Ten Years Ago

Tess let out a nervous sigh that she turned into a steadying breath, her absentminded fiddling with his necklace getting more frequent the closer they got. It was as clear a sign as any of her nerves but the slight bounces in her steps told him she was equally as excited.

Jay didn't know anyone else who was so good at being two such opposing things.

"Admit it, you enjoy this."

"I never said I didn't like it, I just said it also made me feel bad." She muttered in response and while he couldn't see her face with her tucked into his side he knew the one she would be making, scrunched brows and pouty lips.

Just like he knew the way it smoothed out when he pressed a gentle kiss to the top of her head, smiling when she relaxed further into him. He understood her nerves but he was still glad he could soothe them. Pretty much everyone understood how difficult it was to go off to war, maybe not in actuality but it was something that anyone could imagine if they tried but few people realized how difficult it was to come home. That it could be just as much of a battle to turn that part of your brain off. More actually, at least in his experience.

Going from soldier to civilian was a lot harder than the reverse.

"I get it." He said softly, making sure to catch her eye when he opened the door as they finally made their way up the steps into the museum. "But we like the surprise. And so does Lydia."

He had just enough time to watch her take another slow breath and see her tension leave before a loud voice called out across the hall.

"Tess!"

It only took him a second to realize it wasn't her aunt but instead one of her best friends, Kathy, though the smile she gave his girlfriend was just as excited.

"Did you just get back?" She asked as she hurried over to meet them, apparently deciding whatever she was doing could wait.

Very much like her friend.

"Yeah, last night." Tess answered, returning her hug before she stepped back into his side.

"Ugh, I am so jealous of you. Having adventures all over the world and coming home to a hot boyfriend? My sixteen-year-old self's dream." Kathy said with a sigh and even though Jay knew there was no personal interest in the way she looked at him he still felt himself blushing.

"It is a good life." Tess answered with a teasing smirk. "Do you know where Lydia is?"

"She is potentially getting a man of her own."

"What?"

This time both women smirked at him, with raised brows that quickly had him forcing himself to relax. Lydia was a grown woman and it wasn't like she didn't deserve company it was just…

Uncomfortable for him to think about.

"We have a shipment coming in tonight, a tomb figure from the Han dynasty. 9 A.D." Kathy said excitedly. "The dealer is actually supposed to help me authenticate it but we were having lunch when he stopped by- of course it's not surprising he took an interest in her but she seems to have taken one back. She took him to her office to show him some of her private collection."

Oh he really didn't like that.

He tried to keep his feelings to himself but Tess kept chuckling at him as they made their way to her office, completely unbothered her aunt was flirting with some strange man.

Except it turned out he wasn't a stranger.

"Tess-"

"Shit-"

The second the man's face started to drop when he saw her Jay realized something was wrong so when Tess rushed for him he made for Lydia. He was forced to shove her behind him when she tried to make for her niece but she froze fast when Tess kicked his leg out from underneath him. They both watched in shock as she grabbed one of his arms and slammed him into the sideboard against the wall before she twisted it up behind his back, quickly pinning the other so he couldn't fight back.

"Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow! You fucking cunt!" The man swore, his blood heating at the insult.

"Hey!"

"What did you just call my niece?!"

Oh no.

Oh fuck.

"Niece?" He choked out, looking between the two women before he scowled. "Fuck. You're still a cunt but you are still totally gorgeous."

Tess wrenched his arm even higher when he looked back at Lydia but while her face showed nothing but fury Jay could see the panic in her eyes. This was not good.

This was not fucking good.

"Well we're in a pickle aren't we?" The man said with a chuckle, straining to look them over again before he finally seemed to notice him. "And who are you?"

"You don't get to ask questions." Tess said tightly and for a second Jay thought she might break his arm.

And he didn't know what he thought of that, didn't have time to right now but he was pretty sure the only reason she didn't was because they were here to witness it.

Instead she roughly swung him around and though he made a silent promise to break as many bones as necessary if he even tried to hurt her he didn't, just bristled as he fixed his clothes. "I don't think that was necessary."

"I do. What are you doing here?"

"Working. And flirting with a beautiful- okay, okay!" Whoever he was he clearly knew not to piss her off because his hands quickly raised, but he still ran his eyes over Lydia in a way he didn't like when she tried to step past him.

"Is it a fake? I swear if you're trying to bring a fake into my museum-"

"I like your feisty side. Less so yours." He retorted with a scowl at Tess, who just returned it. "It is crazy how the two of you look so similar yet only you make my stomach turn."

"You're going to want to watch the way you speak to them." Jay said roughly, subtly pushing Lydia further behind him before he moved to stand next to Tess. "Now answer their questions."

He made a face but it was clear he didn't have any other options and quickly deflated. "It is not a fake. It's just… not the only thing coming in. The plan is for me to slip it out, no muss, no fuss."

"And if you were caught?" Tess questioned, something passing between them before the man made another face.

"I'm supposed to have two 'friends' with me who'll make sure things go smoothly."

"Who are they?"

"An old associate." He answered, after Tess took a threatening step forward; it was wrong but Jay couldn't deny he was intrigued to see this side of her. He hadn't gotten many chances to see what she was like when she was working. "He feels we parted… less than amicably and has decided this is how I'm to make it up."

"So you double-crossed him and now if you don't get him what he wants he's going to kill you." He interjected and though she didn't move a muscle he got the distinct impression Tess wasn't happy about it, but it wasn't like he could blame her.

This may not be the worst-case scenario but it was still a fucking bad one.

And as much as he wanted to carry it landed on her shoulders.

"Who?" Tess demanded.

"You don't know-"

"Who?"

"Or what?" The man snapped, for the first time drawing himself up to his full height. "You might have me cornered but unless you're going to kill me right here right now you have to let me go and that leaves you just as fucked as me."

Fucker.

"There's a storage room in the basement no one ever goes into. I have one of the only keys." Lydia said evenly after a long moment of tense silence and he swore he fell more in love with her.

He didn't know if Tess felt the same but after a brief look between them she smiled, small but bright. Strong. And then she turned to that man and smashed his head against the sideboard, knocking him clean out.

His name was Andrew Clark.

Tess had run into him last year in Sudan when her team had interrupted his deal with some local warlords who were selling him stolen artifacts in order to fund their fighting. Apparently she'd broken his nose when he'd suggested he had no responsibility for what they would do with said funds, which Jay agreed which. It just hadn't been what he'd been able to focus on.

Because one of the letters she'd sent him had been from Sudan.

The year he hadn't seen her or heard from her after his discharge, three of the five letters she'd sent him ending up in his neighbours mailbox by accident. He still wondered where the other two were but this wasn't the time to focus on that. They had a much bigger problem to worry about right now.

"Alright, Greg is here." He stated when his friend texted, sharing a look with Lydia when Tess stayed quiet, her gaze locked firmly on the door to the storage room that was holding Clark.

"I'll go bring him down."

Her hand on her niece's arm seemed to bring her out of her head, enough that she shot her a smile but he saw the fear in her eyes when the older woman walked away. He felt it too. If they hadn't come today… Maybe Lydia would have been fine, her expertise was on the Middle East but who knew what might have happened to Kathy. But now that they were involved all of them were in danger. And he hated that the majority of the responsibility of dealing with that fell on Tess. The only thing that made him feel better was that she knew she could rest on him. She turned into him the second Lydia was out of sight, her head burrowing into his chest, muffling her shaky breath when his arms wrapped around her. Too soon footsteps were coming their way but she seemed steadier when she pulled away, though obviously still upset about the situation.

"So what's the plan?"

Mostly their involvement because she sucked in another breath at her aunt's question before answering. "We find out what they're smuggling in, get it first and make sure no one knows we're involved."

"Did Coulson say we could expect any help?" He asked next, confused when she just blinked at him.

"I didn't call him."

"Then who were you texting earlier?"

"Finding out who Clark's 'friend' is." She replied, a good answer but he knew her abilities well enough to know she could have done both. If she'd wanted to. "Mattias Ollson- a Swede who privately enjoys illegally procured art. He's not all that dangerous on his own but he knows a lot of people."

"Are you going to call him?" He asked again, doing his best to hide his annoyance when Greg answered for her.

"What's the point? The agency can't do anything on our soil- they'd just pass it off to the feds which would make this way bigger than I think any of us want it to be."

"But shouldn't you let him know?" Lydia added as she slowly looked between them.

She should.

But she hesitated.

"Let's figure out what else Clark knows first." Tess said after a second, her uncertainty falling away as she straightened, from the girl he loved to the operative he respected but was still getting to know. "I'll call him once we've made a plan."

With one more shared look with Greg and Lydia, quietly agreeing they would do what was necessary to support her they followed her into the storage room where they were greeted by Clark's glare.

"I also don't think that was necessary."

Tess just shrugged, taking the lead with Lydia beside but just slightly behind her while he and Greg stood on their other sides. "I do. What're they smuggling in?"

"Allegedly… the Imperial Seal of China."

"Well shit."

"Oh my god."

"What is that?" He asked, directing his question to Lydia though it was obvious both Tess and Greg recognized the name, making him feel stupid for not.

"Only one of the world's most important lost treasures." She answered excitedly, the same look Tess got when something peaked her interest. "The Chinese called it the Heirloom Seal of the Realm, carved from the Heshibi, a sacred piece of jade. It went missing over a thousand years ago."

Well shit was right.

"And now it may have been found. And I helped with that." Clark said with a smile, though it faded fast when Tess gave him a doubtful look.

"How do you know it's the real deal?"

"I don't. And neither does my friend-"

"Mattias."

That made him scowl but as much as Jay wanted to wipe the look off his face he made sure to keep his own neutral. "All he knows is that it could be, so he wants it. I get it to him, or I get killed. I'm hoping you have a better offer."

"You help us get it or you go to jail."

"Where he can then have me killed?"

"If we do this right he'll never know you were involved. But that depends on you." Tess replied evenly and he also had to put effort into keeping his eyes off her face; he didn't want Clark to know she was someone he cared about. Rather that he was someone she cared about. "The shipment comes in tonight. What time?"

"Eleven o'clock."

Late enough that there wouldn't be many witnesses.

Not to mention less guards.

"Are you supposed to see Mattias before then?"

"Nope." Clark answered but something about his sudden calmness set him on edge, a brief glance at Greg confirming he felt it too.

"What about his men? Where were they supposed to meet you?" He demanded, still keeping his eyes off Tess and on the other man, his stomach dropping when he gave a slow smirk.

"They're already with me."

Fucker.

"Do you really think a man I double-crossed was going to give me the chance to do it again?" He directed his question to Tess but Jay cursed himself for not considering it either.

Had he grown that soft this quickly?

Did it have anything to do with his departure from the military, his step down from command back into the rank and file?

Or did it have to do with Tess?

Was he getting so used to her saving the day that he'd stopped putting his own skills, his brain to use?

Neither were acceptable but at least he could do something about both of them.

"They've been on my ass since I got in this morning. Honestly I'm surprised they haven't sounded the alarm yet." Clark continued, still with that self-satisfied smile that he now really wanted to wipe off his face.

Especially because a quick glance at Tess, and her phone, showed the man was telling the truth. But she just took a slow, deep breath, looking the hired thugs slowly making their way through the museum over once more before she tucked it back in her pocket. And when she straightened…

This was the operative.

"I can take them." She said simply, steadily, and while Clark kept grinning pride starting building in his chest.

Because she was right.

And because that was the woman he knew.

That was the woman he loved.

"Not without causing a scene."

Tess just huffed and tilted her head, like a parent would do to a child. "I take men like them all the time without causing a scene. And I will. Then I'll get Mattias and drop you all off at the feds and make sure everyone knows that you are to blame."

Well his smile was gone now.

"Or you can go out there, act like everything's fine and do what we tell you to. What's it going to be?" She asked calmly, and it was a question.

And every one of them knew that whatever he picked, she would handle it.