Chapter 11---Snowball Effect

"So, how was lunch with Lucy? I forgot to ask you earlier," Jack asked, as he and Sue took Levi on a walk around their neighborhood. They had a bit of time before they needed to go to Sam and Mary's and it was a nice evening.

"It was actually really good. I half expected her to grill me about you and I, but she managed to stay away from the subject, just like she'd promised."

"She promised?"

"Yesterday I kind of lost my patience and she told me she wouldn't bring it up again," Sue explained. "I'm sure you know Lucy has been trying to set us up for a long time," Jack nodded at that. He knew all too well what she meant. "so you'd better believe she's loving the fact that we're in an undercover marriage. I didn't tell her that we kissed though; I knew she'd be like a dog with a bone if I did that." Levi looked up at her and whined. Jack pointed down, and Sue looked at her dog.

"Sorry, boy. I don't have a bone," Sue told him with a laugh, leaning down to give him a pet on the head.

"You're in luck, Levi," Jack said, reaching into his coat pocket and pulling out a dog biscuit." Sue gave him a look of surprise.

"From the other day when we took him to the park at lunch," he explained, tossing the crunchy bone into the air for Levi to catch.

"You'd better be careful, he'll come to expect that from you and he'll be trying to get into your pockets all the time," Sue warned him.

"Well then, I'll just have to keep dog treats in my pockets at all times," Jack replied, grinning.

"So, I guess that means that you'll be coming over every day to take Levi for a long walk to burn off all of those extra calories?"

"You wouldn't have to twist my arm. I'll come over every day if you ask me to." Jack winked at her, and Sue felt herself blush. She'd lost count of how many times she'd blushed over the past two days.

She didn't respond other than narrowing her eyes at him and smiling. They kept walking in silence for a few minutes until they reached the house. Sue unclipped Levi's leash from his collar, and he bounded towards the front door.

"You know, I think it might be easier for us to keep our distance if you would stop flirting with me every chance you get," she told Jack, as they walked up to the house together. He looked at her with raised eyebrows.

"You think I'm flirting with you?"

"Come on," she said, the hint of a smile on her face. "You're a terrible flirt!"

"Really? I always thought I was kind of good at it," Jack retorted with a grin. He ducked as Sue swatted at him with Levi's leash.

"Hey, hands off, remember? If I recall, you're the one who came up with that rule."

"It was either that or be even later for work than we already were this morning," Sue protested. "You're the one who said just one more kiss, last night. So much for that," she said with a laugh.

"Hey, I'm not the only one to blame for last night, and you just looked so cute this morning, I couldn't resist." Sue's cheeks turned even pinker as Jack spoke. "Plus, you're the one who started things in the car. I think I was being very good until you---" Sounds from next door caused Jack to pause mid-sentence.

"What is it?" she asked.

"We'd better take this inside. The neighbors don't really need to know this about us," Jack said, unlocking the door and motioning for her to go inside.

"You know, they'd probably just laugh, considering what they witnessed the other night. They'd just chalk it up to the fact that we still act like 'newlyweds', and can't keep our hands off each other," Sue said, once they were both inside.

"Yeah, if only they knew the truth about that kiss the other night--and how things have snowballed since then," Jack added.

"Well, as much fun as it is kissing you, Jack," Sue admitted with an embarrassed smile before her expression turned serious. "We can't keep this up. Our jobs would be on the line if anyone knew what was going on." Jack nodded. "We couldn't get any more distracted than we were this morning; we weren't even reachable by phone."

"You're right. It would be very easy to forget all the risks, but I guess we have to remember that first and foremost, we've got a job to do," he said regretfully.

"So no more until we're done here, okay? This time I mean it," Sue insisted, doing her best not to cave in to the puppy-dog eyes he was giving her, whether he was aware of it or not.

OK, Jack signed. There was an awkward silence between them for a moment, finally broken when Sue looked at her watch.

"Well, I guess I should go and get changed. We've got to be there in half an hour."

"See you in a little while then," Jack replied. "I'll feed Levi," he added.

Thank you, Sue signed with a smile before she turned and walked away.

Jack headed for the kitchen with Levi at his heels, and he decided with determination that he would control his feelings for the time being. Once he and Sue were finished with this case and they could take a step back from the situation, they would decide what the next step was in their relationship.

They would either take a step forward, see what lay beyond their friendship, or they would take a step back and realize that they couldn't put everything at risk for love. Jack shook his head, almost unable to believe what was happening. He was in love with her. As much as he doubted it before, that's how certain he was of it now. It was more than just wanting to kiss her and be close to her. He loved everything about her and could absolutely envision spending the rest of his life with her.

That's what makes this undercover marriage so ironic, Jack thought, as he headed for his bedroom to make sure he was presentable enough to take to dinner. It was so easy for him to pretend to be married to her because it was something he wished would happen for real.

Sue looked at herself in the mirror, satisfied with her appearance. Lucy had dragged her to Macy's the previous week, insisting that her wardrobe needed an overhaul, and this was the perfect opportunity to wear one of her new outfits.

Hopefully Jack will approve, she thought to herself, then shook her head, glaring at herself in the mirror. She felt like things were beginning to spin out of control in her relationship with Jack and didn't know how to stop them--or if she even wanted to. It was astounding the effect that one kiss was having on their relationship. She felt so unclear as to what should happen next, but one thing she knew with crystal clarity was that she was in love with him. She'd been keeping those feelings underneath the surface for a long time, but now they were coming up for air, and there was no getting rid of them. Of course, that didn't mean she had any clue what to do about them.

As she ran a brush through her hair, which she'd left cascading over her shoulders just the way Jack liked it, she thought back to the previous night and how they'd nearly lost control after she'd agreed to just one more kiss.

Before long she'd been laying back on the couch with Jack's body covering hers, and they were kissing each other hungrily. The memory of it literally made her weak in the knees, and Sue laid the brush down, putting her hands on the edge of the counter for support.

Jack had broken the kiss and started nuzzling her neck, causing her to shiver at the sensation. It wasn't until she'd felt the buttons of her blouse coming undone that the reality of what was happening hit her full force, causing her to open her eyes. Her hands had covered his, stopping him, and she'd looked at him with regret and a touch of sadness.

"We can't do this," she'd said. He'd nodded, looking guilty. "It's not that I don't want to but now isn't the time." She'd smiled gently at him and given him a quick kiss on the cheek before leaving him on the couch by himself, looking adorably disheveled and a little dumbfounded. As she'd closed her bedroom door, Sue hadn't been able to stop the tears from streaming down her cheeks. Something she'd always wanted but never imagined possible was finally happening, yet under the wrong circumstances.

Living together undercover left no room to think and no room to breathe. She couldn't help but wonder why it had to be now, of all times, that everything was suddenly out in the open. Because something was always in the way before, and now most of those barriers had been removed, she thought. Now they were both single and didn't have to worry about hurting anyone but themselves. There was also the fact of the kiss; something neither of them would have initiated under normal circumstances.

When she'd calmed down, Sue got ready for bed and realized she should let Levi in before she went to sleep; otherwise she might end up oversleeping. She'd opened the door and was relieved to find Levi waiting outside. The last thing she had wanted was to face Jack while she felt so emotionally raw. She'd managed to sleep but when Levi had gently nudged her awake in the morning, the first thought on her mind was of Jack, and she knew that he'd been in her dreams all night. Throwing on some sweats, she'd taken Levi out for a morning jog, and the fresh air and morning sun had cleared her mind a bit.

She didn't even see him until she headed into the kitchen later on to get something for breakfast. He was dressed and drinking a cup of coffee at the kitchen table, reading the morning paper. He'd glanced up as she entered the room, and her heart had skipped a beat as their eyes met.

"Good morning," Jack had said, smiling uncertainly at her.

"Good morning," Sue had responded. "I guess we should talk, huh?"

"If you want to."

"Don't you think we should?"

"Look, Sue," he'd said, getting up from the table and coming to stand near her. "I feel like such a jerk about last night. I'm sorry."

"Sorry for what?"

"For losing control. I just can't seem to help it when I'm around you," he had admitted sheepishly.

"You seem to be under the mistaken impression that you're the only one responsible for what happens between us. You're wrong."

"I'm not saying that at all. You just have a lot more self-control than I do. If it weren't for you being so appealing all the time, I'd be just fine. What can I say? You make me weak, Sue," he'd said with a smile, reaching out to touch her hand. Sue had raised her eyebrows at him and couldn't help but return his smile.

As if to prove his point, Jack had cupped her face in his hands and kissed her again. Despite every instinct that told her to end it, she'd kissed him back. Jack had wrapped his arms around her waist, holding her close, while her hands traveled to his hair, running her fingers through it as she felt the passion rise. It was Jack who broke the kiss this time, and Sue had opened her eyes to find his gaze resting on his cell phone on the kitchen table. Keeping one arm around her, he'd reached for it, shaking his head as he read the number on the display.

"It's my mother," he'd said, switching off the phone and turning his attention back to Sue. She had flashed him a surprised smile, wondering why he wasn't answering it. "She knows we're here together and believe me, she just wants to quiz me about how I like living with a woman. She's so eager to meet you, you'd think that we were really married," Jack had explained, reaching over to softly touch her cheek before he leaned in to kiss her again.

Sue had pulled away before he could make contact though and put a hand on his chest, keeping him at arm's length. "I think we need to make a rule, Jack. No more touching or kissing unless it's work-related. We're going to be late for work if we keep this up," she'd said firmly.

Jack had nodded reluctantly. "Okay, okay. You're right; we don't even have time for breakfast now. Do you want to pick up something on the way?"

"Works for me," Sue had answered. Jack had grabbed his cell off the table, Sue called Levi, and without further adieu they left the house.

It wasn't until they were about ten minutes away from the house that Sue had realized her blackberry wasn't in her purse.

"We could go back," Jack had offered.

"No, I guess I can do without it for a day. I just can't believe I didn't put it back in my purse last night," she'd said, shaking her head at her absent-mindedness.

"You were a little distracted," Jack had pointed out helpfully, a devilish grin on his face.

"Good point," she had agreed. They'd grabbed breakfast at a fast-food joint and things went along very smoothly until just after they'd finished eating.

Remembering that moment of weakness in the car, Sue vowed not to let it happen again. Sue touched up her lipstick and realized she was as ready as she was going to be---she needed to stop thinking about Jack and get to work. No matter how tempted she became, it was important for them to keep things professional while they were undercover. Any changes they wanted to make in their friendship would just have to wait.

She turned out the bathroom light and left the room, wishing she could shake the feelings of anxiety bubbling up within her. She was nervous about being able to maintain their cover and the fact that they'd put a wire on her before she left work didn't do anything to quell her anxiety. With any luck, their dinner tonight would be the beginning of the end of their case. They could put a stop to the kidnappings, and then she and Jack would each have the space to figure out what to do next.