Chapter 7 - Tyler

Jack was getting impatient. The party was going to be starting in one hour and it would take at least a 45 minute drive to the beach. "Elizabeth, for god's sake hurry up!" He yelled from the front room and turned around when she came out of the bathroom. He had seen a lot of beautiful women before but none that looked so beautiful and innocent at the same time.

He wasn't going to let her know the effect she was having on him however. "Ready?"

Elizabeth took her purse off the table and checked it's contents. "Yes."

Waiting downstairs for them was the limosine and Elizabeth didn't protest when Jack opened the door for her.

On the way to the party there was too much traffic and the limo got stuck in a traffic jam.

"Well, it will probably be a little longer than expected." Jack said, leaning back and loosening his tie.

Elizabeth continued to look out the tinted windows at other cars. "How long will we be staying?" She asked, playing with the bracelet she got to go along with the dress.

"As long as it takes, hopefully only a couple hours. I don't want to stay longer then I need to. Incase you can't tell, I don't like these people that much." He added and leaned back, taking a bottle of scotch from the mini bar. Elizabeth watched as he poured himself a glass and then took a small sip.

Jack felt her eyes on him and he looked at her. "Do you want some?"

Her face turned an adorable shade of pink before her gaze returned to the window. "No thank you."

He took another drink, sucked his teeth, and admired her profile. She had a very soft, almost fragile looking face. Her small, delicate nose hovered over her full red lips. Jack took a deep breath and shifted around in his seat, turning his mind to more, unpleasent matters.

Elizabeth kept her gaze away from her kidnapper the rest of the ride to the party, her mind was set fully on wondering how and when she would try to escape. Thinking back to the night she was taken she remembered thinking about her Will and what he must be going through. When they arrived at the party she took a deep breath to settle her stomach and Jack fixed his tie before the driver opened his door and Elizabeth scooted toward him and followed him out.

"Jack my boy, how are you?" Elizabeth watched as an older man came up to them and shook Jack's hand. "Well who is this lovely lady?"

Elizabeth relaxed a little as Jack's arm snaked around her waist. "This is my wife, Elizabeth."

The man took her hand in his and brought it to his lips. "Elizabeth. That's a beautiful name."

Resisting the urge to smak the man across the face she forced a smile. "Thank you Mr.?"

"Just call me Norman, darling."

Jack instictively pulled her closer to him. "Please excuse us."

"What's the matter Jack? Not one of your criminal buddies?" Elizabeth asked, a smug look on her face. That quickly vanished however when Jack pulled her down a hall and pushed her up against the wall. For a moment she thought he was going to kiss her.

"No he's not one of my buddies, and there are some people you don't want to get on the bad side of, he's one of them."

His eyes were so intense and serious she wanted to cower away. "I'm sorry."

Jack let go of her arm at the sound of her small voice. His face softened and he ran a hand through his hair. "Don't apologize. I shouldn't have been so," He paused to think of the right word. "hostile."

Elizabeth unconsciously rubbed her arm. "Don't worry about it. I should have known better. This is probably serious."

His eyes lost some of their steely hate and he managed a smile at her. "We can have a little fun."

What she thought before she should have been expecting then. His lips were on her, not hard and demanding, but soft and light. He pulled away. It wasn't a real kiss, more like touching lips. He didn't press them together, didn't give her the chance to open her mouth to him. It was nothing.

"If I wasn't afraid of you, I'd smack you across the face."

POTC

"If I wasn't afraid of you, I'd smack you across the face."

The words almost didn't register, and did only when she walked away. She was afraid of him? Not scared or suspisious. Hell, he hadn't meant to make her afraid. All he wanted to do was let her know she wasn't about to walk out of here. Not with the information she had in her mind. He would make her forget he was the bad guy, and her reaction to his kiss made it all the easier.

He followed her when she stopped, right before the dance hall.

"What's the matter?" He asked and she broke her obvious stare.

"Who is that?" She asked, pointing to a tall man standing next to Marianne.

Jack didn't even have to look to know who it was that had caught her attention.

"That's Marianne's brother, Tyler."

Elizabeth's eyes widened. No wonder he and Jack didn't get along too well. Tyler looked to be about 6'5'' with dark hair and a lean body. When he turned around she gasped, he was a god. His face was flawless and eveything about him oozed sex appeal.

"Don't stare Elizabeth." Jack said into her ear. She had a small smile on her face as she looked around.

"I'm sorry darling." She said and giggled.

Jack linked their arms together and lead her away from Tyler's eyesight.

"Jack?"

'Shit.' He thought to himself. 'Not fast enough.'

Putting on a fake smile he turned around, Elizabeth still on his arm. "Tyler, I wasn't expecting you to be here." He said and wanted to take a punch at him that he greatly deserved.

"I was invited by a mutual friend of ours." He said and looked at Elizabeth. "And you must be his girl of the evening. Why don't you leave shorty here and come be with a real man."

The entire conversation was quiet so not to attract unwanted attention. Elizabeth could feel the heat start to roll off Jack in barrels. She didn't want to deal with an angry criminal all night.

"I am with a real man Mr. weel, whoever you are. And I am not some girl he picked up for the night. I'm his wife."

Tyler seemed amused at the whole situation and he looked at their hands. Matching rings.

"Congradulations Sparrow, never thought you had it in you? Where are the children?"

Jack's hand tightened on Elizabeth's arm almost painfully and she saw the way the men looked at each other when children were mentioned.

"We don't have any yet." She said, wanting to break the pulse of hate. "We will someday."

"If he can get you pregnant." Tyler said and left, following after a cute blonde girl. Jack started to pull her away from that spot. When she dared a look at his face she was shocked to find it completely neutral. What an actor.

What shocked her even more was when he walked up to a man dressed in a white tux and extended his hand.

"Jack, well long time no see. After you and Marianne had that messy break up I was sure you wouldn't be around anymore."

"Yes well, that break up was easy to get over, even more so after I found her." He said and introduced Elizabeth as his wife.

"I can understand now Jack. Good job my boy. Now business. How are the records?"

"In the same condition as you left them with me. No worries."

The man smiled and patted Jack on the shoulder. "Good man."

The party seemed to go on forever until Jack told her she was to go with the other wives in one room while the men went into the other. He gave her a soft kiss on the cheek and she noticed the other couples weren't very affectionate either.

"Well I'm glad Jack finally got his hands on a nice girl like you Elizabeth." One of the women told her as they went to sit down on the couch across from the fireplace.

"Thank you very much."

"You know, some women wouldn't even look at him after knowing what he does. What he did do. I suppose there's the exception."

Elizabeth just smiled and sat back with her drink that seemed to appear out of no where. "I look at the man, not who he wants others to see."

"Hmmm. So tell me, which version have you heard about him and the lovely Marianne? The cheating by Jack or Marianne?"

Elizabeth almost choked on her drink. "Marianne cheated?"

The woman nodded. "Eveyone knows it. Except her mother of cource, and the rest of her family. She got pregnant too. By her second cousin."

This time she did choke on her drink. "Her cousin?"

"Yep. Jack thought it was his, he found out the truth, after she aborted it.That boy loved that child like his own. I have no doubt he would have raised it as his own. Sadly, they called off the wedding claiming it was Jack with the unfaithful heart."

Elizabeth felt bad for him. His fiance killed her baby for no reason.

"Elizabeth darling?"

Jack had poped his head in the room and smiled at the other women. "We need to be going. Big day tomorrow."

TBC