Author's note: it took me a while to write this, so a slightly longer chapter to make up for that. I'm still open to suggestions for future chapters, by the way.

A big thank you to LemmingDancer for giving this one a read-through!

Enjoy! And please review :-)

They were having, yet again, a rerun of a conversation that was becoming increasingly familiar to Jack. Once again, Miss Fisher was trying to convince him to do something he didn't feel like doing at all, using her considerable powers of persuasion in the process, and he was trying to stand his ground, deflecting her charms and arguments by adopting a grumpy attitude he hoped would scare her off. It never did. She always got her way. But not this time, he swore. So here we go again.

'No.'
'Come on, Jack.'
'No.'
'Please?'
'Still very much no.'
'It'll be fun!'
'That's what you say every time: about the beach, about your aunt's dinner party,…'
'Well, and didn't you end up having a good time on both occasions?' she replied with a meaningful look, running her hand over his chest. He ignored it.
'Only after suffering through considerable discomfort on my part.'
'And wasn't it worth it?' she asked, looking up from beneath her eyelashes and moving tantalizingly close to him. He tried to ignore that, too.
'It won't be this time.'
She pouted. 'Please?'
'Miss Fisher, you can try all you want, I am not taking you to a jazz club!'

They were standing in the hallway, arguing with muted voices so the rest of the household wouldn't hear.
She rolled her eyes, and decided it was time to use her strongest argument. 'But you know our suspect has been spotted there several times. If we could go and blend into the crowd, it would be the perfect opportunity to observe him and see who his associates are without attracting any attention to ourselves.'
He said in an exasperated voice: 'I see absolutely no possibility of me 'blending in' without attracting any attention. Anyone can see I don't belong in a jazz club. I could just as well walk in with 'policeman' written on my forehead.'
She stroked his arm. 'You just need to relax a little… enjoy the atmosphere…'
He snorted. 'Somehow, I don't see that happening. No. You can go by yourself if you really have to.'
She raised an eyebrow. 'Says the man who berated me only weeks ago for behaving irresponsibly when it comes to interacting too closely with possibly dangerous suspects. And now you'd really send me out on my own to investigate this man?'
He grumbled something inaudible. Of course he wouldn't let her go alone, he just didn't want to go at all. A jazz club, of all places. He didn't think he could imagine any situation where he would feel more out of place.
She was watching him closely. 'How else do you suggest we track the suspect, Jack? You know this is our best shot.'
He looked at her darkly, in the knowledge that she was right. 'I'm doing this under protest.'
'And you've made that abundantly clear', she replied with an amused smile. 'But sometimes you have to make sacrifices in this line of work, Inspector. Even if that involves…' she lowered her voice to a stage whisper, '… going out and having fun.'
He grumbled, his resistance crumbling now the battle was lost anyway. 'Fine.'
She flashed him a bright smile, and he sighed inwardly. At least she was happy. 'Fabulous! There's a wonderful band playing tonight, and some friends of mine will be there to see it.'

She took a step backwards and gave him a scrutinizing look from head to toe that caused him to frown.
'What?' he asked defensively.
'You'll have to go home and change, darling. Wear something… dashing.'
He stared at her. 'I don't have anything 'dashing'.'
But she pushed him out the door without further ado. 'At least don't show up wearing one of your three-piece police suits. That would completely blow our cover.'
'Then what should I wear?' he asked exasperatedly as he started to descend the steps.
'You know… something casual.'
'Shall I just show up in my shirt sleeves, then?' he asked, using his most sarcastic tone. She completely ignored it.
'No, I don't think so. Just wear a casual suit.'
'A casual suit? What is… never mind, I'll figure something out.' He turned and walked away down the path to the front gate, muttering under his breath.
She looked after him, a smile playing on her lips. Oh, this would definitely be fun.

That evening, he showed up wearing a quite suitable outfit: he was dressed tastefully, yet not too formally. 'Perfect!' she cried when she opened the door to him. He just nodded, feeling there was no need to tell her that he had visited his tailor that afternoon and had simply allowed the man to dress him.
He looked at her, and couldn't help but admit that she looked very alluring. Jewels sparkled in her hair and her ears, and her dress was black and very modern, but he liked her in it. When he told her she looked lovely, she beamed at him, and he felt his grumpiness disappear, feeling slightly ashamed of himself. After all, she had willingly become a part of his world at the station, even though it did not come natural to her. So it was only fair that he should allow her to give him a taste of her world now. She was asking him to share one night with her at a place and amongst people that she really liked. He should at least give it a chance. He offered her his arm. 'Well then, let's go', he said, smiling his crooked smile. He grabbed the keys to the Hispano from the hall table. 'But I'm driving.'

A short drive later, they arrived at The Hopper, one of Melbourne's hottest jazz clubs. The moment they entered, Jack realized that, in spite of his good intentions, he didn't stand a chance. It was very warm inside, the music was loud, and the club was full of people like Phryne, enjoying themselves with reckless abandon. Catching sight of his expression, she turned to him with a warning look on her face. 'Don't you dare arrest anyone tonight! Remember that we're just here as guests.'
He reluctantly growled his consent, his eyes already scanning the packed room. After a few moments, he turned to Phryne. 'He's not here. The suspect. Let's leave.'
But she wouldn't hear of it. 'Come on Jack, we only just got here! He might still arrive later tonight. And besides…' she waved at a group of people standing at the far end of the dance floor. 'My friends are over there. I can hardly walk away now without saying hello.'

So she gripped him by the elbow and dragged him across the room, where she was met by a chorus of enthusiastic greetings: 'Phryne! It's been too long!' She was immediately surrounded by her friends, hugging the women and kissing the men on the cheek. Finally, she disengaged herself to introduce them to Jack.
'Jack, these are my very good friends Will and Ida…' she indicated the couple on the left, '… and John and Isabelle. They've only just returned from Paris. Everyone, this is Jack, my… partner.'
Suddenly, Jack was engulfed in a cloud of feathers and perfume as the two women swooped down on him to kiss him twice on each cheek. He stiffened in consternation, completely flustered, and saw Phryne stifle a smile. Then, he had his hand wrung enthusiastically by the two men. While he was greeting them, Jack could not help but overhear what the two women were saying to Phryne.
'… little surprised to hear you say he's your partner. We didn't think… after René…'
Phryne threw Jack a fond look. 'Jack is different,' he heard her say. 'With him, I feel…' But he couldn't hear the rest as Will and John clapped him on the shoulder and pushed a drink into his hands, engaging him in conversation. He soon noticed that they were both intelligent, well-travelled men, and really quite pleasant company. He thought he recognized some of Phryne's free spirit in them.

After a while, John excused himself, saying that this was a particularly good song. He swept his wife off to the dance floor, and they started to dance in a way that seemed very wild and altogether unnecessarily provocative to Jack. He turned away from the dance floor, only to find Phryne beside him, eyes shining bright, hips swaying slightly to the music. 'Oh, isn't the band just marvelous, Jack?' she asked him happily. 'Let's go dance!'
He backed away slightly in alarm. 'Phryne… I don't dance.' He thought she knew that. Sure, he knew his waltzes, but he had no idea how to dance to jazz music, and he had no desire to make a fool of himself.
She tried her most seductive look on him. 'Come on, Jack. It's not hard, I'll teach you.'
'No,' he said firmly. 'I absolutely don't dance.'
At that point, he was rescued by Will, who suddenly appeared at Phryne's side. 'Ida's not up to dancing tonight, she says. Will you please do me the honor, Phryne?' She took one look at the clear expression of relief on Jack's face, before shrugging unconcernedly, taking Will's hand, and disappearing with him onto the dance floor.

Ida had found another friend, and they were chatting together merrily, leaving Jack free to scan the room again. There was still no trace of their suspect. So he stood, waiting, tapping his foot slightly, deciding that he might learn to enjoy jazz music after all. Suddenly he realized that Ida had excused herself to visit the powder room, and Ida's friend was now standing very close to him, looking up at him with visible interest. He blinked.
'Hello,' she introduced herself, holding out her hand. 'My name is Kate. I'm a friend of Phryne's, too.' He shook her hand, noticing that she was very pretty, with short blond hair and hazel eyes. When she held his hand a just a little too long, he decided he'd better make things clear.
'Pleasure to meet you, Kate. I'm Jack, Phryne's partner.' He put a slight emphasis on the last word, but that didn't seem to deter her at all. On the contrary: she moved even closer and put her hand on his arm.
'I know', she said brightly, 'Ida just told me. I'm very glad she's found someone, you know.' She softly stroked his sleeve, looking up into his eyes with an openly flirtatious expression he had only ever seen on Phryne. 'And I must say: she has great taste in men.'
He was feeling very uncomfortable by now, and tried to edge away from the young woman, but the crowd was too dense. He looked out over the dance floor, and caught Phryne's eye, signaling his distress. She merely raised her eyebrow at him, indicating that she didn't understand what was bothering him. On closer inspection, he decided that, actually, she was dancing quite a bit too close to Will, and he felt a sudden stab of jealousy that surprised him. He usually wasn't a jealous person, but that did not include idly standing by as his love wrapped her arms around another man. In an attempt both to get away from Kate, and to get Phryne away from Will, he quickly excused himself, and ventured out onto the dance floor.

'Can I cut in?' he asked politely as he reached the dancing couple. Will smiled and bowed, graciously handing Phryne over to him.
'Jack!' she exclaimed in delighted surprise. 'Decided to come and have a good time after all?'
'Something like that', he muttered vaguely, throwing a furtive look over his shoulder at Kate, who was now talking to Will. Phryne followed his gaze, and smiled at him mischievously. 'Well, Jack, it looks like Kate has taken a liking to you, wouldn't you say?'
He immediately felt himself go red. 'I haven't…' he blustered, not knowing how to apologize. 'I didn't… encourage her.'
She gave a tinkling laugh and put a reassuring hand on his arm. 'Don't worry, darling, that's not what I meant. I'm not jealous, she knows you're with me. She just doesn't think there's anything wrong with showing you that she thinks you're an attractive man.'
He tried to grasp the notion. 'But… to what purpose?'
She leaned in very close to him, and whispered tantalizingly into his ear: 'Well… I'm quite sure she could be persuaded to come home with us.'
He pulled back, alarmed. 'I don't… we can't… no, we've discussed this', he stammered. His head was reeling. He felt that he was experiencing something of a culture shock, suddenly encountering so many people whose view of the world and its morals corresponded to Phryne's instead of his own, which he had always held to be the generally accepted one.
Phryne glanced at Kate over her shoulder. 'She's very pretty, you know', she stated casually.
Jack looked at the blond girl. It was true, she was very pretty. And young, and bright, and alluring, and so very much not Phryne. He turned back to tell her that, only to see that she was laughing, and he realized that she had been teasing him, and had known his answer in advance. He smiled down at her tenderly, brushing a lock of hair behind her ear. 'You know I only want you', he whispered huskily.
She surprised him by wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him full on the lips.
He was a little flustered when she let go of him, looking around furtively to see if anyone had noticed, then he realized that all around them there were couples in various romantic embraces, and nobody cared. He just couldn't wrap his head around how strange things suddenly were. It was like he had stepped into a different world.

His attention was drawn back to Phryne when she suddenly moved to stand very close to him, the front of their bodies touching almost full-length.
'Time to dance, Inspector', she reminded him. 'We can't just stand here.' She put her hand on his shoulder, placed one of his hands on her hip, and started to move to the music. He felt extraordinarily out of place, unable to let go and relax the way the other dancers did. However, when Phryne turned and leaned back against him, draping one arm backwards around his neck, he forgot his embarrassment for a moment to marvel at the way her supple body moved to the music. He couldn't resist running his hands down her sides, over her hips, and when she pressed her hips to him, he felt a stab of excitement that turned his mind to other matters entirely. He wrapped his arms around her waist and held her close so he could whisper in her ear. 'Let me take you home.'
She turned her head to look at him, saw the promise in his eyes, and started to agree. 'Yes, I think that might be a good…' she stopped suddenly, staring at a point a little beyond him. 'Jack,' she whispered urgently. 'That's him, that's our suspect.'
And indeed, there he was, just entering the club: a slick gentleman with oily dark hair and a garishly striped suit. Jack sighed and released Phryne, inwardly cursing the man's bad timing. Now there was nothing for it but to wait and see, and take note of what he did and whom he socialized with. Together, they moved back through the crowd to Phryne's group of friends, where they would have a good overview of the room. Though they joined in the conversation, Jack and Phryne took turns to keep an eye on their suspect. In the meantime, Will and John kept pressing drinks into Jack's hand, throwing back their own drinks with such ease that he had a hard time trying to keep up. Though he was usually quite capable of holding his liquor, he gradually felt himself become pleasantly tipsy. Phryne kept throwing amused glances his way, and he noticed that she wasn't drinking much herself.

Several hours and many drinks later, their suspect left without doing anything particularly noteworthy. Well, Phryne reflected, at least they now knew who some of his associates were, so the evening hadn't been a complete waste of time. She turned and contemplated the task that now lay before her: getting Jack home. He was trying not to show it, but she knew him too well not to see that he was drunker than he wanted to be. They said goodbye to their friends, promising to meet them again soon, and left the club for the quiet and the cooler air outside. When they reached the car, Jack leaned against it slightly to steady himself, and she observed him with an amused smile. 'Well, looks like I'll be driving', she said lightly as she fished the car keys out of his pocket. He rubbed a hand over his eyes. 'Yes, I think that would be best. Those friends of yours… they can drink.'

One very brisk car ride later, though, Jack seemed to have sobered up a little, no doubt thanks to the fresh air, and not due to shock brought on by her driving skills. He merely seemed very relaxed now. When they walked up to the front door, he put his arm around her waist and admitted: 'Actually, I almost had a good time tonight.'
She snorted. 'Of course you did, your brain is practically marinated in alcohol.'
'Not the point', he replied with as much dignity as he could muster. 'Your friends are nice.'
That surprised her, but she was pleased nonetheless. I'll make a bohemian of him yet, she amused herself by thinking, though she knew full well that his newfound carefree attitude would disappear together with the effects of the alcohol.
When they reached the front door and she felt around in her purse for the key, he wrapped both arms around her and started nuzzling her neck. She felt his mood change, and couldn't help but feel her own body respond. She smiled, deciding that she quite liked him when he was a little drunk. But when he cupped a breast through the fabric of her dress, she gasped in surprise, and laughingly pushed his hand away.
'Jack! I'll never find the key if you distract me like that,' she smiled.
'Who cares about keys', he rumbled, as he turned her around and pushed her against the door to kiss her. She immediately wrapped her arms around him and kissed him back, her desire for him washing over her. But when he started kissing her throat, she realized with a jolt of surprise that she would have to be the voice of reason tonight, if she wanted to avoid a scandal in the neighborhood.
So she stroked his hair and whispered: 'Well, the sooner I find the key, the sooner we'll be inside.'
There was no arguing with her logic, so he reluctantly stepped back and allowed her to open the door.

It was dark and quiet in the house: the household had long gone to bed. Jack took one look at the challenge the stairs posed, and seemed to decide that the prospect of climbing them was far too daunting at the moment. Instead, he took Phryne by the hand and pulled her into the parlor, closing the door behind them. It was completely dark inside – Phryne felt around for the light switch, but before she was able to locate it, two strong arms encircled her from behind, and a deep voice whispered in her ear: 'Don't bother with the lights.' He kissed her neck and shoulder, and as she leaned back against him, she decided he was right: there were more important things to attend to. When she turned and kissed him, he lifted her off the floor in his enthusiasm.

Wrapped around each other, they managed to get to the love seat. Not being able to see definitely added to the fun, Phryne decided. Though she usually liked the lights on so she could admire and be admired, the darkness presented something of a challenge, and she loved to be challenged. Their hands wandered blindly, searching for knots to undo, buttons to open, garments to discard. Phryne felt Jack's body pressed close to hers, until suddenly… he was gone.
'Jack?'
She heard a bump and a muttered curse coming from the direction of the floor.
'Are you alright?' she asked, trying hard not to laugh. 'What happened?'
'I fell off', he stated drily. 'Damn slippery furniture of yours.'
She couldn't help but laugh now. She heard him try to get up. 'No, wait, there's not enough room anyway. I'll join you down there.' She threw some pillows down in the direction of his voice, and judging by his indignant exclamations, they were right on target. She slipped off the love seat to the floor with a smile.
Feeling around, her hands encountered only velvet and silk.
'Where are you?' she asked, settling into the nest of pillows. It really was pitch black in the parlor, and she was a little disoriented for a moment. Then, she felt his fingers find her arm, and she lay still as he carefully trailed them upwards over her shoulder, until he could place his hand on her cheek.
'There you are', he whispered softly.
She smiled a smile he couldn't see. 'Yes, here I am.'
Ever so gently, he let his fingers explore her face, until he found her lips. She moved closer to him as he kissed her.

It was a new way of experiencing things, with new sensations and delights. This was a new world of carefully touching, feeling their way, letting their hands and lips discover the things they couldn't see. Jack was amazed at how well they had come to know each other's bodies in the last few months; his hands seemed to find their way effortlessly over her smooth skin. He was very much aware of every sound she made that could indicate delight or displeasure, aware of the smell of her perfume, and especially aware of how he was touching her, using his fingers thoughtfully, thoroughly, so she was soon gasping in his arms. Not being able to look into each other's eyes, they sought to make contact in other ways, caressing, kissing, touching. When she opened herself to him, her hand found his cheek, and he held her gently as her sighs filled the darkness around them.

Light filtered dimly through the heavy curtains. Jack awoke to a dull pounding in his head that was somewhat mitigated by the feeling of being enveloped in extraordinary warmth and softness. He pulled Phryne a little closer and prepared to sink back into blissful oblivion, but slowly came to the realization that something felt… off. He carefully opened one eye and frowned.
'Umm… Phryne?' he whispered uncertainly.
'Mmm?'
'Why are we lying in a pile of pillows on your parlor floor?'
At that, she turned languidly so they were face to face, then opened her eyes with a sleepy but satisfied smile. 'Don't you remember last night?'
Not as well as I'd like to, he thought. He suddenly remembered a lot of whiskey, and felt himself redden. 'Oh God, what did I do?'
She snuggled close to his chest, definitely amused. 'Nothing, darling. You were perfectly charming.'
He winced. 'How drunk was I?'
She smiled teasingly. 'Drunk enough not to be able to climb the stairs, but not so drunk that you were unable to do… other things.'
Yes, that definitely brought back some memories. For some reason, his brain refused to provide visual information, but his tactile memory seemed more accommodating: he suddenly remembered kisses and caresses, and he allowed himself to sink back into the pillows, feeling pleased with himself. He closed his eyes; maybe a few more hours of sleep would clear the last of the fog in his head.
'Jack?'
'Mmm?'
'It's morning.'
'Great. Then there's still plenty of time to sleep until noon.'
She chuckled softly. 'That's not my point.'
'Then what is your point?'
'Maybe we should get up.'
He opened one eye to look at her in amazement. 'I never thought I'd hear you say that, Miss Fisher.'
She continued casually. 'Well, we can stay here, of course, if you don't mind traumatizing Dot when she walks in here in a moment to open the curtains.'
That woke him up properly: he raised his eyebrows in alarm and quickly pushed himself off the pillows. 'Now you mention it, getting up seems like an excellent idea.'
She grinned up at him. 'I thought it might. But we can always move up to the bedroom if you'd like some more sleep.'
'Sounds like a good plan', he said absentmindedly, gathering up his clothes and throwing pillows back into their respective chairs. They pulled on enough clothes to appear at least halfway decent should they encounter someone in the hallway, but everyone still seemed to be sleeping.
When they reached the safety of the bedroom, they both tumbled into bed. The silk sheets were cool to the touch, and Phryne wriggled close to Jack, her back pressed into the warmth of his body. He encircled her in his arms.
'Now you can sleep until noon', she said, as she nestled a little closer.
But Jack suddenly realized that he was no longer very interested in sleeping. He only had to move his hand slightly to softly stroke her breast. When he felt her nipple harden and heard her breath catch, he smiled to himself.
'You know, Miss Fisher', he whispered softly in her ear. 'I'm sure I can think of many other things we could do until noon.'
'Oh really, Inspector?' she purred, and turned with a sensuous smile to wrap her arms around him. 'Enlighten me.'