Story Note: Chapters switch between Jack and Allison's POV.

Spoilers: Contains references to season 2

Author's Note: Thanks for the reviews!

They stumbled out of the sauna together, gasping in the cool, fresh air outside. A light breeze washed over them and Jack could feel the sweat cooling on his skin. Beside him, Allison ran her hands over her hair repeatedly and muttered darkly to herself about humidity. He thought she looked beautiful, but he'd learned through experience never to contradict a woman's opinion about her hair.

Thrust back into life beyond the tiny sauna, Jack's elation began to wear off and it left him feeling off balance. During their long walk, he'd been so sure he was about to get the 'let's just be friends' speech from Allison. Or the 'it would be unprofessional to pursue these feelings' speech. He'd even braced himself for the 'are you kidding?' speech.

So, he'd been a little thrown at first by her 'your taste in music sucks' line of questioning. He'd been more than willing to play along, since it didn't sound like a flat-out rejection. In a weird way it was sort of encouraging that she cared whether he had embarrassing taste in music. But that was nothing compared to what had happened inside the sauna.

God, he'd almost kissed her. He hadn't meant to push his luck like that, but they'd been standing so close and she smelled so great that he couldn't have stopped himself if he'd tried. Every instinct he had told him that the attraction between them was mutual. Hiding from one of Zoe's classmates (admittedly, not his finest moment) had thrown a wrench in things, but the moment had definitely been there.

Either that or all the steam had made him lightheaded and delusional. "I'm really thirsty," he declared. "How 'bout you?"

"Yes!" Allison agreed heartily. Looking around, he spotted a patio with tables and chairs across a large grassy clearing from where they stood. He pointed it out and they set off in that direction.

At the edge of the patio sat a small bar. It didn't seem to be equipped to serve more than a few basic drinks, but Jack figured they should be able to handle serving bottled water. He steered Allison to one of the tables and encouraged her to take a seat while he went to get them something to drink.

Instead of bottles of alcohol behind the bartender, there were rows of energy drinks. A blender at the far end of the bar contained what looked like a dark green smoothie. "Hi! Can I get two waters?" Jack asked as he wiped the back of his forearm against his sweaty forehead.

"Certainly, sir," the man behind the counter replied. "What kind would you like?"

"Um…kind?" Jack asked, wondering if this was some kind of joke.

The bartender nodded and handed him a small menu. "We have a variety of flavored waters, vitamin waters, ionized waters, carbonated waters…"

"How about wet water?" Jack asked. Based on the bartender's blank look, his joke wasn't well received. Clearing his throat, Jack tried again, "You know what? Surprise me."

The bartender's expression brightened immediately. "Try the ginkgo biloba and lime infused water," he enthused as he poured a large bottle of water into two tall glasses and added lime wedges for garnish. Placing the glasses in front of Jack, he confided, "It's my favorite! Flavorful without being overpowering."

Jack eyed him suspiciously, "You wouldn't be related to Vincent would you?" The bartender looked confused, so Jack waved it off. "Forget it." He paid for the drinks and headed over to where Allison was waiting.

He arrived back at the table only to find someone sitting in his chair. Fargo's rival at Global was taking advantage of the opportunity to chat up the new boss. Jack had never liked the guy because he seemed like such a kiss-ass and this wasn't doing anything to alter that opinion. "Hi, Larry," Jack greeted him. Before the other man could get a word out, Jack continued, "Goodbye, Larry." He stood looming over the table, holding two glasses in his hands, and did his best to look placidly intimidating.

Larry turned to Allison, who fixed him with an expectant smile. Taking the hint, he stood up quickly. "I should be going. Unless, you need anything, Dr. Blake?" he asked hopefully. She declined politely and he left, looking disappointed. Placing one of the glasses in front of her, Jack teased, "Can't take you anywhere."

Allison chuckled, reaching for her drink. "Thanks," she said, lifting the glass in a small toast to him.

Jack returned the gesture and then gulped down about half of his drink. It tasted great, but after being trapped in a sweat box he figured anything would.

Allison apparently had a different opinion. "Mmm! This is great! What kind of water is this?"

If they had been anywhere else, he would have thought she was joking. Since this was Eureka, he just answered the question.

Allison took another appreciative sip. "You know, I've been wanting to try this. Great choice!"

Jack figured it wouldn't hurt the bartender any if he took credit. "Yeah, it's, ah, flavorful without being overpowering."

Allison nodded happily. "And ginkgo biloba is so good for memory enhancement."

Her offhand remark reminded him of something he'd been thinking about earlier in the day. "Yeah, what is it with this town?"

Allison tilted her head slightly, "What do you mean?"

"You saw the spa's brochure, right? Half the things they have here are for sharpening focus, enhancing memory, or just, you know, getting smarter."

"So?"

"They're already smart!" Jack waved a hand at the people around them. "Selling 'smart' treatments to smart people should be like selling ice to an Eskimo. But Brittany at the front desk told me that those are some of the spa's most popular items."

Allison shrugged. "What's wrong with wanting to improve yourself?"

"Nothing, I guess," Jack admitted. "But what about trusting in your own abilities? It's like… It's like Eureka is a town full of smart people and everybody here is scared to death of not being smart enough."

"I don't think that's true," she scoffed.

"No?" he challenged. "Then why is it everyone is so quick to make fun of anything that seems dumb? It's like they're afraid to be caught even considering a dumb idea. I've lost track of how many times I've been shot down for making suggestions or even just asking questions while working on an investigation."

Allison smiled indulgently. "Well, you have to admit your understanding of our projects at Global is a bit… limited."

Something about her tone rubbed him the wrong way. "Yeah, okay, I know. I don't have a PhD from MIT. But it's more than that. After some of the things I've seen, if you told me you'd figured out how to fly or build a Frankenstein monster, I'd believe you. You talk about alien artifacts…"

Allison quickly shushed him and glanced around to see if anyone was listening.

Jack lowered his voice and continued, "Something that should be completely impossible, like it's just another day at the office. But I suggest something that's just unlikely and everybody treats me like a babbling idiot who just drooled on himself."

"I'm not everybody," Allison pointed out.

It bugged him that she seemed to think she wasn't one of the people who treated him that way. "Okay, so let's talk about you," he shot back.

Allison arched an eyebrow. "What about me?"

"You…" Jack hesitated, but months of built up frustration pushed him on. "You don't even take the possibility of an 'us' seriously. Dr. Allison Blake and the town sheriff? What would people think? Forget people, what would Stark think?" He'd wanted to sound calm, but he could hear the bitter resentment that had leeched into his voice by the end.

"Contrary to what you or anyone else might think, I actually do make my own decisions," Allison replied angrily. "I don't need Nathan to make them for me!"

Allison's hurt expression should have been a warning, but he didn't heed it. "No? Then why don't you make one?" He looked her into her eyes and somehow found the courage to say what he'd been holding back for so long. Taking a deep breath, Jack put everything on the line. "Take a chance on me, Allison. I may not be the obvious choice, but that doesn't mean I'm a bad one."

Allison glanced away and Jack figured he had his answer. It hurt so much that he forgot to breathe for a moment.

It served him right, he thought bitterly. He'd thought about it a hundred times: what he'd say and how he'd say it. But when he finally got up the nerve to put his heart on the line, he did it in the middle of an argument. Because of course she was bound to be impressed by his ability to pick a fight.

Sinking back in his chair, feeling utterly defeated, he sighed, "I guess it's true: People can believe the impossible, but can never believe the improbable."

"That's Oscar Wilde," Allison murmured, looking pleasantly surprised.

Already wounded by her rejection, Allison's open astonishment at his ability to quote something stung his pride. "Yeah, I read a book once," he snapped.

Allison looked startled. "I… I didn't mean…"

"It didn't even have any pictures. Good thing Zoë was around to help me with the big words." Jack continued sarcastically, cutting off her stumbling reply.

"Would you stop?" she hissed at him. She took a deep breath. "I'm sorry, alright? I didn't mean to imply that you're not intelligent. I'm sorry if you thought that I did."

"Forget it," he grumbled, feeling surly and miserable.

She stared at him, seemingly exasperated, although what she had to be mad about he couldn't guess. "I take it back, Carter. You are an idiot," she snapped.

"Great! Well, I guess you and Stark finally have something you can both agree on," he tossed back at her. "So glad I could help!"

They sank into a stormy silence. He knew it was his fault. He'd pushed too hard and ruined everything. Don't dive off a cliff if you can't survive the impact. Good safety tip. Too bad he hadn't read the warning signs first.

Jack looked around and noticed how low the sun hung in the sky. It would be setting soon. They'd spent the whole day together. No work, no distractions, just them— the way he'd always wanted.

And they'd never felt farther apart.

TBC