A/N: This chapter is rated M.

Chapter 12

Jack watched Audrey play with Jack, their playful laughter filling the living room in the morning. Jack hoped that Audrey was in a better mood this morning. After returning Josh to Marilyn's, Audrey was quiet in the car home and too tired to finish their date the way they intended too. Jack hoped she wasn't mad about the interruption to their date. But, she should understand that he had to find his nephew if he was missing.

"Dada!" Jack Jr. called out.

"Morning, kiddo," Jack said, scooping him into his arms and tipping him upside down. Jack Jr. laughed wildly.

"Uh oh!" Audrey said, mischievously, getting closer to her son in Jack's arms. "You're trapped and the tickle monster is here!"

Jack Jr. shrieked as Audrey tickled him and he squirmed in Jack's arms. Jack finally put him down and Jack Jr. jumped on top of Audrey and began trying to tickle her back. Jack joined in and helped his son until Audrey begged for mercy.

"Alright, boys, time for breakfast," Audrey insisted, as they gave each other a high five.

Jack Jr. was preoccupied with a toy while Audrey made breakfast, so Jack joined her in the kitchen and asked if she needed any help.

"Nope. I'm good."

Jack sighed. "I'm sorry about our date last night, Audrey. I'll make it up to you."

"I'm not mad," Audrey insisted, although her tone said otherwise.

"You seem mad," Jack pointed out.

"I'm not," Audrey snapped back. Jack looked at her questioningly, as it was now clear that she was most definitely mad. Audrey sighed. "Look, I'm just trying not to overreact and I'm sorry if it's coming off as mad. It's just frustration at myself for being insecure."

Jack shook his head slightly. "Insecure? About what?"

"It's stupid. Just forget it."

"I don't want to forget it," Jack told her, taking her hand.

Audrey debated whether or not to bring it up or leave it alone, but relented. "You and Marilyn dated in high school. Which was a very long time ago so it shouldn't matter. But, it does because she very clearly still has feelings for you and the fact you never mentioned that you two had a history is weird."

"Oh," Jack said, surprised by how much Audrey had learned from their quick visit to Marilyn. "Audrey, it was a very long time ago. And, I moved on, married Teri, and never looked back. If her feelings are still there then that's on her end only. I don't feel that way."

"But, you do know she feels that way, right?"

Jack shrugged. "Yeah, I guess."

"Have you told her that you don't? So that she knows."

"Doesn't me being with you make that clear?" Jack questioned.

"I don't know. Or she thinks that you're just with me because of our son."

"Is that what you think?" Jack asked her.

"No," Audrey replied, confidently at first. That confidence quickly faded. "I hope not."

"I'm not," Jack reassured her, pulling her into his arms and kissing the top of her head. Audrey looked unconvinced. "You do realize that I came to find you when I got back from China. I didn't even know about our son at that point. I came to find you."

Audrey nodded. "Yeah. I know. I also know that you are a very loyal man. And, that you would have felt like you owed it to me to tell me you were alive even if you didn't want to be with me anymore."

Jack shook his head. "Audrey, I love you. When I came to find you, I thought there was no way you'd still be waiting for me after all these years. But, I hoped that you were. I want to be with you. I'm not sure how to convince you of that."

Audrey smiled and kissed him gently. "I love you too."

Jack was looking at the heat map of a building on CTU's screens.

"Hernandez, bring your team to the East side door," Jack instructed his new head of field ops through his earpiece.

"Copy that," Hernandez replied in a whisper. Jack saw the live footage of the team moving away from the back of the building as previously planned. Jack watched as Hernandez led his team into the building and took charge of all of the arising situations thrown his way. It felt good to have someone in there who seemed to think like he did. However, he was sure that Hernandez would never go as far as he would to stop an attack. He was good, no doubt about it, but he would never torture a suspect, would never go against instructions. Jack was pretty sure there was no one else who would do the things that he had done in the past to stop terrorist attacks. Nobody else would make the monstrous decisions he'd made in the past.

"The EMP devices are all accounted for and the suspect is in custody," Hernandez reported. "Returning to CTU."

Jack went back to his office and called Katrina to update her on the case. Katrina was happy to hear they had apprehended the terrorists.

"I guess you really don't need me there after all," Katrina told him. Jack had been flying solo for the last couple days as Katrina was back at her desk at Division. Jack liked that he was now being trusted more.

Next he called Audrey and told her he would be at CTU for another few hours.

"You sound stressed," Audrey commented.

"Long day," Jack told her.

"You're safe though?" Audrey asked.

"Yeah, I am," Jack promised her. "The hard part is over though. Just have to tie up loose ends. I'm not sure when I'll be home."

"Okay," Audrey agreed, understanding that something big must have come up today. "Wake me up when you get home. No matter what time. I love you."

"Love you," Jack replied. "Say goodnight to Jack Jr. for me."

They hung up and Jack got back to work.

"So, it sounds like showing Audrey your scars went better than you expected," Dr. Trost concluded after Jack told him about his date with Audrey. Jack agreed.

"I just wish she felt more secure in our relationship. She thinks I'm just with her because of our son," Jack told him.

"Why does she feel that way?" Trost asked.

Jack shrugged. "I have no idea. I keep trying to tell her that I'm with her because I love her but she still doesn't seem convinced. She panicked after finding out that Marilyn, the one whose son ran away that night, is still interested in me. We dated back in high school. It was a long time ago, but Audrey was worried."

"Wow, that's a long time for her to hold onto those feelings," Trost commented. "So, you're not still interested then?"

"No," Jack responded.

"And, you didn't give Marilyn any reason to think there could be some lingering feelings left?"

Jack thought about it. On the day he had returned from China, he supposed they had a couple moments together when trying to rescue Josh. But, when the threat had ended, he had told her he wanted to see Audrey. If Audrey hadn't been in the picture though, he could imagine himself kissing her back. "I guess there may have been a couple moments between us where maybe it seemed like there was a chance for us."

Dr. Trost nodded. "Audrey's not completely off base then."

"Not now though," Jack insisted. "Not since I've been back with Audrey."

"Have you given any more thought about your future with Audrey?" Trost wondered, thinking back to their previous session.

"Yeah, I've tried," Jack told him.

"And?"

"And, I think I might have ruined things by thinking of her in China," Jack explained. "Now, when I try to picture our future together, I get flashbacks of China. All those moments where I was thinking of her just to be ripped from my thoughts by unbearable pain."

"How long do these flashbacks last?"

Jack shrugged. "Maybe a couple seconds. Feels longer."

"And are you still having nightmares?"

Jack nodded.

"How much sleep are you getting?"

"Maybe three hours a night. Sometimes more. Sometimes less."

"Let's talk about your sleeping routines," Trost suggested. "I can give you some tips that might help."

Jack told Trost about how he would go to bed with Audrey every night and lie awake, knowing that if he fell asleep, he would have a nightmare, wake up screaming, and scare Audrey just like he had countless nights before. But, eventually, his body would take over, he'd fall asleep, and as expected wake up from a nightmare of being back in China. Sometimes he'd scream and other times he'd just wake in a cold sweat. Then, he'd lie awake, replaying the nightmare in his head over and over again, knowing that if he fell back asleep, he would pick up the nightmare where it had left off.

Trost asked questions and ultimately decided on a few tips that might help Jack sleep better and have less anxiety about falling asleep in the first place or falling back asleep after a nightmare. He talked Jack through what he should say to himself as he thought about the impending doom of another nightmare hitting him.

"Wouldn't it just be easier to take a sleeping pill?" Jack asked, half-joking.

Trost tottered his head back and forth. "Yes and no. It will help you sleep better but won't fix the nightmares. You'll just be trapped in the nightmare. Not to mention that I won't be prescribing them to you, knowing your history. They're addictive and because of your previous heroin addiction, sleeping pills are not in the equation. We've got to do this the hard way. But, overall, it is the better way."

When the weekend rolled around, Jack decided that he and Audrey should try again on their date, with no interruptions this time. Kim was taking Jack Jr. for the night and taking him to the zoo the next morning for some sibling time. Once Kim had left with the baby, Audrey got ready for their date. When she appeared in the living room wearing a red dress, Jack smiled. She looked so beautiful.

"Ready?" she asked.

Jack walked toward her. He kissed her passionately, holding her by the hips to keep her close to him. Audrey smiled through their kiss and wrapped her arms around the back of his neck. Audrey deepened the kiss, but despite how close they were to each other, it wasn't enough for Jack who stepped closer to her until he had backed her against a wall, their mouths never leaving each other's.

They kissed slowly but deeply, neither of them wanting to rush this. Jack's hands framed her face as they kissed and Audrey dropped her purse so she could gently massage the back of his neck. When they both needed air, they broke apart with their foreheads resting against each other's and smiled.

"I've missed that," Audrey told him.

"Me too," Jack agreed, moving in to kiss her again.

Next, Audrey slowly lifted the hem of his shirt and pulled it off of him. She let her hands move up his arms, feeling his muscles, and then down his chest and stomach. Jack kissed down her neck, across her collarbone, and down her chest until he reached the top of her dress, right between her breasts. He reached behind her and unzipped the dress, letting it fall to the floor around her feet. Jack resumed kissing her, relearning everywhere she liked to be touched.

Jack then lifted Audrey up and she wrapped her legs around his waist. Jack kissed her and carried her to the bedroom, gently placing her on the bed with him over top of her. Audrey reached for his belt and undid it, pushing off his pants, leaving him in just his boxers. As they kissed again with him on top of her, she could feel his hardness pressing into her leg.

Audrey broke the kiss and gently rolled so that Jack was now on his back and Audrey was hovering over him. She slowly kissed her way down his body, letting her fingers graze over each scar that covered his torso, and letting her falling hair tickle his sides. After what seemed like an eternity of teasing to Jack, Audrey pulled off his boxers and took hold of his member, stroking it.

"God, Audrey," Jack whispered. He had forgotten how amazing she made him feel. He remembered the last time they slept together. At CTU when they thought the terrorist attacks were over. When they thought he might have to go dark again. When they had conceived their son. But, as incredibly sexy as that time had been, it had been rushed. He had missed feeling connected to her on a much deeper level like he felt now.

Jack stopped her from stroking him as he felt himself getting close, wanting to wait for her. Jack quickly flipped her onto her back, catching her by surprise and causing her to gasp. Jack took off her bra and began exploring her body again. Audrey moaned and arched her back as Jack took her nipple into his mouth. As he continued caressing her breasts, he used one hand to reach into her panties. Audrey moaned again as he pushed a finger inside her, easily since she was incredibly turned on.

"Jack," she cried, as he put another finger inside her, causing her to buck her hips against his hand.

Audrey enjoyed what Jack was doing to her, all while wondering how she had managed to survive without him for so long. She always remembered what a tender lover he was, but her memory of him did not do the real thing justice.

"Jack, I can't wait any longer," Audrey whispered through gasps for air.

Jack smiled at her, removed her panties, and positioned himself over her. Audrey reached for him and guided him into her, their bodies merging.

"I love you, Jack," Audrey told him as they moved rhythmically with each other.

"I love you too, sweetheart," Jack told her.

The rest was just panting and moaning until they both climaxed intensely, collapsing on the bed next to each other. It was silent for a few minutes as they both caught their breath and took in the moment.

"That was incredible," Audrey finally said, breaking the silence.

"I've missed that," Jack told her, kissing her bare shoulder. Jack then remembered something that they seemed to always forget. "Shit."

"What?" Audrey asked, sitting up, now worried.

"We forgot to use a condom. Again," Jack said.

"Crap. Why are we so bad at this?" Audrey asked.

"Out of practice," Jack offered as a reason.

Audrey smiled. "I guess we'll need to fix that."

Jack smiled back but was still worried about the prospect of another baby.

"It's probably fine. It's not the right timing in my cycle," Audrey rationalized. Jack noticed that she didn't look the least bit worried. He wondered if she would almost be content with having another baby, even if it was not their plan. "But, I'll make an appointment to get back on the pill again."

Jack and Audrey considered getting redressed for their date, but decided to stay in bed together, soaking in the moment. They cuddled together, talked, ordered pizza which they ate in bed together, made love again, and fell asleep in each other's arms.