Hey! Here it finally is. Kinda. Not exactly what everyone's waiting for, but at least it's the beginning. Thank you again for your patience. I have no idea who all's reading this, but if it's something you're enjoying, then I'm glad. To those of of you who take the time to say 'I read it and liked it': THANK YOU! You make my day!
Too Good To Be True
By: Mariel
Chapter 26
Terry had been sitting in Jack's office for about thirty minutes when a knock on the door announced Janice's unexpected arrival.
Jack rose and walked towards her. "This is a surprise!" he said, as they kissed each other on the cheek. "What brings you here?" He resisted the urge to slide a knowing glance in Terry's direction.
Janice smiled. "I thought I'd drop by on the off-chance you're available for lunch." Looking over at Terry, she added, "And I suppose your sidekick is welcome to come, too."
Terry raised an eyebrow, his eyes obviously enjoying looking at her. In a not-terribly-authentic Texan drawl, he said, "Why thank you, ma'am… Ah'd be plum honoured."
Jack looked on, enjoying seeing the two of them happy. Whatever had been said on the phone last night had obviously been of a positive nature.
"Why don't you two go without me?" he suggested.
Both turned towards him to protest.
"Nah. Come. Who will I make the butt of my jokes if you're not with us?" Terry asked with a grin.
"And I want to talk to you about Saturday," Janice said. She looked at Terry with a warm smile and gestured. "If you're worried about our not seeing one another enough, fear not. We're going out this evening and I'm taking him to the airport tomorrow. And he thinks he'll be back in New York soon. We'll have plenty of time," she said confidently.
Jack looked at the two of them. Janice was glowing, and Terry looked like the cat who had swallowed the cream. Obviously the phone call had done more than he could have hoped; both of them looked and sounded remarkably sure of themselves. Knowing better than to comment, however, he frowned and turned towards Terry. "You're leaving tomorrow?"
"I've got the last flight out."
"But I assume you'll be back in town as soon as you can drum up an excuse."
Terry inclined his head and grinned. "You assume correctly. Not that I have to look hard for an excuse. You know I'm in town pretty often, anyways. New York: Murder Central," he said, gesturing with his hands. "There's always the chance one of them is part of a series. Ya gotta love it."
Jack grunted. Thinking about the time, he said, "If we're going to eat, we should probably go soon." Looking at Janice, he asked, "Do you have any particular place in mind?"
Before she could reply, Terry glanced at his watch and said, "Damn. I have someone I need to talk to before I go anywhere." He looked at his two friends and suggested, "Why don't you tell me where you're going, and I'll meet you there?"
Jack's phone prevented him from responding. Answering its shrill ring, he listened a moment, then said, "One moment, please," and covered the receiver. "I have to take this. Janice, why don't you walk Terry to the elevator and tell him where to meet us? By the time you're back, I should be finished here, okay?"
Janice smiled. "Righto."
Terry rose and waved for Janice to precede him out the door. Watching them go, Jack allowed himself a brief second of satisfaction before turning his thoughts back to his caller.
At the elevator, Terry pushed the 'down' button and then turned to Janice. "So, everything's all set?"
"All set?" she asked.
"Yeah. You know: Operation: Romance."
She grinned. "I believe so. It's hard to say. At least I'm putting him in a situation where maybe they'll have the chance to talk. God knows why the silly woman hasn't made a move on him; but knowing Jack, I suppose he's been falling all over himself proving that he doesn't still care. And she may have decided that if they started anything again, it would get Jack in too much trouble because of the supervisory agent thing."
"A small hurdle that doesn't worry you at all, of course," Terry observed dryly.
"Not at all," she agreed. "I can understand the reasons behind the rule, but it can't always apply, can it? And if it does, they'll simply have to figure out what to do about it once they're back together again. Remember: my job is simply to get Jack back with the woman he loves," Janice said firmly. "It'll be their job to sort out what happens next!" She paused, then looked up at him and said a little wistfully, "But I wish you could be there, too."
Terry nodded. "It would be fun, but I can't see it happening. Not this time. Duty calls, and all that." He smiled at her fondly. Reaching over, he moved a strand of hair off her brow. "I'll miss you, and all your machinations."
She laughed. "Is this the pot calling the kettle black? It's your insistance that Samantha is the right one for him that got us to this point, you know." Her smile faltered and she looked into his eyes. Changing topic completely, she admitted, "I can't believe- I mean- " She sighed and gestured with her hands. "I'm still adjusting to this. I hate that you're going away so soon. But I'm very glad we have until tomorrow."
A long finger touched her lightly on the end of her nose. "Me, too."
"Funny how it took Jack fifteen minutes of conversation to make me see sense, and we have to try so hard to get his life straightened out," she noted.
"I think the dance will do it," Terry said confidently. "He needs to see Samantha out of context and in a relaxed atmosphere. And he needs to figure out for himself that maybe, just maybe, all is not well with her and Martin." He smiled. "Holding her in his arms will help, too. Once he's done that," he assured her, "he's a gonner."
She smiled. "You didn't need that with me."
"I'm not Jack."
She lifted a hand to touch his cheek. "No, you're certainly not. But I like you anyways."
"Thank God."
They stared at one another, grinning foolishly.
The elevator door chimed open but Terry ignored it, and after a pause, it closed with a sigh and continued on its way. Terry waited a beat, then pushed the 'down' button again.
"I very much want to see Jack happy before I go," she said.
"So that leaves you a few more weeks, if this doesn't work."
"It had better work; I don't know what else I could try, short of hitting him over the head with something hard," she said. "I don't understand why it's so difficult to get him to where he's happy. That's all I'm asking for; it shouldn't be too much to ask."
"He'll be happy with Samantha. He needs her," Terry said. "I think they need each other."
"You're sure?" she asked.
He looked at her, wondering at this sudden hint of doubt. "I'm as sure as I can be. Nothing in life's guaranteed," he reminded her, unwittingly echoing Jack's earlier words, "but I do know that what I've seen between them is pretty impressive." He shrugged his shoulders and smiled at her, his hazel eyes gleaming. "Nothing compared to us, mind you, but it looked good."
She smiled. She felt like a teenager, and wished she could reach up and put her arms around his neck. Knowing that now was neither the time nor the place, however, she merely rested a hand on his plaid-shirted chest. "Will you be busy after lunch?" she asked.
"That, my dear, depends upon you."
They both smiled, loving that they were on the same wavelength. The evening was too far away.
They were both reluctant to part, and may have stood there for some time more, but the elevator door pinged open again, and so Terry reluctantly saluted a 'so long' and stepped inside the waiting car. Holding the door, he impulsively leaned out and kissed her quickly on the lips, before stepping inside and pressing the button for the twelfth floor.
They smiled at one another until the elevator doors began to slide closed. Then Terry started, and thrust his hands out to stop them once again. "Where are we doing lunch?" he asked.
Janice laughed. "Malinche's. I really liked it there."
Terry nodded. Letting his arm drop, he stepped back. "See you there."
Finally, the doors closed.
Neither noticed that a pair of very concerned eyes had watched them. For the second time.
-XXX-
Fighting the urge to waylay her and give her a piece of her mind, Samantha watched Janice return to Jack's office. A few minutes later, she watched as the other woman left with Jack, smiling up at him as though everything in life were perfect.
When she saw the fondness in Jack's eyes when he looked at Janice, Samantha closed her own. She was going to have to tell him. She didn't know what he had planned for the future with that woman, but she had to stop him from getting terribly hurt.
-XXX-
Jack pulled at his bowtie for the twelfth time and, with a snort of disgust, decided to give up. Making a face at himself in the bathroom mirror, he yelled, "Ja-nice!"
Janice appeared within seconds. Looking absolutely stunning in a floor-length, dark hunter green off-the-shoulder creation by some designer Jack had already forgotten the name of, she stood at the bathroom door with a hand on one hip. Regarding him with a smile, her eyes glittered as brightly as the cascade of jewels hanging around her slender neck. She was obviously aware of, and amused by, his dilemma. "Still haven't managed it?" she asked.
Jack didn't turn around. Eying her in the mirror, he protested, "It's defective!" To demonstrate, he mangled the length of silk and then let the two ends flop onto his chest. "I've never had this problem before," he groused.
"You're a bloody liar," she accused amicably. Stepping towards him, she took him by the shoulders and turned him around to face her. "Remember the Governor's Ball you escorted me to in '93? You couldn't tie a bowtie then, either."
Jack grunted. "I was young and nervous back then."
Busy manipulating the recalcitrant piece of material into a perfect bow, Janice didn't respond. Finally, she stood back, her faint frown of concentration fading as she viewed her handiwork. She nodded in satisfaction. "Perfect. Sometimes I forget just how good I am!" she said, the corners of her eyes crinkling as she smiled. Tapping him lightly on his shoulder, she said, "Now, if you'll excuse me, love, I'd like to finish getting myself ready…unless," she added saucily, "you need help with tying your shoes, as well…?"
"Watch it," he growled.
"No? Then I'll leave you to admire yourself in the looking glass," she said with a grin. Gathering her skirts around her, she waltzed out of the bathroom.
He shook his head at her high spirits. She'd been giddy since she and Terry had finally sorted things out. They'd spent every minute of Terry's last twenty-four hours in New York together, and he knew she was eagerly awaiting his return. Waiting until she disappeared from view, he turned to examine the results of her efforts. She'd done a good job. Smoothing the front of his starched shirt, he decided he looked passable. Almost good, even. Touching the grey at his temples, he wondered if he should try the Grecian Formula thing, then smiled at the conceit. The world would have to take him just the way he was.
He turned away from his reflection and headed towards his bedroom, his mind on the evening in front of him. He was looking forward to it, though he expected that there would be parts of it that would be difficult for him. A significant part of that difficulty would be in watching Samantha with Martin. He knew that they were likely good together, and had prided himself on his adjustment to their being together… but he couldn't help but feel sad for what he had lost. He sighed. Life would go on, and he would survive.
Taking his tuxedo jacket off its hanger, he caught sight of the time on his bedside table's clock. Time to go.
-XXX-
The hotel was awash with beautifully gowned women and their tuxedoed escorts. Yellow light from the crystal chandeliers overhead cast a golden glow on everything and everyone, mellowing mood and atmosphere. Music wafted on air carrying the heavy scent of flowers used to decorate every available tabletop and pillar.
"They've done the place up beautifully!" Janice exclaimed. Looking about for someone to take her wrap, she smiled as she handed it over to an attendant. Jack collected the receipt ticket and placed it in his pocket…
…Only to look up and find that Janice had already moved part way across the floor and was greeting someone he recognised only by having often seen their picture in the newspapers. He sighed as she turned and gestured for him to join them. She was on the job already.
-XXX-
With Janice apparently needing to speak with everyone she passed, it took them almost thirty minutes to reach the dining room, and another ten to reach their table. By that point, Jack had been introduced and spoken to more 'names', as his father called them, than he had in the past two years. Janice, of course, had felt comfortable with all of them, and that comfort had spread to him. Surprised, he realized he was enjoying himself.
Or was until he saw who waited for them at the table.
Samantha and Martin stood together beside one of the beautifully clothed and decorated dinner tables, chatting with another couple Jack didn't recognise. Martin was dressed in a perfectly tailored tuxedo that Jack guessed was his own. What he truly concentrated on, however, was Samantha. He had always liked her in black and had thought that just about any colour suited her, but tonight, she took his breath away. She wore a strapless gown in a brilliant red. Dense red beadwork, with touches of gold and black, crafted a pattern across the bodice and down to her waist, where her gown began to soften until, by the time the skirt came to her ankles, the beadwork was finished, and only gauzy, light-as-the-air material brushed her slender ankles.
Golden chandelier earrings swinging, she turned, as though sensing his gaze, and stopped mid-laugh.
Martin, noticing her glance, followed it. His mouth tightened when he saw the man who had made her falter. The tuxedo transformed his boss into a casually urbane-looking gentleman, not at all in keeping with his generally rather ordinary black-suited appearance. It was the look in Jack's eyes as he gazed at the woman who stood staring back at him, however, that made Martin clear his throat in irritation.
As Jack and Samantha silently continued to concentrate on one another, Martin's growing ire with Samantha's reaction went unnoticed.
Except, of course, by Janice. Amused, she tapped Jack on the arm. "This is our table," she said. "Is there any particular place you want to sit? They did a lovely job on the flower arrangements, don't you think?"
Jack turned to her, his eyes still vague. "Yes. Lovely." Looking as though he were just bringing his head out of water to catch his breath, he focussed on her words and added, "Anywhere's fine." Then, recovering enough to mind his manners, he nodded a greeting to Martin and Samantha. "Good to see you here," he said.
"Thanks," Martin replied. His smile not quite reaching his eyes, he nodded briefly at Janice, then turned back to the couple with him.
Trying to keep his eyes off Samantha, Jack made small talk with Janice. Finally, he looked at his watch and said, "I'm surprised Vivian and Marcus aren't here yet."
Turning from saying goodbye to his friends, Martin pulled out a chair for Samantha, and then said, "They said they'd be here by the time the appetizers are served. Marcus was running late."
"What about Danny? Has he arrived?"
Her eyes still taking in Jack's appearance, Samantha nodded. Finding her voice, she said, "He stopped by with his date – he brought Katie. Mason, I think her last name is. Do you remember her? She was involved in the Mason case - it was her mother who was arrested for that kidnapping affair." She smiled. "I've spoken to her a few times since then, and she seems very nice. Danny is very taken with her, I think. Maybe we should raz him a bit on Monday. This could be something serious!" Realising she wasn't really answering the question, she finished by saying, "Anyways, they went off to say hello to some people she knows."
She looked down at her hands nervously. She was used to seeing Jack in dark suits, but seeing him in a perfectly cut tuxedo was a whole different thing. He exuded a solid sense of maleness, and the look in his eye when he regarded her...it took her breath away, and made her think thoughts that made her insides tremble.
Jack nodded. He remembered Katie and the case - and remembered that Danny had known her from his high school days. They'd been close then; perhaps they were close again. While he made a mental note to pay attention to them tonight in order to find out, a young woman walked to a microphone and requested that people please make their way to their tables; dinner was soon to begin.
Settling into her chair, Samantha kept her eyes averted from Jack and eyed Janice, instead. The woman looked elegant and beautiful, and very, very happy. Too happy, considering what she was doing behind Jack's back, she thought fiercely. Jack had been away at meetings all day on Friday, so she hadn't had the opportunity to speak with him. She wondered if she could wrangle the opportunity to do so tonight. Providing, of course, she got up the courage to say something.
Her eyes drifted towards Jack. When their eyes collided, she felt her knees weaken and her pulse quicken.
She wondered if he would remember their earlier conversation and ask her to dance…
And sent a little prayer up that he did.
End
Chapter 26