it was Jacob Mallard she was sitting across from now.

While she was not a recruit at SHUSH, many of her friends were, and she had heard all kinds of stories about this man's bravado, his charm, and his alluring physical appearance. None of the stories had done him justice.

When Jacob popped the cork off of the wine he'd ordered and poured them both a glass, Gail watched him curiously. She couldn't help but wonder why someone like him would ask someone like her out on a date, unless...

But she pushed the "unless" thought from her mind. She was judging him based on what she'd heard instead of what she was experiencing and that was unfair.

"What should we toast to?" he asked, raising his wine glass into the air, pinky extended.

"How about...to possibilities?" she suggested in a tiny voice. Her wine glass shook slightly as she raised hers.

"All right. To possibilities," he agreed.

They clinked their glasses together and drank. Jacob watched Gail over the top of his glass, his eyes seeming to look straight through her. She shivered.

He had asked her out in the book store located a few blocks away from SHUSH. She had been out with a couple of her friends looking for nothing in particular when he had come up to say hi. Not long after they'd been introduced Jacob had pulled her aside to set up the date, making it a point to tell her not to say anything to her friends about it because he had recently broken up with one of them and it might upset her to know - at least right now. Against her better judgment, she had agreed to keep their date a secret. She didn't like keeping things from anybody, but since it was for (what she felt was) a greater good, she went along with it.

It was raining. They were standing on the sidewalk just outside of the restaurant, and Jacob was anxiously anticipating their next step. He'd never been with a schoolteacher before.

"I-I had a good time tonight," Gail said softly, looking up at him with her large hazel eyes.

"Me too," he replied, slowly wrapping his arms around her waist and leaning in to kiss her. Almost immediately he could feel her tense up, and she turned her head to the side so that his lips brushed her cheek. "What's wrong?" He pulled back in confusion. He had thought the evening was going well.

"Nothing," she said guiltily. "I'm sorry, it's just...I hardly know you."

"Oh." Jacob stepped away from her, trying unsuccessfully not to look disappointed. He flashed her a smile and forced himself to chuckle slightly. "Heh, well, I understand." He wasn't used to his advances being rejected, but he hadn't totally given up hope in his pursuit of her. "There's always next time."

"Next time?" she repeated in surprise.

"Sure. You will have dinner with me again, won't you? Maybe I'll give you a tour of my apartment, just for kicks. You can see firsthand how bad I am at housekeeping." He smiled his characteristic smile and winked.

Like most women he graced with that smile, Gail blushed and giggled. "O-okay," she nodded enthusiastically.

"Great. I'll see you at seven, then - let's say...Saturday?"

She nodded again, her cheeks still bright pink. With a sweeping bow, Jacob took one of her dainty hands and kissed it chivalrously.

"Good night, fair lady," he crooned playfully.

"Good night," she replied happily. Then she turned, hailed a cab, and disappeared into the misty rain.

Jacob frowned slightly. His plans had to be changed, but perhaps not all that drastically. The only thing he was in need of now was a woman. Quickly he ran through all of his options before one he wanted came to mind. He grinned in a self-satisfied way and took off down Feather Avenue with a little bounce in his step, humming.

Five or six blocks later, now drenched from head to toe with rainwater, Jacob made his way up a flight of stone steps and pushed one of the doorbells of a swank apartment building.

"Yes?" a sultry woman's voice purred over the intercom.

He pressed the white button beneath the speaker as he spoke. "It's me."

"Oh! My what a nice surprise! You must be freezing out there; come inside and I'll warm you up..."

Jacob congratulated himself on always having back-ups. The night hadn't been a total waste after all.