Chapter 9

After the double doors shut Jacks next step was to press the button that would take them to the basement floor. "Do you think she saw us?" Janet asked nervously.

"I think so." Jack said taking in a deep breath as a number of things went through his head. Now that Vicky had seen them with her own eyes he had no way of hiding his relationship with Janet. Not that he was ashamed to hide it from anyone but he mostly feared for Janet. Vicky was a maniac jealous woman and she wouldn't think twice about hurting her.

"Okay. Come on." Jack offered his hand to Janet as they walked out of the elevator making their way out of the underground floor full of tenant's cars. "Why didn't I park here instead of outside on the street?"

"Well honey you didn't know we would ran into your wife." Janet said. The last two words came out slowly and with an unavoidable sore tone. 'His wife' she thought as she followed Jack.

There was complete silence as Jack and Janet walked to the car. Jack slipped his arm around her waist and pinched lightly, hoping to hear her giggle. But to no avail; she didn't even smile, just wordlessly opened the car door and crawled inside.

While they made their way back to her home Jack noticed the change in Janet's attitude. He reached over to hold her hand and after half a minute she slowly removed it from underneath his. Managing to paint a small smile on her face she turned her attention towards life outside the vehicle. He watched as she focused on the imagines outside the car. "Is something wrong pumpkin?" He asked.

She shook her head and turn to face him as he turned the corner onto her street. She inhalation some of the fresh air coming in from the car's sunroof, "You won't understand." She whispered with teary eyes. "Don't worry about it."

"Talk to me, honey. I can't fix anything if you don't tell me." He said trying to keep his eyes on the road. "It was our near encounter with Vicky, am I right?"

She miserably nodded her head, as a single tear rolled down her pretty eyes. "Jack can't you understand. No matter how deep in love we think we are….I will always be the second woman in your life."

"Stop that." Jack ordered. "You will never be second Janet. I hate it when you think like that." He raised his voice as he parked the car outside Janet's small home. "Isn't it obvious how much I love you? What do you need me to do in order to show you how much you mean to me?"

"It's not that Jack." She turned to look at him as she wiped some tears of her eyes. "Until you and Vicky are divorce, I will never be anything else. And that just go against my principals, against everything I believe. I don't know Jack I feel like maybe we are losing a battle that was never meant to be fought. You and Vicky live two separate lives but under God and everyone else's eyes you and she are married. She is your wife and I ….I am just Janet Dawson, the other woman. Or even worst, Janet the slut." She said with a disgusted voice.

Jack could see the painful feeling in Janet's eyes. She was hurting and he also knew that it wasn't a way to pressure him about the divorce. The way they were developing their new relationship was in all ways possible against her character. Something that made Jack realize just how much she also loved him. He stared at the car's floor, bit his lower lip and placed his hand on top of her gentle hands once again. "I'm sorry Janet. I guess I've never stopped to think about that. I've been so selfish just thinking of all the happiness you have once again brought into my life. But I promise you, we will soon be divorce. I will not stop until I have those divorce papers signed." He cupped her pretty face in his hands.

"But when Jack? And how?"

"I am going to talk to her tonight. I will give her no option."

"And what if she refuses once again?"

"I've talked to my attorney, there is hope that maybe we can get the divorce even if she is unwilling to sign documents."

"Well, maybe it will be best for you and me to stop seeing each other until that happens." She painfully suggested. "I love you Jack but…."

"Don't do this Janet. Please we've talked about this and we promised to try to make this happened no matter what. Janet babe, please don't give up."

"Sorry Jack. Please don't come looking for me or by the flower shop unless its business related. Please don't make me suffer like that. I love you Jack. You have no idea just how much I love you but it's not fair to you, Vicky or me. Goodnight Jack." She said sadly as she opened the door and made her way up the steps.

With his heart breaking and his body temperature rising, he watched Janet close the door behind her. Angry at himself and at life he slammed his hand into the wheel in front of him. Tears streamed down his handsome face as his baby blue eyes were covered with tear drops. Jack felt so incompetent, a winner in the business world but such a failure in the most important field of all, love. How he wished there was something he can do to make Vicky sign those dame papers he thought as he placed his forehead against his arm while leaning on the wheel. He sadly let tears run down his face as he poured his feelings out.

Meanwhile inside the small and dark home, Janet couldn't control her emotions either. Her back was leaning against the front door as her wet eyes overfilled with tears. She had been leaning on that door for what seem like forever waiting to hear Jack's car take off. She loved him but there was no way they could ever go beyond that forbidden love with Jack being tied to Vicky. She didn't want to hurt him but it will hurt more later then now. She slowly walked away from the door as she turned on the lamp next to her before entering the living room.

Janet slowly entered the next room while she tried to find something to wipe her tears with. Her attention was focused on her purse and trying to find a tissue that it took her a second or two to realize the beauty that had been waiting all day to welcome her home. She forgot all about her purse or the tears that seemed to some how fall non-stopping again. Her heart skipped a beat as her eyes wondered from one rose arrangement to the other. She slowly walked up to the closes one and opened the small pink envelope, 'Top 10 reasons why I love you.…..' She read as a smile crept across her attractive face. She took an additional step and opened the next envelope. 'You are beautiful, even when you think you look the worst.' she read. Unable to stop herself she reached over for another, 'When you smile, you have the power to make me feel wonderful, no matter how bad my day has been.'

Without thinking it twice she ran out the door in a flash hoping Jack would still be out there. She took in a deep breath and opened the door, to her surprise he was still sitting there. His head rested against the wheel; smiling she made her way towards the black vehicle. He felt the presence of someone watching him. Clearing his eyes he looked up to find Janet standing outside with a bashful yet seductive smile across her face.

Unconsciously he opened the door to his Mercedes and made his way towards her. She giggled as he picked her up and spun her around twice. "I'm sorry babe." She said before planting a toe-curling kiss on his lips. "I don't know what got into me. I am just so scared that we will never get to be happy together the way I want us too." She apologized; her hands entwined in his. "I love you and would hate to lose you once again."

"Janet. Honey." He smiled admiring her good looks as he ran his hand through her hair. "That will never happen because you, our son and I are going to be a family some day and…"

If she had not gone through it last week, Janet could have sworn she was going through PMS with all the tears and emotions running around her little body. "Our?" She questioned him, for he had never referred to her son as 'their' son. "You called Jack your son." She reminded him.

"I know silly." He said planting a cute kiss on her nose. "And that is exactly what I mean and want. Janet nothing in this world would make me happier then us getting married someday and forming a family together and hopefully giving Jack a little brother or sister to play or fight with." He laughed. "I want you to be the mother of my children and I want to be the father of yours." He whisper sweetly as their foreheads touched.

She grasp the moment as an opportunity to steal a quick peck before they made their way inside her home. "They are beautiful Jack. I love them. You are just wonderful." She repeated several times as she admired the roses Jack ordered. "How did you manage to place that order without me finding out?"

"Oh," he said rubbing his fingernails against his left shoulder. "It was nothing. I just happen to have the right connections." He winked.

Janet playfully pushed his stomach. "Go in the kitchen and make yourself useful." She joked, as she made her way back to the flowers. She couldn't wait to read the rest of Jack's notes. After living with him for eight years, she had never realized just how much of a romantic he truly was, but then again she never knew him in love. 'Not even with Vicky was he ever like this,' she though with a grin.

While Jack prepared dinner Janet walked around her cozy living room reading the notes inside the envelopes. Each one making her knees weaker and the butterflies in her stomach more and more wild. Her heart melted and her smile grew wider and wider. '7. Your bad habits aren't all that bad; they just make me love you more 6. I can't go a day without hearing your voice 5. The way you look at me when I make a really bad joke is so adorable 4. The way your eyes glow every time our eyes meet.'

"Hey Jane," Jack walked into the living room about to ask where he could find the measuring cup but froze solid when he watched her reading his everyday thoughts. Standing against the door way he watched as she read the remaining cards. '3. You're the first thing I think about when I wake up and the last thing I think about before I fall asleep, 2. You make my life complete. I can't imagine my life without you in it. 1. Actually, there is no number 1, just like there are way more than 10 reasons that I love you. There are a million things about you that drive me bloody crazy, but at least a million more that tell me you're the only woman in the world that I was meant to spend my life with. I love you, Janet, and every day that goes by, I love you just a little bit more. There's no one else I'd rather spend my time with than you, and for the rest of eternity.'

Janet held her hand up to her lips, as she began to weep once again. Tears slowly dropped as a happy sour sweet smile appeared on her face. "If only I had said these things ten years ago." She heard Jack's voice from behind. "Things would be much more different. You wouldn't be crying because of a feeling we are finally admitting to; those tears would be tears of joy. The joy of us celebrating one more year as a married couple." He came from behind placing his manly hands on her tiny shoulders.

"But there is nothing we can do now Jack. All we can do now is fight for our feelings and love each other more and more as the days go by."

"Love." He laughed at that silly four letter word. "Its funny love has brought us this far and because of it we have lived the worst and best times of our lives."

"What do you mean by that?"

"We loved each other so much we let each other go because we wanted noting but the best for one another. And now because of love we are ready to face the world together. Because," he let go of her body and reached over to open the last two envelopes 'I love you. Forever' He read.

After Vicky had searched the building she entered Jack's apartment on a mission to find her husband and Janet. "I know it was them." She repeated millions of times. "But where did they go?" She questioned herself as she inspected every single inch of Jack's apartment. "They were obviously here," She spoke out loud in anger, as she spotted Jack's clothes in the dryer.

"I am going to kill them." She screamed from one room to the other as the though of them together made her heart race faster by the minute. "I'm going to kill them both." She yelled running down the stairs with the fury of a wild beast.

Once they had finished enjoying Jack's delicious meal they started cleaning up. After they were done Janet started walking Jack to the door. "I'm sorry for my behavior tonight. I ruined a perfect day." She apologized once again.

'Don't apologize," he asked, "a ruined day will be one in which I don't get to see you." He kissed her lips softly. "Honey, I was thinking maybe you shouldn't go to work tomorrow."

"Why? Are you worry Vicky may show up tomorrow?"

"Knowing her she will probably sleep outside the shop just to make sure she doesn't miss you coming in." He said some what joking but with a serious face. "She's never hurt anyone. At least not that I know of but she is extremely jealous and I rather you not take a risk."

"Jack. I won't be alone. I can't just not show up for work. Besides I can take care of myself and Jason will be there so will the other employees." She reminded him.

"I know honey but let me talk to her first. And after that maybe we can come to some kind of agreement about our divorce."

"Honestly Jack. Do you think she will do something? She will probably just try to scare me but I don't see her as someone who will actually hurt someone else."

That was true, Vicky was mostly all talk. She had never intentionally hurt anyone physically. "Okay but I will give Jason permission to let you come home at anytime you feel like it. Or if you or he thinks you need to leave. Deal?"

She nodded her head closing their deal with a kiss.

They walked out into the beautiful night. The weather was nice for a fall night. A light sweater was all you needed. "Thank you for loving me Jack."

"I would have to be crazy not too." He smiled as he lean in to kiss her good night. The kiss was soft and sweet. Jack pulled her petit body against his as she ran her fingers through his light-colored hair. The taste of chocolate on their lips only made the kiss that more delicious. At the touch of Jack's hand sliding down her back Janet let out a small moan making Jack tighten his grip a bit more. His tongue slightly entered her mouth only to tease her once again. When they finally parted Jack whisper goodnight and made his way towards his car. He opened the black shinny door and with a helplessly in love look on his face, he stood there staring at Janet.

"What?" She looked around, "What is it?"

"Nothing. It's just …you are so beautiful." He said with a love look expression on those azure eyes that made Janet shiver. She could feel him penetrating her soul. "One last kiss?" He begged puckering up his lips.

"What?" Janet laughed teasing him as she enjoyed the moment. "One last what?"

"Kiss." He said making kissing noises with his lips.

She laughed uncontrollably at the cute sad puppy face he was making. She giggled as she blew him a kiss. He reached over and acted as if he had actually caught something in his hand, he placed the kiss in pocket, "I'll save that for later." He winked and gave her a dashing smile that made Janet's legs turn to jello.