Entwined Together

Summery: Jack and Kate meet one night in a bar, one going through a divorce, the other just killed her father. Somehow their lives become entwined, and they discover they aren't as different as they thought. Takes place as if there wasn't a crash.

Chapter Three: Why Can't You Stay?

XXX

The sound of angry voices woke Kate up the next morning. At first she had forgotten where she was and thought for one horrible moment that she had finally been caught was in prison. But then she looked at her surroundings and breathed a sigh of relief. She was still at Jack's house.

"…this is still my house…!" an unfamiliar woman's voice carried upstairs.

"She needed a place to stay!" Jack retorted, matching the woman's angry tone.

"And that justifies letting a total stranger into our house? Jack, you don't know anything about her!" the woman pleaded, but Kate could hear the disgust as well.

"Sarah, please don't…"

Kate could hear footsteps coming up the stairs, and just knew what was going to happen next. And she was right as she watched the door to her temporary room burst open, the woman from Jack's wedding picture standing in front of her, fuming. She was looking at Kate with an expression of utmost hate and, looking down, she realized why.

She was still wearing Jack's t-shirt, and nothing else. She could feel herself blush watching the woman she now knew was Sarah.

Behind Sarah, Jack was just standing in the hallway, watching the scene in front of him unfold.

"I-I'm sorry…" Kate managed to get out, and Jack watched with limited view as she turned her back on Sarah, walking to the corner where she had stored the clothes she had worn yesterday.

Luckily, Sarah walked out of the room, slamming the door shut behind her. "You had no right to do that!" Jack snapped as they went back downstairs.

Sarah whipped around so fast that her hair brushed Jack's face. "And you had no right bringing her here without consulting me! It's still my damn house too!" she snarled.

Jack followed her downstairs, and could only watch as the woman gathered her things in a mad attempt to get away. "Call me later, when she's out of here!" she ordered, almost daring him to say something else.

Jack didn't show any signs of hearing her, but Sarah knew that he had heard her. Without another word she practically threw herself out the door, and Jack admitted to himself that he wasn't sorry to see her go. Again.

Why the hell was she so upset that he had let a woman stay the night? After all, wasn't she the one who cheated on him? He walked past the table with the pictures and went back upstairs, desperate to try to explain to Kate just what had happened. As if she couldn't have guessed just by listening to them.

He knocked on Kate's door softly as a warning to her that he was about to come in. "Kate?" he let out gently.

He opened the door a crack, ready for her to snap at him that she was changing and that he needed to get out. But she didn't. Instead he saw her madly running her fingers through her hair in an attempt to brush it and make it look more manageable.

"Kate, she…"

"Don't. I understand. I mean, she's still your wife, it's still her house. I had no right imposing on you," Kate brushed it away as though it were nothing. As though it was her fault.

"You aren't imposing. Don't ever think that. You needed a place to stay, and I had a place. If she can't understand that, then it's her problem," Jack said desperately, hoping that Kate could see the truth in this.

It didn't look as though she heard him. "I should go," she muttered, though it was more to herself than to him.

"Go where?" Jack demanded.

When Kate didn't respond, Jack sighed, going for a different approach. "I made some coffee. Why don't you just stay for a few more hours, have some breakfast, and I'll drive you to wherever you're going," he offered, pleading with her.

"Okay," she agreed softly, and Jack almost wondered if he hadn't just imagined her saying that, but when he looked into her eyes, he knew she had said it.

Jack didn't bother to hide his smile. "Hope you like pancakes," he said with a smile, glad to watch the tension disappear.

Kate smiled. "I do," she assured him as they went downstairs and into the kitchen. She sat down in the same chair she had the previous night, somehow knowing that Jack would decline her help if she had offered it. He brought two empty plates to the table along with the butter and syrup, then went back for the stack of pancakes that sat on another plate.

He set them down in between them. "Help yourself. How do you like your coffee?" he asked as he went over to the pot.

"One cream, two sugars," she replied automatically. Jack came back with two mugs filled to the brim, then gathered himself some food. For a while they ate in silence, the only sound to be heard was the occasional clink of a fork hitting the plate.

Kate tried to eat as fast as she could without making Jack suspicious. He had been nothing but nice to her ever since she had practically set foot in that bar, coming to her defense, offering her a place to stay even though he didn't know her, cooking more of his food just so she could have some. She was starting to feel guilty.

That was why she couldn't stay longer than she already had. No matter how courteous he had been towards her, she knew that the second he saw her face staring back at him from one of those wanted posters that he wouldn't feel the same way. He'd do the right thing because he was a good person. Yeah, he might feel guilty about it, but he'd feel good about it too, because he would look at the situation, and feel like he had done her a favor.

"Kate?" Jack's voice jolted her from her reverie.

She didn't answer him. Instead she looked up and stared into his eyes.

For a minute Jack didn't reply. They only stared into each other's eyes, wanting what the other had. Both taking comfort in what the other offered. But Kate was the one to break away first.

"I should get going," she stated, no emotion in her voice.

Jack nodded slowly. "Alright. I'll drive you wherever you need to go," he offered, but Kate shook her head.

"No, I don't want to impose any more than I already have…"

"And I told you that you aren't imposing. You shouldn't have to walk, it's no big deal. What's the problem?" he asked, a hint of impatience could be heard in his voice.

Kate glared at him defiantly before looking away. "Okay."

Jack smiled, as if he had won a small victory, and took their empty plates to the sink so he could wash them later.

Kate downed the rest of her coffee, not caring if it burned her tongue and throat on the way down.

"Do you need some food for the road? Just in case…?" Jack let the question hang in the air, knowing she wouldn't agree.

"No, I have money. I can grab something later," Kate lied, standing up and walking out of the room in a clear sign that she was ready to leave.

Jack sighed in defeat. Why was it that he somehow knew she was lying? She didn't have money, and she sure as hell didn't have enough to buy enough to keep her healthy. He was worried about her, and hoped that he had showed that enough to get her to stay long enough to get her what she needed.

But Kate was a grown woman, and nothing he could say or do would convince her to stay with him until she could afford to leave him. He couldn't just force her to stay with him.

So he had no choice but to grab his car keys from the key rack he had built back when he had first purchased the house. He walked as slow as possible getting out to the car. Kate was standing by the passenger's side, her arms crossed, waiting for him to come out.

He unlocked the car without another word and they both got in. He started the car and drove away from his house, in the direction of the busy city of Los Angeles.

"So do you have any idea where you're going?" Jack asked gently, keeping his eyes on the road.

"I'm going to try to get a job. You know, in case things become more long-term," Kate replied, grateful for the conversation.

"I can check you into a hotel. Not the moldy, dirty ones, but a good one, with a clean shower and one with room service," Jack offered.

"No, really…"

"I can take the bill. I insist. Look, if you aren't going to stay with me, then at least let me make it so I don't have to worry about you," he admitted, not exactly sure why he had said that.

But he was glad he did. "I'll pay you back," she insisted, turning to look at him as though challenging him to say no to that.

But, to her surprise, he nodded. "That's fine. But take your time. I'm not going anywhere," he replied, giving her a half smile with his eyes still on the road.

Kate nodded. "Okay."

They let the music fill the silence, and it wasn't until Jack pulled into the lot of an Embassy Suites that they spoke up again. "Well, let's do this," Jack said a little coldly, making Kate turn to look at him, but he was out of the car before she could even turn around.

He was already heading into the lobby, walking a little fast, and Kate had to job to keep up with him. The man behind the counter smiled up at them. "Hello, welcome to Embassy Suites. What can I do for you today?"

"I need a room," Jack said obviously.

The man nodded. "Do you have a reservation?"

"No."

The man nodded, and typed into his computer, looking for a spare room. Jack held his breath, almost hoping that the man would tell them that they didn't have anything, but he knew that if that was the case that she would insist upon going somewhere else.

But, luckily, the man nodded. "What's the name, sir?"

"Kate…," he said, but realized that he didn't know her last name.

"Ryan," he jumped in, not wanting to make this man apprehensive, though feeling slightly guilty about lying to Jack. But there was always the chance that this man recognized her, or that the authorities came in here and questioned the employees about whether she was here or not.

But the man just nodded. "Okay, Miss Ryan. You'll be staying in room 430. Here's your key. Do you need anything else?"

Jack and Kate both shook their heads. "No. Thank you," Jack said, then handed Kate her key, along with something else.

"Here's my card. It has my office number as well as my home number, plus the address to the hospital. If you need anything, you call. Okay?"

"Okay, dad," Kate joked, but looking into his worried eyes, knew that it wasn't the right time.

"Promise me!" Jack pleaded, sounding on the verge of tears.

Kate's smile disappeared. "I promise," she said, taking the card.

Her words didn't seem to make Jack's worry go away. "Well, bye Kate. And good luck," he said, holding out his right hand as a gesture that he was sincerely sorry to see her go.

Kate accepted the hand, and they shook. It had been so long since a man had cared this much about her, that she didn't know how to deal with it, other than to smile and nod, not wanting to look into Jack's eyes anymore, because now it made her want to break down right in front of him.

They reluctantly let go, and without another word, Jack bolted from the lobby, leaving Kate where she was.

A single tear fell down her cheek as she turned to the elevators, stuffing the card into her pocket, Jack's face all too clear in her mind.

XXX

A/N: Do not worry, there is still much more to come! And, on a bad note, I'm sorry to say that we have not seen the last of Sarah.

Thanks to jimmy-barnes-13, simp, Orlando-crazy, CaughtInTheMoment, BrazilianJaterGirl, Shavanda, helaluvE, Peppy87, and Flight815survivor for reviewing. Y'all make my day! Please let me know what you think of this chappie!