Chapter Text
Jack entered the restaurant and glanced around, quickly finding the table she’d chosen in a quiet corner. Nodding to a few fellow cyclists who were enjoying their meals, he accepted congratulatory praises on his heroic actions during the village’s unfortunate event as well as comments of regret that he wouldn’t be continuing on the race the following morning. As he neared Phryne’s table, he was approached by a local man.
“Monsieur,” the man stopped Jack’s progress. “You are Mon. Robinson, no?”
“Yes,” Jack replied in French, hoping that his stilted understanding of the language wouldn’t prove this conversation to be too difficult… he was rather eager to join Phryne.
“I am Lotte’s and Lynna’s father,” the man stated, unshed tears suddenly appearing as he eagerly grabbed Jack’s hand and started shaking it. “My wife tells me that we have you to thank for the safe rescue of our daughters as well as her own life.” He was very obviously speaking slow, trying to ensure that Jack understood the message. “I have no way to repay the debt, but we are eternally grateful.”
“There is no debt, Sir,” Jack replied, understanding perfectly well, though his own reply was rudimentary at best. “I am glad I was able to help.” Typically, Jack didn’t like it when he was approached by victims, or the family of victims, in praise for doing that which was simply second nature to him. He could no more have turned away from that fire than he could have from a crime being committed in broad daylight.
“There is great debt, you are very generous, and if I were able to give you something, I would.”
Jack nodded uncomfortably. “Your gratitude is plenty. I wish you and your family well.”
The men nodded and parted ways, allowing Jack to turn back towards Phryne. She had watched the entire interaction with interest and pride; Jack was one of the best men she’d ever known and that conversation was proof if nothing else.
Jack smiled at her as he took his seat. Before he could speak, the waitress was at his side, placing a plateful of food before him.
“Compliments of the owner, Monsieur. Tonight you eat and drink on the house.” She smiled warmly and turned to Phryne. “What can I bring to you, Mademoiselle?”
Phryne eyed Jack’s plate and realized how hungry she was. Turning back to the young woman at their side, she motioned to his plate. “I’ll have the pie, please,” she could smell the savory scents of meat and vegetables, which were making her mouth water.
Once Phryne’s plate was placed in front of her and they both had drinks, Jack raised his glass in a toast.
“To second chances?” He asked hesitantly and let out a breath he didn’t realize he’d been holding when she tapped her glass against his gently.
Tucking into the pie crust, Jack let a puff of steam escape and raised his eyes to find her watching him. “So,” he began, pulling a forkful up to his mouth. “Would you like to fill me in on what the hell your Father was on about?”
~MFMM~
As they finished their dinner and dessert, on which the Inn proprietor had insisted they have, Jack reached across the table and took her hand.
“I’m sorry I was so angry earlier. I guess I was just so hurt at the idea that I had missed my chance at being with you, and frustrated after my journey, I just couldn’t see straight.” His thumb swept absently across the soft skin of her palm. “I was confused and… jealous, I guess.”
“You don’t need to explain, Jack. I understand. And I while I wish that it hadn’t happened, we can’t undo the past. All we can do is move forward, past it.”
He nodded, searching her eyes, finding open affection watching him. Glancing around, he noted how the crowd had thinned and glanced at the clock on the wall. “It’s late…”
She nodded in acknowledgement and met his dark eyes. “I guess I should speak with reception… See if they have a room available…”
“Or…” He tilted his head sideways, his lips turning down at the corners. “Not…”
Her lips pulled back in a brilliant smile. “Jack… Are you saying what I think you’re saying?” She folded her hands and batted her eyelashes. “You’ll turn my head, Jack Robinson…”
He shrugged innocently, his eyebrows arching towards his hairline. “Well, there were not many rooms when we arrived off the bike route… I think we took them all…” He leaned forward, his forearms resting against the table. “In fact, I understand some of the lads had to double up and bunk together. I lucked out… got a room of my own…”
She, too, leaned forward, smiling conspiratorially. “Would you like company this evening, Jack?”
“I don’t have a draughts board, but I might be able to rustle up a bottle of whiskey…”
She reached down to grab her bag and nodded towards the door. “Lead the way, Inspector,” she winked.
~MFMM~
“Like I said, it’s small, and not very fancy,” he reiterated when they entered his room. He placed her bag beside the dresser. “But I have my own water closet…”
“What more does one need besides a bed and a water closet?” Phryne smirked and sashayed over towards the bed. It was smaller than hers at home, but it was bigger than a single. She decided instantly that it would do just fine. Turning back to face him, she saw a flash of doubt fleeting behind his eyes before he could hide it. “What’s the matter?”
He stepped closer, taking her hand in his, wincing at the twinge of pain that radiated from his injury. “Phryne… I won’t ask you to change, I told you as much some time ago… But…” He swallowed thickly, uncertain of how he wanted to word his concern.
Before he could voice it, she was already talking. “Jack, I am here because you never asked me to change. Besides, you may not have asked me to do it, but I have changed…”
“I don’t want you to ever feel caged, or obligated, or… or anything that you don’t want to feel.” Jesus, Robbo, he scolded himself, you’re blowing this, just kiss her already … But no, he needed to make sure this was crystal clear before they crossed that final line. “I can’t promise to be as liberal as you might need me to be, but I promise to try... And... if I can’t, then I understand it will be up to me to walk away… I will never put that on you…”
“Jack,” she palmed his cheek. “I don’t need you to be anything more than you already are. You are a very modern and very liberal man already…”
He started to shake his head to the negative. “I don’t know if… I don’t know how I will feel if we do this, and then I’m forced to see you with another man… I don’t want to be the jealous-type… but -”
To stop his ramble, she closed the distance between them and pressed up to her toes, covering his mouth with hers. She let herself get lost in the taste and feel of him. Phryne Fisher was no stranger to desire and she was certainly no blushing virgin, but she felt a wave of heat course through her body like never before. Jack kissed with the same intensity, with the same undivided focus, as he had whenever he approached a new crime scene. He commanded their connection just as his presence commanded the scene. He was a powerful kisser, strong and soft, giving and taking, confident and understated… When the need for oxygen was overwhelming, she pulled back just enough to gulp for air.
“Jack,” she whispered against his lips. “If I can have you… All of you… I don’t see myself wanting another man… For as long as you want this, whatever this is, I will be with you and only you.”
“Phryne,” he nipped playfully at her lower lip and nudged her nose with his. “That sounds an awful lot like commitment, you know…”
She chuckled. “Yes, I know.” She tilted her head and met his eyes seriously. “I need you to understand, though, that I do not wish to be married, Jack. And if that is something that you think you’re going to need, then I understand... and we don’t have to do this. We can remain as we are…”
He sealed the deal with another smouldering kiss, slipping his tongue past her lips as she gasped in surprise at his sudden move. Just as she started to melt against him, he pulled back and looked down into her pale eyes with an adoring expression.
“I’m not really a fan of marriage, Miss Fisher… I’ve been there and it wasn’t all it’s cut out to be… But,” he raised an eyebrow, “I am committed to you… I have been for quite some time now…”
She smirked up at him, palming his cheek. “My darling, modern man…”
~MFMM~
The sun filtered through the thin curtains, casting bands of light across his face. Jack stifled an early-morning yawn as his body fought to stay asleep while his mind was already whirring. The events of the past twenty-four hours seemed unreal, and yet, the pleasant weight against his shoulder and the fragrant strands of silky black hair against his cheek told him they were very real. He opened his eyes slowly and glanced down, smiling at the vision of her pale fingers splayed across his chest, possessive even in her sleep.
He thought back to the previous night, the familiar ache of muscles too-long ignored reminded him that their evening had been wonderfully active, and he sighed in satisfaction. Rubbing his hand along the length of her bare arm, he savored her softness as he tried to flex his other hand, only to grimace at the unpleasant sensation of scorched flesh.
“Don’t,” she mumbled and moved her hand from his chest, reaching for his injured hand and pulling it back to rest beside hers on his torso. “Don’t pull your skin. I’ll put more ointment on it when we get up.” She spoke against his chest, her sleepy voice tugging at his heart in ways she would never know, because he couldn’t even put it into words.
He tightened the arm that was holding her and when she shivered against the cool morning air, he reached down for the blanket and pulled it back up around them. Kissing her hair, he breathed her in and hummed. “I’m sorry I woke you.”
She shook her head, still not moving from her place against him. “S’ok,” she muttered, her fingers stretched around the wrist of his bandaged hand. “I’ve been in and out of sleep for a little while.” Finally, she lifted her cheek from its place against his pectoral muscle so she could look up at him. “It’s like my mind kept willing me to wake up to make sure it was still real… That you were really here…”
He chuckled and palmed her head, moving her back into position gently so he could kiss her black bob again. “I know what you mean… My body kept taking stock of where you were, to make sure I wasn’t imagining you…”
She smiled against his warmth and snuggled into the blankets, eager to slip back into a still-sated sleep. “What time is it?” She hoped it wasn’t late, she wanted to stay where they were for a little longer…
“Still early,” he brought his hand up to her head and finger-combed her hair; really just an excuse to touch her. “We don’t have to get up yet.”
“Good,” she hummed and pressed a sleepy kiss against his skin, inhaling his familiar scent, now mixed with her own in a way that seemed perfectly natural. “I’m still tired…”
“Sleep, Phryne,” he kissed her forehead. “I love you.”
Soundlessly, his eyes snapped open… He’d been so careful not to say the words the night before; he didn’t want to scare her, despite her claims. He wanted to wait and see how she felt about him after a few days, or a few weeks with him at her side before he came out with the whole declaration of love… and now, with his subconscious already falling back to sleep, his mouth just let the words tumble out without permission. He held his breath and wondered if, by luck, she had already fallen back to sleep before the three little syllables were unleashed to the universe. When she didn’t respond in either a positive or negative way, he suspected he’d escaped any seething reaction and started to breathe again, his body releasing the sudden onslaught of tension that had invaded his otherwise relaxed frame.
Without preamble, Phryne stretched her naked form against his and nuzzled again, his pale chest hair tickling her nose pleasantly. “Hmm,” she sounded pleased as she slid her thigh up, tucking it between his as if they were made to fit together, two puzzle pieces finally joined. Pressing a kiss against his warm skin, she said something she’d vowed to avoid for the rest of her life... “Love you, too.”