Chapter 19 - Promise me

Leaning back in her office chair, Julia closed her eyes and listened to the buzz of the office.

Her thoughts quickly ran to the events of the morning. Sex with Jack under the shower was the best she'd ever had. That's for sure.

By the time Julia had gone downstairs, Zoey had already left. Jack had been waiting in the kitchen. He greeted Julia with a grin, handing her the coffee.

"Zoey was very disappointed we took our time to come downstairs," Jack said with a wink. "The eggs and bacon she prepared for us are already cold."

"Maybe that's for the best..." Julia had joked, aware of her friend's limited cooking skills.

Jack had laughed heartily. Mesmerized by the youthful look he'd gotten when laughing, Julia couldn't take her eyes off him.

They'd ended up drinking coffee and eating something on their way to the office. All that time the conversation between them had been light and mainly about Brand Today. Julia was glad, as she wasn't sure whether she was ready to talk about the events of the morning.

"Can I take you to dinner tonight?" Jack had asked as they had gotten out of the car.

Seems Jack was ready to talk about it...

"I'd like that," she'd answered with a smile.

So right now, sitting in her office, Julia wondered what she thought and felt about Jack and about what they'd done in the morning.

The question is, Stiles, do you want to do it again? She asked herself. She already knew the answer to that question.

"Thinking of me?" Familiar voice pulled Julia out of her reverie.

She turned to the door to see Jack leaning against her door. His hair was a bit messy, tie loose. He hadn't looked sexier.

"No," Julia lied.

Jack walked inside, closing the door.

"I'm afraid I need to postpone our dinner tonight, Stiles,' he said with a pained expression.

Julia couldn't help but feel disappointed at the words. However, seeing him disappointed too made her warm inside.

"Oh?"

"I need to fly to Chicago for a few days. Alice needs me."

"That's ok, Jack, I understand." She sent him a warm smile, hoping he would sense the honesty in her voice.

"I'm sorry that work is getting in the way, Julia," he continued, guilt clear in his voice.

"Jack, I really understand," Julia stood up and walked over to him. "I'm the master of workaholism, remember?" She gently rubbed his arm. "Besides, if Alice needs you, you are definitely excused."

Jack took a step towards Julia, closing the distance between them, and put his arms around her.

"Any chance you would like to come with me?" he asked, touching her forehead with his.

Julia kissed him gently.

"Like I said, Mister Deschanel, I'm the master of workaholism..." she whispered breathless.

"That you are, Miss Stiles." Jack kissed Julia back, pushing her gently towards her desk.

The kiss started getting hotter, but was interrupted by a knock on the door. Jack immediately stepped away from Julia.

"Boss?" Agnes opened the door. "The car is ready to take you to the airport," she said and left immediately. Probably sensing she interrupted something.

"Call me when you're back," Julia said, trying to calm down her erratic breathing. "Or pop your head to my office. I'll probably be here."

"Don't work too much, Julia," Jack added, squeezing her hand, then left her office.

***

He hated leaving Julia behind like that. Even though she was surrendered by Tom and his men, even though Starr's men were locked up, Jack couldn't help but worry that something bad might happen to Julia while he was away.

Tom, normally travelling with Jack, stayed behind this time. Not only to keep an eye on Julia, but also to continue interrogating Banks and his accomplice.

Jack knew the two men hadn't said much yet. Although the younger one, per what Tom had told Jack, was starting to give in. Tom was confident he would get both of them talking. After that the plan was to hand them over to the police and make sure that Starr didn't get a chance to contact and order any of his men ever again.

Jack hadn't had a chance to think about the day before and the way they ambushed Banks and the other guy. When he'd gotten to Zoey's apartment he was furious, mostly at himself, for allowing Julia to follow Tom's plan. True, everything had gone well, but the fact he couldn't have controlled that situation, could have only watched the two men approach Julia, yet again, had driven him mad.

The phone call he'd gotten from Tom while he'd been waiting for Julia on Zoey's couch, infuriated him even more. Tom's men had searched the truck Banks and the other man had parked a few blocks away from the office. What they had found inside confirmed Jack's worst nightmare; they were planning to kidnap Julia. A mattress and some kind of shackles had been prepared by the weasels at the back of the truck, leaving no doubt as to what they had been intending to do.

Jack had decided never to mention this to Julia and had ordered Tom to keep his mouth shut. Julia had gone through too many horrors, why adding more to her already tormented mind.

He spent a couple of days in Chicago, busy with meetings, discussions and planning, but the thought of Julia did not leave him, not for a moment.

A couple of times he even thought of calling her, but wasn't sure what he could actually tell her. It was not like they were in a relationship. Not yet at least... That thought surprised him.

Till now he'd been mainly focused on keeping Julia safe, but now when that safety seemed guaranteed, what was it that he wanted?

He didn't have to think long about the answer to that question. He wanted to hold her in his arms again, to kiss her, to see her blush and laugh. He definitely wanted to repeat the great sex they had had few days back. He wanted all of it. Jack wanted Julia Stiles.

So instead of giving her a call, Jack sent Julia a text. It was right after six pm, so he had a feeling what she might have been doing.

"I hope you are not working late, Stiles." He wrote.

Few minutes later, he got the answer.

"Of course I'm not. Who would be insane enough to sit in the office at that hour..."

The day before flying back to New York Jack texted Julia once more.

"Any suggestions for our dinner? Where should I take you? I'm thinking 'Modern Food' might not be your favourite?"

Modern Food was the restaurant where Julia met with William Daniels and where he was hitting on her, so she answered instantly.

"You know me too well, Deschanel. Let me think of it. I'll try not to make it too fancy."

"Appreciate you thinking of my finances, Stiles."

"Yes, I've always known you were a charity case." Julia texted back which earned her a chuckle from Jack.

"Have you heard a word I said, Jack?" Alice asked with a raised brow.

They were having lunch and going over the candidates for the deputy director of the Chicago office.

"No, I have not, ma'am." Jack put his phone away, feeling like a teenager flirting with a school crush.

Alice started laughing, probably suspecting that whatever he was texting about had nothing to do with work.

During the last couple of days in Chicago Jack had repeatedly been congratulating himself for choosing Alice for the job. She'd been nothing but professional, organized and always two steps ahead of the game.

Not that she really needed him in Chicago; Jack knew she would handle everything herself. Alice insisted on his presence however during the first meetings with the Chicago based customers.

She was right in that matter too. It allowed Jack to show his full support for her, and even though he hadn't done much talking during the meetings, Alice was leading them effortlessly, he could see by the look on her face that this was exactly where she wanted him.

"Let me know when you again need me and my charm to work the customers," Jack said with a wink, as he was leaving for the airport. He gave her a kiss on the chick and got into the cub. Alice was smiling wide as she shut the car door behind him.

***

Jack was coming back from Chicago today. Julia was looking forward to that, which made it difficult to focus on what Josh was explaining to her.

One of the customers decided to change the theme of the party they had been organizing for the last couple of weeks. Josh was right now listing down the potential costs such change would incur.

Another thing that was distracting Julia was the worried look on Tom's face. She'd passed him in the hall earlier today and he'd looked far from happy. That satisfied expression he had had on his face when they'd captured Nicholas' men was gone, replaced by anger and worry.

"Were you able to learn something more from Banks, Tom?" Julia had asked him.

"Not yet, Julia," he'd answered, but Julia could tell he'd been hiding something from her.

Tom had walked away quickly, as if trying to avoid any more questions from her.

Julia was pulled out of her thoughts by the sudden silence in the room. Josh must have finished listing down the costs and he and Lizzie were staring at her expectantly.

Julia tried coming up with a smart comment, but was saved by a knock on the door. Jack entered her office, and she had to force herself not to grin at him widely.

"Hi everyone." Jack greeted Lizzie and Josh, seeing that Julia was not alone.

"Welcome back, mister Deschanel," Lizzie said.

"Julia, could you please come to my office once you are done?" Jack asked officially.

"Sure, Jack," Julia answered with a nod.

He had the mask of indifference on his face, but Julia knew him well enough by now to know that it was a pretence. She could see the warmth in his gaze.

In the corner of her eye Julia could see Lizzie's eyes darting from her to Jack suspiciously. Lizzie was very observant, so surely a sudden friendliness between Jack and Julia did not add up in her mind. The girl surely remembered how negative about Jack Julia had been not long ago.

Not that negative after all, that's for sure, Julia thought as Jack left her office.

***

Jack couldn't believe how good it felt to have someone actually waiting for his return. He could see in Julia's eyes that she was genuinely glad to see him back.

She stepped into his office ten minutes later.

"How was Chicago?" Julia asked, walking slowly to his desk.

She seemed unsure of how to behave. Jack didn't blame her; they were two people who had just recently stopped hating one another, and as they had slowly been turning into friends, they slept with each other. What does that make us?

"Chicago was good," Jack answered, standing up from his desk and slowly walking over to Julia.

"I'm glad to hear that..." she answered, but was more focused on watching him approach her, than on the topic of the conversation.

"Alice sends her best..." Jack closed the space between them.

"She does...?" Julia continued pretending to have an actual conversation with him. She stood up on her tiptoes and in an excruciatingly slow movement brought her lips to Jack's.

The moment he felt their lips touch, Jack wrapped his arms around Julia. He didn't feel like doing anything slow anymore. He lifted Julia up and sat her on his desk.

"The couch..." Julia whispered in between the kisses, as papers and pens started falling from Jack's messy desk.

Without a word he carried her over to the couch, but stopped in his tracks as a knock came on the door.

Jack let out an exasperated breath.

"I'm in a meeting right now!" he yelled, resting his forehead on Julia's.

There was no way he would be able to make any logical decisions in the aroused state he was in right now.

Whoever that was, didn't knock again.

Not risking that someone might actually come in without knocking, Jack positioned Julia on the couch and walked over to the door to lock it. Then he got rid of his jacket and shirt and sent Julia a grin seeing that she was doing the same with her blouse.

"Are you prepared this time as well, Mister Deschanel?" she asked in a sweet tone.

"Yes, ma'am," Jack answered, pulling a condom from his wallet.

"Very well..." She opened her arms invitingly. Jack didn't need more encouragement. He loved that naughty and carefree side of Julia, a side that he hadn't known before.

"Let's start the meeting, Miss Stiles, shall we?"

"How was Chicago?" Julia asked after they'd ordered their food. "I'm asking seriously this time." She added seeing Jack's raised brow.

"Alice is great..." Jack said enthusiastically. "And don't tell me 'I told you so,' Stiles."

"I wasn't going to..."

"Yeah, right!" Jack laughed. "Anyway, Alice is a player, you know, but in a positive sense. She knows what the customers will expect, what will interest them, so she always plans around that. And she's always two hundred percent prepared. I loved that. Actually, at times I actually felt completely redundant back there," Jack chuckled.

He could see how proud, but also pleased, Julia was with his words. Afterall she'd believed in Alice from the very beginning.

"Well, here's to Alice and more females in leading roles at Brand Today!" Julia raised her glass.

Jack raised his glass too. He realized how great it felt to make Julia smile. At the thought that she was smiling at something he actually said and did, Jack felt warm inside.

"Do you think we could continue like that...?" he suddenly asked.

"You mean promoting women to...?"

"That too, but what I mean, Julia, is us." He grabbed her hand. "Do you think we could be... well, together? Having that great sex, talking, laughing, but also annoying each other, arguing... that whole package?"

Julia put down her glass slowly. She started playing with it and did not look Jack in the eyes. Is she hesitating? Jack thought, panicked. Maybe you asked too soon, Deschanel! He scolded himself.

"Are you sure, Jack?" Julia asked quietly. "You do realize that... That I come in quite a non standard package."

"I'm well aware of that, but I'm willing to take the risk and invest in that venture, Miss Stiles."

He could see joyful sparks in Julia's eyes after hearing the metaphor.

"Then I guess you've got yourself a deal, Mister Deschanel." Julia offered her hand, but instead of shaking it, Jack pulled Julia to him and, leaning over the table, kissed her fiercely.

Who would have thought that a moment would come when I would see Julia sleeping in my bed? Jack thought to himself amused, looking at the said woman's bare shoulder and back.

She was breathing steadily and looked utterly peaceful. He knew she felt safe with him and that made Jack fill up with pride. That made him feel something else too... A want, a desire to always keep her safe, to always have her by his side.

"I guess I should move back to my apartment..." Julia had told him as they had been coming back from dinner.

Jack had forced himself not to blurt a No at her. He'd known it would be too controlling and would have just rail her up.

"Let's not rush it, Julia," he'd said instead. "Let's see how things end up with Starr's men."

"I can't use Zoey's and Jess' hospitality endlessly, Jack."

Yes you can!

"I know, Julia, but can we please give it some more time? Can you do it for my peace of mind, please?"

"I'll think about it..."

"Besides, if you want to give Zoey and Jess a break from your charming self, I have an idea how you could do that..." Jack had stopped walking and had turned Julia around to face him. It had been so sudden she'd stumbled and hit his chest. "Come to my place, Julia..."

She'd watched him silently.

"Just for tonight," he'd added.

"Alright," Julia had whispered, running her fingers along his chin.

Glancing at her sleeping figure again, Jack touched his face absentmindedly, remembering the feeling Julia's fingers had evoked in him.

It wasn't only those pleasant memories that kept him awake though. Tom had messaged him earlier, only writing We need to talk. This sounded ominous and Jack suspected Tom had some more information on Nicholas Starr or his men.

Knowing that he would not be able to sleep with all the thoughts swirling around in his mind, Jack got out of bed and went downstairs to the living room.

Can you come over? He messaged Tom.

It was only midnight; Tom was usually awake at that hour.

Will be there in 15. Came his answer a moment later.

Jack considered pouring himself a glass of milk, but eventually went for a glass of whisky. He sat down in his old armchair and waited in the dark. Focusing on the drink in his hand, Jack tried very hard to push back the bad feeling that started creeping into his heart. His gut was telling him Tom had some unwanted news.

Finally a quiet knock could be heard.

Jack walked to the door quickly, afraid that Tom might ring the bell and wake up Julia.

"Sulking in the dark?" Tom asked, seeing the dark living room.

"Julia is asleep upstairs," Jack whispered, switching on a side lamp. "Didn't want to wake her."

"Thank God, man! You two finally did it!" Tom gave Jack a pat on the back.

"Finally?" Jack raised his brow surprised.

"Yeah! That tension between the two of you could have ended up with two scenarios... You two killing each other or fucking each other. And, boy, am I glad it's the latter."

"Well, that was subtle..."

"You're welcome, my friend." Tom grinned totally unphased by Jack's reaction to his blunt words.

Soon however a somber look creeped up to his face.

"I hope that you won't let your feelings cloud your judgement though... after what I'm going to tell you."

Jack downed his whisky in one go and turned back to his friend.

"Just say it, Tom."

"After we got a confession out of Banks, we wanted to turn him over to the police..."

"But...?"

"But my DEA friends stopped being friendly." Seeing a questioning look on Jack's face, Tom combed his fingers through his hair, letting out an exasperated sigh. "They had their own agenda all along, Jack, and simply took Banks and the other guy over from us. And since I did not feel like fighting with the DEA, there was nothing I could do..."

"And why is it bad, Tom? You said Banks confessed to have been following Starr's orders. That's enough to incriminate the bastard, limit his prison privileges; phone calls, visits... whatever there is. Whatever would stop him from hunting down Julia."

"That's the thing, Jack... They don't give a fuck about that!" Tom whisper-yelled. "They have another investigation going on against Starr, some bombing in Seattle a couple of years ago. They are sure Starr was behind it..."

"And Banks being his right hand could confess against the boss?" Jack finally understood what his friend was getting at.

Tom nodded.

"That's unacceptable, Tom." Jack gritted his teeth. That only gained him a scoff from his friend. "Don't give me that! I have the money, I have the means to..."

"To do what, Deschanel? They don't care about your money. They have their own..."

"Agenda. Yeah, you said that already." Jack interrupted his friend with an angry wave of the hand.

He took a deep breath and walked over to the window. Watching Manhattan at night did not bring him peace, but it did bring an idea to his mind. Jack turned around to Tom.

"If they don't stop Nicholas Starr, then we will." His voice was cold and devoid of emotion.

Jack was watching Tom, waiting for his friend to get the meaning of the words. Tom understood it immediately. His eyes grew to the size of sourcers.

"Don't give me that look, Tom. I never ask where you disappear off to every now and then, but don't you think I know of your secret missions? I know what you and your men are capable of."

"Jack..." Jack could hear a threat in Tom's voice, but at this point he did not care any more. Julia's life was at stake here and he knew he would do anything to keep her safe and happy.

"I want you to disappear for a few days again and get rid of Nicholas Starr for me." Jack could hear the cold desperation in his own voice.

"The bastard is in jail, Jack! How do you expect me to..."

"I know you have your ways..."

The two friends were eyeing each other furious. The silence in the room was almost deadly. You could hear a pin dropping.

Instead of a pin though they both heard a gasp.

Julia, wearing nothing but Jack's shirt, was sitting on the stairs and watching them with a terrified expression on her face.

"Shit..." Jack whispered.

"Yeah, you think?" Tom was clearly pissed.

"Julia..." Jack walked over to her slowly. He wasn't sure how much she'd heard, but judging by her reaction and the fact that she was sitting on the stairs, she'd probably been here for quite some time.

"Get away from me!" she exclaimed, terrified. "You are just like him. Controlling, psychotic murderer!"

She got back up to her feet, her hands were shaking, her whole body was shivering.

"Julia, please." Jack walked over to her.

She tried running up the stairs, but he wrapped his arms around her.

Julia started sobbing uncontrollably.

"I'm sorry," Jack could only whisper.

For a while the three of them stood motionless in the living room; Jack held Julia tight, feeling her tears soaking into his shirt. She'd struggled at first, trying to get away from him, but eventually gave up.

Jack had never seen her like that. She'd gone through so much, yet he'd never seen her cry. Until today. Realization that he was that tipping point, the factor that pushed her over the edge, was killing him right now.

In the corner of his eye, Jack noticed Tom shifting uncomfortably in his spot.

"I forbid you..." Julia was the one to break the silence in a shaky voice. "I forbid both of you to hurt anyone for me! Do you understand?!"

She took a step back from Jack, freeing herself from his arms, and threw them both a deadly look.

"Do you understand!?"

"Yes, Julia," Tom was the first to answer. "What you heard..." He touched her arm gently. "We would never go through with this. These were just two morons talking... "

Jack could see the warmth in Tom's eyes as he was speaking to Julia. That warmth disappeared the moment he looked back at Jack. "I'll see you tomorrow, man," Tom added and left the apartment.

Julia was not taking her eyes off Jack; waiting for his confirmation.

"I'm just running out of ideas on how to keep you safe, Julia..." he said instead.

"And you think ordering a hit on someone would do the trick?"

"I don't know..."

"Well it will not, Jack!"

Jack could feel that sense of helplessness coming over him again, but he pushed it back.

"Promise me, Jack," Julia pushed. "Promise me that you won't do a thing to hurt Nicholas."

"I promise," Jack finally said with a defeated sigh. "What if..." he added after a second thought, "What if that bastard sends more men to haunt you down, what if..."

"Stop it, Jack! I'm safe now and that's what matters at this very moment."

She trailed her fingers down his chin; the movement sending relaxing shivers down Jack's spine. He grabbed her hand and kissed the inside of her palm.

"Forgive me, Julia, for even thinking that..."

"Let's go back to bed," she whispered, turning to the stairs.

Jack followed her to the bedroom, not letting go of Julia's hand even once. He suddenly felt exhausted.

Julia lied down, turning her back to him. Refusing to see that as a sign of hostility, Jack lied next to Julia and pulled her to his chest. She didn't object, but stayed silent.

Minutes went by, yet he could hear by her breathing that she was awake. The exhaustion had left him too. The magnitude of emotions he felt towards this woman was overwhelming, almost taking his breath away. There was no way in hell he would let her suffer, but at the same time he knew he'd do anything to keep her by his side.

"I'm in love with you, Julia," Jack finally said. These were some pretty heavy words, but he felt relieved the moment they were out.

Julia froze for an instant and then took a deep breath.

She slowly turned around and faced Jack.

"I've been running from Nicholas and his men for over a year, Jack. Do you think I would step into a relationship with someone, who like Nicholas, gets what he wants by leaving a trail of dead bodies behind him?"

When Jack didn't answer, she continued.

"I care about you, Jack. Whatever we've started, I want this to work, but you have to promise me never to speak, even to think, of what you had in mind downstairs a moment ago."

"I promise," Jack whispered, kissing her forehead.

"I'd rather you be that annoying, self-centered, chauvinistic prick again, than a cold hearted, skimming psychopath..."

"Hey! I'd rather you say I'm a charming, brave, handsome guy..."

"Of course you are, Deschanel. Now, can you go to sleep?"

Julia gave him a pack on the lips. She did not turn her back to him anymore, but curled herself up against his chest.

"Goodnight, love..."