Chapter Text
"And voila! These sheets are tied together with a mock square knot." As Phryne said this, she easily pulled apart Jack's tie and a piece of her own silk scarf. Jack nodded, appreciating that she could tie a reef knot.
"He would never have held the girl's weight." Jack, sitting on his desk, commented from a safe distance with a smug smile.
"I know that knot, Miss Fisher. The only question is, did you know it before?" Phryne answered a little sheepishly and rolled her eyes.
"There was a Portuguese sailor who..."
"Okay," interrupted Jack, who didn't want to hear any more of her man stories. Every time she spoke about it so frankly, it gave him a sting. Trying to be professional, he steered the conversation back to the case.
"So someone made this rope to make it look like Bernadette escaped. Who would do that?"
"The one who let her out!" Phryne looked thoughtful.
"Maybe one of the girls?"
"They weren't very talkative." Jack said this in his usual resigned tone.
"What did you expect? They're afraid of the penitential room." Phryne seemed upset that young girls were locked in a small room. This brought back unpleasant memories for her.
"My father locked me in a closet to break my will." "By probably not staying long enough." Jack added with a smug smile and earned an eye roll from her. She then handed him his tie with a defiant gesture and he grabbed it without thinking. As he did so, he lightly touched the fingers of her hand and suddenly felt the air around her begin to electrify. Phryne must have noticed it too, because she gave him a meaningful look. The moment passed as quickly as it came, and Jack stared down at his tie.
"Oh you... you greased it." In response, Phryne took it from his hand in an elegant, soft motion and said with a smile,
"Come here." If Jack didn't know better, he thought he detected a tender and loving undertone. He must have been wrong. And yet he noticed how tenderly she began to put his tie back around his neck and tie it. Still sitting on his desk, he bowed his head out of reflex and let her do it. He could almost feel her fingers through the thin fabric of his shirt. Each of her movements sent a gentle shiver down his spine. He looked up and met her eyes directly. And there, to his surprise, he was able to detect the same loving expression he had noticed in her voice before. So he wasn't wrong and she actually felt something for him. Then she had serious intentions at play. How long had he waited for this moment? That her superficial flirtation turned into something deeper. He knew he was in love with her from the day the call came that she'd been in a car accident. Thank God she wasn't hurt, but it had made him realize how easily he could have lost her.
A little unsure of how to deal with this realization, he grabbed her hand and said,
"Miss Fisher, I'm perfectly capable of tying my own tie." Her fingers wrapped around his thumb and he wrapped his hand around hers. So they stood there and Phryne replied with a warm smile and the same loving look:
"What a pity, my double Windsor is outstanding!" As when he touched her hand earlier, the air seemed electrified. Jack looked deep into her eyes, trying to figure out if the situation was awkward or if he was harassing her. But just the opposite seemed to be the case. She really enjoyed being near him. The two were so close that their heads were only a few centimeters apart.
"A penny for your thoughts, Jack!" Phryne let this sentence be accompanied by a coquettish smile. There was an unspoken invitation in her eyes. He would answer her. But not with words. This was just the encouragement Jack needed. In one flowing movement he put his hand on her back, pulled her the last bit towards him and kissed her. At first he was reluctant, trying to fathom if he had gone too far. But the next moment she started to kiss him back and he knew that he had done exactly the right thing. He let go of her hand and placed it on her cheek and began to trace her chin with his thumb. What she in turn was acknowledged by an even more intense kiss. She had one arm draped over his shoulder and began to run her fingers through his hair. The other hand still lingered on his tie. At this she pulled Jack even closer to her, if that was even possible. His hand wandered down from her cheek to her hip and lingered there. They both enjoyed each other's closeness and intensified their kiss.
"Yes sir. Inspector Robinson is in his office." He could hear Hugh's voice from the antechamber and knew who would burst into his office shortly after and not be thrilled to find Phryne there. Regretfully, he pulled away from her and could hear her say.
"You sure are full of surprises, Jack."
"As much as I'd like to continue this, I have to ask you to leave." Jack couldn't suppress a wistful expression and saw Phryne looking at him with love and affection. It got even hotter than it already was and he had to control himself from saying the following sentence.
"George Sanderson is about to burst into my office and will not be pleased to find you here." he put her hand to his lips and continued to say,
"I'm coming to Wardlow tonight to see you." Phryne made her way to the back entrance and handed Jack a piece of the bed sheet they had both used to tie a knot so he could remove suspicious marks in the form of her lipstick. She gave him another smile and disappeared through the door to the interrogation room. And not a second too soon, because as soon as the door closed behind her, George Sanderson stormed into Jack's office.
"Hello, Jack." He started the conversation. Phryne considered leaving, but then decided to stay. She didn't want to miss the content of this conversation.
"I had a disturbing conversation with a bishop of the Catholic Church today," George continued.
"We mustn't upset the church and that's why I referred the case to O'Shaughnessy." Phryne could hear Jack starting to answer.
"But O'Shaughnessy is incompetent and corrupt."
"The decision is made." George countered,
"I just wanted to tell you personally. And now I wish you a nice day." With these words, George Sanderson said goodbye and left the office just as quickly as he had gotten into it.