Instead of ringing the bell, Jack pounded his fists on the door impatiently.
Kate jumped, spilling her wine. She looked through the peephole before opening the door. "J—"
The instant the door was open, his lips were on hers. She placed a hand on his chest but dropped it, unsure if she wanted him to stop or not. She grabbed his face, pulling his body closer against hers. He pushed her back against the wall, using his foot to close the door. She moaned softly, her tongue swirling with his, doing their all too familiar dance. Jack grabbed her, lifting her in his arms with ease and lifted her higher, his thumb brushing her pajama shorts and panties to the side. "Jack…"
He knew that tone, so he stopped immediately and put her down.
He sighed and headed to her living room. Once on the couch, he spoke. "Aaron was right, wasn't he? He's heard you crying…"
"Jack," her voice was a plea.
"Why?" He demanded. Kate put her hand on her hip, refusing to speak. "Kate, why have you been crying?"
"I don't even remember," she lied. "Did you leave Aaron to ask me that?"
"To find out what's going on with you? Yeah, I did." He stepped close enough that he noticed Kate holding her breath. "Will you tell me, please? Aaron wants to talk to his teacher—"
"No. Absolutely not."
"Why?" Jack pushed. He hated pushing so hard but he knew the only way to get through to her was to push her. "What is going on with you, Kate? Just talk to me!"
"I don't know," Kate whispered, feeling cornered. "Am I supposed to meet someone from the catcalls and men that approach me when I'm with Aaron? Or online? Who would want to date a plane crash survivor, killer and single mom?" Tears sporadically fell from her eyes. "There's no sense even trying to date," she shrugged.
"Then don't," Jack said dryly. "You have a man who loves you and loves your son. To him, you're so much more than the girl from the news…"
"You said it was good we didn't … it would have been a mistake…"
Jack laughed suddenly, almost offending Kate. "You think I would have regretted it? I was trying to console you and make sure you didn't feel guilty. Of course I wanted more. I wanted to spend an entire day in bed watching your toes curl over and over," he purred. The visual, however broad left Kate feeling her body stirring.
"How do you know … I mean, it's been years… you can't—"
"I know because I've been in love with you since I've known you…" Jack took a step forward, "and I know you're in love with me." Kate shook her head but Jack could see she was still processing and not rejecting him. "How about this? Give me one reason why we shouldn't be together? One reason why you shouldn't be mine?" He grabbed her hips, pulling her even closer. "Give me a single reason why we shouldn't go to Vegas and get married tonight?"
"Married?"
"You could be Katherine Ann Shepard by morning."
"You're crazy," she laughed nervously. "We—"
"We can. We should. I would have carved rings out of wood and married you on the island. I should have proposed during the press conferences after we returned, declaring my love for the world."
"Jack, you're talking crazy!"
"Am I?"
Kate stayed silent, suddenly unsure of it all. She couldn't marry Jack, they weren't even together anymore. It had been years since they had been with each other. So why did she feel so tempted to elope with him?
Even after all these years, she loved him. She knew she did. She knew that was why she'd never opened up to anyone else. "Why haven't you ever moved on?"
"Why haven't you?" Jack fired back, "is it because you're still in love with me? I haven't given it thought until—"
"Until Aaron brought it up," Kate realized. "Same reason I finally called his teacher back."
Jack ran a hand through his hair with a laugh, "we must be doing something right if he wants us together so bad. He can see it, Kate. He can tell we still love each other. Everyone can, except—"
"I can tell it, too…"
"You aren't punishing me anymore; you're punishing yourself. I'm not that guy," he put his arms around her but left enough distance that she could back out if she wanted. Instead, she stepped closer, closing the gap. "I love you, Kate."
"I love you, too," she whispered against his chest. "Let's do it; let's get married," she laughed.
"You're serious? I was only—" Jack stammered. "But let's do it."
"Oh," Kate felt her cheeks redden. "You didn't mean—"
"Marry me," he bent down on one knee.
"It's crazy!"
"Think of how we met. Think of the island. Everything about us is crazy because we're crazy about each other."
"You're really serious," she realized. She shrugged, half in a daze. "So, let's…let's go to Vegas," she laughed, her head falling against his chest. "I can't believe we're doing this."
"I can't believe I didn't do this the minute we stepped off the boat." Jack cupped her face, kissing her like it was the first time.
"We should pack," Kate whispered against his lips.
"I'm not waiting another moment. I'll buy whatever we need when we get when we're there."
"You're crazy," she laughed.
"Crazy for you." He gave her a quick kiss before rushing her out the door by the hand.
The end.