UNCLEAN SPIRIT PART THREE

Tosh and Gwen couldn't believe their eyes when Elam Langford stepped in through the roller door, a very bored Owen Harper at his back. Owen half heartedly raised his hand in greeting and gesture.

"Girls this is Elam, from UNIT. Elam this is Gwen and Toshiko. Tosh is the one you'll be working with initially and Ianto when he gets back from Germany. Up there on high....." He pointed in the direction of Jack's office. "Is the boss Jack. Gwen if you'd like to take him there. I have an autopsy to get on with."

Gwen practically shot out of her seat and extended her hand in greeting, taking the fine sculptured features and long black hair tied back away from the collar of his perfectly tailored uniform. His grip was firm, his hand smooth and cool as he raised her hand to brush his lips against it.

"My pleasure." He said gazing into her large eyes. "Please just call me Lam, may I call you Gwen or would you prefer Mrs Williams?"

Gwen felt her knees melt and her face heat with a blush. "Gwen, love, call me Gwen. Come on up and meet Jack." She stole a glance at Tosh and the two of them smiled, exchanging a 'god he's gorgeous' look between them. Gwen bounced happily in the direction of Jack's office with Lam following close behind as he turned and winked at Tosh as he went. Tosh felt her cheeks go pink and dipped her head back down to get on with her work.

Jack glanced up briefly from his paperwork and then did a double take as this apparent Adonis tailed into his office behind Gwen, she introduced him and Lam offered up a demure smile before shaking Jack's hand. Lam's touch was magnetic and Jack found himself hitching a breath and smiling immediately, the guy was hot.

"Wow, nice to meet you. Is the hotel Ianto fixed up for you ok?"

Lam was offering up a sparkling white toothy grin. "It's fine Captain. I am looking forward to meeting Mr Jones, we've chatted quite a bit on the phone before he went to Berlin."

Jack felt an unaccountable pride swell in his chest. "He'll be home in a couple days, and looking forward to getting back too. I'd offer you coffee but none of us are any good at making it....."

Gwen was still hanging about by the door. "Why don't I do a Starbuck's run and we can all have lunch in the boardroom before you get to work."

Jack nodded. "Good plan. I need to call Ianto so I will see you both in there shortly."

Jack watched as Gwen and Lam left the office and the air around him still felt charged with the man's presence.

Ianto Jones walked through the arrivals gate, pushing his luggage trolley with his phone jammed between his shoulder and his ear. His flight home had been delayed so he was late and hoped Jack hadn't been kept waiting too long. He was relieved when Jack answered.

"Jack where are you parked?" It was automatic; Ianto just assumed Jack would be waiting at the airport as promised.

"Er... what?"

Ianto frowned. "I've just got off the plane Jack, where are you?"

"Oh, shit.....Yan I am so sorry. I forgot! I'm still in Cardiff."

Great. Ianto sucked in a steadying breath. "Fine, I'll get a cab and you're paying..... see you in a few hours." He hung up.

The cab driver, an Asian man with a broad Birmingham accent, was delighted to get such a good fare. He attempted friendly, polite conversation for all of ten minutes before Ianto asked him to drive quietly. After that Ianto lay across the back seat and went to sleep for the first time in four days, the headache finally getting the better of him. £218 later and he was delivered to his front door with an additional £20 tip. The cabbie took off with a grateful wave and Ianto staggered into his flat with his bags, dumping them in the living room and walking straight to his bedroom to change. He stripped off, showered and went to bed. He was asleep again within minutes, dreaming of cute Russian spies in NATO uniforms doing unspeakably pleasurable things to him over the conference table in the Hub. Ianto awoke remembering the erotic fantasy and deciding he'd been hanging out with Jack for far too long to be healthy. Breakfast was a minimal affair, namingly a mug of black coffee and Ianto arrived at the Hub at 6am with a brief case full of documents for Owen and Jack.

Ianto's heart sank when he stepped through the roller door and saw the mess. Admittedly it wasn't pizza boxes and paper cups, it was wires, cable trunking and various tools. Tosh and Mr Langford were obviously still working on the wiring. The Hub was quiet, eerily so and Ianto wandered up to Jack's office and found that his boss was not 'at home'. Ianto headed to his own desk and dumped his case there deciding that food breakfast was really what he needed so he went to the kitchen. He was munching on his third slice of toast when Owen entered the conference room at 6:45. He smiled at Ianto and slid into a seat opposite him.

"Morning mate, how was Germany?"

Ianto swallowed his mouthful. "Full of Germans. I never want to see another sausage ever again. That had to be the most stressful meeting of my life."

"That bad? You should try being here for a few days." Owen responded, sounding exasperated and faintly annoyed.

Ianto sipped at his coffee. "Why, what's been going on?"

Owen waved his hand dismissively. "Mr 'call me Lam' I'm a sex god smarty pants. It's like a convention for hormonal teenagers round here."

Ianto lowered his mug, a niggling feeling tugging at his gut. "What's Jack done?"

"Jack? Not just Jack, Gwen and Tosh as well, they behave like his bloody fan club, it's quite disgusting. To be honest I came in early to give you a heads up. I see they aren't in yet."

Ianto was looking around the room. "Yet?"

"They all went out clubbing last night. I mean, Tosh clubbing? Can you imagine it? I don't think Gwen's been home all week, if you get my drift."

"I see."

Owen noted the sour look on Ianto's face. "No mate....not Jack... he's been practically driving us nuts lamenting your absence, no this Lam guy is strictly a ladies man.... Na shit mate, I must be getting old. It's the dead thing, I guess not being able to join in."

The young Welshman did not look convinced but was stopped from saying anything by the door opening and Jack striding into the room. He crossed it in three paces and gathered Ianto into a fierce embrace. Owen backed out of the room and left them to it.

Dropping his toast Ianto couldn't help but melt into the comforting hold.

"God, I am sorry Yan. Yesterday. I totally got the times wrong." Jack's fingers were carding through his hair.

"It's ok Jack. I slept in the Taxi all the way back to Cardiff, I would've been a shit travelling companion anyway." He pulled back and sat back down and Jack took the chair beside him.

"Dare I ask, how it went?"

Ianto quirked an eyebrow. "I think I should be asking you that, Lam sounds like quite a character."

Jack smiled. "He is that. Gwen and Tosh are completely in love with him, kinda weird having the competition around."

Ianto half smiled at the attempt to joke. "You and I are going to have to talk about what happened in Berlin, there's a lot to go through, and I mean a lot Jack."

"Any of it urgent for today?"

Ianto shook his head. "No, why?"

Jack grabbed his hand and pulled him on to his lap. "I haven't seen you for ten days Ianto, we're going back to your flat and I am going to show you just how much I missed you."

Ianto yelped when a pair of eager hands found their way under his shirt. "Jack!"

"That's me." He responded playfully. Their lips met in an impatient, bruising kiss. And Ianto felt his stomach lurch with mortified embarrassment when Gwen came charging into the room giggling her head off. He broke the kiss and caught the look of glee on Gwen's face.

"Ooops sorry, good to have you back Ianto." She winked and ran out of the room again.

Leaving Gwen and Owen in charge, Jack just about dragged Ianto out of the Hub and into his into car, not content with waiting they hurriedly made out on the back seat before Jack drove them back to Ianto's flat.