Chapter Four
Jack watched from his doorway as John Hart sauntered away with his trademark arrogant swagger. The expression of disbelief on his face as Jack turned him away had almost been amusing.
The man was sex on legs, but Jack was tired of John calling or showing up whenever it suited him, expecting Jack to drop whatever he was doing and satisfy the other man's untamed libido. It had been a mutually beneficial arrangement for the most part, each of them getting what they needed without unwelcome complications, but it had run its course. Jack was happy to see the back of the man and hoped never to lay eyes on him again. He wanted more for himself than a bed-warmer like John Hart could ever offer, even if it meant settling for the companionship of his hand for the foreseeable future. The next time he had sex of the non-solitary variety, he wanted it to be with someone special. He wanted it to mean something.
Closing the door with a sense of finality, he sighed and retreated to the sofa, picking up his half empty bottle of beer and taking a swig as he sank back down into the cushions. Moses looked up at him from the other end of the sofa, blinked his big golden eyes, languidly stretched out his lean body, yawned widely, then promptly went back to sleep again. Sometimes Jack envied him. He reached over and gave the feline's belly a playful tousle.
It was eleven-thirty on a Saturday night, and he was at home, alone, and lonely. Finishing off his beer, he reached for his laptop and returned to half-heartedly perusing the profiles of the latest batch of potential mates to fill his inbox. He'd signed up with just about every online dating site he could find, and he continued to draw a significant amount of interest. There were a few promising new candidates – at least if their profiles and photographs were to be believed – and only a week ago he would have been eager to initiate contact. Now, however, there was only one person he was interested in, but that person wasn't interested in him.
It was an unprecedented situation, and he couldn't deny that his ego was feeling a little bruised and battered from the rejection he'd suffered thirty-six hours earlier. He wasn't giving up, but he hadn't figured out his next move yet, and he knew that he needed to proceed with caution if he didn't want to completely ruin his chances. Finesse was called for here rather than his usual direct, no-nonsense approach. With that in mind, he'd stayed away from the bakery today to give himself time to think and regroup.
After a few more minutes of distracted browsing, he deleted all the messages. On a whim, he typed Ianto's name into Google and hit the search button. He blinked in surprise when no relevant matches came up for 'Ianto Jones'. Apparently the Welshman liked to keep a low-profile and had managed to maintain a non-existent digital footprint. In this day and age, that seemed like quite an accomplishment.
He smiled to himself as he imagined the shock Ianto would get if he Googled 'Jack Harkness' and stumbled upon some of the more revealing images floating around in cyberspace. It thrilled him a little to know he was out there in all his glory for the world to see. He liked his body, he had nothing to be ashamed about, and he'd worked hard over the years to make it look its best and to keep it that way. Although he didn't think of himself as an exhibitionist, he'd never had a problem with taking off his clothes for the camera. He liked that people enjoyed looking at photographs of him, perhaps even casting him in the leading role in their masturbatory fantasies. Plus, when he was working on shoots with naked models, it was a definite advantage to have experience being on the other side. A little empathy could help with calming a nervous model and achieving the best possible results from a shoot.
Next, he entered 'Myfanwy's Bakery Cardiff' into the search engine, and this time he had a little more success. He scanned through the results, finding the usual listings typical of any small business, each one providing the bakery's address and telephone number. What he didn't find, however, was a dedicated website or any kind of social media presence to promote the bakery and showcase its products.
Inspiration struck, and a triumphant grin spread across his face. He now knew exactly what he was going to do next in his battle to win the affections of the captivating Welshman. He was going to make Ianto Jones an offer that he simply couldn't refuse.
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Jack returned to the bakery bright and early on Monday morning. Entering the bakery was always a treat for the senses. The comfortable, inviting atmosphere, the wonderful aromas of coffee and freshly baked bread, the mouth-watering selection of cakes, breads and pastries – it was quickly becoming one of his favourite places to be, and he couldn't help smiling broadly as he crossed the threshold.
He greeted Rhys and chatted with him for a couple of minutes, ordered a cup of coffee, and then asked if he could see Ianto.
It took some effort not to lick his lips with appreciation when Ianto appeared from the kitchen in the back half of the shop. Ianto's smart work attire didn't vary greatly from one day to the next, but today's ensemble was a particularly delightful surprise. The pale pink shirt and black tie with pink and white stripes hinted at a more adventurous side to the mild-mannered Welshman, and Jack's blood heated in his veins with thoughts of the hidden depths that might lurk beneath the man's impeccably groomed exterior.
Ianto's shirt sleeves were neatly rolled up to his elbows, and Jack admired the lean, strong forearms with their pale skin and dusting of fine, dark hair. Ianto seemed to be completely unaware of his appeal, which, in Jack's eyes, made the Welshman all the more irresistible. He'd never realised before that quiet, understated modesty could be such an incredible turn on. The strange twist of irony wasn't lost on him.
He swallowed against the dryness in his mouth as Ianto greeted him with his usual polite, sexy little smile. Today, however, there was wariness in his blue eyes, doubtless as a result of their last encounter.
Ianto cleared his throat as he glanced towards where Rhys had retreated into the kitchen. "Jack, look, about the other day..."
Jack gave a dismissive shake of his head. "It's fine, Ianto. Don't worry about it. But I'd like to talk to you about something if you can spare a couple of minutes." He picked up the cup of coffee Rhys had made for him and gestured towards the nearest table.
Ianto looked like he was about to refuse, so Jack brought out his most disarming smile. "Please. Just for a minute."
Ianto continued to look wary, but he finally nodded. They moved over to the nearest table and sat down across from each other, Ianto's posture ramrod straight and his hands folded neatly in front of him.
Jack took a sip of his coffee. "So, I Googled you the other day. It turns out that you're quite an enigma." He chuckled. "If I didn't know better, I might think you're a spy and this is all an elaborate cover."
"You Googled me?" Eyes narrowed, Ianto's tone bordered on outrage. He then squirmed a little as a flicker of discomfort passed over his features.
Jack wondered what that was about, but merely shrugged in response. "I Google everyone I meet. I'm a curious guy. It's no big deal, everyone does it these days. Anyway, what I discovered is that you don't have a website to promote the bakery. You don't even have a Facebook page."
"Um, no, well..." Ianto bit his lower lip, appearing reluctant to continue. He sighed and stared down at his hands for a moment before looking back up at Jack. "Obviously I've thought about it, and I plan to get something set up soon. But money's a bit tight at the moment, and there are always other things to do. We've only been open a few months. We're still trying to get the business on its feet."
Jack nodded in understanding. From his observations over the past week, he suspected that Ianto might be struggling to make ends meet. Ianto and Rhys clearly excelled at creating fantastic, high-quality products, but he imagined the day-to-day running of the bakery left Ianto precious little time for other things like working on the promotional side of the business. Fortunately, that was where he came in.
He took another sip of his coffee. "It sounds like you could use some help. And I'm going to help you. Photography, website, social media. Won't cost you a cent. Well, except for registering a domain name and hosting, but that won't cost much for what I have in mind." He tapped the fingers of his other hand on the table. "Then once you've got a website up and running, there are all kinds of things we can do to help promote the business. Plus, I'm pretty sure I can wrangle some newspaper coverage. Maybe a weekend feature or something along those lines. I know someone who works at the newspaper."
Ianto frowned, looking simultaneously suspicious and bewildered. "Why would you want to do all of that?"
"Because I'd like to help." Jack tried to maintain an air of nonchalance, not wanting to appear too eager.
The adorable little frown of Ianto's was far too distracting. Jack wanted nothing more than to reach across the table, grasp hold of Ianto's face and kiss the hell out of him. "I think you've got a fantastic business here, and I'd love to see it flourish." He leaned back in his chair. "I've had some good fortune in my life, and some generous people have helped me out along the way. I like to give something back now and then. You know, pay it forward."
All of which was perfectly true. He genuinely wanted to see Ianto's business become a thriving success, and harbouring ulterior motives didn't diminish that desire. Getting to work with Ianto and spend time with him was simply a delightful bonus. At least, that was what he tried to tell himself.
He continued drinking his coffee as Ianto looked at him with a doubtful expression. "It's a very generous offer, Jack. But..."
Jack hastened to reassure him. "No strings attached, I promise. Come on, Ianto. What do you say? I'd really like to help you."
"I can't deny I could use some help with that side of things..." Those perceptive blue eyes continued to search Jack's face. Then, very slowly, and almost reluctantly, Ianto nodded. "All right. Thank you, Jack. It's very kind of you. So... um... what happens now?"
Jack almost sighed with relief. He put down his now empty cup. "Can I get another coffee? Then I'll tell you what I've got in mind."
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Ianto watched from behind the counter as Jack departed with a bright smile and friendly wave, giving a smile of his own in return.
Jack continued to shock and surprise him. First there had been the startling dinner date invitation, and now Jack was offering free photography services along with creating a website and lining up a newspaper article, all to help to promote the bakery. It seemed a bit too good to be true, and in his experience that invariably meant there was a catch. Jack seemed sincere in his desire to help, but Ianto wasn't naïve enough to believe the offer was entirely altruistic. At the same time, he couldn't figure out Jack's ulterior motive. He'd made it clear to Jack that he was one-hundred-percent heterosexual, and he didn't flatter himself that a man like Jack – who, given his looks and charisma, surely had no shortage of people fawning for his attention – would find him appealing enough to be worthy of pursuing.
He didn't dislike Jack, despite being unsettled by him. In fact, Jack was starting to grow on him. He was easygoing and friendly, talented in his profession and clearly intelligent, and he exuded an enviable level of self-assuredness. He undoubtedly had a sizeable ego, almost bordering on arrogance, and he was probably a bit too used to getting what he wanted. Still, he wasn't obnoxious or pretentious. It seemed more like he was just naturally exuberant. It perhaps wasn't beyond the realms of possibility that they could even become friends of a sort.
Regardless, Jack's offer had been difficult to resist, even if it might have been wiser to refuse. In hindsight, he'd been so focused on getting the bakery up and running and creating their product range, he hadn't put enough time into working on promoting the business. That side of things wasn't his forte, and he didn't have money for much in the way of advertising or other things like professional photography and setting up a website. If Jack's assistance worked out and produced results, it could be the boost they needed. He supposed he'd just have to hope he didn't end up regretting the decision.
A customer entered the shop, enquiring about their breads and the ingredients they used, and Ianto turned his attention to assisting her. She departed with a selection of bread rolls and croissants, seemingly satisfied. A couple more customers followed, and it was ten minutes later before he returned to the kitchen.
"What did Jack want?" Rhys stopped his cleaning of the main work area and looked up at him. "Did he ask you out on a date again? I still think you should have said yes."
Ianto rolled his eyes. Since confiding in Rhys about Jack asking him for a date, he'd been shocked to discover that Rhys had developed a bit of a bi-curious streak. Apparently it had come about when one of Rhys's more dubious friends from his previous job had gone to a gay bar on a lark. According to Rhys, Dave had met a bloke and ended up going home with him. Now the two men were seeing each other, and Dave claimed he'd never been happier. Then, to Ianto's horror, Rhys had pondered aloud about whether Jack might be interested in a threesome with him and Gwen. Although he was fairly certain Rhys had been joking, it was still far more information than he'd ever wanted to know about his best friend's sex life.
He succinctly filled Rhys in on Jack's proposal.
"That's brilliant! Even better if he can line up something in the newspaper too." Rhys gave him a sly grin. "Jack must really like you. You're not worried that he might... you know... want something in return?" His grin grew wider.
"No, of course not." Ianto spluttered out the words with indignation, despite his thoughts having travelled in a similar direction.
Leaning against the nearby cooling rack, he sighed and rubbed distractedly at his temples. He could feel a tension headache starting to take hold. "Well, yeah... maybe. But if that's what he's thinking, he's going to be sorely disappointed. The only thing Jack will get from me is some free baked goods."
Rhys laughed. "Just don't tell him that, Ianto. You'll only encourage him. Jack seems like a persistent sort of bloke. Still, I suppose with his looks, he's used to getting what he wants." He resumed his cleaning. "Did you know he used to be a model? Gwen Googled him. There's even photos of him in the buff. The lucky bastard's got some impressive tackle."
Ianto almost choked on his tongue. Reminded of his own Googling efforts for the second time that morning, a guilty flush of heat crept up his cheeks. The last thing he wanted to be thinking about was Jack Harkness's tackle, impressive or otherwise.
He turned away and, pushing Jack firmly from his thoughts, got back to work.