Joss didn't bother coming out of her room until the next morning. She didn't think she could stand it if he came back smelling of cheap perfume. Knowing he left with the keys she hid in the master bedroom and listened for him to come back. He did about two hours after leaving. After waiting until he went into his own room, she finally relaxed enough to sleep. It wasn't that she didn't believe he would come back for her because she innately knew he would, but she wondered what he was doing out in the living room alone. Was he mad she wasn't out there to greet him?
She exited her room fresh faced but in a sour mood. Her stomach felt like her son was taking it on a roller coaster as one minute she was hungry and then nauseous. For the most part she didn't get sick anymore but there were the rare mornings where her kid made her sick just for fun.
Joss found John in the kitchen quietly eating a bowl of cereal and had a cup of coffee. Her stomach churned at the smell and coffee usually gave her great joy. "You look a little green." he commented, finally lifting his gaze from his near empty bowl.
She tried to crack a smile but failed. "Taylor is having a blast at making his mommy sick," she said trying to tease.
"Want some cereal?" John offered the Cheerios with a nudge forward.
She shook her head. "I think I might make myself some plain toast." she admitted as she moved to the pantry, knowing there was bread since she had seen it. After placing the two slices into the toaster she turned to pour herself some water from the faucet. Joss turned and saw John was up and pointing at the chair he just vacated.
"Sit. I'll bring your toast to you." he ordered.
Joss found herself smiling at his gruff command knowing he was just trying to be helpful. She actually did as he said and sat down letting him bring her, her toast. "Thanks," she murmured as she nibbled at it, hoping her stomach would settle some. He shrugged off her gratitude. "So did you get any information on Elias?" she asked carefully.
"Yes."
She nodded. "Please tell me you at least had safe sex." she blurted out. John didn't seem to care about himself and she was worried.
He was pouring himself a cup of coffee when he clattered the pot down and whirled on her to gape at her. "You don't beat around the bush, do you?"
Joss shrugged. "Not my style. You get what you're looking for when you just ask direct questions. I know how close to the edge you were, so sleeping with a woman unprotected crossed my mind since you seem to have a devil may care attitude," she explained.
"I always wear a condom when I have sex; I'm reckless not stupid," he answered her question just as bluntly as she asked it.
She laughed softly and she saw a little twitch of his lips but it never materialized into a smile. "I won't try to convince you that I didn't despise what you did last night because I did. I don't like that you slept with this Zoe just to get information."
"Why?"
Why indeed? Joss thought she knew the answer but all the while he was gone her mind conjured up steamy images of John in the sack with some faceless woman and she felt gripped by jealousy. She didn't want him having sex with that faceless woman even if it was meaningless and so impersonal. It was dumb to be jealous when John and she were nothing. Sure he was good looking and she was attracted to him, but she was a blimp and no one would ever be attracted to a pregnant lady. Perhaps she was just projecting feelings on him because of the fact that he was acting as her protector. But even as she tried to make herself believe that load of crap she shoveled herself, she didn't. Joss didn't wander into some Disney movie. She wasn't some princess that fell for her frog prince. His eyes gripped her even before he shaved off his shaggy beard, cut his hair, and put on some new clean clothes. Those eyes of his were lethal to women's hearts and panties alike.
Instead of trying to explain herself she chose to ignore it completely. "What did she tell you?" she asked.
John's gaze was intent on her and he appeared to want to further talk about why she didn't like him sleeping with Zoe but decided to let the subject draw to a close as well. "Standard stuff at first like the fact that no one can positively identify Elias and that he's at war with the Russians,"he started.
"We know all that." she grumbled as she picked at her toast. So far it sounded like this Zoe chick got way more out of the meeting than they did.
"That's what I told her. Do you know about, HR the criminal organization, a group of dirty cops?"
Joss immediately perked up at that. "Yes."
"Zoe has it on good authority that a man named Alonzo Quinn, who is a political advisor, met with Elias. A few of Zoe's close sources claim to believe that Quinn is the head of HR."
She gaped at him. "I have to make a few calls; if that's the case we can burn those bastards down to the ground too." she murmured, maybe this wasn't so bad. Not only did John get some information on Elias but he also got some on the dirty cop group: HR. If Alonzo Quinn was the head of HR, arresting him would dissolve the group in its entirety. From what she understood of the group it was based on loyalty, so get rid of the head, they had no one to be loyal too.
"Only after you're safe; we might need to use Alonzo Quinn as a means to make contact with Elias." John stipulated. She didn't agree with that but she'd wait to make a few calls to a couple of her friends in the FBI to make John happy. "But that wasn't the only information Zoe gave me. She also gave me two names to look into. One is Anthony Marconi; apparently he is the right hand man of Elias, though no one can identify him either. There is a rumor that he has a long scar on the side of his face. The other name she gave me is a Charlie Burton but his connection to Elias is shrouded in mystery even to her sources. So I'm going to have Harold look into him first."
Joss was quiet for a little while unsure of how she felt about this. While she was glad they had some information finally it was at the expense of John. She continued picking at her toast until she managed to eat the first piece. John sat down with her though he sipping his coffee and wasn't really looking her way.
"So what happens if we manage to find Elias?" she asked.
He looked to her. "I set up a meeting with him, one that you will remain clear of."
She frowned. "And what is the point of the meeting with Elias?—it's not like you can ask him nicely to stop coming after me," she retorted.
"I have no intention of doing so. I'm going to tell him that I'll bring Paul Carter to him as long as he removes the bounty off your head and stays the hell away from you."
"And what makes you think he won't just have his men kill you because you're the one helping me stay out of their clutches?" she asked, truly wanting to understand his reasoning.
He smiled. "I'll help them see things my way," he answered simply.
Joss didn't like his vague answer at all. Elias and his cronies weren't four two-bit punks on a subway so he wouldn't be able to bring them down as easily. But John seemed pretty sure of himself and she didn't think he would do something that left her without protection. Still she hoped he knew what he was doing because John really was her only hope at the moment.
"Okay…."
John's brows lifted in surprise as he figured she would argue more. "Okay?" he repeated.
"Yes, okay, I trust your opinion. And I was hoping if I agree with your crazy idea that you would think of agreeing to mine."
Now he was triply suspicious. He narrowed his eyes on Joss. "And what is this crazy idea?"
"Go outside and get some fresh air." she murmured and he immediately began shaking his head. "Please John, I'll put clown makeup on, hell I'll even dye my hair blond if I have to if I could just go out. We need some bread and milk; Harold had it stocked for us but perishables are quickly disappearing."
"Joss…" he began but trailed off as she stared at him, imploring John with her eyes which seemed to work as he exhaled roughly. "Fine, but, we make it quick. We get some groceries and a little fresh air but we circle back in a different way to the apartment that isn't obvious and longer just in case you get made," he muttered, going against his better judgment. He preferred keeping her cooped up until the threat to her was over.
"Sounds good to me." she agreed instantly, so as not to give him a chance to rethink his decision. "I'll hurry up and do my makeup and we can go." Joss hurried out of the kitchen as fast as she could being nearly nine months pregnant. She was looking forward to going out even if it was only grocery shopping.
Shopping with John was quite interesting. They had gone to a grocery store that was midway away from them; not the closest but not the furthest. After they packed up the car filled with their purchases John had taken her to Columbus Park which was nearby the apartment but not as close as Central Park would have been.
Joss sighed as she breathed in the fresh air. "Thank you for this," she said after a lengthy inhalation.
John didn't respond but rather he kept his gaze on their surroundings. She wished they didn't have to constantly look over their shoulders and be able to actually enjoy the afternoon. It was a perfect afternoon in early-spring where flowers were blooming, the sun was shining and warming her skin, and it was just nice. Well it was until John growled under his breath: "You've been recognized," and he grabbed her elbow. Joss looked around and paled as she saw three white males all watching her intently and moving towards them quickly.
"We can't engage in gunfire John. There are too many innocent bystanders." she whispered as she let John drag her along with him out of the Park and push her behind him around the corner of the building and stopped.
"I know, now get inside the bodega or get behind something," he barked as he pulled the gun from the back of his pants and pressed it firmly in her hand. "Just in case."
It went against her pride to go hide in a corner and let someone else fight her battles for her but, in this instance, her pregnancy was making her comply. She didn't look back as she ran to hide behind a parked car and set the gun at the back of her stretchy pants. Joss kept an eye out for John and saw he was ready to strike the moment the men came around the corner, which would take them by surprise as surely they'd think they were still trying to make a run for it.
The moment they rounded the corner John went on the attack, going immediately for the one closest to him, who held a gun, grabbing the back of his head and pulled him forcefully towards his knee that he brought up with vicious speed, his face hit John's knee with a bone crushing smack and then a cry of pain. Blood spurted out as the boy landed on the ground grabbing at his face. It left a two on one that John was winning for the most part; she watched as one got a punch in on John who merely stumbled a bit before regaining his composure and was altogether overwhelming for the boys.
But she watched in panic as the one who was previously lying on the ground was slowly coming to, blood still pouring out of his nose, and was climbing back to his feet. If she called out to John she lost the element of surprise and alerted the men to where she was. Joss looked around and saw two metal trash cans with their lids on, sitting by the curb, waiting to be emptied. She, quietly as she could, removed one lid and kept low to the ground which hurt her aching back, but she ignored the slight pain. The man was reaching for his gun he had dropped. Joss picked up her pace just as she watched John flip one assailant onto the ground after jamming his foot into the man's knee at an awkward angle making it bend in an unnatural way producing a chilling scream.
"Die asshole!" the kid cried aiming his gun at John's back. But just as John whirled around to disarm him he watched startled as Joss rapped a metal trash can lid against the back of the boy's head. It wasn't a knockout blow but it was enough to let John immediately finish him off with an uppercut laying him flat out.
John grabbed her elbow again and tugged her with him as passersby looked on in blatant shock. He pulled Joss with him knowing it was hard for her to keep up with his long strides but for now he could not slow down. He didn't know how many more of them there were and he couldn't circle back to their car yet. Neither Joss nor John saw the tall balding man in a suit, watching a little too closely from across the street.
He led her down an alley way before crossing a busy street that was a direct parallel to the Park. He needed the scum after Joss, who figured a pregnant woman couldn't walk this far to go back an easier route.
Joss refused to ask for John to slow down. She wasn't going to hinder their escape because her back hurt and she wasn't very fast. When he slowed his pace down considerably she let out a sigh of relief. "Don't need you going into early labor," he commented gruffly.
No, they most certainly couldn't afford that or they were all kinds of screwed. "You wouldn't happen to know how to give birth?" she asked, teasing, sort of.
He stopped and paled as he looked at her. "You're…"
"No, no I'm not in labor but I don't exactly have long until I give birth either," she explained breathlessly. John didn't immediately answer as he began tugging her along with him again and Joss nearly cried in elation when she saw their car. "Get in first." he commanded unlocking it using the keypad. Joss did without question before watching him take a surveying look around them and then climbed in. He stabbed the key into the ignition and peeled away from the curb. She noticed with interest that he doubled back before driving in circles and once he seemed satisfied they weren't followed they were finally on their way back to the apartment.
"Next time I go alone." he stated tersely. It irritated her.
"Or I'll camouflage myself better," she countered.
John didn't bother replying as he appeared to brood the rest of the way back to the apartment. He shooed her into the apartment and brought the bags of groceries up himself. Once everything was brought in, he locked the door up tight, and whirled on her with eyes blazing with barely contained rage which was actually a step in the right direction. John didn't show much emotion at all and the fact that he was shuddering with rage at her was far better than bottling it up until it consumed him.
"Look, I'm sorry for suggesting that we go out today. I just wanted to get some fresh air and get more of the perishables since there wasn't much here," she said in way of an apology.
"I told you to hide!" he snarled.
Ah, so he wasn't mad about their excursion but because she chose to help him rather than cower in fright. "You needed my help,"she explained, straining to maintain her calm. "If I called out to you that the kid regained his senses then he would have known where I was and I'd have lost the element of surprise."
"I would have dealt with him," he snapped.
Joss leveled a hard glare on him. "Oh, I didn't realize you really had eyes in the back of your head," she replied sarcastically.
John stepped closer and she lifted her chin defiantly. He muttered a curse as he grabbed her cheeks and kissed her harshly. Joss stood still in shock as he ravaged her mouth with bruising intensity. She moaned as she melted against him and kissed him back. Oh my, he was a good kisser even when angry. His lips were savage and demanding, coaxing hers to open and they parted eagerly. His tongue swept into her mouth a contradiction from the hard man pressed against her; his tongue was soft velvet as it rubbed up against hers sensually. In all the years she was married she never once felt this kind of stormy passion. It was combustible, uncontrollable, and hungry; which for a pregnant woman, who looked like a walking bus, her self-esteem was a little low and appreciated being wanted in such a carnal way. It was nice to know she was still desirable even though her walk resembled a penguin's. Joss shivered as her body responded to the sensory overload and grappled for purchase as her hands snagged his forearms to keep her feet firmly planted on the ground.
He made a rough sound in the back of his throat as his mouth slanted on hers, both sucking in ragged pants through their noses, and she let out a tiny cry as his teeth scraped her bottom lip. John jerked back abruptly. His expression was shuddered as she watched him push away both physically and emotionally. Joss felt bereft having been consumed by his voracious possession to now nothing. She wrapped her arms around herself trying to ignore the way her body seemed to yearn for his.
Joss stared at him as he averted his gaze. She licked her wet, thoroughly-kissed, and, what felt like, swollen lips. "John…" she began, unsure of what to say. They barely knew each other yet the sparks between them burned brighter and hotter than anything she ever felt before. It felt like they were a brush fire in California in a drought…unstoppable and the more they tried to douse it, the more it grew.
"That shouldn't have happened," he said roughly as he ran a hand through his hair.
"I'm happy it did," she admitted and he looked at her sharply. She shrugged. "I haven't felt wanted in a very long time."
"Not since approximately nine months ago," he snapped with a very pointed look to her belly.
Joss lifted her chin. "Even before then. As you know my pregnancy was born out of trying to save my broken marriage not from desire," she stated.
"I don't want to want you, Joss." he said angrily; whether it was aimed at her, or not, she didn't quite know. Joss looked down and saw the large bulge pressing his jeans up knowing it had to be uncomfortable for him. "But it seems that my brain and my dick aren't on the same page."
Joss appreciated the bluntness. And she could understand John's plight because just days ago he was a homeless man ready to commit suicide, and didn't know what to do with this unexpected—and completely unwanted—attraction to a pregnant woman.
"Well I'm pregnant and want a man who just days ago wanted to kill himself, so I think we are both in the same boat of not wanting to want each other," she remarked gently. "But I'm attracted to you." she admitted candidly.
He looked at her. "I'm attracted to you Joss." he responded to her honesty with some of his own. "But you have to prepare for your son."
"If I wasn't pregnant would it change anything?" she wondered aloud.
"No. I'd still not want to do anything about our attraction."
"Is it because of Jessica?—you don't want to move on because you're comfortable with your loneliness?" she demanded. She saw through him. He was using this poor woman as a means to keep everyone at arms' length. There was another reason he was alone but she couldn't know what it was when he wouldn't tell her.
John didn't respond but instead he asked; "We agree to forget about that kiss?"
Forget that kiss?—ha, she'd likely be able to forget her name before she forgot that kiss. "It was anger induced and in the heat of the moment," she tried explaining it away. "We're still…what the hell are we, friends?"
He didn't look at Joss at all like how he looked at Harold and Grace but he kept that to himself. "I guess we did forge a friendship during these last few days," he muttered.
She smiled tentatively. Being friends was one step closer at prodding John into telling her all the secrets he was withholding. And when she was feeling lonely at night she now had the memory of his scorching kiss to keep her warm alone in bed.
AN: I'm sure every friend shares a steamy kiss, right? *snickers*
Thanks for reading!