Of course they ended up in bed together. Jack was more gentle than he'd ever been, but Ianto wasn't into 'gentle' at this time. "Fuck me." He knew it would hurt, but if this was his last chance to be with Jack, he wanted to feel him inside of him.
When they laid together on Jack's bed afterwards, Ianto reached out and grabbed the man's hand. "This doesn't have to be over, I can wait for you."
Jack turned and kissed him on the cheek. "No. I can't. I love you, Ianto, but I don't want to ruin your life."
He didn't want to cry, but the lump in his throat was really bothersome. He got up and got dressed before he walked towards the door. "You are ruining my life now. Why Jack? We can… nobody has to know."
Jack got up and walked towards him. "It's not for you. It's for me. I can't do this because it will lead to a bigger heartbreak down the road. Believe me, you don't want this."
They stared at each other for a moment before Ianto turned around and opened the door. "I don't understand. I don't want this to end." Jack just stood there and shook his head.
Just as he was about to exit, he turned around and pulled Jack into an embrace, and they engaged in a languid kiss that Ianto didn't want to end. When their lips finally parted he knew that that was it and it hurt. Jack gave him a crooked smile. "Goodbye Ianto. This is for the best." Suddenly Jack's eyes widened as he stared at something behind Ianto's back.
"What is going on? Is this why you have been so eager to come here every weekend?! I knew it. I knew something wasn't right." The sound of Lisa's voice was increasing as she spoke, and Ianto worried that she could be heard throughout the house.
Jack reached out for her and dragged her into the room before he covered her mouth with his hand. "Shut up for goodness sake." Jack held on as Lisa struggled a little to come loose. "If you want to make this into a bigger drama than what it has to be, you can go ahead and shout about it, but I don't think you want to do that."
Ianto had gotten a little shaken, and it took a moment for him to recover. He didn't know how long she'd been there, or what she had seen. "Yes. He is the reason, but nothing happened." He threw a quick peek at Jack. "He seduced me, but he didn't follow through. I love you, Lisa. It's just…" It was hard to continue, but he noticed that Lisa relaxed somewhat. "I was curious, but I'm not anymore. He can never give me what I want. You are the only one for me."
The words left a bad taste in his mouth. Ianto looked at Jack briefly and could see that they didn't sit well with him either. It was somewhat satisfying. "Please Lisa. He means nothing to me. I was a fool to think… I was just curious." Ianto noticed that Jack scrunched his face a little as if he was in pain, and it felt good. Ianto knew that his own heart wouldn't mend easily, but it felt a little better to know that Jack's would hurt just as much.
-o-o-o-o-o-o-
They left early the next morning and Lisa demanded to be taken straight home. Ianto didn't know what she was going to do with the information she had, but he just had to hope for the best. They didn't exchange many words on the long drive, although Ianto had tried, but Lisa clammed up and refused to talk about it.
His family had been surprised by the sudden departure, but nothing in Lisa's behavior gave them any clues to the reason. Ianto was amazed by her act, because he knew that she was both shaken and extremely angry.
He dropped her off at her house and went home. He just had to wait and see. As Ianto entered his flat, he heard that someone was in there, and he wondered a little. James was on leave and nobody else but the maid had the key.
Ianto didn't see himself as a particularly brave man, so he was a little scared as he quietly ascended the stairs.
With one hand in the jewelry box, James flipped around and stared at him. "Sorry Sir. I was just…" Ianto didn't want to hear it. "Please leave. I know what you have been up to, but I'm not in the mood to call the police." He stepped out of the room and waited until James followed. "Just go. If you have anything here that you need, get somebody else to pick it up. I don't want to see you ever again."
John was the one who'd hired James in the first place, so Ianto felt compelled to tell his dad about the incident. "It's fine, I can live without him. Mrs Abbott has agreed to come a little more often." The maid had showed up early on Monday morning and Ianto had to explain to her why James was not there.
His father had grown up without a waiting staff, so he was fine with the new arrangement, but as soon as Mary got wind of it, she demanded that he should find another valet.
-o-o-o-o-o-o-
Jack and Tim left the next Tuesday. The young man had never been on a commercial flight before and acted like it was his first flight ever. Jack knew better, and he had to smile when Tim turned to him midair. "Girls on a plane. Am I in heaven?"
It had been a few years since the first air-hostess had walked the aisle on a commercial flight, but Jack could understand Tim's excitement.
When Tim told Jack that he was from New York, Jack had always thought it was the city. He had been wrong. They got picked up by Tim's brother in a dingy old truck, and had to suffer through a three hour drive. Some of the roads were very poorly paved, so it was a bumpy ride.
Jack was quite shaken up when they finally arrived at the small farm house. This was so different from what he'd gotten used to lately, but it was kind of nice. Tim's family greeted him with warmth, and he felt that he could really be himself in this environment.
It took two days for him to realize that it wasn't so different from the manor. In the middle of nowhere without any close neighbors, it got extremely boring. He'd thought he could go out to find someone to hook up with while he was in America, but there was nobody around.
During the day, Tim spent time with his father and brother. With one leg and crutches, he couldn't be at much help as they worked on the land, but he did his best. He tried to get Jack to join, but the manual labor didn't suit him one bit.
The only females in the vicinity were Tim's mother and his sister-in-law. None of them seemed to be impressed with Jack's subtle attempts on seduction, and he didn't dare to pull out the big guns.
The young farmhand was another option, but Jack almost got punched in the face when he tried to chat him up. Jack apologized and hoped that the little incident would be kept between them. It did, but the man made sure to stay at least ten feet away from him at any given time.
They stayed there for a little more than a week. Jack was practically climbing the walls at that time, and could hardly wait to get out of there.
It was a little sad because Tim's family had treated him very well, but he couldn't have taken one more minute at that place.
-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-
The week that had gone by was probably the longest in his life. Ianto hadn't seen Lisa at all, and he wondered what she was thinking. He took on some extra work to avoid going home. Sitting alone in his flat was not an option at the moment.
His father left on Friday to go to the manor, while Ianto stayed on. He didn't even know if he ever wanted to go back, but he knew that he probably would have to at some point in the future.
It took less than a day. He received a call Saturday afternoon. Albert had had a heart attack, and he was probably not going to make it, so Ianto felt compelled to go there. The butler had been like a second father to him, and he remember vividly how the man had taken care of him when he was a kid.
He was in his early fifties when Harry was born, and two years later he lost his wife. Uncle Edward had hired a nanny to take care of the child because he didn't want Albert to have to leave the manor.
The nanny wasn't the only one taking care of the boy. The whole staff was there for him and he started early helping out in the kitchen. When it was time to start school, he had to go to the village. It was a two hour walk back and forth, but Harry never complained.
Ianto arrived in the evening hoping it wasn't too late. Harry met him at the door, and Ianto gave him a quick hug before he followed him to his father's room.
Albert was not alert. It looked like he was sleeping, and his face was relaxed. Harry kneeled by the bed and grabbed the man's hand. Ianto could hear him sniffle a little and wanted to comfort him, but decided to keep a distance.
"The doctor said it was just a matter of time." Harry's voice was trembling. "He didn't think he'd wake up again." Ianto pulled up a chair and sat down. He didn't know what to say, and he could feel tears pressing on behind his eyelids.
Every member of the family came to the room during the night. None of them stayed long, but it was clear that they all shared Harry's pain. Albert had been there for many years, and losing him was like losing a family member.
He drew his last breath in the early morning hours. Harry had been sitting on the floor the whole night, and now Ianto joined him. They both held on to the old man's hand, until Peter came in to give them breakfast. He immediately understood what had happened, and alerted the rest of the house.
Ianto left Harry alone with his father, and decided to try to get some sleep. He stopped outside the door to his room before he turned around. With a sigh, he crossed the hall and entered the room where Jack had been staying.
There were no traces of the man left there, except for the books Ianto had got for him. He lied down on the bed and clenched the pillow as he cried himself to sleep. He cried for Albert and for Harry, but he also cried for himself. He missed Jack so much, and he didn't know how he could go on as if nothing had happened.
-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-
As soon as they returned to England, Jack brought Tim to Torchwood One for a tour. He was very tempted to go and see Ianto while they were in London, but he didn't dare. He knew that leaving him a second time would hurt more for them both.
Instead, he put Tim up in a hotel and went out to find someone that could help him forget. Buying a hooker was out of the question, but he relied on his seduction skills. There was always someone around looking for a quick hook-up, he just had to be in the right place at the right time.
He woke up the next morning in a unfamiliar bedroom with a girl wrapped around him. Jack managed to get out of the embrace without waking her before he grabbed his clothes and snuck out. The sex had been okay; not great, but somewhat satisfying. He would never want to see her again, and he was sure she felt the same.
Getting back to his own turf would probably help. In Cardiff, Jack knew exactly where to go to get his mind off everything. Work would keep him busy, and that would help a lot..
Before they left the city, Jack took a detour through Ianto's street. The house was quiet, and there weren't any lights on inside. Ianto was probably at work, toiling away with his numbers. Jack wondered how long it would take before he could wake up in the morning without thinking about him.