Chapter Seven
When Ianto woke up the next morning, Jack was still asleep beside him, his body turned toward Ianto as they faced one another over the pillows, one arm resting over Ianto's hip. Ianto didn't move, barely breathed he was so shocked. Jack was still in his bed, sleeping next to him. They had spent the night together, in every sense of the word.
Forcing himself not to turn away and panic, Ianto concentrated on his breathing, trying to remain calm even though so many different things were racing through his mind he thought for sure Jack would wake up from the sound of Ianto's thoughts alone.
After a few moments, Jack began to stir, as if sensing that Ianto was awake and watching him. He opened his eyes, looked around in slight confusion, then met Ianto's gaze and smiled.
"Good morning," he said. And he did exactly what Ianto had wanted to do, he inched closer, his hand now a burning fire against Ianto's side, his legs tangling with Ianto's beneath the covers.
"Good morning," Ianto replied, unable to stop staring at Jack's lips. They had felt so good against his own from the first time that Jack had kissed him, and over all the other places Jack had kissed and licked him through the night. He felt himself growing hard thinking about it again, hoping it wasn't a one-time thing.
"Did you sleep all right?" Jack asked. It was an eerie throwback to the last time Jack had spent the night.
"Yes, I did, thank you," Ianto replied, awkwardly clearing his throat. "Did you? Sleep all right?"
Jack studied him and smiled, propping himself up on an elbow and taking his hand away from Ianto's side, leaving him feeling cold. "Better than usual," he replied. "Thanks for letting me stay."
Ianto wished his nerves would settle; he'd always hated the awkward morning after conversations, and for some reason this was starting out more awkward than usual. "Did you want to, er…" He cleared his throat. "Did you want some coffee, maybe? Breakfast—something to eat? If I have anything, that is…" He trailed off as Jack frowned.
"Is everything okay?" he asked. "You're not…not regretting anything, are you? Last night?"
Ianto let his eyes slip closed and sighed. He didn't regret it, and he needed to stop acting like he did. "No," he said, opening his eyes and smiling. "I don't. It was amazing, but this is always the awkward part, isn't it—regrets or not. I'm not sure what to do next."
Jack seemed to study him before moving down on the bed and returning his hand to Ianto's hip, caressing it lightly. "I could think of a few things," he murmured, echoing Ianto's own words from the night before. Ianto grinned and moved forward, pressing himself against Jack, setting aside any lingering feelings of self-consciousness.
"There's quite a list," he replied, thinking that was probably going to be their line now. He captured Jack's lips in a fierce kiss that was returned with equal abandon, then rolled Jack onto his back and straddled him, dropping kisses along his jaw, down his neck, and along his collarbone. Jack gasped several times, his hands coming up to cup Ianto's buttocks and hold him firmly in place as they rubbed against one another.
If their initial couplings the night before had been wrapped in semi-darkness and the excitement of something new, now in the daylight it was revealed as something more: passionate and intense, with a growing familiarity and comfort after their first tentative explorations. Ianto took his time, bringing Jack to the brink with his hand, then trailing kisses down his entire body. Jack groaned, but Ianto moved slowly, letting his instincts guide him. He wasn't completely inexperienced with men, but this level of physical intimacy was new for him, and he was surprised at how easy and natural it felt with Jack when he simply didn't worry about it and let himself enjoy the experience. He hadn't been nervous the night before, and he wasn't nervous now.
They took turns teasing and exploring before coming to a mutual climax together, sweaty and tangled in the bedsheets. After taking a long shower together, still constantly touching, they tumbled back into bed, almost drifting off until Jack's eyes flew open.
"Hey, why aren't you at work?" he asked.
"Because it's Sunday morning," Ianto replied. "And while I often go in, I'm not required to, especially after yesterday. David gave us the day off as long as things are quiet."
"Right," Jack murmured. "So, you're free all day?"
Ianto shrugged. "I should check in, see if I'm needed, but yes. I'm free unless a spaceship falls out of the sky." He propped himself up on an elbow. "Why?"
"I'm almost afraid to ask," Jack replied with a crooked smile. "But hopefully the answer is better than last time…"
"Ah," Ianto replied, understanding immediately and ignoring the flip in his stomach. "Dinner and a movie?"
"I'd love to!" Jack exclaimed, and they both laughed. He pulled Ianto down for a long, slow kiss. "Or we could stay in bed all day."
They didn't spend all day in Ianto's bed; they fell asleep for several hours, threw together some lunch from whatever they could find in Ianto's kitchen, then went back to his bedroom for the afternoon. It turned out the thought of using a stopwatch was more than a pick-up line, it was an exceptionally brilliant idea, one that lent itself to hours of creative improvisation. Ianto would have fallen asleep again after that, but Jack persuaded him to go out to dinner, and not just to the pub. After another, quicker shower, they took Jack's SUV and headed for a small Italian place he said was perfect in Riverside. And it was. Ianto tried not to think of it as their first date, but it certainly felt like it—especially when Jack spent the night at his flat once more.
When Ianto went back to work on Monday, he felt distinctly different and was certain his teammates would notice. But Owen was his normal irascible self, Gwen was quiet after her abysmal failure with Suzie, and David simply nodded and thanked him for the coffee and budget. Tosh asked about his weekend and gave him a knowing smile when she asked if he had seen his friend at the pub. While he was fairly certain he kept a straight face, he was also reasonably sure she'd sussed it out by the little squeak she let slip.
He saw Jack again that night, and the next, before getting caught up in Weevil chasing, a long forty-eight hours tracking down multiple pieces of a crashed spaceship (he hadn't been joking, it was his third extraterrestrial vehicle retrieval with Torchwood), and a rather inane case involving a Dogon Sixth Eye and what Gwen insisted was a ghost only she could see. When he finally met up with Jack again on Saturday and told him about the last, they had a good laugh before Jack turned more serious.
"It's good you found it," he said. "I try to keep an eye out for that stuff myself. It can be dangerous, even something as seemingly innocuous like a Dogon Sixth Eye."
"What do you do when you find something?" Ianto asked curiously. They were at the Quiver and Quill at their usual table, catching up after several days apart.
"Well," said Jack, leaning back with a grin, "to start with, I have quite a collection. If it's something too big for me to keep or something useful for you, I'll slip a tip to Torchwood. A few things have been too dangerous, and I've gone ahead and destroyed them." He held up a hand before Ianto could protest. "I'm from another time, you know, and I can usually recognize the bad stuff," he said. "And If I know who's peddling it, I'll go after them. I've scared more than a handful of illegals off the planet."
"Illegals?" Ianto asked.
"Illegal aliens," Jack said. "Earth hasn't had formal alien contact yet, and it's a Level V protected planet. No one should be dropping by, especially if they're selling weapons."
Ianto shook his head. "You should come back. You know so much more than us."
"No thanks," Jack said cheerfully. "Been there, done that. You know about the Silos, right? Black market alien goods?"
"We send someone every month," Ianto replied. "Bit of a dodgy place."
"I think it's fun," Jack replied with a wink.
"Of course you do. That's probably why my boss told me to watch out for you." Ianto laughed without thinking. He stopped when he saw the surprised look on Jack's face. "I mean, er…"
"Evans knows about us?" Jack asked, sounding both curious and concerned.
"No," Ianto replied, shaking his head. "He doesn't. He asked me few weeks ago if I'd met you. I said I'd seen you at my local, and he wanted me to tell him if I ever saw you around again. He said you were dangerous—keeps checking up on me to make sure I'm avoiding you, I think."
Jack raised an eyebrow. "Of course I'm dangerous. I wonder why he's curious now. It's not a big secret I stayed in Cardiff."
"Have you met?" Ianto asked curiously, and Jack shook his head.
"My break with One was pretty bad," Jack said quietly. He toyed with the table, obviously recalling uncomfortable memories. "Though the CCTV footage cleared me, One still locked me up before throwing me out on the streets. I remember him being there, in London, before he was sent to take over Cardiff."
Now it was Ianto's turn to glance away in discomfort. He hadn't been with Torchwood London at that point, but he still felt bad for what had happened to Jack at their hands. "I'm sorry," he said. "I know One…well, didn't always do the right thing."
Jack snorted bitterly. "That's one way to put it. I know you saw a different side of them, but all I ever saw was xenophobia, cruelty, and arrogant pride." He cocked his head curiously. "How did you end up in London, anyway?"
Ianto sensed Jack was asking both about his Welsh roots and his recruitment into Torchwood. He shrugged, as it really wasn't much of a story. "I left Cardiff after my dad died, ran off to London to get off the estate. Wandered around for months, practically broke, until I saw something I shouldn't have and ended up being hired instead of Retconned."
"What did you do there?" Jack asked.
"Worked my way around various departments—research, archives. I was Yvonne's PA for a while as well." Jack pretended to shudder, and Ianto rolled his eyes. "Yes, she was all that and more, but there was a part of her that cared. That tried. She was converted, you know," he said, his voice dropping. "At the battle. No one deserved that, not even her."
"No, she didn't," Jack murmured. He sighed. "Look, I have no problem with Evans, he seems like a decent guy, so I can't imagine why he's suddenly interested in you staying away from me. If it's a problem…"
"It's not," Ianto interrupted him sharply. "It's my personal life, not my professional life. Like you said, you're not with Torchwood anymore. And you're not dangerous, not to me as far as I'm concerned."
"No, I am definitely dangerous," Jack said. "But you're right, not for you."
"Bit late to worry about it anyway," Ianto shrugged, but with a smile.
"It's never too late," Jack said. "If you're worried."
"I'm not."
"Good," Jack said. He jerked his head toward the door. "Want to go back to mine tonight?"
Ianto glanced up in surprise. "Yours? Wait, what?"
"I do have a home, you know," Jack laughed. "I don't live in a hole in the ground."
"Right, of course," Ianto replied. "It's just that you never…I hadn't really…huh."
"Is that a yes?" Jack teased, and Ianto blew out a breath.
"I'm right around the corner, you know," Ianto pointed out. It wasn't that he was reluctant to stay over at Jack's place…only he was. It seemed so different than Jack staying his place.
"And I'm down by the water," Jack replied. "Come on, it'll be a nice change." When Ianto frowned, Jack rolled his eyes. "We can stop by your place and pick up a few things if that helps," he offered.
Ianto finally nodded. It was Sunday the next day, and there was almost no reason for him to say no: no work, no plans, nothing. Why not live a little? What was the big deal anyway?
They walked to Ianto's flat and he grabbed a bag, throwing in a change of clothes and some toiletries. "Grab a movie too," Jack said. "James Bond, maybe—as long as it's Connery or Moore. I saw you had them last time I was here."
Back in the SUV, Jack started toward the bay, and for a moment Ianto almost thought they were going to the Hub. Jack pulled into an underground car park right off the Plass and lead him to a building that overlooked the Millennium Center.
"You live here?" he asked, gazing up. "Right next to Torchwood?"
Jack shrugged as he let them in. "I have a few places, but I spend most of my time in Cardiff. I like to be close to the Rift, and there's something about the water…" He trailed off and motioned Ianto inside. "I have to warn you, you may be required to leave your clothes at the door," Jack murmured. Ianto rolled his eyes as he stepped inside. The flat was larger than his and much more open, with a clean, modern feel. Everything was top of the line, from the appliances to the fixtures to the furniture. It didn't have a very lived in feel, with only a few personal touches, and yet it still felt like Jack.
"This is amazing," Ianto said, feeling as if his small flat was an eyesore in comparison. "How did you…well, how did you afford something like this right on the Plass? Especially if you have other places."
Jack touched the side of his nose. "Wise investing over the course of many long years. Come on, I'll give you the tour." It was the second time that Jack had said something about his past that night, and Ianto filed it away. Though Jack had been honest with him from the beginning about many things, Ianto also knew there was still much about Jack that he didn't know, things that Jack either wasn't ready to share, or might never tell him. Despite what David Evans might think, Ianto knew he could trust Jack, but that didn't make him less curious.
The flat was three bedrooms with an open lounge and kitchen. The hardwoods were well kept, the kitchen well stocked, and the balcony looked directly out onto the Plass with a view of the water. One bedroom was given to a study of some sort, with a computer set up that rivaled the one at the Hub; the other appeared unused, with a single bed and little else. Jack's bedroom was unusually large, with an en suite and a queen-size bed done in deep burgundy and blue. It was the bedroom where they stopped their tour, and Ianto more than willingly left his clothes at the door.
Author's Note:
Again, I thought I'd put this up quicker than usual after the events of the last chapter. Any more comments about their hookup? I thought for sure there would be more now that they were together at last! It really makes our day when readers leave a little note, especially on chaptered stories. It's hard, sometimes, I know, and this chapter might not get many as the action doesn't move forward as much, but we really look forward to them as a way of knowing someone is still out there reading.
A few other things: I spent so much time online looking for places for Jack to live! Many thanks to summerstar for her help, it was fun. I actually found a flat overlooking the Plass and based his place on it. I had originally planned for them to go back to his house in Penarth, however. I found that place too: it was on the water, big and posh. It's where he keeps his collection of alien goods, but it ended up getting cut.
All right, time to tweak 'Out of Time'! If you know me from Tumblr, you know this chapter was a bear. In fact, everything up to this point was done ages and ages ago, and OoT was where it stalled. Thanks to anyone who gave me a poke and a kick on Tumblr, and thank you for reading!