.

Chapter Two

"Come on, work for Daddy!" Ianto coaxed the coffee machine that was situated to the side of the counter inside the tourist information office. It gave a faint whine as it pathetically attempted to grind the beans but then stopped once more causing the Welshman to let out a faint whimper of disappointment.

He tried again. Nothing.

Finally losing his cool with the blasted thing that had once served him well over the years he struck out and hit it with clenched fists. All I want is one cup to help calm my nerves. Is that really too much to ask?!

A bell above the front door chimed and in entered a smartly dressed man with long pink hair. He carried a briefcase and had a roller-trolley in tow. "Guten Tag my friend." He greeted with a smile.

"Guten Tag." Ianto replied as he stepped away from his espresso machine. He recognised the charming man from a few days earlier when he had provided assistant in supplying him with localized information.

"You are dressed so formally today." The German commented politely on the other man's attire. "Is there an event I was not made aware of?"

"I'm about to attend a wedding." A smile grew across the nervous face and even lifted the scar higher on his right cheek. "My wedding actually."

"Then my congratulations to both you and your lucky bride."

"Um, thanks." He didn't have the heart to correct the stranger on the innocent mistake and quickly swung the conversation away from his personal life. "How may I be of help to you today?"

There was a quick rummage inside the briefcase before a wad of leaflets were then held out. "My stay has come to an end and I am simply wanting to return these."

Seriously? Ianto suppressed the snarky remark and forced a smile. He had never been offered back the disposable tourist material before. "No need sir, those are for you to keep. A memento of your stay in our lovely country."

"You Welsh are so kind!" There seemed to be genuine joy from the German who placed the leaflets back inside his briefcase. "Very much unlike the English and their rude behaviour."

"Oh, we English aren't all that bad." Lois added her thought to the conversation as she entered onto the scene from the back room.

"I did not mean to cause offence kind lady."

"There was none taken." She playfully waved off the apology as she approached the espresso machine to help herself to a cup of coffee.

The Welshman's eyes widened in horror as he watched her randomly pull and prod at multiple levers and buttons. "Lois, if I were you I wouldn't … no!" It was too late as he saw her reach for the uppermost lever. Quickly he grabbed hold of the tourist's magenta coloured suit sleeve to also drag him down into crouching position beside him with the front counter concealing them both from her view.

A whistle and hissing noise began to leave the coffee maker before it suddenly erupted, sending beans and boiling liquid everywhere as the startled woman also made a dash to dive for cover. "Oops. Sorry Ianto."

"Having trouble with your coffee maker?" The German chuckled his amusement at the whole fiasco as all three of them began to emerge from their hiding places.

"Yes, unfortunately." The Welshman grumbled sourly. He was still dying for his drink and had now most likely been presented with the additional task of cleaning up too. A heavy sigh escaped him. "Looks like Starbucks will be seeing my custom very shortly."

"Yuk! Their stuff is vile! You have not known true bliss until you have sampled German beans ..."

"I thought coffee was African?" Lois murmured as she leant closer to her colleague who only shook his head disapprovingly at her untimely comment.

"... never travel anywhere without some." The other man didn't seem to have noticed that he'd been rudely spoken over as he had continued his talking. Suddenly an idea struck him. "I know, why don't you have the remainder of mine!"

"Oh, we couldn't possibly …" Ianto began to protest as he watched the roller-trolley unzipped and his words cut short.

"But I have no need of it since I am due to fly home in a few short hours." The German assured upon producing a bag containing the pre-grounded beans. He held it out towards the young Welshman. "Call it a 'thank you' gift for your help during my visit."

Hesitantly, after a moments regard of whether or not to accept the stranger's gift, - I want coffee, damn it! - the bag was received with much gratitude. "Thank you; you're too kind."

"It's my pleasure." The assurance was spoken with a smirk that could have quite easily been mistaken as a sly grin had one paid too much attention and thought to it. "Now if you will excuse me, I have a plane I must catch. Auf Wiedersehen."

"Auf Wiedersehen." The Welshman bid his farewell with an accompanied wave. "Do have a safe journey home."

The two Torchwood operatives watched the tourist leave.

"I'll get the kettle on!" Lois declared as she snatched the bag of coffee from her colleague, raced from the scene and into the back room where she had previously been.

Ianto rolled his eyes in exasperation at having been left with the task of clearing up the scattering of coffee beans and spilt liquid from the machine's explosion. I shouldn't have to do things like this on my wedding day! He returned to the other side of the counter, took out the roll of blue coloured cleaning towel and began to mop up the spillages.

A few minutes later once the beans had all been swept up into the dustpan he now held, Lois returned holding two steaming mugs of coffee. She handed one to him. "He wasn't kidding, this stuff is divine!"

He took hold of the mug and tentatively sipped the hot beverage. Wow! It was pure ecstasy. His eyes closed as he savoured the sensation on his tastebuds before going back for more. Nothing he had ever tasted before had made him feel so calm and at ease, yet feel so bold and alive. Well, nothing legal anyway…

Beep-beep-beep-beep! Beep-beep-beep-beep! Beep-beep-beep-beep! Beep-beep-beep-beep!

That time already? Ianto frowned as he looked at his watch that the alarm was sounding from. He placed down his mug and canceled the sound before turning to Lois. "Are you sure you'll be okay? I can always shut-up shop so it'll be one less thing to worry about."

"Just go." She pushed him closer towards the front door. "Everything will be fine here."

"Remember, if the rift rupture alarms go off ..."

"I'll be straight on the phone to Jack. I know, we've been over this a million times already!"

"Oh." He blankly remained stationary once Lois ceased with her forcing him forward. This was it, he was finally getting married. It was something that was sure to be the most happiest day of his life.

So why did he feel so terrified?

888888888888888888888888888888888

Thud!

The sound of the ball bouncing off the floor echoed throughout the underground basement.

Thud!

It happened again, yet Ryou was determined to stay focused on his workload of monitoring the rift and analysing the collected data.

Thud! … Thud! … Thud! … Thud! … Thud!

"Joey!" He barked at not being able to tolerate the irritant any longer. "Will you cease that racket at once. I'm trying to work here."

"Sorry Ryou." The blond apologised before placing his basketball back under his workstation.

Bored and letting out a huge sigh, Joey threw himself back in to his chair and spun it on its pivot. He hated the stagnancy. It had been weeks since the last rift rupture when the duelling Space Hares had run amuck and things had been extremely quiet ever since. What he needed was more of the action and adventure that he'd been assured of by the dashing Captain upon his enrolment into the team.

This isn't what I signed up for. His mind grumbled about having to be present just incase things did kick off. But if Rich-boy wants to pay me to sit on my ass and do nothing then so be it.

"Don't you have work to be getting on with?" Ryou asked as the other man continued to spin around and around in his seat. He was starting to get dizzy just from watching him.

"Nope. I finally finished and filed all my reports last night. Unless the rift becomes active then work time is my time."

"Surely there's got to be something that you can do?"

"Not without authorisation from the boss." Joey stopped his spinning after hitting the side of his desk. The action caused a yo-yo to clatter down onto the floor. He retrieved it and then started to perform tricks to keep himself occupied.

As much as Ryou thought the designated workload they had been assigned whilst Seto was away was unfair, he could hardly disagree. Since Rebecca's withdrawal from the team and the CEO's cutback on his own workload, all technical aspects had fallen to him and him alone, whilst Diana and Joey took on the 'fieldwork' tasks thrown up by the rift. If his role was to be reversed right now he doubted that either of them would be able to cope with the array of tasks due to their lack of technical knowledge. Just like he wouldn't be able to cope out on the field on his own due to his lack of experience, so in a way things balanced themselves out, though not quite as evenly as he would have liked.

The sound of the elevator doors opening carried over to them shortly before the clanking of high heels descending down the metal steps. "Put your toys away Wheeler; I've got a job for you!" Diana shouted as she approached.

"Yes ma'am!" The blond was quick to wind the string back around the yo-yo, placed it away and then followed the woman,- who'd been left in command during their boss' absence,- into the basement office.

The door was closed and he mockingly stood to attention. "Joseph Wheeler reporting for duty!"

"Oh stop it." Diana laughed as she half leaned and half seated herself on the corner of Seto's desk.

"So what's this job that you have for me?"

"There isn't one, I just thought that poor Ryou could do with an hour or two of peace and quiet."

"Two hours?" He smirked and swaggered closer towards her, assuming that there had been an ulterior motive in getting him alone. After all, the two of them were no strangers when it came to the lustful urges that had lured them together for the wild sexual encounters they'd had on more than one occasion. "Do you really think you can last that long? Not to mention maintaining the peace and quiet you 'supposedly' had in mind..."

"We're at work." She told him and altered her posture to avoid the wave of passionate nibbles and kisses that he had intended on to lay on her neck.

"Doesn't bother me." He breathed seductively and pressed his body firmly against hers.

"We're in Seto's office." Diana tried to deter him again as she kept a control on her own urge to undress the blond there and then.

"I won't tell if you don't."

She gave a broad smile at those gorgeous amber eyes burning with rampant desire. There was something about his arbitrary nature that demolished her wall of rationality and caused her to reach out to pull him closer still. "Okay, let's see what you've got."

Their lips met in a gentle seductive suction that soon became a lascivious thirst that needed to be quenched.

With Diana's fingers entwined in his fair coloured locks and her sensational ruby lips causing him to rise to the occasion, Joey blindly swept his arm across the surface of their boss' desk. An inbox tray and its contents tumbled to the floor, closely followed by several pens and a photo of the happy couple stood in front of the water tower on their wedding day.

Crash! The glass in the photo-frame broke.

"Leave it." He breathed as he felt the woman's hands disappear from his hair and her lips retreating from his. "I'll sort it later."

More lustful kisses commenced against the grin on Diana's face and no resistance was made as she was carefully laid into position for the next phase of their antics. The thought of what the CEO would potentially say if he were to ever find out about the two of them together,- and in his office,- only excited the pair even more.

Outside in the main area, and deeply engrossed with his rift monitoring work, Ryou was blissfully unaware of the action now commencing in the room behind him.

8888888

A/N: 'Duelling Space Hares' - I know it sounds utterly ridiculous, but during the interactive part of The Doctor Who Experience in Cardiff there's a part where the twelve Doctor asks for assistance in gathering three time crystals that have been scattered throughout space. He then goes on to explain that "it was all caused due to a card game and some space hares, don't ask it's a long story." and my mind just connected it to Duel Monsters. Perhaps I'll write a fic to cover it one day; who knows? Also made me view Pegasus and Funny Bunny differently too.