A/N: For beautywithin22 who requested a story following on from "Dead Man's Chest" where Michael helps Jackie finish off painting her flat. Just a little bit of silliness, but I hope you enjoy it.
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
That's Two You Owe Me
"This is what you were doing while you were on leave?" Michael asked, surveying the covered furniture, paint tins and assorted painting implements in disbelief.
"Yep," Jackie replied cheerfully.
"And this is what you want me to help you finish?" he added, turning to face her.
Jackie grinned, "Yep," she repeated in the same glib tone.
"I suppose I should have been suspicious when you told me to come in 'old clothes'," he conceded, shrugging out of his jacket to reveal a faded pair of jeans and an old shirt.
Jackie chuckled as she moved to open a paint tin, "Or asked more questions when I asked for your help."
"The price I pay for trusting you," he quipped, setting his jacket safely out of the way and coming to join her.
"Plus, I'll owe you one," she reminded him, pouring out some paint into a tray.
"I'll hold you to that," Michael promised as he accepted the tray and, grabbing a roller, headed to the opposite side of the room.
Jackie watched him go for a moment, smiling to herself as she saw him dutifully begin painting her walls. Still smiling, she picked up the paint tin and a brush before heading over to the ladder.
They worked in relative silence for the next couple of hours, each concentrating on their respective tasks. In fact, Jackie was so intent on painting the mouldings on the ceiling that she didn't notice that Michael was starting to get dangerously close to her ladder as he continued the paint the walls.
For his part, Michael was so focused on getting the paintwork even that he was completely unaware of where the ladder was.
Until he clipped the side of it with his shoulder.
Jackie yelped in surprise as the ladder wobbled underneath her, but she managed to stop herself from toppling off the side. Unfortunately, the same could not be said for the paint tin which slipped off the ladder's ledge before she could stop it.
Fortunately, the tin wasn't very full and there was relatively little spillage before it landed with an audible thud on the (mercifully covered) floor. Unfortunately, most of the paint that did spill landed on Michael, who only narrowly avoided being hit by the tin itself.
Jackie bit her lip to hide her amusement as she watched him assess the damage before slowly looking up at her.
"That's two you owe me," he said drily, wiping the paint off his face with the cuff of his shirt sleeve.
Jackie swallowed a giggle, "I'm sorry," she said sincerely.
Michael raised an eyebrow as he regarded her, "I'd be more inclined to believe you if you looked less liable to start laughing," he told her.
"I'm sorry," she repeated, losing the battle against her laughter.
Michael shook his head and gave a short, barking laugh of his own as he looked back down at his paint splattered clothing.
"I suppose it was only a matter of time before one of us ended up wearing the paint," he said ruefully, looking up at her with an amused half-smile. "Are you all right?" he asked after a moment, sobering slightly.
Jackie nodded, "I'm fine," she assured him, "I'll get you a washcloth," she added, making to climb down the ladder.
"Don't bother," Michael told her, stooping to pick up the paint tin, "I have a feeling that's not going to be the only paint-related accident today."
It was Jackie's turn to raise an eyebrow, "Is that so?"
Michael nodded, "I'd stay up that ladder for a bit if I were you," he said with a wink as he handed the tin back to her.
"Michael Jardine, are you threatening me?" Jackie asked in mock concern.
"I prefer to think of it as giving fair warning," he replied easily as he resumed painting the wall.
Jackie eyed him warily for a few moments, before resuming her own work.
In the end, the rest of the day passed without further incident. At least, that's what Jackie thought.
It would be much later, once Michael had left, that Jackie would discover that he'd managed to completely paint her shoes (including the laces) without her noticing.