Chapter 11

Sawyer was escorted to a corner booth near the back of Toscana's pricey little restaurant. He saw Jacks big head and rolled his eyes heavenward as he sat down none too gently.

He nodded, "Jackie boy."

Jack smiled, "Sawyer. Nice to see you in rare form tonight."

Sawyer bowed his head, "Likewise Jackass."

Jacks lips quirked upwards and the waitress asked for their order.

"I will have," Jack scanned the menu and said, "Tagliolini con carciofi," he passed her the menu.

Sawyer smirked, "Big on the carbs today?"

Jack looked up at Sawyer and raised his brows, "You know what I ordered?"

Sawyer looked at Jack dryly, "Like you don't know I lived in Rome for a few months."

"I'm well aware of your nomadic expeditions."

"Brought your dictionary tonight I see." Sawyer grinned and looked at the waitress, "I'll just have coffee."

She nodded and walked away and Jack said, "No appetite tonight?"

"Oh I had an appetite. Kate made me dinner before I got here." He looked pointedly at Jack, "See I can stand to eat in front of her."

Jack only smiled and folded his hands, "Who wouldn't?"

Sawyers smile died down, "We can skip the pleasantries Yankee Doodle, just tell me why you mentioned Kate." His voice was hard and unwavering as he stared at Jack with a ducal glare.

Jacks smile remained as he sat back and placed the linen on his lap neatly.

"I gotta mind to smack that smile off your face if you don't start talkin."

"I almost forgot you'd make an ass out of yourself no matter where you are." Jacks own smile died. "But I'm pretty hungry. As you most likely know, Shannons not very good in the kitchen."

Sawyer found a smile as he sat back himself, "So, you are fuckin her."

"While she also does Sayid behind my back and I do Juliet." He shrugged, "Shannon thinks I don't know. She's not very bright for a blonde. But I can't resist them, what can I say."

Sawyer found his first chuckle, "Well, well, well, looks like you've all been havin alot of fun over there at Dharma and Co."

Jack smiled, "So have you. With Kate that is. I've seen the commercials-"

"No surprise there." Sawyer muttered.

"She's really beautiful," Jack nodded, "With a very very interesting past. But like I said, it'll have to wait until after I eat my pasta."

Sawyer sighed hard and fifteen minutes later, Jacks plate half eaten, Sawyers coffee untouched, he had had enough. "Why did you want to meet me here Jack?"

"Simple." Jack wiped his mouth. "Sun Kwons sales are crushing that of Juliets. We need the advertising cut back drastically. I want every commercial off the air and I want Sun to cut back 50% of distribution of Sunrise."

That brought out a genuine laugh from Sawyer. He laughed out loud and pushed a hand through his hair, "What the hell makes you think we're gonna do that?"

Jack looked at Sawyer with his own smirk, "Or I turn Kate into the feds."

Sawyers laugh died down instantly, "What?" He choked out.

The gleam in Jacks eyes were triumphant, "She's under investigation Sawyer. On suspicion of murder. See, it seems our beautiful Sunrise model might be guilty of murdering her step-father. She disappeared from Iowa during the investigation."

"Impossible. She wouldn't be throwing her face in international ads if that were true."

Jacks smile deepened, "That's because she faked her death."

Sawyer stood up abruptly, "Now you're just fucking insulting me Jackass."

Jack frowned, "Sit down," he hissed, "Its true. I had her checked out."

Sawyer sat back down slowly, his face a stone mask, he leaned forward, "What the fuck do you mean you 'had Kate checked out'?"

Jacks eyes grew big, "Kates real last name is Phillips, not Austen. She faked her death and we found proof. She murdered her step father a few months back and moved here to start over."

Sawyers look was pained, "No," he whispered.

"You're sleeping with a murderer."

Sawyer slammed his fist on the table hard and people looked over, "Fuck off!" He stood up.

"I trust our deal stands Sawyer."

"I want proof goddammit."

"Just ask her." Jack said simply.

Sawyer stomped into the apartment and stalked towards Kate. She was coming out of the bathroom in their room when he grabbed her arm. Her initial smile faded instantly as he pushed her up against the wall.

"Tell me it isn't true Kate."

Her face was shocked, "Tell you what? What are you talking about?"

His stare was intense, "Tell me you didn't murder your step father."

If Sawyer wondered if it wasn't true, he didn't need to wonder anymore. The look of guilt that washed over Kates face said it all.

"Goddammit!" He pushed away and raked a hand through his hair.

Tears spilled from Kates face as she followed him, "I couldn't tell you! I had no choice! I had to keep it secret-"

"Even from ME?"

Kate cried and nodded, "I'm so sorry James. I..." She stopped crying and looked at him hard, "How did you know?"

"Secrets out. Jack spied into your past. He found out and blackmailed me."

"Oh my god..." tears continued to spill. "Oh my god." She looked up at Sawyer, "You must hate me."

He went to her and grabbed her arms, "I could never hate you freckles. I'm just frustrated you couldn't tell me to begin with."

Kate cried and shook her head, "I need air."

Before he could stop her, she went out to the balcony. He decided to leave her alone for a few minutes. He would join her later. For now, he had a few phone calls to make. There was no way Jack was gonna trap him. There was no way he would ever stop loving Kate. There was just no way.