Marked - Cliche Challenge fic
Title: Marked
Author: Abbyl
Rating: R/NC-17
Cliche: "JC have to pretend to be a couple"

Enjoy the fic. Strangely I just couldn't stop writing and it turned out to be 19 pages... interesting eh? The icon I've used is definately representative of one of the scenes. And no, there are no picture links. Hee hee.

Enjoy everyone!


"Where are they? They were supposed to be back two hours ago."

The man stood, pacing around the dimly lit room. It was clear that patience was not one of his virtues; he would have worn a hole in the floor had it not been for a hand on his shoulder.

"Martin, calm down. There's very little we can do but wa-"

"I don't like waiting!" he exclaimed, pushing the hand away from him. "Waiting means things could go wrong! And I-"

"Both of you be quiet." The voice was quiet, and yet it was easily heard above the escalating voices of the men. "You're both givin' me a headache."

The two men were silent after this... it was better not to argue with "the boss" as they called him. He may have had patience, but he did not like asking for things more than once.

Another man opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off before he'd even started as the door opened, slamming against the wall. Firearms were instantly pointed at the man in the doorway. The man rolled his eyes and shook his head.

"Put 'em away, fellas, it's just Ian."

The man in the doorway, Ian, shook his head again, before stepping in and shutting it behind him.

"Really, you guys shoot first and ask questions later. What if I'd been Rick?" he asked leaning against the wall.

"Well then we'd be down our computer person," one of them quipped, sarcastically.

"So tell me, Ian, what was with the hold up? Two hours is a long time. And as you mention him, where oh where is our geek?"

Ian sighed, walking over and taking a seat on the floor with the others. There was a large carpet covering the ground and although it was warn, it was soft enough to be very comfortable.

"Our geek is dead," he said with a shrug.

This was not expected. Especially not to the boss. "Explain."

"Well, we're standing in line in the store and who should come in but a bunch of kids with ski masks. Well they open fire, and who gets hit? Rick. So I try to stem the bleeding, but it didn't do any good." he said this with a small frown on his lips. "Doesn't matter though. He was expendable."

"So you mean to tell me you just let him die?" Martin exclaimed.

"Look, I know he was your brother-in-law," Ian said, "but he was a gossip and a squeamish son of a bitch. The cops came, he was still bleeding and he started muttering about going and giving himself up!"

"But he was still family!"

"Again, I say you two be quiet. Headache..." 'The boss' had spoken and they listened. He tapped his chin for a moment, thinking. "Well this puts us in an odd position..." he murmured.

"How so, Jake?"

"We no longer have a computer specialist... this won't work without one," he mused.

At this a small smirk crossed Ian's face, one which Martin didn't like one bit.

"And what is so funny about this!" if looks could kill, Ian would have been burnt to a crisp several times over.

"Oh nothing, just that you're so worried and I might have the solution," he said casually.

This was a declaration that did not go unheard by Jake. The boss leaned in slightly. "Did I hear you right?"

This brought a larger smirk to his face. "Yeah. Sure. Why not."

"This isn't a time for playing games, Ian. Do you have a person or not?"

He looked to the man in charge, clearly finding this ironically amusing. Half the men hated him, the other half feared him, thought him a sociopath or so he'd heard rumors about; but it seemed that Jake had taken a shining to the man. Not necessarily a bad thing, given the circumstances. He found Ian to be rash, at times even unpredictable; many days Jake was split between respecting and fearing the man.

"Yeah, I got someone, but it probably won't be who you're expecting."

A glare was the only reply.

"Look, it won't be who you're thinking of. So either you trust me with this, or you don't get my guy."

There was a moment of hesitance before anyone replied. The group looking around at one another, before finally settling back on Jake, who nodded. "Fine."

A small smile, more of a smirk, played on his lips. "Good... This may take some doing, so I'll need your help. They're not gonna come willingly... I'll have to convince them, but it is do-able. I'll just need one of you standing by with the van."

"And that's it?" Gary, the second man who'd spoke, was more than a bit skeptical.

"Yeah, that's it."

"You sure this will work?"

"Well, if not, then we'll figure something else out, right? Not like we don't have blood on our hands already," the statement was punctuated with a great laugh.
~~~~~~~

The van pulled up outside the house. It was perfect. If he could get the information across before hand, then it'd be perfect, he thought. One misspoken word could blow this thing sky high...and along with it, them.

"So, this the place?" A day had passed and this was the time. It was now or never.

"Yeah, that's it. You guys stay here. I'll take care of everything. Just be ready to tear of here... They're not exactly going to know what's going on, Gary." There was a nod from the man. He'd been the only one to accompany Ian on this errand, Ian had insisted on it. Out of all of the guys, Gary was the only one who didn't seem to care about him or think he was nuts...which may have said something about Gary himself, but that was not important right now.

Ian climbed out of the back of the van, leaving the sliding door open a crack. He took a breath before marching across to the building. He knew he'd catch the person. They'd be leaving for work right about now. He was counting on this...and he was right.

She didn't even see him. She was too busy checking to make sure she hadn't dropped anything. He had an easy time sneaking up behind her. He knew Gary was watching and he had to make this look good. With any luck she'd recognize his voice. He pulled her up against him, murmuring "Play along and you won't get hurt..." before spinning her around with a small smirk on his lips. "Well look who it is," he said, his tone was very sure of himself, even arrogant. "Bet you're surprised to see me, but I need you."

He started dragging her to the van. When she resisted, he glared at her.

"Don't make this harder than it has to be. Because you know what I'm capable of," he said this very calmly. He had to admit she was doing very well. "Look, I don't want to hurt you, but if you don't at least make it look normal, then whatever incentive you need, I'll be sure to give it..."

He didn't have to say more. She stopped struggling and walked along side him, normally. Glaring all the time, he thought that this just might work after all....with a little bit of luck.
~~~~~~

The van was one without chairs, but there had been a bench installed into the side wall. They now sat there, looking at one another. Him with a bland, nondescript look, her with a glare; the deep glare of a woman you did not want to mess with. Her glare went ignored as he called to his friend, sitting at the wheel. There was a divider between the driver and the rest of the van and he had to yell for it to be heard.

"Alright, Gary, let's roll!"

The van took off, almost sending her flying off the bench. She would have wound up on the ground had he not gotten hold on her just in time...

Finally, when Gary put the earphones to his Ipod in his ears, Ian felt it was time to speak. His voice was not quiet, the tone different than before, but she couldn't look at him.

"I just need you to listen. It's been a while, and I know this is sudden, but you need to understand that this is not a game."

"Does it look like I think this is a game?!" she exclaimed. It was loud enough that Gary heard it over his music.

He chuckled a little before calling, loudly over the music, "You tell her, Ian."

This brought an even deeper glare, she shot it in his direction, and the man at the wheel saw it in the rearview mirror.

"Ooh, this one's got spunk," he said with a laugh.

"Shut up and drive, Gary. Mind your own before I cut them off," Ian spat. He turned back to his 'guest.' "Sorry about that. Sadly, what he lacks in manners, he doesn't make up for anywhere else." He took a moment, checking if his counterpart was watching in the rearview mirror before mouthing the words 'act angry' to her. She was about to question why, but his look told her all she needed to know.

"Like I give a shit!" she spat, her glare (if possible) intensifying. "What do you want?"

He smiled slightly at this. "Well, I need your help, of course. I know the last time, wasn't so great, but I can change that. See our last person had a bit of an accident. So I figured you'd be a perfect replacement." It came out as smooth as silk, as if there was nothing wrong with this situation...

"And you thought that I'd help you after last time?" she asked sharply. She had no idea what the hell was going on but the gun now in his hand made her realize that this was not a safe situation.

"Well, I'm afraid that I'm not giving you much of a choice. You know how far I'll go to get what I want, after all." He started playing around with his gun, taking the safety off, then putting it back on, like it was a game. She was doing well. Better than he thought she would have done initially, but then again, time changed people.... But apparently not her.

"I'm not going to help you," she said flatly. "Not after that."

He smiled. It was a knowing grin. He pulled his cellular phone out of his pocket and dialed in a number he had memorized. "Yes, you are. And you're going to call into work, say that your mother just broke her hip and that you'll be taking off for a few days."

She looked at him; the look practically screamed 'are you kidding'. "They're never going to believe that!"

"Oh, I think they will," he laughed. "Just do it right, and everything will be fine," he said leaning in a bit, whispering, "You're doing great...sorry about all of this. Just make the call."

She stared at him for a moment, as if wrestling with her conscience.

"C'mon, take it," he urged her, his tone back to normal. He took his hand and brought her chin so he was staring into her eyes, a small smile crossing his face. "It'll be a better reunion than last time, I promise." He winked at her before pressing a kiss to her cheek.

The action drew a "Well, who would have thought it," from the driver's seat and a steely glare was shot in Gary's direction. "Y'know, there are worse things than death, West. And you can very easily have first hand experience of what they are."

It was a threat and all three of them knew it, and his voice was so calm... It made her nervous.

He turned back to her, something that could be equated to a pleasant look on his face, pressing the phone into her hand. "Go for it. They'll believe you. Even you need time off sometime."

She didn't want to, but the look in his eyes told her it was important.

He'd already dialed the number; all she had to do was press 'send.' And so she did.

After several rings, someone picked up.

"Mi-"

"It's me. Look, I don't have a lot of time...er...my flight leaves in a few minutes," she added glancing at him.

"Um...okay. Flight to where?"

"Well, I'm going to Indiana. My mother broke her hip this morning."

There was a pause on the other side of the line. As the person wrote down the message something occurred to him. "Indiana?"

"Yeah. I just need a few days off. I'm fine, and I'll be in touch if anything happens. I have my cell on me," she took a breath. "But it's an emergency, and I don't have time to talk. I need to get going. And don't even think about trying to track me, Pressman. I booked it under a different name. Just to mess with you."

"You're the only one who-"

"I know, I'm a bitch. Deal with it. Tell Bill. I'll be out for a few days."

"Alright, I hope that she gets better."

"Yeah, thanks," she said as the call ended. "Trust me, so do I," she murmured as she closed the phone. Handing it back to him, he just nodded.

"Very good." He was about to pat her on the head when she pushed him away. He found himself splayed out on the floor of the van.

"I'm not a puppy," she said through gritted teeth.

"Wouldn't dream of it," he said propping himself up from the floor of the still moving van. He moved back to the bench, wrapping an arm around her. It was a display for Gary's benefit. Hopefully to cover up what he was saying to her at a whisper.

"You did good," he whispered into her ear. "I'm sorry about all this, Chlo'. There wasn't another way. I didn't know who else I could bring in..."

To Gary it looked like they were...well he wasn't going to get into that. If he said or did anything, he was likely to find himself like Van Gogh, lacking an ear.

"So you decided to take me?" she exclaimed. She knew that this would be seen as a logical reaction. "And when are you going to tell me what the hell is going on here? Unmarked vans. Calling in sick to work. Kidnapping? Too much cloak and dagger! I want answers now!" she demanded.

Ian made a grab for her throat and held it there for a moment. "I need to be clear enough with you. You'll find out what you need to know, when you need to know it. Now stop it, you're making me upset. I thought this would be a nice reunion. Tell you what, once we get you settled, we'll get something to eat and we can catch up, eh?" he let go of her throat, he hadn't had any sort of a grip on it, but for appearance sake, he'd done it.

She looked at him for a moment, her eyes wide, before nodding her head ever so slightly.

"Good." He leaned in once again, whispering an apology and that he'd explain later. He'd never hurt her, in fact he'd do everything he could not to. He hoped she'd understand it. Realizing that she might let the whole thing slip if she called him the wrong thing, he added one more piece of information to his whispered assurances. "Chloe, you have to call me Ian."

She nodded. "Ian what, Ja...Ian?"

"Graves. Ian Graves." he paused. "I need your CTU ID and any other cards you have on you."

She slipped her hand into her bag and handed him her ID case. He slipped it into his pocket, taking her hand into his own. He knew that he wouldn't be able to call her anything else... he'd just use a different last name when he introduced her.

He smiled at her, a rather eerie smile, as he spoke up again, the smile turning into an arrogant smirk. "You just watch, you won't be sorry, Chloe."
~~~~~~

The van stopped in front of a house.

She didn't know what she'd been expecting, but it hadn't been this. Hell, it had a picket fence and everything. She stood there for a moment, just staring at it.

"Something wrong?" Jack...er...Ian.

"It's just so... so..."

"Big?" he asked.

"So 1950s," she supplied. "Did you rent this from the Cleaver family or something?"

The sarcasm was so thick and her disrespect so clear that Gary, standing next to her, on her left, went to hit her... he found his arm being pulled behind his back, in Ian's vice-like grip.

"And just what did you think you were doing?" he asked flatly.

"I- Ow!"

"Apologize."

Gary felt the pain in his arm intensify as the words fell from his mouth.

"There, that's better." Ian smiled pleasantly at the man, letting go of him and opening the door for Chloe. "After you," he said with a small bow. "Don't worry, they're expecting us."

Gary hadn't thought of him as mental before...but now... he had to wonder. He was the last one to enter the house, so he closed the door.

Ian led Chloe into the living room where everyone was waiting. As they entered several of the men looked up, seeing that it was a woman, the reactions varied.

"So, this is your friend, Ian?" Will laughed loudly. "Where'd you pick her up?"

Several of the men joined Will, laughing.

"Is that supposed to be funny?" Chloe wasn't having any of this. "Because if it is, I'm afraid that you need to rethink your definition of humor."

"Oooh, and she talks back too! Even better!" Martin added.

"Everyone quiet!" Jake exclaimed, standing up. "God, you all need to learn to shut up. This isn't an episode of your goddamned idiotic television show! Now have some respect!" he snapped.

Jake turned to Ian and Gary and this new person, this woman. "I take it nothing went wrong?" he asked, walking over.

"All went smooth as...er..." Gary cut off his own train of thought, realizing they were in mixed company, and if Jake and Ian's earlier reactions (both here and in the van) were any indication, this wasn't the place or time for crude comments. "Yeah, not a hitch."

"Good." Jake walked over to the newcomer who stood next to Ian. Let none say that Jake Marquez was an uncultured hooligan. He took the lady's hand and brought it to his lips. "My apologies for any inconvenience, but I fear your services are needed."

Ian frowned at his boss' show of gentility. More so when she seemed to color as she pulled her hand away.

"Well, I don't usually have strange men coming and kidnapping me in the middle of the morning," she frowned.

"Strange men?" Jake questioned. He turned to Ian the look on his face saying everything he wanted to ask, but Chloe cut both of them off before he said anything.

"Yeah, strange men. I haven't seen this one in two years! And he just shows up telling me that he needs me for something and won't tell me what," she said, her eyes narrowing.

Jake let out a small laugh at this. "Well, then he's not quite a stranger is he?"

One of the other men stood and walked over to her, taking a moment to look her over, before trying to drag her to him. Ian was there in a second, and the man was up against the wall with Ian's gun at his head.

The man, needless to say, was panicking. He struggled against his captor, but with a gun to his temple, the struggling subsided.

"You trying to be funny? Or prove something?" Ian practically snarled in the man's face. The man, Kevin, didn't even have a chance to reply before Ian dropped him and turned to the group. "I'm setting ground rules," he said this to the men, but more importantly, he said this to Jake...his boss. "No one is going to lay a hand on her... Think of her as your sister." He didn't know what might cross their minds, but he wasn't playing games. Another look around the room, with a look of dead seriousness, brought a few nods and a few puzzled looks. "Anyone who does anything will answer to me..." he trailed off.

"You're ordering me as well then, eh, Ian?" Jake didn't take very kindly to being ordered around. "And may I ask what the reason for this protectiveness is? I don't see a ring on her finger, so there's no reason for a friend to bring this sort of lion out of the man." he liked sounding philosophical...it made him sound long-winded.

"I have my reasons, and unless you want to get into a discussion of my personal life, I suggest we leave it there."

"So what is she, Ian?" one of the men called. They didn't want to let it go...they were worse than fifth grade girls with gossip.

"What did I jus- Okay, you want to know? Fine." he spat. "She's my fiancée."

She took a cue from that. "Ex-fiancée," she said, glaring at him. It was a look used when someone could not stand another person. She pulled it off well.

"I still don't see a ring," Jake said, ignoring her comment.

"Yeah, well think about it, the business I'm in," he indicated the room. "Well it doesn't exactly pay much, ergo no ring."

"If I'd had one, I would have thrown it back in your face," she said with a frown.

This elicited a smile from him...or was it a smirk... "Oh, you say that now," he commented, the look growing bigger. "But trust me, you'll change your mind...all you need is a little time to remember why you said yes in the first place."

This brought a round of snickers as she found herself unable to meet his gaze. But the conversation continued, despite her.

"Is she trustworthy?"

"Jake, you think I'd have brought her here if she wasn't?"

"That's not what I asked. Is she trustworthy?"

"She's pulled me outta the fire before. Trust her with my life."

"What's her name?"

"Chloe."

"Yeah, I got that. Chloe what?" Jake said, annoyance in his voice.

"Chloe O'Brien... Spelled O-B-r-i-e-n, not with an a."

"Pretty common mistake there," Jake said. It was directed at Chloe, who was off in her own little world. It took a moment before she realized and returned to earth.

"Wha? Oh, yeah. You have no idea...." she tried to laugh at the end of it, but she couldn't help looking around, unsure of this.

What the hell had Jack Bauer dragged her into this time?
~~~~~~~

Half an hour later, after all the questions were asked and answered they'd set her up in her own room on the second floor. She'd been very surprised that he'd been able to get her in so easily. In her presence they'd done some quick computer background checks...or something of the sort. She silently thanked Bill for insisting that a sort-of-alias be made up for her. The name O'Brien, a common name, common spelling, but not her spelling, had been a close enough for her to remember... She didn't like the fact that he'd had it made for her, but now, it might have been the only thing keeping her alive.

Why had he done this?

She didn't understand. The way he'd looked at her down there, she understood his cover demanded his behavior. But why bring her into it? She sat on the bed, her head in her hands, trying to make heads or tails out of this. What could possibly...

If she let the questions run around her head, she'd never relax. Not that she wanted to relax... They'd been involved for a time, then... well she'd found out the hard way that not only was it classified information, but if she even thought about it she might be charged with high treason. That had been a joke
had made... only it hadn't been funny then, and it sure as hell wasn't funny now.

Her room had a computer... no several computers. They were models she'd seen in advertisements, designed for high-speed traffic on the internet. They were similar to the models they used at CTU. One of them would have been enough for her to do her job back at the unit... but three... she had figured out some parts of it by now. The basics, but she wanted to hear it from the horse's mouth.

She wouldn't have to wait long.
~~~~~~~

Two years and she still looked as amazing as ever....well to him anyway. She hadn't changed a bit. He could only imagine that she was still driving her worker bees back at CTU crazy. A small smile came to his lips as he stood in the doorway watching her, his arms crossed as he shook his head. Two years... two crazy, confusing and nearly unbearable years.

It had happened in a whirlwind. He could have sworn that it was just yesterday when they'd last spoken...some days.

She was in her own little world right now. She hadn't even noticed him yet. There was so much that he had to tell her, but how much he'd be able to... He pushed himself off the doorframe and stepped inside, shutting it behind him. And that she heard.

Her head jerked and turned. She was looking at him, her eyes momentarily widened, like a doe in a pair of headlights.

"It's just me," he said. His tone was completely different than it had been. It was almost as she remembered it, but there was an underlying gruffness to it.

She said nothing.

He moved closer, standing by the bed. He looked away for a moment. Suddenly feeling a bit awkward with the situation.

"You're mad. I know. But-"

"Mad?!" she exclaimed. "Mad doesn't even-"

"I know! I know! I dragged you into this! You'll never speak to me again! Where the hell have I been? What am I up to?" He started to rattle off what he figured she was going to say. "You don't have to-" He didn't even see it coming. In a flash, Chloe's hand had made contact with his face... hard. He winced against the ache he felt in his face. "Ow..." he didn't say it very loudly, even though it hurt... for a moment it sounded almost like he was whining...almost.

Chloe's face was just as hard, if not harder than her slap. She showed no emotion and kept her eyes locked on him.

"What do you want me to say, Chloe?" he asked, a bit more quietly. "I needed someone I could trust... I'm sorry."

"No. No you're not." she said coldly. "You told me that day that I'd see you in the morning. And then you disappeared." She'd gone over this in her head hundreds of times. How, if he ever showed up again (as she knew he was out there), how she'd handle it. Now that it was happening, actually happening, the plan she'd decided on: ignoring it and acting normally... Well it seemed that it wouldn't work.

He didn't know how to respond to this.

"Do you know what I had to do when you did show up on radar? That was classified! I had to forget it! Kim has figured out that you're off on another of your goddamn things," she pulled a 'West Wing' describing an event as a 'thing'. "She knows something's up. But me? I'm forced to forget because of protocol! And now you decide that it's time and you need my help so you come and take me from where I live!?" she practically screamed this at him.

She was angry...sad, confused... it would have taken too long to describe or list her emotions. He could see them all in her eyes. He took a step so he could wrap his arms around her, but she wouldn't let him. She took a step towards the computers, on a table against the far wall, and wrapped her arms around herself.

"Chloe..." He didn't know what to do at the moment. "Chlo' I wouldn't have done this if I could have helped it..."

"I know you sent those emails, but you didn't even sign them," she'd received several anonymous emails over the time he'd been gone, but it never helped. "And did you really think it would help?"

The two of them had been seeing one another before his mysterious, CTU Division-caused disappearance. Everything had been fine until he'd gotten back to his apartment the night before he'd vanished... He'd tried to protest the order for the undercover operation, but there had been nothing he could do, and he'd tried to use some friendly connections he still had among the CTU higher-ups... but to no avail.

"I didn't know what to do. And I tried everything. Did you think that I'd leave without saying goodbye or telling you what I could...that I'd do that willingly?" he asked softly, walking up behind her.

She closed her eyes biting her lip before speaking again. "To tell you the truth Ja-...Ian... Oh, I can't even call you your name," she muttered, frustrated.

He couldn't help the small smile that came to his face. "Actually," he whispered, "you can...they set it up as my middle name, we'll just say that you hate my first name." He tried to bring her closer again, it failed again. This time she turned around to face him, her frown marring her features once again.

"But before you said-"

"I had to make sure you understood that I was undercover..." he said brushing some hair out of her face. He could see that this was seriously taxing her. He took a step forward, taking her into his arms and not letting her go this time. "Chloe, listen to me... Please?"

She looked up at him. She didn't know what she was feeling at that moment... She'd spent two years trying to get over him. Trying to convince herself that even though he was out there he wouldn't be coming back to her. From what she'd gathered, what she'd been able to hack illegally, he was deep undercover... It was assignments like these that usually got agents placed into Witness Protection. That was what she'd been told when she finally had gotten caught hacking onto the database by someone at Division.

She looked up at him and the anger flooded back. She looked away. "No. I don't want to listen, Jack. I don't want to hear the excuses. The reasons. I don't want to hear why you did it! You chose this life! I didn't..." she was speaking louder than before and as such she somehow remembered to keep the cover... How she kept it in mind unconsciously she would never even think to ask, but she did. "I never asked for this! You just showed up and poof I was involved. Again! It wasn't enough losing you once. Now you want to come waltzing back in like this?! Well it's not going to happe-"

She was cut off as he pressed his lips roughly against hers. She tried to push him away, but he had his hands holding her in place and soon she found herself not only responding, but practically melting in his arms, her protests long forgotten.

They finally found that they needed air and were forced to break the kiss or suffocate.

He looked down at her, so many emotions on his face that it was hard to tell where one started and the next began...all except for two: Love and desire stood out among the rest.

Jack rested his forehead against hers and just looked at her for a moment before he brushed her cheek with his fingers. "I've been wanting to do that since I saw you earlier..." he paused for a moment, closing his eyes and standing up straight and again looking down at her. "I know that after everything I can't expect things to go back to how they were... and I don't expect it. But right now, I need to know that you still trust me. If only enough to pull this off. You can hate me all you want, and I know that once you get over that kiss..."

"Which will happen," she pointed out, only realizing she'd said it after she heard it come out of her mouth.

He chuckled at this. "Yes, which we both know will happen. After this point, I need to know that you can do this. We're not playing spy games, Chloe. This is dangerous stuff. They'll tell you what you need to do. It'd possible that I'll be the one actually...since Jake knows the connection between us." He sighed. "There's a lot of information you won't be privy to. And you have to be okay with that. Some of these guys, well they're...temperamental. If anything happens, you come to me. I'll deal with it."

She looked up at him skeptically. "I can handle myself, Jack."

He was more serious than she. "Yeah, I know. But I'm not going to take a chance with you, Chlo'. You're going to get out of here without a scratch on you. You have my word on that."

She frowned at him once more, he knew the look very well and he had a feeling he knew what was coming.

"You shouldn't make promises you can't keep, Graves," good she'd used his cover last name. He knew that deep down she'd been very tempted to use his actual name, but this was something she was going to have to be careful about.

He grinned slightly at her comment. Getting back into character a little bit. The character of Ian 'Jack' Graves was an odd one, but he figured that now, when he was around the woman who was supposed to be his 'ex-fiancée' he could let go a bit... as in now. He hadn't seen her in so long... two years was a long time.

"Well," he leaned in a bit more, she could feel his breath against her skin as he bent his head to her neck, "you know me... it's much more fun to make the promise and see if I can make it happen..." he brought his lips to her neck, sucking on that one place...the point he remembered. He was rewarded with a muted moan emanating from her throat. That was all that he needed to hear.

It had been so long since... And she remembered this. The feel of his lips against her skin, as he moved from her neck and back to her lips... And in a second of conscious thought she remembered what was happening, where she was, and why she was here. And in that moment, she managed to push him away from her. Backing up against the wall, trying to get away from him, her face hardened and she glared at him, just like before. He didn't understand it.

"Chloe wha-"

"Get out!"

He really didn't follow her logic here. "What? But I-"

"NOW!" she practically roared. "Get OUT!"

When he didn't move, she marched to him and roughly pushed him. Opening the door she shoved him out into the hallway.

"And if you dare try that again, I swear, you'll be a eunuch before sundown!"

And slammed the door in his face.

He stood there staring at the door. He stayed there for several moments. She'd done exactly what someone in her position as an angry 'ex-fiancée' would do...in his opinion anyway. The one question running through his mind, however, was how much of that outburst had been an act... and how much had been real?
~~~~~~

The next few months were strange for Chloe... for several reasons. For one thing Chloe had never really gone months undercover... Hell she hadn't been undercover before. Needless to say it had been rather difficult to get a message to Bill, telling him what was happening, telling him she wasn't missing but undercover, but eventually, she got a call from her "father." The others had been informed that she was close to her family, and somehow Jake let her take the calls... He'd been suspicious at first, until Chloe had done a reverse phone search and it turned up 'Thomas O'Brien.' His address had turned up as 26 Astor Court, somewhere in Indiana... Apparently Milo had caught the hints and the code word 'Indiana' and had gone through the proper protocols, setting Bill up with a phone and address for her alias' "father." Through these coded conversations they'd gotten information back to CTU...even thought information was classified, Division had finally given in and given Bill clearance. It was a good thing, and through the calls they were connected.

There was always the question of why Jake was letting her take the calls, but he didn't seem to mind. He even seemed to protect her when Jack wasn't around.

She'd been introduced to the system at the end of her first week. That week had been, as Jake had dubbed it, her settling in period. She'd gotten to know the men she'd be working with...she'd learned to ignore the looks they sent her way. She'd learned that she had a lot to puzzle over in that area. Why the hell they were sending her looks, she'd never know. But Jack's glare would stop those. He acted rather protective of her, and yet she would continue to give him the brush off. It continued even now.

She'd been sent out for supplies a few times, being treated as 'one of the guys' as far as the daily chore rotation went. She had to admit, for an underground terrorist cell they sure did keep a clean house. On more than one occasion this thought had caused her to randomly break out laughing...something the guys seemed to be used to by now.

Once a week the guys left the house in order to have a 'fun activity' of sorts. Two people would remain back at the house to keep tabs on the computers and keep an eye on the nest.

Chloe had gone on the last outing, and as such had been chosen to stay behind this time. Jack had wanted to stay with her, but in the end it was Jake who ordered 'Ian' to go. The boss would stay behind and keep tabs on everything. Chloe'd agreed with this, Jack needed some fun once and a while. The last trip had been a week or so earlier and they'd all gone out to a movie. This week...who knew?

Jake sent them off with some tickets to something and cash, before the door was closed and they left.

Chloe was down in the living room with the computers when something on her screen blinked. She needed to insert the command, nothing major. In past weeks she'd been asked to do things that were illegal, but she hadn't hesitated.... after all she knew the stakes.

"Hey, C," Jake had given her a stupid nickname...since when was a letter a name?

"Chloe. How many times do I-"

"As many as it takes," he laughed. "Lunch is ready. You want it in here or in there?"

She input the command and walked into the kitchen. It was the beginning of summer. After they'd taken her from outside her apartment, she'd been allowed to return in order to get her things. It was made very clear that she was going to be there for a while, she'd made it sure if they needed her to stay there, she'd be getting her things. Today it was nearly 80 degrees outside. Inside the air conditioners were going full blast and the living room and her room were kept cool. They were trying to keep the computers from overheating. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn't.

Today, she was wearing shorts. She never wore shorts, but it was so warm out...and according to the forecast it was only going to get warmer.

She walked into the kitchen with a shake of her head. She stood behind the island in the middle of the kitchen, eating her sandwich. She didn't want to sit down. She'd been sitting all day. It felt good to stretch her legs a bit.

She took a bite. She'd been leaning over the counter; she straightened up and felt a warm body pressed up against hers....except that it wasn't Jack's...

"So how are you doing with that program?"

Jake's conversation didn't match what he was doing with his fingers. He was pushing her hair away from her neck and despite her struggling against him he held her in place.

She tried to hit him, but he was behind her and using his legs, hers were pinned to the side of the island and his other arm held hers. She tried next to hit his head with hers... That worked. He winced from the contact, just as she felt someone pull him off of her.

"What did I say!?" Jake felt his head snap to the side as a fist made contact with his chin. "What. Did. I. Say?!" he had him pushed up against the wall. Jake's lip was bleeding and Chloe, now able to function again, outside of trying to fight, focused on who it was.

She ran across the kitchen, pulling on Jack's arm. What this was, character or real she didn't know, but this could severely damage their cover if it got too far. This time, she didn't use her 'nickname' for him. She used his 'name' getting his attention.

"Ian!" she pulled on his arm, trying to get him away from the cell's leader. "Ian, you're going to kill him!"

He turned to her, the rage clear in his eyes. "What are you talking about!? After what he-"

"It's alright," she said gently, but firmly, becoming much more serious as she continued. "Nothing happened. And it's not worth killing over something so minor... it was bound to happen sooner or later."

"But I made it explicitly clear that-"

"Listen to her, Ian," Jake gasped out. "She's-"

"Shut up," he ground out, pushing him against the wall again.

"Ian. Let him go. Now!" she ordered. "It's not worth it." She put an arm on his shoulder, she saw something dawn in his eyes and he let his 'boss' go.

Jake was smart enough to get the hell out of there as fast as he could.

Chloe knew how hard it was for anyone, especially Jack, to calm down when they were so angry, but it was no relief to her that he'd been able to come back from that place in his mind.

Jack didn't say anything to her, he wasn't calm. He was still furious, but it was different than it had been. He pushed her against the wall and captured her lips in a bruising kiss. It took very little for it to escalate. Moving from her lips to her neck, he was rewarded as he had been months before, with the same noise from her throat.

He broke the kiss, looking at her, love, desire, relief and a dozen other emotions shining in his eyes. He dragged her upstairs, before she even realized what was happening they were standing in her room leaning against the closed door; his lips were working on the spot where her neck and shoulder met. That had always been one of her places...

Over the past months, their relationship had been healing. It had been a slow process but ever so slowly they had started to fix it. It had been one of the men, Sam, one of the minor henchmen-types, who'd made a comment about it all hitting the fan soon. Apparently he'd been right.

She let out a moan as his mouth worked her neck, marking her. She tried to get his attention, but found herself failing until he finally pulled back surveying his work. She had one question for him, but didn't find herself able to get it out in full. He wasn't satisfied yet...or so it seemed as he went back to work. She'd forgotten the rush, the feeling... The way that he made her feel... She gasped as she felt his teeth on her. He seemed to be pleased by her response as he took his mouth from her neck and blew lightly on the mark he'd made.

"I think that'll be enough," his voice was low, dangerous and she was sure if he kept using it she'd melt right there against the door.

She finally found herself able to say the words. "E-enough for what?"

The sides of his lips upturned in a knowing smirk as he brought his lips to her ear and whispered, in the same tone, "To show that you're mine." She didn't have time to think about it before he moved and his lips started to coax hers into playing. It would be moments before he deepened the kiss, pulling her against him and leading them from the door to her bed.

She moaned into his mouth as he ran one of his hands under her shirt, brushing the skin of her navel with his fingertips as he sat them down.

They broke for air and he used the momentary break to look at her. He could see it in her eyes, in her face... he knew just how much she wanted this. How much they both needed this. It had been so long...

He trailed kisses down her jaw line, down her neck, as he started to unbutton her shirt. He pulled his lips back for just a moment. "Chlo'...if you don't want this, stop me now," the tone was breathy, barely controlled. "After this, I don't know if I'll be able to." He didn't get any verbal response, she pulled him towards her, there would be no stopping, she made that clear. She needed him, tonight. She pulled his lips back to hers and brushed his hands away from her top, taking it upon herself to unbutton the rest. He took this an opportunity... His arms were around her, under the fabric of her now open shirt. He pulled his lips from hers, leaning her back and glancing over her body, an odd smile passing his features.

He ran his fingers over the fabric covering her nipples...once, twice...three times, then pulled away and reached behind her. Unclipping her bra he slid it down her arms, bringing her skin into direct contact with the colder air of her room. He brought his lips to her shoulder, licking and kissing as he made his way to her breast. She was already whispering his name, moaning as he touched her in ways he'd dreamt about so vividly.

It wasn't fair, and he knew that soon she'd call him on it... She always had. This time he beat her too it. Pulling back for a moment and pulling his shirt over his head. Her breath caught for a moment as he looked down at her... his intensity... She wanted him...badly. But instead of giving in to her silent plea, his mouth took her breast, his hand working her other one, she couldn't help the moans. She tried to hold them back, if only to tease him, but he was too prepared for her to do anything of the sort. He knew her. All her tricks, all her taunts and tonight he wasn't letting her fool him. His mouth moved to the other side as she tried to protest, but it was as unintelligible. It only spurred him on more.

He moved back up her body, and she could feel him, as he held her to him. She let out a moan, letting him hear how much she needed him. She wanted him, now... his body was doing things to her, making her feel things she'd tried to forget, but now...

"Jack..." She managed to gasp the words as he pushed against her.

"You like that?" he knew the answer, he knew the question was stupid, but he wanted to hear her call his name, it had been so long since he'd heard her speak like that...

"Jack, please," she looked gorgeous, lying there like this. He needed her but he wan- "Jack, I need you. Now."

Her voice made him forget everything other than the need to be inside her. He dipped his head to her neck again as his hands worked on her shorts, easing them off her, along with her panties. And she was lying there, waiting for him.

He climbed off of her, removing the rest of his clothing, she stared for a moment before he climbed back onto the bed, on top of her.

He was planning on kissing her down her body and finding out if she tasted like he remembered, but she arched, letting out a moan before whispering, "Enough foreplay, Jack...I want you now."

When she said it, she meant it, but he'd wanted to make her feel everything.... He was ready, and brought his lips to hers as he positioned himself. He was ready but was-

She could feel him brushing against her, ready to push inside...what was he waiting for? She looked up at him, her eyes asking what was unsaid. He just smirked down at her, planting a soft kiss on her lips. He thrust into her without any warning, causing her to respond automatically. He stayed pressed against her, unmoving for several moments before he spoke, through gritted teeth, calling her name.

"Chloe...” He'd already started moving. Slowly at first...

"Jack, harder..." she could barely get the words out.

He started thrusting into her, harder than before. Speeding up like this, the closeness and the feel, it was just what they both needed and soon Chloe's nails were digging into his back. She kept up with him, thrust for thrust as she felt it building. She tried to hold it back, but Jack could tell. He held her closer, the sounds coming out of her.

"Chloe, I love you."

"Jack don't stop!" she gasped. She felt it coming, his thrusts against hers, her body arching to meet his. "Jack!"

It had been building and he sent her over the edge, her contracting send him over. He collapsed murmuring "I love you" over and over.

Chloe couldn't even make coherent sound; he turned over, taking her with him. She looked at him with a small smile. "I love you too."

That was all he'd needed to hear. They both knew how the other felt, their connection ran deep, deeper than love...it wasn't easy to explain.

He wrapped his arm around her, placing a kiss atop her head.

"Jack," she had to ask the question, she just had to know. "What made you come back?"

He looked down at her and replied simply, "I missed you...I just couldn't stay way."
~~~~~~~

It had changed everything... It didn't help that half the house (they'd arrived back sometime after they'd gone upstairs) had heard it. It had changed their cover story; there was no denying that they were back together now. They'd tried, but each time the others would bring up or hint at it, causing Chloe to turn red.

Word about what Jake had done and 'Ian's' retaliation had been shared...Jack had seen to that, and no one had so much as looked at her in that way since. Needless to say that made Jack happy.

For his part, Jake actually tried avoiding the pair now. A good thing on his part, because Jack had threatened him about what would happen if he ever tried anything like that again. It had been either threaten Jake, or thank him, and he sure as hell wasn't going to thank the bastard.

It was Tuesday, a week or so had passed, and before the day was done, they knew that something was going to happen. It was all a question of what the ever elusive 'something' was...

Bill had hinted at something, and Jake kept talking about Tuesday as 'the day.' He never said which Tuesday, but he'd taken a chance and pulled Chloe aside, giving her some instructions with the program; several things she was supposed to do later on.

It was the not knowing that killed her and Jack was doing all he could to try and calm her down. It had been much easier than he'd figured...once he'd figured it out, of course. He made her sit in front of the computers in her room and after about fifteen minutes she, for whatever reason, seemed to calm down. It was at that point that she'd stood up and sat next to him on the bed, hugging him and apologizing for being so erratic... not that there was anything to apologize for.

As noon approached, they found themselves with the others eating lunch in the kitchen. Chloe was trying not to act any different than normal, but she kept looking at the clock. Jake had told her that the instructions were to be set into the system at four o'clock... "Four hours to go," she found herself murmuring.

"What's the matter with your woman, Graves?" Sam asked, passing someone the potato salad. "Looks like she's bein' a clock watcher today. What, she expecting something?" It was meant as a joke but to Chloe it came across as an attack.

"Why don't you ask Jake," she shot back. "He gave me the instructions after all."

She'd stood up from the table, taking her lunch with her, and gone back to her room... Soon it was all going to come to an end.... Just wished she knew who'd come out on top.

By four o'clock, Chloe'd been given a new set of instructions. She was to wait till dinner before inputting the command. It made her nervous but she'd do it... By six-o'clock it became clear to her and to Jack that if something didn't happen soon, she'd have no choice but to input the launch codes...

There were several other options: They could have tried to take everyone out...two vs. upwards of sixteen. The odds weren't very good, Chloe was a good shot, not a great shot and Jack, she knew, would try to protect her. They could have tried to put in false codes, but that would have been detected and both would have found themselves dead. Thus with all other options weighed, and simply calling the cops not being an option the two were forced to wait.

Chloe tried to be sociable today, but everyone was on edge. They knew, somehow that today was the day. 'Ian' was sitting with Chloe on the couch in the living room, holding her and trying to quietly assure her that everything would be fine, when the order was given.

"Hey, C." She hated that nickname more after their 'run-in' (as Jake referred to it) than she ever had...but today, she simply despised it. "It's time."

It was four minutes to seven. It would take five minutes to input the codes...she knew. She'd practiced it in her head and timed it. She stood up, 'Ian' following behind her.

"Ian, sit here with us," Kevin called over to him. The comment was ignored; he sat down in a chair next to her as she slowly, as slowly as she could without arousing suspicion, typed in the information. She made sure to check it multiple times before entering each key... With any luck that would be a way to buy them some time.

After six minutes, the men started to get restless.

"What the hell is taking so long?"

"Do you want me to get it wrong?" she spat. "I didn't think so, so shut up and let me do my job." That had shut them up.

Chloe turned to Jack. There were only six more keys to press before the launch code was input. She bit her lip and grabbed his hand. His other arm was around her shoulder as he mumbled, "its okay, Chlo'...almost there." Of course that was Ian Graves speaking... not Jack Bauer.

Her hand grasped his a bit tighter as she punched in four of the last six keys. She was moving her hands towards the fifth one when she noticed something moving beyond the curtains in front of the window. Chloe hit the button on the keyboard that would clear the entered symbols just in time. The door opened with a slam and Jack push them both to the floor, him on top of her, shielding her from whatever came in their direction, and into the house ran people: Federal agents with bulletproof vests and guns drawn!

There was a hale of gunfire as the men tried to get away and the agents tried to pin them.

When it all stopped, an agent had a gun pointed at Jack's head... He would have been shot if it weren't for CTU LA's Regional Director. Bill practically slapped the gun out of the Division agent's hands before giving the go-ahead. "You can get up now."

The other sixteen had been either killed or taken into custody... Jack held Chloe tightly, she was still shaking.

Jack led Chloe outside, rubbing her arms as they walked, finally sitting down on a bench on the front lawn. She was holding onto him like for dear life. Although she appeared collected, she couldn't stop her hands from shaking.

"You did great, Chlo'," he said holding her close, trying to soothe her nerves.

She couldn't reply, well she could have, but she didn't entirely know what to say. She shrugged slightly, getting the shaking under control and taking a breath, trying to calm down.

"That's it, just breathe..." he leaned in and kissed her temple.

"So, they made it after all," she said offhandedly. "And now it's all over..." she mused

He couldn't help but smile at this. "Yeah, now it's all over and we get to go back to our normal, boring everyday lives."

She shot him a skeptical look which only succeeded in making him burst out in laughter.

"Alright. Alright. You win. I guess there's nothing really 'normal' or necessarily 'boring' about our everyday lives," he smirked. "But you have to admit that after this, it'll be a nice change."

She put her head on his shoulder, saying simply "Yeah, I guess..."

He could tell that something was the matter with her. She'd mentioned time and time again while they were alone in their room (he'd moved to her room once it was official that they were a couple again). She'd mentioned how she couldn't wait for this to all be over....but now...

"Hey," his fingers moved her head so he could look into her eyes, "what's going on? You seemed so excited to have all of this over when we talked about it yesterday," he said concerned.

"Well I am..." she trailed off, looking away for a moment, towards where Bill was securing everything with his Division counterparts.

"So what's the problem?" He is tone was gentle, and it made her feel safe....he made her feel safe.

"It's just that... well, Division sent you off on a secret mission for two years. Now that it's over, who’s to say they won't do something like that again? I don't think I could handle that." She sighed and shrugged a bit, but Jack could only laugh, and for the life of her Chloe could not figure out what was so funny. Her questioning look was all that he needed to see.

"Oh," he laughed some more, managing to speak between chuckles, finally calming down towards the end. "It's just that, well, I have the feeling that they won't do this kind of thing again."

"And why's that?" she was curious. How could he be so sure?

"After this, I don't think they'd dare..."

He thought for a moment, promising himself then, still holding her in his arms, that this time Division's lack of timing was not going to interrupt his plans... Not again. He thought about it for a moment and wondered if all of this would have been terribly different had he been given one more day before the orders came in. After all, he'd had everything all ready. The box still sat in the one place that he knew it would be safe... He let the what-ifs fade from his mind, taking her lips again, and promising that this time he'd do it... Perhaps even tonight...they were already two years over due.

Breaking the kiss, he looked down into her eyes and smiled, making sure she heard what he had to say. "I love you, and there is nothing that is going to keep me away from you, Chloe O'Brian. Not even the self-proclaimed all-powerful overseers at Division. If they don't like it, I'd love to try and see them stop me," he said holding her tighter and placing a kiss on her lips, whispering, "I don't ever want to miss you again."

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