Disclaimer: I don't own anything in the Who-verse. that honour belongs to RTD and the mighty and glorious BBC. The only thing I get out of this is a warm fuzzy feeling knowing I am trying to put right what once was wrong.

Authors Note: Oh what a tangled web I weave...

Chapter IV

Two weeks and six dates later Donna was starting to get just a little frustrated. Correction, bloody irritated, she thought savagely as she stood before the mirror in the ladies at the office pulling a hairbrush through her tangled hair. Although Jack was everything she could wish for, kind, attentive, charming, good kisser – very, very good kisser – she couldn't help but feel he was playing a part. Like she was some kind of assignment and he was working hard just to get extra credit from the teacher. Donna had told him everything, she couldn't help it. He just inspired confidences. She told him about her mum, her dad, grandad Wilf, her dissatisfaction with her job, her life so far. She had even told him about her episode – the true version, not the one she admitted to friends. How she'd collapsed in the street and some man had brought her home unconscious. A Mr John Smith, if that was his real name. Apparently she'd been out like a light for three days or something. He'd come back to check on her, John Smith, the day she woke up. Nice man although she couldn't remember a whole lot about him. Her mind kind of shied away from him whenever she thought about it. The doctors hadn't been able to find anything wrong with her and suggested that she'd had a bad reaction to something someone might have spiked her drink with. Donna hadn't been satisfied with the explanation, but Wilf had told her not to worry about it and move on with her life.

And Jack had listened to her as if her life story was the plot of a best selling novel, and not that of some secretary in Chiswick. He had talked about his job. That was it. His job as a security consultant for a firm with offices in London and Cardiff. She knew he had to travel a great deal to some of the worlds most dangerous and volatile hotspots and that he seemed to shrug off the danger as if it were of no importance to him. She knew he didn't associate with his colleagues at work, saying he preferred to keep his job and private life separate. But about Jack the man, she knew nothing at all. Since that first night he had never mentioned his wife again. He had never mentioned his family, she didn't know if he even had any, never taken her to his flat. Come to think of it she didn't even know where it was.

Sadly Donna realised that however much she loved being with Jack she was in serious danger of getting her heart broken, and with Jack involved she wasn't sure if it would ever mend. Better to end it now, before it got any more serious. While she still had some of her heart left intact. Deliberately she put her hairbrush down.

"You've got to tell him tonight my girl," she said severely to her reflection. "It's for your own good."

The problem was, Donna thought ruefully five hours later, it wasn't proving that easy.

Jack had picked her up from work as usual, roaring up in that great hulking black SUV he drove, with a cheeky grin, smiling crinkly eyes and a promise of somewhere a bit different. And different it was. He'd driven her twenty miles outside London to an American style diner, right down to silver aluminium bullet-shaped trailer shell. He was dressed differently too. Gone was the sharp business suit which had somehow always looked so wrong on him. In its place were a blue cotton shirt over a tight white T-shirt, dark canvas trousers held up by an incongruous pair of braces, brown leather lace up boots and to top it all off, the crowning glory, what looked like a heavy, blue-grey wool World War II RAF greatcoat. He looked more relaxed than Donna had ever seen him.

"Like the outfit, Captain Jack!" Donna quipped as he got out of the SUV and opened the door for her. His eyes flashed up to meet hers in alarm.

"What do you mean?" he asked sharply.

Confused Donna waved at the coat. "RAF captain stripes...on the coat" Jack's face relaxed and he smiled.

"More me don't you think?" he admitted, giving her a twirl. "More practical in the field too."

Forgetting all her good intentions Donna stood on tiptoe and gave Jack a peck on the cheek, surprised to see him colour up.

"Absolutely you," she agreed. Then trying to ignore the tiny stab of fear in her stomach she asked,

"Does this mean you're going away?"

"Only for a day or two. To Cardiff. Management want me to supervise some training sessions for new staff. Team bonding and stuff. Nothing dangerous." Jack assured her. "Why? Will you miss me?"

"You wish. Just thought I might get chance to get off with the two other men I've had on the back burner..." Donna replied cheekily, as the sick feeling in her stomach dissipated. Maybe it was already too late.

"Inside wench!" Jack scolded giving her a light slap on the behind. Laughing Donna stuck her tongue out and with a very credible flounce disappeared inside.

They had made it all the way to dessert. The ubiquitous apple pie of course, and judging by the way Jack shovelled it down it was one of his favourites Donna noted for future reference. Suddenly Jack's mobile started to ring. No cutesy little ring tone here, Donna noted, just a plain old double ring like an old fashioned telephone.

"Sorry," he apologised as he fished the phone from his pocket and read the incoming call number. "I need to take this." He flipped the phone open, angled his head away from Donna and said his name. For almost a minute he listened intently, his brow furrowed in concern. Then his expression lifted and his face broke into a wide heart-stopping smile.

"Rhys. That's marvellous news. Congratulations. Give my love to Gwen. I can be there first thing in the morning." He paused while the voice at the other end of the line spoke. "Alright eleven o'clock. And she's definitely OK?" There was another pause. "OK see you then." With a flourish he hung up the phone and swung back to look at Donna who looked back expectantly,

"Big news?" she enquired politely. For some reason she felt put out by the call. All her doubts resurfaced.

"Yeah the best news," Jack said happily. "We should celebrate. Turns out I'm an uncle."

"An uncle. So is Gwen your sister? Or is Rhys your brother? I didn't know you had brothers or sisters Jack."

For a moment Jack looked like he might contradict her but said nothing a guilty look stealing over his face. For Donna it was the final straw, something inside her snapped.

"Not that I know anything about you at all," she said waspishly. "Do I Jack? Not a damn thing. You haven't told me anything about you, your family, your past." Her voice grew shriller in degrees as her anger mounted.

Jack turned pale, stunned by the sudden anger in Donna. He hadn't expected this, it was all going wrong fast. Unusually for him he had seriously misjudged the situation and in another few moments he would have lost her for good. In that split second he realised he couldn't let that happen, not for her sake, not for the Doctor's sake and especially not for his own sake. The Doctor had been right, as usual. Turned out he did need Donna after all.

"Donna, wait!" His plea stopped Donna in her tracks, coat half on already two steps towards the door.

"Why Jack?" she said tiredly all the fight draining out of her. "What's the point? You're never going to let me in. I'm not good enough for you...a secretary from Chiswick. Who was I kidding? You want a temporary uncomplicated diversion Jack, someone to get you over that awkward 'widower newly back on the market' phase!" Donna knew she was being cruel but couldn't help herself, she just wanted to get away from him so she could fall apart in peace. She'd left it too late. Much too late. "It was never meant to be serious so there's no need to share. I'm right aren't I?" She turned her piercing eyes on him, her flaming red hair haloing her face like an avenging angel.

Jack was out of his seat before she could finish speaking. There was nothing he could say at that moment that would make her believe him. Ignoring the startled stares of the diners other occupants he abruptly pulled her into his arms. Taken by surprise Donna struggled to free herself, but Jack held her firmly and whispered in her ear,

"Don't let me ever hear you talking about yourself that way again Donna Noble. You are an extraordinary, special woman and I will convince you of that if it's the last thing I do." And then he kissed her. Not one of those brief, charming, intense kisses which she had become used to. This kiss was deep, heartfelt, possessive and stole her soul.

After several long, and from Donna's perspective, earth shattering moments Jack set her back on her feet. She swayed slightly. To her intense satisfaction he looked as dazed as she felt. Becoming aware of the curious stares of the other diners Jack pulled a bunch of tenners from his pocket and without counting them threw them on their table.

"Come on," he said, grabbing her hand and pulling her towards the door.

"Where are we going?" Donna asked in a tiny voice, she didn't recognise as her own.

"My place," Jack replied. "We have things to talk about."

The drive back to London seemed the longest journey of Donna's life, and the shortest. They sat side by side, not speaking, not touching. For his part Jack never seemed to take his eyes from the road, his face set in stone, whilst Donna couldn't seem to tear her eyes from his forbidding profile.

At last they pulled into an underground garage beneath a tall tower block. Still not speaking, and with a growing sense of panic in her stomach, Donna scrambled from the car and reluctantly followed Jack into the lift, wondering if she should make a run for it. Before she could act on her thoughts Jack stabbed at one of the buttons and the lift doors closed. The Penthouse, Donna noted, why am I not surprised. As the lift ascended Donna's nervous feeling intensified and she shivered imperceptibly. Sensing her movement Jack took her hand and squeezed it reassuringly. Donna took a breath, maybe she wasn't going to be murdered after all. Even so her stomach gave a jolt as the buzzer sounded and a disembodied voice announced the Penthouse.

Moments later Donna was stood in the hallway of the most beautiful apartment she'd ever seen. It looked like it belonged on the pages of 'OK' or 'Hello', the town pad of some footballer's wag, not the home of some mere mortal. Looking around curiously she noted white pristine walls, white marble floors, immense black leather sofas, the only splash of colour being huge canvases of abstract art that predictably looked like they were the creative genius of a two year old. It was, Donna decided after a few seconds, the most cold, impersonal place she had ever encountered. It didn't really seem like Jack but then, she thought, she didn't really know anything about him at all. Her anxiety returned ten-fold.

"It's...er...lovely. Early morgue period I believe," she said seriously, employing her finest estate agent voice.

Jack gave her a half smile, "It's bloody awful. To be fair I didn't choose it. The company rent it for me for when I'm in town. I only use it to sleep in."

"Thank god," Donna breathed. "I thought you were going to turn out to be some deranged psycho with OCD."

His face serious, Jack crossed the room and disappeared through an open door on the far side. Seconds later he reappeared carrying a plain brushed steel photo frame. He sat down on the edge of one of the huge black sofas and with a sense of apprehension Donna sat down beside him. After a moments hesitation he passed the photograph across to her. Donna looked at picture with undisguised interest. It was of Jack, his arms around a handsome young man with serious eyes and an attractive brunette. They were laughing. Donna had the feeling she might be about to have the most important conversation in her life. She looked at Jack waiting for him to speak but he just looked at her in silence. Finally she realised he wasn't going to tell her anything she didn't ask to know.

"Is this Gwen?" she asked softly pointing at the dark haired woman. Jack nodded. "She doesn't look much like you." Donna commented.

"Different moms" Jack improvised wildly, belatedly realising he should have thought this through beforehand. "Gwen's mom was Dad's second wife. He divorced from my mom when I was eight. They weren't happy, she wasn't cut out to be a wife and mother."

"And is that Rhys?" Donna continued pointing.

"No, Rhys was taking the picture." Jack said quietly. "That is Ianto."

In that instant Donna knew what was coming next. To be fair it explained a lot, particularly Jack's reticence to talk about his past. Looking at Jack, Donna saw he was having trouble continuing.

"Ianto was the one you were married to," she said flatly. Not a question, a statement of fact. "So you're gay." Donna, reeling under the knowledge, knew she sounded cold and unfeeling.

"Yes...and no. It's not something I really think about. I fell in love with Ianto, he just happened to be a man. I've had relationships with women too...loved them I mean." Jack admitted candidly. There was a long silence. "I guess the real issue is how you feel about that. Ianto and me," he said finally, a fearful look on his face.

He was afraid, Donna realised incredulously, afraid she would be repulsed by his past relationship with Ianto, with him. The question was, how did she feel about it? She had always considered herself pretty conservative but only in herself. She didn't have a problem with other peoples' choices. If you loved someone, you loved someone, it just didn't matter. And she loved Jack. It was as simple as that. She couldn't have walked away from Jack now if her life depended on it.

"You looked very happy Jack," she said taking his hand in her own. "He must have been very special. Would you tell me about him?"

And Jack told her, not the whole of it of course. No mention of Torchwood or the 456 but the important stuff. Ianto's dry wit and obsession with good coffee. His gentle yet possessive determination to protect Jack from all the hurts of the world. How they had felt, what they had talked about, their plans and dreams. And he told her about Ianto's death, substituting a car accident for Thames House and the deadly virus, but telling her truthfully about how he felt as Ianto died in his arms. By the time Jack fell silent Donna was weeping too, partly out of pity for Jack but mostly for Ianto, a man she now felt she knew. Going too soon.

Afterwards they sat in silence for a long time, side by side, Donna unconsciously stroking Jack's hand. Finally she turned to look at Jack, her eyes wet, but her voice steady,

"I need to know Jack. Am I just here to help you get over Ianto? Because I'm not sure I can just be a shoulder to cry on," she paused taking a deep breath before saying the words which would change her life forever. "I love you too much."

There, it was said, the words irrevocably out there. Hesitantly she looked up at Jack waiting for some kind of reaction.

"Donna Noble, you are a remarkable woman," Jack said wonderingly. "I am so glad I met you." Then with a soft smile he leaned over and kissed her again, this time touching her face and hair as if she couldn't quite believe she was real. Donna's last coherent thought before she gave herself up to the moment was that he hadn't really given her an answer.

Sometime early in the morning, before dawn, Donna woke cocooned under a snowy white duvet which smelt tantalisingly of Jack's cologne. The impression of Jack's head still visible on the pillow he sat on the side of the bed pulling his braces up over his half tucked in shirt. Hearing her stir he turned and flashed her a cheeky grin,

"Ms Noble. Someday I'm going to find out where you learnt all that."

"One day, Mr Harkness, I might actually feel disposed to tell you!" she returned blithely, ignoring the surge of embarrassment as she recalled the nights' events. "But don't hold your breath."

Jack raised his eyebrows and leant over to kiss her briefly,

"I've got to go. See Gwen and the baby. It's a boy by the way. I'd ask you to come with me..." he trailed off.

Donna shook her head, "Not the time for big introductions. Private family time and all that. Call me later if you get chance. I need more kip. You look disgustingly awake for someone who's had an hours sleep." And with a blown kiss in the air she shimmied back down under the duvet. A moment later a muffled, "Love You. Drive safe," floated into the air.

Jack picked his car keys up from the bedside table and tossed them into the air catching them with a flourish. For the first time since the Doctor had found him he actually felt...well, happy. Even as he thought it he immediately felt a surge of gut wrenching guilt. He'd been unfaithful, he had betrayed Ianto. Even so he couldn't help whispering, "Love you too" as he left the room.

Under the duvet Donna smiled.

I thought long and hard about whether Jack would tell Donna about Ianto. The old Jack definitely wouldn't have, but I see post-CoE Jack as emotionally damaged in a way that hasn't happened to him before, hence the confession. I am so looking forward to fixing him. As for Donna, I tried to make her react badly to the confession but the plot bunnies wouldn't co-operate and she would insist in writing herself as a voice of reason. Go figure...