Peyton strolled into her dive of an apartment, she missed the luxury of her last job. 5 star hotel room with water views. She dropped her keys in the bowl by the door and stopped when she saw a figure sitting on her couch. She pulled a knife from her hip and threw it completely missing the target.

He switched on a lamp "Geez, you trying to kill me?" Sheppard said the knife was about 10 inches away from Sheppard's head stuck in the wall

"Not even close" Peyton said with a sigh, missing his comment. She noted the curtains were drawn closed. He smiled at her as he drank one of her beers. "You are lucky I've been drinking if I was sober you'd be missing an eye" she leaned against the wall and looked at Sheppard as he sat comfortably on her old couch, he wore old jeans and a cream button down shirt that had never seen an iron judging by the wrinkles in the fabric. She couldn't help but appreciate how good Sheppard was looking on her couch.

"I don't doubt that for a moment, I checked your place out for bugs all clean" he said. He patted the empty space next to him on the couch. "Join me"

Peyton walked over, she perched herself on the arm of the chair. "What's going on?" she asked

"Just thought I'd drop in and see how you were fairing with your first month" he offered her a sip of his beer she took the beer and slid down on to the chair.

"It's shit, my car was repossessed, and I'm living in a hole. I was drenched today riding my motorcycle so much so I had to walk round barefoot in the SGC, just lucky that Riley is the same shoe size as me… Although on the upside chucking a sickie is fun" Peyton admitted she took a long pull of the beer and handed it to Sheppard.

"Yeah, Callahan is a rock star" Sheppard said with a smile "She can drink the best of them under the table" there was a long pause at which they both looked at one another.

"I've missed you" she said she pushed a hand through her hair embarrassed for letting it slip out.

"I've missed you too" he said, Peyton took the beer from him and placed it on the table, their eyes locked for a moment before Peyton looked away. Why did you have to walk into my world again…the rule Peyton remember the rule…she thought, she could feel whatever small amount of control she had slipping away from her. She looked back at him and he was still looking at her, he leaned forward and cupped her face with one hand and kissed her tentatively and light waiting for Peyton to push him away.

Instead she pulled him closer and deepened the kiss, her hands running up his chest and entwining in his hair. He moaned in relief, as Peyton went from zero to sixty, she wanted him just as badly. They kissed passionately like they were set on fire. Peyton pushed him onto his back and straddled him, he broke the kiss first.

"You've been drinking" he said tasting the tequila and beer

"All day, what's your point?" Peyton said with a smile as she unbuttoned his shirt, he stopped her halfway. She was drunk earlier but now she alive all her nerve ending thrumming in anticipation she felt sober and relaxed.

"We shouldn't" he said "I don't want to take advantage of you in your state"

"My state… hmm I can feel your state" Peyton purred with a smile as she unbuckled his belt and pulled it off of him in one tug. "Trust me when I say you are definitely not taking advantage" Peyton added, He sighed sharply as his hands pushed up her shirt, she was burning up. She moaned from the feel of his hands on her skin.

"what about your rules?" he asked looking into her eyes, she was fully there and with him. He had been thinking for the past month every secret place, every neuron that he wanted to kiss and stroke until she begged for more. Each pleasure zone he wanted to give his full attention to. Ever since she reminded him of the rule she had it made him crazy for her. He couldn't believe he was putting a brake on it.

"There are exceptions" Peyton said as she ripped her shirt off and threw it to the side and kissed Sheppard long and hard so there was no mistaking her intentions. She wanted him badly.

The next morning,

Peyton sat down outside a café near her apartment. It was her day off and she was going to soak up as much sun as possible. She decided it would do her some good to alleviate the hangover she had been nursing since she woke up. Never had she consumed so much alcohol in a long time. But she had to admit it wasn't her worst hangover.

She even broke her rule, Sheppard had slipped away in the early hours of the morning when it was still dark. She remembered every blissful moment of last night. The kind of distraction she loved but didn't need right now. She told herself it wouldn't happen again, just the tequila and beer, she had a job to do and she was going to finish it. Then maybe she could celebrate by breaking the rules, you only get to live once she thought

"Miss Ryder"

Peyton lowered her newspaper to find a man in a black suit sitting in the chair opposite her. It never ceased to amaze her how cliché the bad guys could be. Finally...He better be a recruiter or I'll murder Sheppard for a wild goose chase she thought to herself she wondered how long she'd have to keep waiting.

"I'm at a disadvantage you know my name but I don't know yours" She said as she folded up the paper and looked around the outside area of the café. She noted the man's features groomed moustache, tan skin, brown hair he looked to be in his late 40's she estimated he wore sunglasses so she couldn't see his eyes.

"You don't need to know my name… it's un important, let's just say I have a proposition for you"

"Really, this where you tell me your room number and how you'd like show me a good time?" Peyton cooed "No thanks… you aren't my type"

The corner of his mouth kicked up "It's not that kind of proposition… I noticed you have debt problem"

"I call it more of a challenge than a problem… anyway if you are another Debt collector… here take my bike" she dropped her keys on table "It's been back firing a bit lately but don't worry a little bit of tuning and she'll be re sellable"

"I'm not with the debt office" He said

"Ok spit it out, this is my only day off" Peyton snapped "and you are wasting my time"

"Well then I'll get to point"

"Please do" Peyton drawled impatiently

"I have people who have interesting tastes in antiquities and technology"

"Good for them what does it have to do with me?"

"I know you work in the linguistics and engineering department of a certain military base, you have the ability and opportunity to acquire certain products" he said

"And where did you learn that?"

"Let's just say I have my ways, just as I know you have a taste for poker" he said

"Well I've given it the kick" Peyton said

"Yes I can imagine $50,000 in debts and another $10k to a bookee named Pete would turn me off Poker as well"

"Your point?"

"I'm offering you a solution, what if I told you for a year of your cooperation you could earn this little bonus" he tapped a number into his phone and showed Peyton.

"Well that's nothing to sneeze at" Peyton said with a smile "But I don't want to go to jail"

"Indeed, we can fix that too if it happens… here" he dropped a business card of a restaurant with a number and then got up. "You should pick up poker again…I like Thursday nights. Enjoy the rest of your day off Miss Ryder" He drop $20 on the table "Coffee is on me" with that he walked away.

A week later,

Sheppard dropped his keys into the bowl he had a couple of hours to get ready before he went out for dinner with McKay and the others, he stopped when he heard the top of beer bottle being popped off in the lounge room. He pulled his 9 mm Berretta out ready and stealthily moved towards the lounge room. He flicked on the lights and aimed ready fire, but the room was empty

"You should really think about locking your back door" Peyton's voice called out.

John swivelled around with his gun aimed high at his intruder he relaxed when Peyton stepped into view, she was definitely sneaky he hadn't heard her move he remembered why her call sign was 'Ghost'.

She smiled "I hope you don't mind me taking a beer"

"Are you trying to give me a heart attack?" he asked he clicked the safety back on and put the gun on the shelf.

"No, I came by to give you an update few days ago and you weren't here" she said as she took a swig of beer she leaned on the doorway, she was dressed in running gear. It left little to the imagination not that he needed to imagine there wasn't anything he hadn't already seen. He just wished he could have repeat of last week and more. She smiled at him knowing exactly what he was thinking.

"I was off world" he said "Look we should talk about what happened last week"

"Do we really have to?" Peyton asked "It was…" she bit her bottom lip "Well you know" she gave a Cheshire cat grin that spoke volumes of how pleasurable it had been.

"Yeah I do" Sheppard said he smiled as he rubbed the back of neck "But I wanted to know that you were ok and... "

"I'm really good" Peyton said cutting him off, she stepped forward moving in close to him she toyed with a button on his shirt "You don't need to worry, I promise to keep it very professional from now on" she said patted the button she had toyed with and took another swig of the beer before giving him a smug smile. She brushed past him to go towards the couch, where she reclined.

"Make yourself at home" Sheppard said regaining some of his composure disappointed that they were back to being professional. "So you have news?" he asked.

"No I came for a beer" Peyton said sarcastically , John sat down opposite her. He took her beer, and took a long pull.

"Well it is good beer" Sheppard said "the company isn't too bad either"

Peyton chuckled "Uhuh, moving on to business, I was approached by a man a few days ago, offering me some extra dough to help settle those debts you stacked on me…"

He listened as Peyton laid down how she was going to play her cards, and how she believed the information could be passed, how she planned to track the goods if and when they would be stolen etc. etc. she gave a description of the man who recruited her.

"…and so I say we find out all the players, and since Atlantis is no longer a problem for this little joy ride… it shouldn't take long… I'm meeting the crew next week for a poker game" She stood up and he followed suit. It stung that Atlantis had been taken over by the Ancients and thus kicking them out. He had considered it home, he missed Ronon and Teyla and Atlantis herself. He pushed the thoughts away and focused on Peyton.

"Sounds solid" he said "I can't believe you were initiated so fast"

"Yes a whole month is fast…it also helps that they are cocky, and believe my huge debts will make me a hard worker and keeps my silence.. and they offered me a large sum of money for my work… unlike someone who shall remain nameless " Peyton said, "Anywas I gotta head off"

"Be careful" Sheppard said

"Always am, I'll see you around at work" she left via the back door.

He sat down on the couch and took another long pull, he recalled the first time Peyton reappeared in his life.

It was a few years after he and Nancy were married, he'd been stationed outside Serbia, the first of many missions where he flew under the radar in faraway places for the Air Force. One day, he was ordered to do an extraction from the middle of a Russian city, he expected a group of soldiers what he got was Peyton she jumped onto his helicopter, she had her hair dyed red and in a short bob he didn't recognise her at first until their eyes locked.

They barely got out alive as his helicopter was hit and they went down out on the outskirts of the border and spent 10 glorious days trying not to be captured.

Ok it wasn't glorious that they were shot down and that he'd been injured pretty badly but to see her again and to be able to spend time with her. Made him realise just how much he had missed her. He still remembered all their fights and her calling him stupid and cursing his name as she dragged him around and telling him to shut up when they were going through towns because he couldn't speak a lick of Russian.

He also remembered the nights when she'd lie next to him and they'd talk about the old days and laugh, she took care of him. Then one night he had kissed her, and it was impossible to stop the emotions, passion and fire he had never felt so alive. He remembered every blissful intimate moment and part of her body.

They had both agreed those days were just a symptom of being in a highly stressful situation and that even though they indulged in it. It wasn't real, that's what they agreed on.

Reality had a way of butting it's ugly head in and they were successfully saved and ending their time… she had her orders and he had his and he was married to Nancy. A commitment was a commitment he never told Nancy but somehow their time in Russia left an indelible mark on him after which he couldn't be content with Nancy and he opted for every dangerous mission he could just to get away when he was flying he could think clearer. He also deep down hoped Peyton would be one of the many extractions he performed over the years.

As they went their separate ways he didn't see her for another 5 years until he was reunited with her again for a Black Ops mission. He was dropping her off at a location and then wait 4 hours to extract her but it went bad. Peyton had been dropped off without issue the extraction did not, His Helicopter had been spotted earlier not wanting to die in a burning crash he was taken alive and held prisoner.

He spent 24 hrs being tortured for information, and waiting knowing he'd probably be killed, but instead Peyton saved his ass and ended up being shot in the leg for her trouble leading to a mess of problems. But they all got out including Campbell her handler.

He knew she would come for him, she always did just like he would always do for her. He always hoped one day she would quit being a spook so he could find her again, he felt like out of all the women in his life she was the one who got away. What made it even more painful was fate had a way of bringing her back to him and reminding him of it.

When Calen had gone rogue, and then coughed up a bunch of weak leads and names he knew he couldn't follow the leads up without losing the thread. He was too well known he needed someone he could trust. That's when he thought of Peyton, he had pulled a lot of favours just to get her on the case. He knew she wouldn't turn him down, even after the incident in Bolivia.

He didn't know why but she seemed to try to distance herself from him, be he knew she felt the same pull to him even if she denied it she felt it. Now he was back on Earth he was going to do his best to get her to stay this was his last chance he knew after she finished she would disappear again and who knew if he would ever see her again. And their night together, though she acted like it hadn't happened it was written in her eyes.

He wanted her more, more than anything but she was a professional. Wait for the job to be over Sheppard and then we'll talk he told himself.

He looked at the clock and sighed he finished the beer and headed to the shower he had an hour to get ready and make it to the restaurant.