A/N: Thanks as always to Mariel for her expert advice, even when on holiday!

xx--

Jack was scheduled to meet Vivian in her office at 8 a.m. He rose earlier than was necessary, so he could hit the street and enjoy the atmosphere of New York in the spring. He grabbed a coffee and bagel at one of his favorite haunts, and sat on a stool by the café window so he could watch the New Yorkers going about their daily business. Like he had used to.

He arrived at Vivian's office at 8 precisely.

Her door was open, and she was reading a file. He leant against the door frame. "I hate what you've done with place," he said casually, surveying the room.

"Well, the previous occupant had no idea how to decorate - just tragic," Vivian threw back, getting up to give him a welcome hug. "Great to have you back."

Jack smiled as he returned the hug. "Anytime. Hope I can be of some help," he said, settling into the chair in front of his -no- her desk. "How's the team?" Jack enquired, twisting around to get a look at the bullpen.

"Oh, the usual," smiled Vivian. "Getting used to the new boss."

"Same as the old boss?" Jack chuckled, enjoying himself.

Vivian raised an eyebrow at that. "Not quite. We have a new team member, Rosa. She's good, gives Samantha a run for her money."

Jack nodded. That would be interesting. "How are Marcus and Reggie?"

"Great. I don't know what I've done to deserve them; I wonder every day… How's Maria?"

"Fine, loving her new job. Chicago suits her, and the girls are slowly fitting in. It was a big change for them," and me too, he thought silently.

"Yeah, changes everywhere." Then Vivian narrowed her eyes imperceptibly. She knew him. "Jack, it's me here. I know we haven't kept in touch much, and I'm sorry for that but…are you happy there?" Typical Vivian, straight to the point.

Jack paused before answering. He wasn't, but he didn't want to admit it, not even to Vivian. He'd thought the move would patch things up with Maria, but he still had a job with crazy hours, and he could tell, after the initial flurry of moving had subsided, that things between them still weren't right. The break would do them both good, even though Maria was pretty pissed off at him for going back to NY. Also, he still found himself sleeping on the sofa more times than he would have liked, for one reason or another, but usually because of a fight. Things hadn't really changed. Happy wasn't the word he would use, if he was being honest with himself.

He shrugged. "It's okay, I'm working on it." It was the best answer he could or would give. "Anyway, still your dime…" he said, shifting attention back onto the case.

Vivian leaned back in her chair, playing with a pen. "I've been saving a bit on the budget for a rainy day, and so this seemed like a good time to use it. Danny, Martin and I are on a new case involving a bureaucrat from the Mayor's office; you and Samantha will be working on the Emerson case together. Rosa will be in the office, so you can use her when she's not helping us. It's the best distribution of resources we can do at the moment. Besides, you and Samantha were the original case agents on it, so it works out well enough." She gathered some papers and stood up. "We'll be in the bullpen. You two can use the table, a whiteboard, and my computer in here."

Jack smiled. "Sounds good." He rose and followed her out, resisting the urge to fall into his old routine and habits. This wasn't his show anymore, but the sheer atmosphere of being back was magnetic.

xx--

Danny nudged Samantha when he saw Jack going into Vivian's office. "Jack, the man in black, is back."

Samantha looked up and saw Jack's outline. "I'll bet you $10 he's not in black," she said, pointedly.

Danny squinted into the distance. "Make it $20. Jack won't be able to resist wearing it."

Samantha looked back at her computer screen. "He won't be wearing it today. Have your money ready, Taylor." I know he'll wear something else. She was trying very hard not to grin like an idiot.

xx--

The team was waiting for Vivian and Jack in the bullpen.

"Well, here he is," stated Vivian, standing aside.

Danny was the first to leap up to shake Jack's hand. "Only you could cost me $20! What color is this supposed to be?" He indicated Jack's dark, but definitely grey, suit.

"Gee, thanks Danny, it's good to see you too. Did you lose anything extra because of the blue tie?"

Danny shook his head. "I don't like this new trend, it's very disturbing." He slapped Jack on the shoulder, broadly grinning. "Great to have you here."

Martin was next. "Good to see you again, Jack. How's the family?" he asked a little formally, while shaking Jack's hand.

"Fine, thanks. How's yours?" asked Jack, wondering about the slight coolness.

"Always some drama happening, so no change there."

Seated behind him, Samantha rolled her eyes. He was right there. The whole family was a moneyed political freak show. She was beginning to realize how lucky she had been to escape.

Jack nodded politely, before turning to the rookie and introducing himself. "You must be Rosa."

She smiled and shook his hand. "Glad to meet you finally." Jack felt like he was being scrutinized under a microscope as he smiled back. Bet Sam gives you a run for your money too.

One left. He suddenly remembered he had to breathe.

Samantha rose from her chair. "It's been far too long, Jack."

He looked at her.

She looked at him.

His hair was greyer.

She was blonder.

He looked slimmer.

She looked perfect.

He smiled and held out his hand. "Sam."

She glanced at the hand. "I don't think so," she muttered, taking the hand and pulling him in for a quick hug.

He had seen her golden head the minute he walked in, and tried not to focus on her. He didn't truly comprehend how much he had missed her -as a friend, as a colleague, and as a lover…well, he'd always missed that, and God knows it was hard to keep her at arms length all that time. This was not going to be as easy as he'd thought. Here he was, nearly drowning in the closeness of her, if only for a couple of seconds. Oh shit.

She had been eyeing him the moment he came in with Vivian. How could he be more attractive than ever before? How was that possible? Why was she suddenly blown away? She felt ridiculous, like a schoolgirl with a crush again. Worse than that, she was sure everyone could see right through her. She had resolved to play it cool, immune to himand then had ruined it all by hugging him. Plus Martin was there watching them both like a hawk. Damn it!

Vivian took command. "Right, time to move people," she indicated the whiteboard. "This man's not going to be found without us. Jack and Samantha…"

Samantha picked up her carton of files. "Your office, got it," and set off. She would have run if she could.

Jack looked at the whiteboard, reading the missing bureaucrat's timeline. God, he missed this. All those years finding missing people, and now he was down the ladder, chained to a desk in the Government Fraud division, a sideways shift from Domestic Security. What had he been thinking? What the hell had happened to his life? This is what he should be doing.

"Any openings in the Chicago office?" Vivian asked quietly by his shoulder.

Jack shook his head. "I've tried. They have my request for transfer, but it could be ages. You know I hate office politics; it seems inter-departmental ones are just as bad in Chicago as they are here." He looked at her and smiled warmly. "I'm glad for you. Nice to leave the team in good hands."

Vivian nodded, pleased. "Thanks, and you're damn right on that one."

Laughing, Jack patted her on the back. Glancing back over his shoulder at his former workmates as they went through their case, he went to join Samantha. I miss this place.

xx--

Jack sat down beside Samantha at the table, and stared at the paper chase she had spread out in front of her. He could smell her perfume, as fresh and crisp as the day outside.

"So…" he ventured.

Samantha squared up some files in front of her, deciding to start with work. "Never thought we'd be going over this case again." She paper shuffled some more, not really wanting to look him in the face.

Jack pursed his lips. "No. Maybe we can nail the son of a bitch this time."

"If we find him," she replied, holding up Emerson's photo. "This is the most recent one taken. I got it off his wife yesterday."

Jack pulled his chair closer to look at the picture. "He hasn't changed too much, just around the eyes. I'd recognise him in an instant." They'd certainly interviewed him enough to have him burned in their memories.

Samantha finally gave in and looked at him, a smile playing on her lips, his closeness sending a familiar tingle through her.

He smiled back. "What?"

"It's nice to have you back." She meant every word.

He looked down, fingering a file. "It's nice to be back."

She looked back at the table. "So, how is Chicago?"

"Windy."

"The girls?"

"Making new friends."

She had to ask the question, for politeness' sake. "Maria?"

There was no answer; he was gazing into a file. She prodded his arm.

"Mm? Oh, yeah, she loves her new job," he replied automatically, keeping it as minimal as he could, and to change topic said, "I really want to find this guy. There are a few questions I'd like to ask him."

Samantha couldn't help but smile again, noticing the avoidance.

He got up and looked at the white board with Emerson's timeline on it. "Did Emerson have a large life insurance policy on himself or his second wife?"

"Like the first time? I asked his wife, Margaret, and she said she wasn't sure. I was going to check up on that today. She was going to look for some papers for us."

"Okay, and we have to move the timeline further back." Jack took a whiteboard marker and added some lines on the extreme left of the board. "This has to go right back to when we first met Steven Emerson."

"August 2001." Samantha filled in.

Jack nodded. Four years ago. It seemed just like yesterday. He swallowed, and, his voice a hint raw with old emotion, took a chance. "I still think about then, you know."

Surprised, Samantha nodded, then surprised herself by saying, "Me too."

xx--