As the royal wedding inched closer, the capital became more and more crowded. Singers, dancers, tailors and cooks filled the inns of King's Landing while more nobles, mostly Lannisters and Tyrells and their bannermen, occupied the empty rooms of the Red Keep. It became nearly impossible for Jacqueline to avoid conversations with lords and ladies she had never met before. They all made certain to tell her what a good man and good king Robert had been. She didn't buy nor understand their flattery. Calling Robert a good man was questionable and calling him a good king even more so. The only thing Robert was good at was killing things, for awhile at least. Still, hiding herself away in the solitude of her own small apartment no longer appealed to her.

Instead, Jacqueline spent most of her time Oberyn and Ellaria. They would invite her to dine with them or sometimes they would walk the streets of King's Landing together. Most of the time she would lounge in the garden's with Ellaria as Oberyn wrote letters home to Dorne. They told her about Dorne and Sunspear as well as stories about their families, Prince Doran and Oberyn's eight daughters. Still, Jacqueline never returned to the brothel. An invitation was always extended to her, but Jacqueline would always decline, preferring some alone time within the quiet walls of her own room.

A kind of peace and contentment had found its way into Jacqueline's life. Joffrey and Cersei were too busy with wedding obligations to torment her and Sansa had taken her advice and befriended the would-be queen; she often saw the two wandering the gardens together followed closely by a half dozen or so ladies in waiting and handmaids. Jacqueline herself had dismissed her own handmaid, not interested in her every move being so easily communicated to Cersei Lannister. She was able to take care of herself, Jacqueline stated with the young woman had protested her dismissal. And if she had trouble with anything, Ellaria was more than happy to help.

The prince of Dorne's paramour had became something of an older sister to Jacqueline, a relationship she had not had since her septa. Ellaria had insisted that she allow her to have a few new dresses made for Jacqueline. "A sister of kings should dress like one," she had explained. Jacqueline wasn't use to the attention but she welcomed it nonetheless. When she was younger, she had hoped Cersei would become a sister to her but those dreams were soon quashed once Cersei realized Robert would not be a good husband to her. Any malevolence she felt towards her husband, the queen extended to the rest of his family, even young Jacqueline who could barely brush her own hair at the time. But Jaime Lannister had treated her differently. Jaime had never chided or condescend her, even as a child. Sometimes he would mock or joke at her expensive, but it was never in a malicious manner. Maybe because it would have been bad form for a member of the Kingsguard to be rude to the King's sister, or maybe because Jacqueline was one of the few people in the capitol who didn't see him as the Kingslayer. She had been too young to understand the meaning of such a word or the implications of Jaime's actions. Whatever the reasons, Jacqueline had seen Jaime Lannister as, not a quite a friend, but a kind face at the very least. And that was before she had given him her maidenhead.

When she was alone, the Kingslayer was all Jacqueline would think about. His whereabouts seemed to be unknown. Robb Stark's army had been destroyed and any prisoners should have been freed by now. The last time she had seen him, covered in dirt and chained, the man had kissed her. Robb had asked if she loved him and Jacqueline had feigned ignorance. She loved Jaime Lannister and he had showed physical affection for her. But none of the mattered now. She would be leaving for Dorne in a few weeks, away from the Lannisters. She wondered if he was even still alive, if she would ever seen him again. But when Jacqueline did, she barely recognized him.

She had been wandering the Red Keep, headed to the gardens, when she spotted him. He resembled a ghost more than a Lannister. His name got caught in her throat. He was dressed in rags, hair long and tangled, covered in dirt as he quickly darted down the corridor, neither seeing or hearing her. Towards Cersei's apartments. Jacqueline had to physically stop herself from following, telling herself that it wasn't him, that Jaime Lannister hadn't returned to King's Landing.

Jacqueline waited. Two days went by and the ghost had not reappeared. But it was him. The rumors had confirmed it. The rumors also said he had lost his right hand. His sword hand. No one mentioned how. They also said he would be returning to the Kingsguard, despite his injury. She waited another day before climbing the steps of the White Tower. If anyone asked, she wanted to apologize to Jaime, for her failure to ransom his freedom. But she wanted to see him, to know if her eyes had been lying to her.

When his green eyes met her own blue ones, Jacqueline felt the strength leave her legs. He stood in the doorway, clean with his blonde hair trimmed short, dressed in the white tunic and breeches of the Kingsguard. With a deep breath, Jacqueline found her voice. "I know this is inappropriate but - " A hand reached out and pulled her inside by the waist and the door slammed close behind them. She felt a familiar hand cup her face and no more words were exchanged before Jaime Lannister put his lips to hers.

It was rougher than last time, but Jacqueline didn't mind. Without breaking the kiss, the Kingslayer turned her around, setting her atop the long table meant for meetings of the Kingsguard. Jacqueline pulled her own skirts up as Jaime slid a hand between her thighs. She liked how warm he felt against her and she wanted more as Jaime lifted her right leg higher to rest atop his shoulder, pulling her closer to the edge of the table. The motion momentarily separated Jaime's lips from her own and Jacqueline wanted to complain until she felt Jaime push inside her. Jacqueline bit her lip to keep from being too loud as a familiar pain quickly disappeared to be replaced by a pleasure that grew each time Jaime moved inside her. When he leaned down to resume their kiss, causing Jacqueline's legs to spread further apart, she found herself hiding her breathless moans between his lips. The tension inside her grew unbearable when Jaime increased the pace and strength of his movements, causing her to dig her nails into Jaime's white tunic. If there was an edge, Jacqueline was certain she had been pushed over it numerous times before she felt the Kingslayer finish inside her.

She opened her eyes when she felt his hips still. Forehead resting against her own, his own eyes were closed as he tried to slow his breathing. Jacqueline couldn't help but wonder what he was thinking. Did he wish she was Cersei? And did Jacqueline really care if he did? Jaime was real, he was here. With her. And that was all she cared about at the moment. If he wanted Cersei, he could have Cersei. She was just a short walk away. She thought as Jaime kissed her once more.

A minute passed as their breathing returned to normal. Ser Jaime didn't pull out and instead continued to kiss her. She ran a hand over his hair which was shorter than the last time they did this. So much more had changed since then too. She wondered if he noticed the changes. Suddenly, their bodies separated and Jaime fixed his trousers. Jacqueline went about correcting her own clothes, unhappy about the abrupt change of positions. After making sure she was proper, Jacqueline returned her gaze to Jaime who had a small smile on his own face as he returned her look. Her offered her a hand to help her off the table. It was then that Jacqueline realized that the other rumor had been true as well. Where his right hand should have been was a golden one instead. Jacqueline didn't let her eyes linger. She didn't care if Jaime could swing a sword or not. If he noticed where her attention had briefly been pulled, he didn't acknowledge it.

"Why are you wearing these things?" He asked softly as he raised his good hand to the buttons of her collar.

She quickly moved her hand atop his to keep him from unfastening her collar and seeing her neck. "Don't." Her voice was quiet but firm. The bruises had finally disappeared but the cuts had simply healed over to leave behind a ring of scars. They were small but numerous and the way they circled her neck made it easy to guess the nature in which they created. It wasn't the scars that made her uncomfortable, it was the way people stared at them. She had tried to wear dresses with a lower neckline but the newly arrived nobles wouldn't stop staring at the ringlet of scars that littered the pale skin of her neck.

Her defiance only sparked his concern, or perhaps curiosity. Jacqueline didn't fight back when Jaime pushed her hand away and began on the buttons. Instead of looking him in the eyes, she stared at the space behind his head as Jaime moved his warm hand over the tiny scars. Normally, such contact would make Jacqueline's stomach twist with desire but now her stomach twisted with anger and hate. Anger at the son Jaime had created. The hate was mostly directed at herself for forgetting what Jaime had created. And with whom. After a moment Jaime asked, "What happened?" His voice was quiet and soft, as if he was concerned for her.

Tears began to build up in her eyes as she pondered the best way to answer his question. Her love for Jaime had made her blind to reality. She had hoped they could be together. But she had forgotten about Cersei. She had always viewed their relationship in the past tense. But Jaime was her brother and the father of her children. His relationship with the woman who possibly had a hand in Robert's death would always be in the present. And even if that wasn't the case, Jaime was still a member of the Kingsguard and Jacqueline was still a barren woman. Their relationship would never be more than it was now; a secret affair.

But Jaime was waiting for an answer. "I don't think Joffrey likes me very much." She said still avoiding his eyes. Before he could respond, Jacqueline buttoned her collar and made for the door. "I shouldn't have come here. I don't know what I was thinking." Confused by the abrupt change in her demeanor, Jaime didn't stop Jacqueline from leaving. Instead, he watched the Baratheon woman walk away from him for a third time.

-Author's Note-

Eights months later. I'm not going to apologize for the delays in updating. That's just the way it is. I figured I would give y'all a Jaime/Jaks reunion since it's been so long since I've written a chapter with both of them together. Thanks for sticking with me!