Secrets Inside - Part 4
Title: Secrets Inside - Part 4
Author: iantosdreamer46
Pairings: Jack/Ianto, Gwen/Owen, Tosh/Paul
Spoilers: set after Countrycide and Greeks Bearing Gifts.
Summary: What happens after a stranger arrives
Disclaimer: I own none of the characters. I just like to experiment with them from time to time.
Master list iantosdreamer46.livejournal.com/3003.html
Tosh had had enough of being ignored by Owen and Gwen. After Jack and Ianto left it was as if she wasn’t there. So she excused herself saying that a migrane had come on and if she was to be of any use tomorrow she needed to take her medication and go and lie down in a darkened room.
“Ok Tosh” said Gwen “Sorry that you’re not feeling well. We’ll see you tomorrow. Take care on your way home, goodnight.”
Owen just muttered goodnight as he looked wickedly at Gwen.
Well if that’s the only concern I get, Tosh thought, I’m better off out of here. She left her colleagues deep in conversation, noticing that Owen had moved closer to Gwen and was forever touching her leg. She had an idea that this was deliberate and that Gwen would probably end up at Owen’s for the night.
Stepping out of the warm restaurant into the cold breeze coming off the bay, Tosh pulled her jacket more tightly around her. By doing so, she dropped her bag.
“Here you are” said a strange voice.
“Oh, thank you, I’m all fingers and thumbs, it’s turned chilly now.”
“That’s my pleasure, I enjoy coming to the aid of beautiful women!”
Tosh blushed, she had never been called beautiful before. As she looked at the stranger she found she was staring into the bluest eyes she had ever seen.
“Thank you.”
“You’ve already said that. How about we introduce ourselves? Good evening I’m Paul Archer.”
“Hello, I’m Toshiko Sato, but all my friends call me Tosh.”
She offered her hand to him and instead of shaking it as she thought he would, he brought it up to his lips and lightly kissed it. The kiss felt like butterfly wings and Tosh blushed even more.
“I’m pleased to meet you Tosh. I was just on my way down to the bay to take in the sights by night.”
“Oh, so you don’t live here then?”
“No, I’m on holiday, exploring the sights and sounds of your beautiful city. Now I’ve found one more beautiful thing about this city to write home about.”
Tosh looked at Paul inquisitively, “What, pray tell, is the other beautiful thing?”
My dear Toshiko, it’s you. I’ve never met such a kind, sensitive person like you for a long time. You remind me very much of my sister Karen.”
Tosh was pleased it was dark as she found herself blushing again.
“You’re only saying that to cheer me up. I bet you say it to all the women you meet.”
“Believe me Toshiko, I don’t say it to anyone. In fact you’re the first person I’ve met for a very long time.”
Tosh found herself smiling and feeling very flattered. She was unused to getting compliments about herself. Yes, she’d had compliments from Jack when she’d designed or upgraded software at work, but she never thought anyone would like her for herself. She was beginning to relax a bit when Paul’s question surprised her.
“I was thinking of trying to find somewhere for a coffee. As you seem to know Cardiff, perhaps you could suggest somewhere and join me. I hate drinking alone.”
“What?..... Me?..... Why would you want me to join you?”
“Oh, a beautiful girl, who looks like she needs cheering up, and a single man….. a tourist at that….. wanting a good cup of coffee and some intelligent conversation. I would say that makes a perfect combination.”
“What makes you think I need cheering up?”
"Well I saw you leave that restaurant and thought you looked sad. What is it….. your boyfriend just told you it’s over?...... Sorry shouldn’t pry.”
“No, nothing like that. I don’t have a boyfriend. It’s just I’ve been to dinner with my colleagues from work, as there are five of us, it makes for an uneven situation. You see Jack, he’s our boss, is the partner of my friend Ianto, and Owen and Gwen, well let’s just say they only have eyes for one another tonight. So I decided to feign a migrane and leave.”
Unbeknown to Tosh she had just furnished Paul with some vital information. Thinking he could use this he decided this was the way he would get into Torchwood.
“So, do you know of a coffee shop that is open this time of night?”
Tosh remembered Ianto telling her about the one he’d found that served real coffee as he’d called it, just around the corner from the Millennium Centre.
“Yes” she replied “there’s a coffee shop about five minutes walk from here. Ianto, that’s my friend and colleague, swears they serve the best coffee around, and he should know he’s a connoisseur when it comes to coffee.”
“Sounds great. How about it then? Would you like to go for a coffee with me?”
Not sure why she said it, it was so out of character for her, but she wanted to spend more time with this man.
“Ok, just one, it’s getting late and I have to be up early for work tomorrow.”
“Right, that’s decided then, lead the way Miss Sato, I’m all yours until you get tired of my company.”
Tosh couldn’t put a finger on it, but for some reason she like this man Paul Archer. He made her laugh, and blush, two things she hadn’t done in a very long time.
As they made their way across the Plaza to Ianto’s coffee shop, she noticed Gwen and Owen leaving the restaurant, arms around each other and lips locked together. She grinned to herself, knowing that she had predicted this would be the outcome of their closeness earlier in the evening.
Once in the coffee shop Paul suggested Tosh order the coffee for them. There were so many different and unusual ones to choose from, he didn’t want to order something she didn’t like.
While they waited for their drinks to arrive, he tried to find out more background information on Tosh, but what he really wanted was an insight to Torchwood.
“So Miss Sato, what do you do for a living?”
“Oh please, I said everyone calls me Tosh, Miss Sato sounds too formal.”
“Ok Tosh, what is it that keeps you busy during the day?”
“I’m a computer programmer for the police.”
“I’ll bet that’s interesting work. Do you ever get involved in any of the cases they are working on?”
Knowing this was a lie, he pushed further for answers. He wanted her to confirm that Torchwood existed.
“Sometimes, it depends on which department I am attached to at the time. I often work for the Special Operations team. They are the ones who need the computers the most.”
Paul was churning questions over in his mind which he wanted to ask Tosh. But he didn’t want to make it too obvious what information he was really after.
“Do you enjoy your work?”
“Oh yes, it’s the best thing that has happened to me for a long time. I’ve been there about three years now, I think. Time goes so quickly, I don’t really count the days.”
“I would love to hear more about your work. I think what you do is fascinating.”
“I can’t really say much more. I am sworn to the official secrets act” replied Tosh, trying to get out of explaining about her job. In the past this had stopped people asking too many questions, but she had a feeling that Paul would want to know more. She liked this man. It was the first time in all the time she had worked at Torchwood, that she had met someone whom she could have a fun conversation with. She looked at her watch, it was nearly one in the morning and she had to be at work by seven.
“I’m so sorry Paul, but I am going to have to bid you a goodnight. I have to be at work early. But I have really enjoyed our chat.”
“It’s still early, can’t you stay a while longer?”
“No, I really must go, otherwise my boss wouldn’t be too happy if I fell asleep at my console.”
“Ok, if I let you go now will you promise to have dinner with me tomorrow night?”
Tosh was surprised, why would this good looking young man want to take her out to dinner? She knew she shouldn’t agree, but what the hell, the others were having fun. It’s like Jack said she should let her hair down and have fun sometimes.
“Ok, yeah, I’ll have dinner with you tomorrow night. Where would you like to meet and at what time?”
“Why don’t you come to my hotel, they do a fantastic meal and we can sit and talk there all night if we wish.”
“That would be great. Where are you staying?”
“It’s the St David’s Hotel and Spa……”
“Oh is that the one down Havannagh Street?”
“That’s right, do you know it?”
“I’ve never been there, but yes I know where it is. What time would you like me to meet you?”
“Let’s make is 7pm, then we can have a drink first and go for dinner at 7.30pm. How does that sound?”
“That sounds great, thank you.”
“Why thank me? It’s you who are making me happy by agreeing to have dinner with me.”
“Look I really must go I don’t want to annoy Jack.”
“Right, I’ll see you tomorrow….. sorry today at 7pm.”
They bid each other goodnight and headed in their separate directions.
Paul watched Toshiko Sato walk away from the coffee shop. He smiled to himself. He had made a start. He realised Tosh had given him some of the information he needed to bring down the great Captain Jack Harkness. As he made his way back to his hotel he knew it was Ianto Jones that would be the bait, and he knew just what he was going to do to him.
Tosh left the coffee shop singing to herself. She had never felt so alive for a long time. What had this stranger done? Why was she feeling this way? What was she going to do about him? Did she tell anyone at work? No nothing had happened….. yet. She would wait until she knew where it was going. She didn’t want to look an idiot infront of everyone else. Smiling, she let herself into her apartment. For the first time in a long while she was looking forward to a night out.
Back at his hotel, Paul retrieved the files from the safe in his room. He needed to update the information on the four remaining operatives of Torchwood.
He pulled out the file on Captain Harkness. His first impression on this man had been so wrong. If anyone, he thought he would be sleeping with Ms Cooper or even Toshiko, but to find it was Mr Jones was a surprise. Yes he knew he had slept with many different genders, but to have this relationship confirmed had just sealed the good Captains fate. As well as the end for his beloved Ianto Jones.
Next he updated the files on Dr Harper and Ms Cooper. What a naughty girl she was being. What would her fiancé think about an affair with a colleague? Paul was in two minds as to whether he should tell this Rhys person. But then he thought. It wasn’t Gwen Cooper he wanted to bring down, it was Jack Harkness. For the time being he would leave the good Officer Cooper alone. His priority was Harkness. Now he thought, how do I get Jones away on his own? That would have to wait for now. Paul decided that he needed to glean more information from Toshiko. She was becoming very useful. If that meant wining and dining her, then that’s what he would do. If he could get her into bed, who knew what pillow talk would reveal.
Paul put the files back into the safe, climbed into bed and fell asleep dreaming of his dinner with Miss Sato.
tbc
Chapter 5 iantosdreamer46.livejournal.com/4786.html