15

"What do you mean?" Rhiannon asked with confusion.

"I mean… do you still want to work with me darling."

"How?"

"I am head of the department for housing, right? Alice will be my secretary, since that is non negotiable. But… nowhere did it say I could not have a second." Ianto grinned "Alice drops to office girl, her job the pokerwork due, which we both know is a pain in the arse. You get to travel with me out to the job sites, you can issue the permits that I sign off on and Alice… well… can take direction from you."

Rhiannon took a sharp intake of breath as she saw what he was saying "I would be her superior?"

"Hmmmm"

"But how…"

"She might have used her god Father, her Uncle Arty go get what she wanted, but she didn't know you have an uncle Archie who is not only higher rank than him… but is actually as angered by turncoats as the next man. Besides, he was there when you were born, he has loved you always. Even if things did go south between us, he is still your father."

She lurched back with shock "Da? Da is here? What?"

"He didn't want to get in your face, he knows you are still angry with him over things that happened. He is just glad he can help you out now." Ianto held his hands up to calm her "He wants nothing in return. Well… he would like to meet the kids if that's OK. Mica is the image of him after all. I told him nothing, honest Jelly Bean. He does not know."

"You've not spoken to him in years. Not since my eighth birthday party when he…"

"And we agreed never to talk about it. Well… a lot of years have passed and I am one to hold a grudge as you well know, but he is your bio Dad. I have to admit I did love him once, enough to create you my little Jelly Bean." Ianto leaned over to kiss her cheek and he knew he had saved things. Her smile wide as she not only got her dream job upgraded, but the man Ianto had fallen pregnant to and had been in her life, albeit on the fringes, a bonus too.

Ianto could eat a little crow for her.

She was his baby girl after all.

.

.

Alice entered the office and saw the desk with her name plate settling with delight as she opened her bag to remove the photograph of her son to place on the desk amongst her new things.

The inner office door opened and she looked up with what she hoped was a wide smile, freezing as she saw Rhiannon walking towards her with files in her hand and no smile in return. "Good morning Private Harkness. I understand you have taken your Militarial name, as I have mine. You can call me Sergeant Jones."

Alice knew she was gaping but she could not move from the shock if it as Rhiannon continued to softly speak "So, here are some of today's work. These all need to be entered into the system and there is a list of permits FL Jones is needing to release for the continuation of the project. Please make them available for the FL to sign off on and I will be in the inner office today sorting those permits."

"Rhiannon… I…"

"Private Harkness, was it not you who decided to make this a Militarial relationship between us? I am sure if we keep things professional in the office, it will all work out" Rhiannon snapped, then sighed "Good luck. Oh… and no personal items. This is a Militarial office, remember?"

As Rhiannon turned on her heel to stomp back into the office where she knew her Taddy was watching from his desk she felt a twitch of a grin, seeing his bland face betraying nothing when she knew his amusement was heightened by her bitchy display.

Well.

She asked for it.

Bitch.

.

.

"Hey sweetie, how was your first day?" Jack asked as his daughter slammed in to the house and threw the files at the table, missing and letting them all flutter around the room.

"Rhiannon is a bitch."

Jack paused the knife, the sandwich he was making could wait as he turned to see her flushed face "Oh?"

"Yeah. All that work to get that job… did you know there was another one higher up?" she demanded "that cow is now my superior!"

Jack felt shock then to her annoyance he started to snigger as he turned to cut the sandwich into triangles "well, you did ask for that."

"I wanted that job!"

"And you got it. The job Ianto had created for his little one, you pulled a swiftly and now you're pissed tat she did it straight back at you. Well… what have we learned here, hmm?" Jack placed the sandwich in front of her, the haphazard meal one he always made her when she had a bad day, ever since she was little. Her eyes narrowed.

"You knew?"

"No. I knew Ianto was beyond upset that you pulled rank like that, was pissed that you gave up your friendship so easily and if you had ever got to know that man as well as I have, you would know that he will always do what he promised. He promised his daughter a job next to him, to keep her close. You shoehorned our way in so… he simply shuffled and twerked like a whore… and fixed it. You got the title and desk, you got the income… the contract is for the exact position you applied for. Rhiannon now has one that he would have to sold a kidney for no doubt."

"Why didn't you do that for me!"

"Because I don't shaft my friends honey. You never saw action, we did. All you have is your code. You not only embarrassed and hurt Rhiannon, you embarrassed me too. What you did… made me ashamed. So… no. Not my problem sweetheart. As you point out to me constantly, you are a grown arsed woman who can do it yourself." Jack replied softly, and then he placed down the drink he had poured for her as well "so… YOU have to fix this huge fucking mistake you made."

She bit savagely into the sandwich and glared at him as he calmly made another sandwich.

He was right.

She hated that he was right.

She had only gained by losing.