"Shopping for Mary's girls, Jack? Jeff told me what happened last night; that's awfully sweet of you, to take them in. Jack? Jack!"

He roused himself from his contemplation of cantaloupes and their resemblance to Veronica's silicone-enhanced cleavage as the woman herself poked him in the shoulder. He turned to give her a wide-eyed look.

"Huh? Oh, yeah. It's no problem." He grabbed two or three and put them in the shopping cart, walking off quickly so she couldn't see his flushed cheeks, but Veronica kept up with him.

"So . . . are you and Rachel going to try to get custody of them if Mary can't keep them? Where is Rachel?"

She took the milk he'd grabbed blindly and put a different brand in the cart. "Hey . . ."

"It's cheaper and better, trust me. So?"

"So, what?" He could smell her perfume, something floral.

"What about Janet and Susie?"

"Huh?" Her knee-length, form-fitting skirt and well-tailored silk blouse were distracting him. "Oh. Why should we take them? They're not our responsibility, and besides, I'm trying to avoid having kids. Doesn't work too well if we take in someone else's offspring. And she's at a conference in California all week. Some lawyer crap."

She laughed like he'd been joking about not wanting to take in Janet and Susie, resting her hand on his bicep. "All week? I'm sorry to hear that. But you'd be a great father, Jack," Veronica said softly as she smiled up at him.

"Yeah, everyone says that now," he mumbled, avoiding her gaze. He looked at the list he'd scribbled down in a hurry, talking to himself as he went on. "Chunky peanut butter and raspberry jelly . . . what's wrong with creamy? Creamy's great, chunky just hurts my gums . . ."

Veronica was laughing again as her hand slid down to his wrist. "Ah, kids and their fickle tastes. I'm glad Jeff and I never had any; the twins are from his first marriage. Do you need help shopping?"

He really hated admitting that he needed help, so Jack just scowled and ignored her. Her perfume and the click of her high heels followed him, the warm weight of her hand on his wrist never wavering. He grabbed the smallest thing of chunky peanut butter he could find and used that motion as an excuse to get her hand off of him. Either she didn't get the hint that he wanted her to leave him alone, or she got the hint that he needed help, because after a while Veronica took the shopping list from him and clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth as she looked it over, then gently steered him in the right direction. Once they were up at the register, Veronica gasped softly and grabbed the newspaper.

"Oh, my God . . ."

"What?" Jack asked, interested.

"Two more girls went missing . . ." He pursed his lips and took the paper from her, skimming the article. It didn't give much information, but it didn't really have to. They both fit the same profile, they'd disappeared in a different town within ten miles of Loleta, and he knew how they'd end up. "God, Jack, this is scary. Aren't you worried?"

He was angry more than anything. Some asshole was fucking with his life and they were not going to be happy if he ever found them. "A little. Look, thanks for the help and all, but I've got to get to the police station. Tom said he'd give me and the girls a ride home; my bike will fit in the back of his truck." It obviously wasn't the response she'd been looking for as Veronica blinked and move her lips silently in surprise. Jack didn't care. She could finger-bang herself to thoughts of him all day long, as long as she left his physical self out of it. Jack had just gotten out the sliding doors when Tom pulled up, and he grinned.

"Hey, Jack. All done?"

"You're a lifesaver, Tom," he replied. "Just finished. Veronica was kind enough to help out."

"I am just in time, then." Tom rolled his eyes and Jack returned the gesture as they loaded the bags and his bike in the truck. "Hey, Veronica. How are you?"

"I'm fine," she said a little crossly. "How are Helna and Mitzi?"

It made Jack want to howl with laughter as she was forced by her societal niceties to stand there and be polite after he'd rejected her subtle advances, when it was obvious that all she really wanted to do was flounce away in a huff. A few years ago he would have been cackling merrily to himself rather than leaning out the window and grinning; maybe he was more acclimated than he'd feared.

"They're great, thanks."

"Hey, I've gotta call my wife," Jack couldn't resist putting in. He loved the way a muscle jumped in Veronica's cheek at the mention of Rachel. "Let's go."

"Sorry, Veronica, I'd love to chat, but . . ."

"It's no problem," she said cooly. "Have a good day, you two."

"We will. Bye!" Jack called as she did flounce off, waving cheerfully before settling back in the seat and busting up. "Oh, oh shit," he laughed breathlessly as he wiped tears from his eyes. "Does Jeff know what a whore she is?"

Tom was laughing, too, even as he tried to frown. "I don't know, man, I don't know. Just don't go spreading tales, okay? Jeff doesn't need to find out from the rumour mill."

"Right. I hang around you, Helna, and pipsqueak grade-schoolers. That's my circle of acquaintances; not much gossip to be had there, unless you count who got invited to who's birthday party and who has the best Barbie."

That made his friend laugh as they drove to the grammar school to get Susie. "Right. I'll come to you for inside information when the next Barbie in town goes missing."

"Hey, I'm your undercover agent," Jack said, leaning out the window and letting the wind blow in his hair. It felt fantastic; it always did.

"Rachel ever compare you to a dog when you do that?"

"All the time," Jack called back in. They pulled up to the school and he waved at Susie, who was standing a little apart from the other children waiting to be picked up. "Susie! Hey, Susie!"

She looked around in surprise, then her whole face lit up when she saw him, and she started running toward the truck. "Jack! Jack, you came to get me!"

"Well, duh," he called back as he opened the door and got out, catching her as she flung herself at him and swinging her up and around. "I said I would, didn't I?"

"Mommy always says she'll do stuff, but then she doesn't," Susie replied as she hugged his neck. He returned the embrace and settled her on his hip, shaking a finger in her face as she giggled.

"Yeah, well, I'm not your mom, am I? I'm a man of my word, doll-face, and if I say I'm going to pick you up, I'm going to pick you up."

She was almost crying with joy. "I love you, Jack!" she exclaimed, giving him a big kiss on the cheek.

He couldn't look at her joy-filled face and not smile back, not return her kiss with a small one of his own as he hugged her. "I like you too, kid."

She clutched her backpack to her chest and grinned. "Wanna know what we did in class today?!"

He laughed as he buckled her in, then nodded. "Go for it. What'd you learn today?" He flipped his cell phone open and started a new text message as he listened with half an ear to Susie ramble, expressing interest when she waved a piece of paper at him that she'd scrawled on with crayons, pretending he could see that it was a picture of himself and absently promising that he'd put it on his fridge. He was chewing at the scar on his lip when he got a response, then nodded in satisfaction and turned his full attention to the little girl sitting next to him.

As they pulled up to the curb of the high school, Susie unbuckled and leaned out the window to yell at Janet at the top of her lungs. "Janet! Jack picked me up like he promised! We're gonna roast s'mores after my homework's done! Hurry, Janet!"

Jack winced and covered his ears. "Ow, hey, have a care for the ears, sugar. You'll make me go deaf."

"I'm sorry, Jack!" Susie took his face between her little hands and then kissed each ear. "Do they feel better?"

He hadn't been expecting the kisses and his ears were sensitive anyway. Jack looked at Tom quickly, somewhat mortified. The man was laughing.

"Uh . . . hey, yeah, they're all better. Thanks, moonshine. Just, uh, don't kiss them again, all right? They're a little, ah, sensitive." She started deflating and he tickled her. "How about you kiss my nose and it'll go to my ears, okay?"

"Okay!" Susie gave his nose two kisses for good measure, giggling when he scrunched it up.

Janet wasn't looking too happy, so Jack bowed to her with a flourish. "Love of my life!" he called cheerfully, waving at her as she blushed. "Come on, that bonfire's not gonna build itself!" It amused him no end that her fellow students were jealous of her, and he was willing to bet that she was going to be the most popular girl in school by the end of the week, with everyone wanting to know how it was like living with the Joker. Then Janet was at the door and Jack started to get out to let her sit by her sister.

"No!" Susie wailed. "I wanna sit by Jack!"

Jack frowned, at a loss for what to do, but Tom came to his rescue. "You sat by Jack all the way here, Susie. It's Janet's turn, and besides, you and Janet fit in the middle, and Jack doesn't. All right?"

"But I wanna sit by him . . ."

"If you don't stop whining, you're not going to be able to sit by him for a long time; you'll be grounded."

"That's right," Jack spoke up. "You had your turn, tootsie roll." Despite her best efforts, Susie giggled at the pet name. "So be good. Any trouble today?" he asked as he held the door for Janet.

"Uhm, not really . . ." She was still upset about the police and CPS coming to her house to talk with her mother, but Jack didn't care.

"Was it Cathy?"

"No, no one ---"

Jack got in and deliberately jostled her around as he buckled up, then turned a hard look on her. She went a little pale. "Rule number one in my home, Janet: never lie to me. Is that clear?" She nodded, not looking at him. "Good. Now, who was causing trouble?"

"Just . . . a few people. Cathy and Marcus and a few others. The usuals."

"Have you reported any of this to the principal?" Tom asked as they left.

"Why? It's not going to stop."

"No one deserves to be harassed because of their home situation, Janet, and it's your principal's job to make sure all of her students feel safe at school. If it takes threatening to call the police and file a report, then Laurie needs to do that."

"It's not that bad," Janet replied testily. "I can ignore them."

"But it shouldn't be happening in the first place," Tom argued. "That's my whole point."

"Hate to take sides here," Jack said, "but he's got a point. Bullies will walk all over you until you stand up for yourself. Me, I just tend to leave them bleeding in an alleyway, but you've got better ways of dealing with them at your disposal. Don't take crap from anyone. What's your middle name?"

"What? Uhm, Lucyanne."

"Janet Lucyanne Mills. See? There's no 'doormat' in your name, so stop acting like one."

That made Susie giggle and repeat his last sentence, and Janet shrugged. "I'll tell Mrs. Bowen tomorrow."

"Good. It helps that her husband's Rachel's partner. I'll have her talk to him about it if she needs to." Jack grinned at the excellent connections he had.

"Can I hold Rory when we get home?"

Jack frowned at Susie. "Uhm . . . when we get to my home, you mean?"

"Yeah! Home!"

"It's not your home, cupcake," he reminded her gently.

Her lower lip pushed out. "But I want it to be."

Jack looked at Tom for help, but the other man was out of ideas and shrugged. "Ah . . . well, right now it's just my home. Mine and Rachel's. But you can hold Rory if you can find him, and if he lets you. And you can even see if he'll sleep with you tonight. How about that?"

It was hard, he reflected, negotiating with children. They were definitely shrewd, if somewhat gullible, negotiators. He watched Susie weigh her options, chewing her bottom lip in a gesture he recognised as his own, and then her forehead smoothed out as she nodded.

"Okay. But I want to roast my marshmallows all by myself."

"Fine, fine, you can do that," he assured her, really wanting a nap so he could get some energy back. Between Veronica and Susie, he was just about drained. Women. Energy saps, all of them.

***

Jack was doing the dishes when the house line rang. Susie and Janet were already in bed, and Rory had curled up with Susie after a few treats. It rang again as he was wiping his hands off. It might be a client of Rachel's, he mused. The house line was her work number. But at this time of night, it might be an emergency. He stared at the phone for another two rings before picking up.

"Bowen and Dawes Law Associates." There was silence on the other end, and Jack's eyes narrowed as he waited. He could hear very faint breathing, then the line clicked off. "Asshole," he muttered. He'd just gone back to the sink when the phone rang again. He turned around and stared at it, then went back and picked it up. Again. "Bowen and Dawes Law Associates." The breathing was a little more obvious, and now Jack was getting irritated. "This is the wrong line to crank call," he said in a calm, emotionless tone. "Knock it off." Then he hung up. It rang again almost immediately, and he ignored it.

The phone didn't stop ringing until the answering machine picked up, and this time the breathing was heavier. Something about it also caught Jack's attention and he shut the tap off, almost pressing his ear against the phone base's speaker as he closed his eyes and concentrated. There was . . . something . . .

He drew back with a start as a sharp cry erupted from the other end of the line, but it cut off quickly. It hadn't been a pained cry, more like . . . almost a startled cry, or someone who had been very quietly masturbating unexpectedly orgasming. His eyes narrowed and Jack took the phone off the hook.

"Fuck you, pal," he whispered harshly, then chuckled to himself with a lopsided grin. Someone wanted to get cute, did they? He made a quick round about the house, double-checking every door and window to make sure they were locked and the curtains were tightly closed, checking on the girls first and last before stretching out on the couch with his head resting on his hands. He wasn't afraid at all; Jack rarely felt that emotion, and it never paralysed him. That didn't mean, however, that he wasn't going to be cautious. He closed his eyes to get a little bit of sleep.

"I believe in miracles . . . Where're you from, you sexy thing . . . I believe in miracles . . . Since you came along, you sexy thing . . ."

He jerked awake immediately and flipped his phone open. "Yeah."

"Did I wake you up?"

Jack grinned at Rachel's voice and stretched. "Baby, I'd never sleep again, if you wanted me to."

"That's not an answer."

"Wasn't supposed to be. How was day two? Sunburned yet?"

"Not much opportunity for tanning in San Francisco, Jack, but the conference is amazing. A whole bunch of legal crap you don't care about, but I'm having a great time." He was quiet for a moment. "I wish you were here."

"That's what I was waiting for," he said with pleasure. "You miss me lots, huh?"

"I miss your penis, mostly," Rachel replied airily, which made him guffaw. "Your ego I can do without."

"It's okay for me to desperately miss you, but not for you to miss me one bit?" He was grinning. It was one in the morning; Janet and Susie were fast asleep. "Why don't you give yourself a nice hard swat for that."

"I'm sorry," she immediately said. "I won't do it again."

"That's nice," Jack replied. "You still need a swat. With a brush."

"Jack!"

He was absently running his hands over his chest and stomach, still grinning. "You're really uppity lately, you know that?"

There was the sound of her brush hitting her backside quite firmly, then her somewhat breathless voice. "There. Is that good?"

He almost laughed. "For now. Now, tell me how much you miss my penis. Personally, I miss all of you, but we appear to be having double standards there at the moment."

"You dummy, of course I miss all of you. But to answer my question, what I miss most about your penis is that . . ."

Half an hour later, on opposite sides of the continent, two very sated lovers said their final good nights and flipped their phones shut, getting up just long enough to wash off a bit before snuggling under their covers with contented smiles.

Outside of the beach house, the night was absolutely silent but for the constant roar of the ocean.

*******

A/N: I am so sorry this took so long to get out. Sing and I have been having issues of late. Major issues. I've also started a new job that's way more time-consuming than my last job, so I'm adjusting there. Anyway, I haven't forgotten you and I love you all! *smooches*