Fic: You've Got to Hide Your Love Away (4/17)
Title: You've Got to Hide Your Love Away (4/17)
Rating: I'm going with PG-13 but I'm not really good with ratings
Characters: Ten, Rose, Jack, Tosh, Ianto, Gwen, Owen, Pete, Jackie, Mickey, Jake, Martha, other characters
Spoilers: Anything up till the end of season three is fair game
Summary: The sequel to Mrs. Jones You've Got a Lovely Daughter and part of my Homesick In Heaven series. Rose is back, has been for awhile now, and the Doctor is none the wiser. She's making a go of it and life is good...as good as it can be without him by her side. But what happens when forces beyond her control bring the two of them back together? What happens when the Doctor finds out she's been hiding from him all these months? Will Rose reveal her deepest, darkest secrets to him before it's too late?
Author's Note: Thanks still goes to SnowFox3 on fanfiction.net for beta'ing. Any and all mistakes however are mine and mine alone (I have this bad habit of continuing to rewrite the story even after the final draft has met her approval).
~~~
They’re expecting a longer trip, a bumpier ride. His companions, both former and current, know just how hit and miss a trip in the Tardis can be. They realize it’s just as likely that they’ll end up at the end of the world or on a completely different planet as it is they’ll actually see the place they're aiming for on the first, second, or even thirty third try.
Amazingly enough, this time things work out exactly as planned.
Despite anticipating a higher degree of difficulty in crossing the void, the Doctor manages to find a rip in the fabric of the universe fairly quickly. He’s kind of surprised actually that it ends up being this easy; it’s almost as if the huge ragged tear was placed there intentionally and was just waiting for him to find it. The trip through gets a little rough but it’s nowhere near as bad as it could’ve been, especially considering his track record.
The miracles don’t end there either. Figuring the only way he can be certain they’ll be able to help (and avoiding the potential of having to cross his own time-line if they show up too late), the Doctor decides on a date just a few days after the distress call was sent out. When they open the Tardis’ doors they find that he not only got the time right but somehow managed to land them smack dab in the middle of Torchwood.
The guards posted just outside the door of the room they land in (turns out it’s a weapons storage) are not as impressed. In fact, they’re very much NOT happy with this turn of events and quickly begin to lead the group at gunpoint to the holding cells in the basement. They never make it that far though, as Pete Tyler gets wind of the commotion just before they enter the elevator and puts an end to the whole misunderstanding.
Only one man could’ve mysteriously shown up in a locked room, claiming to have traveled there in his space ship which looks suspiciously like a telephone box.
And if said man was here, in this universe, then it means Rose is here with him.
~~~
“We’ve missed you so much honey,” he’s practically crying as he holds Rose tight to his chest. He never would have guessed that the two of them would form such a close bond between them, not after everything that had happened. He still cringes when he thinks about how he treated her that first time they met and she tried to tell him he was her dad in a whole ‘nother universe.
After Canary Wharf it was especially hard, those first few months. She barely spoke to her own mother much less Pete, spending all of her free time in her room with the door locked. But then came her confession of an impossible dream and hearing the Doctor calling to her, telling her to come find him. Jackie didn’t want to believe it at first, couldn’t stand the idea of infusing that hope in her daughter that she knew would only end in heartache. It took him nearly an hour to convince her otherwise and at that point Rose, Mickey, and the jeep were already ready and waiting for them.
That was when things started to change between him and Rose but it wasn't until Jackie's surprise revelation to him and the devastating goodbye at Bad Wolf Bay before they reached the true turning point in their relationship.
With her mum spending most of her days either in the loo or resting (the pregnancy was a difficult one to say the least), and Mickey busy with a life of his own, Rose began to lean on Pete more and more for support. They became best mates, spending many a late night together in front of the roaring fire talking about life. Unsurprisingly, the topic being discussed the most was something they both had way too much experience with...loss. Rose having lost her father, to all extents and purposes twice, and then, suffering the ultimate loss of all; the man that she loved. Pete too, had a deep understanding of this painful subject. From his first wife, his first Jackie, to the most recent loss of...
But he doesn't want to think about that right now. Doesn't want to dwell on the past and the suffocating memories of that time.
“Oh, dad,” Rose sighs, melting into his arms. “I missed you too.”
There’s a slight hitch to her voice, one that he won’t pretend to believe has anything to do with the current reunion. From the moment his eyes first fell on her, being lead down the corridor by an armed guard, he noticed the tension, the way her body language was practically screaming in pain. He has no idea what's wrong but something horrible has happened to her since she left and, though he wants to find out what, now is not the time or the place to do so.
Freeing one arm from around her waist but not letting her go completely- his paternal instincts have definitely kicked in at this point and he knows, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that he will protect her from whatever it is that's hurting her - he offers his hand to the only other familiar face in the crowd. “Good to see you too, old man.”
The Doctor nods and returns the firm grip but doesn’t even make an attempt at a smile. “Yes, yes. You too Pete, you too.” He’s looking surprisingly uncomfortable and Pete wonders if whatever is going on with Rose has something to do with him…or maybe it’s because the last time they were here he lost the woman that he loved. “So tell us what the problem is exactly? We’ve come all this way to help out and it doesn’t look like you need any,” he continues, glancing around at the personnel that are moving leisurely through the halls.
“I’m not sure what you’re…oh, wait the invasion!” Pete can’t help but smile even bigger. “We halted their attempts yesterday morning. Obviously we thought they were a much bigger threat then they actually were.”
“So you’re ok then,” Rose asks looking up at him, relief written all over her face.
“Yup, and even better now that you’re here. Your mother is going to be so happy to see you!”
“Actually,” the Doctor interrupts, “since there’s no invasion to help end we really should be getting back to our own universe. I need to seal up the tears before we have an even bigger mess on our hands then you lot did.” Pete thinks he hears a note of sarcasm in the Doctor’s voice and he’d pursue the matter further but he’s just so happy to have Rose home - even if it’s just for a little bit - that he dismisses it.
“Ah, come on Doc,” he says slapping the Time Lord on the back. “You didn’t come all this way just to up and leave five minutes after you got here. I’m sure the universe won’t implode if you stay for a tic. Besides, Jackie will hunt you down and kill you if she finds out you took off without even letting her say hi to her daughter!”
It takes a little more convincing but eventually the Doctor agrees that they can manage a visit. He reminds all of them of the consequences of staying too long though as Pete happily ushers them into his office. After a round of introductions he picks up the phone to give Jackie a call.
~~~
He’d rather be any other place but here. In fact, any one of the multiple prison cells he’s spent time in over the years would do quite nicely. Not only did they arrive to late for the invasion (saving the world once again would’ve at least made the trip worth it) but now they are being forced to stay for the family reunion. He doesn’t do domestic and this is about as domestic as it comes. Just as he’s about to excuse himself to the Tardis though, the discussion turns to the aliens that had up until a day ago been poised to take over Earth.
“Mickey called them…'fampry', I think it was,” Pete begins.
The Doctor’s ears perk up at this. “Fampir? As in Nosferatu, Stregoni benefici, Incubus, Succubus, the vampire Lestat. Sharp teeth, stake through the heart, creatures of the night…blood suckers?”
“Wait a second,” Owen says turning from the large window he’s been staring out of the past fifteen minutes. “Are you trying to tell us they’re vampires? Actual, for real, “I vant to suck your blood” vampires?”
Gwen giggles at his over-the-top movie accent.
“Mickey mentioned something about them, these vampires,” Pete interrupts shaking his head. “But I’m afraid I’ve never heard of them before.”
“How could you not…”
“It’s a whole ‘nother universe here, Gwen.” Jack explains. “What’s commonplace for us may be completely unheard of for them. Heck, just take one look at the sky and you can’t miss how different things are here,” he waves his hand towards the window just as a Zeppelin floats by. “How’s that for timing?” he grins.
“So how about we humor the poor naive, alternate Pete for a minute and please tell me what exactly a vampire is?”
“Well,” the Doctor begins, rubbing his right earlobe as he paces the room. “They’re fantasy creatures really, no real truth to the myth. Though, then again…werewolves in Scotland?” He turns towards Rose, a grin slowly spreading across his face. They used to share so many laughs over their past adventures and the time they met Queen Victoria had always been one of her favorites. But she doesn’t return the smile and the events of the last few hours come rushing back to him.
“Anyway…what was I talking about again,” he babbles, crossing to the other side of the room and as far away from her as possible. “Ah yes, vampires. Legend says they are humans, undead humans mind you, that feed on blood. Dracula, the most famous on screen and in books, was actually based on one Vlad Ţepeş, or Vlad the Impaler. Nasty man. Met him once just to see what all the hubbub was about and he definitely wasn’t someone you’d want to bring home to mom.”
“Doc?” Jack breaks in, tapping his watch.
Before he can reply, Pete speaks up, “But these creatures, these vampires, they drink a person’s blood right?” After receiving a few nods of accession he continues, “Then they’re not the same thing as the creatures we dealt with. I mean they did drain a person of something but it wasn’t blood, it was - for lack of a better way to say it - life.”
A few exclamations circulate throughout the room as the Doctor stops his pacing and looks up at Pete. “They drained a person’s life?” he asks incredulously. This is certainly a new and interesting twist on the whole vampire myth.
“Yea, well they called it culling. Said something about having to feed on humans in order to survive, tried to make it sound all apologetic and nice. They even suggested that if we were to be so kind as to offer up a few sacrifices they’d be on their way, leaving the rest of us alone.”
“Yeah right, aliens with a conscious,” Owen snickers.
“Obviously we refused. We told them that no loss was an acceptable loss, told them that if they left without any bloodshed that we’d allow them to exit our airspace unharmed.”
“Which they didn’t.”
“Of course not,” Pete grins back at Jack. “And that was when we first saw this feeding of theirs. They sent a few “representatives” as they called them, down to see if they could “negotiate” with us. We naively believed them and allowed it to happen but what they really wanted to do was scare us into submission.” His gestures become more animated at this point and it’s obvious he’s getting angry. “We sent a few of our finest men, fine young men, out to meet them and before anyone could stop it they were dead. I watched it with my own eyes, watched as they visibly aged in just a matter of minutes until there was nothing, no life whatsoever, left in them.”
Rose, who’s been quiet all this time, reaches out and places a comforting hand on Pete’s arm. “’m so sorry dad. It's all my fault. If I hadn’t…”
But before she can finish her statement the doors to Pete’s office are thrown open and a giddy Jackie Tyler comes bounding into the room. “Rose, luv!” she squeals, pushing past everyone in her way in order to get to her daughter.
He has so many questions burning in the back of his mind that he’d like answered but more then that he wants to get away before the human boa constrictor turns her attentions on him. Using the distraction that a new round of introductions brings, he sneaks out the still-open door and slowly makes his way back to the Tardis. He can scour the library and database for any references to these strange life-thirsty aliens while waiting for the family reunion to end.
What he’d really like to know though is why Rose seems to think this whole invasion is somehow her fault.
~~~
Three hours and many stories later, just as the strange group of people from another universe are standing to take their leave, the young man rasps lightly on Mr. Tyler’s door. He’s only been here once before, during his preemployment interview, and he’s feeling a little nervous.
He’s heard all the stories about Mr. Tyler, how he’s a kind and friendly boss who oftentimes joins his employees for lunch or while they’re deciphering a particularly difficult alien text. He hasn’t seen it though. They say it’s because of his daughter and her recent departure; that he’s been so broken up by it he rarely leaves his office. Mark’s not so sure.
See Mark was raised with the belief that classes, for the most part, do not mix - the rich and the poor, the famous and the average Joe, bosses and their employees. In fact it’s been in his experience that bosses only care about their employees insofar as they get their work done.
He’s also seen this sort of reaction before where some higher-up authority figure gains, for whatever reason, stories of intense kindness and grandeur. Said person usually ends up sounding more like a God then just another bloke like the rest of the world. The stories are never true though and he has no reason to believe they are this time.
He doesn’t really feel comfortable being here, can’t stand the idea of intruding on his boss’ private family reunion (oh yea, everyone knows now who the mysterious strangers are that showed up out of nowhere). But Mr. Tyler’s phone is off the hook and as the low man on the totem pole Mark always seems to get the gopher jobs.
He doesn’t have to wait long before the door is opened for him. Standing on the other side, smiling kindly and waving him in, is a beautiful woman with eyes so piercing he’s certain she must be seeing straight through to his soul. From the fantastical accounts of his co-workers, accounts that he never put much weight in, he’s able to determine that this must be Rose, his boss' daughter.
Their fantastical accounts don't even come close to describing her beauty.
“Ahem, Mark?” Pete clears his throat with some amusement.
He hadn’t realized he’d been staring. “Sir!” he responds with as much confidence as he can muster. His cheeks are burning and he gives himself a mental slap for being so rude and disrespectful. He was raised with more manners then this.
“What is it Mark?”
For a second he forgets why he’s come here, still distracted by the lovely and oh-so-sad woman that’s standing before him, a look of concern marring her perfect features. “I ah…”
“Yes?”
Then it all comes rushing back to him. Arriving at work to a completely inappropriate celebratory mood dominating his department. Brushing off all the attempts at getting him to join in the merriment. Ignoring the teasing as he took his place at his workstation. Then the sudden realization, as he stared at his screen, that things had taken a turn for the worse.
“We’ve got a problem sir.”
Chapter Five...
Rating: I'm going with PG-13 but I'm not really good with ratings
Characters: Ten, Rose, Jack, Tosh, Ianto, Gwen, Owen, Pete, Jackie, Mickey, Jake, Martha, other characters
Spoilers: Anything up till the end of season three is fair game
Summary: The sequel to Mrs. Jones You've Got a Lovely Daughter and part of my Homesick In Heaven series. Rose is back, has been for awhile now, and the Doctor is none the wiser. She's making a go of it and life is good...as good as it can be without him by her side. But what happens when forces beyond her control bring the two of them back together? What happens when the Doctor finds out she's been hiding from him all these months? Will Rose reveal her deepest, darkest secrets to him before it's too late?
Author's Note: Thanks still goes to SnowFox3 on fanfiction.net for beta'ing. Any and all mistakes however are mine and mine alone (I have this bad habit of continuing to rewrite the story even after the final draft has met her approval).
~~~
They’re expecting a longer trip, a bumpier ride. His companions, both former and current, know just how hit and miss a trip in the Tardis can be. They realize it’s just as likely that they’ll end up at the end of the world or on a completely different planet as it is they’ll actually see the place they're aiming for on the first, second, or even thirty third try.
Amazingly enough, this time things work out exactly as planned.
Despite anticipating a higher degree of difficulty in crossing the void, the Doctor manages to find a rip in the fabric of the universe fairly quickly. He’s kind of surprised actually that it ends up being this easy; it’s almost as if the huge ragged tear was placed there intentionally and was just waiting for him to find it. The trip through gets a little rough but it’s nowhere near as bad as it could’ve been, especially considering his track record.
The miracles don’t end there either. Figuring the only way he can be certain they’ll be able to help (and avoiding the potential of having to cross his own time-line if they show up too late), the Doctor decides on a date just a few days after the distress call was sent out. When they open the Tardis’ doors they find that he not only got the time right but somehow managed to land them smack dab in the middle of Torchwood.
The guards posted just outside the door of the room they land in (turns out it’s a weapons storage) are not as impressed. In fact, they’re very much NOT happy with this turn of events and quickly begin to lead the group at gunpoint to the holding cells in the basement. They never make it that far though, as Pete Tyler gets wind of the commotion just before they enter the elevator and puts an end to the whole misunderstanding.
Only one man could’ve mysteriously shown up in a locked room, claiming to have traveled there in his space ship which looks suspiciously like a telephone box.
And if said man was here, in this universe, then it means Rose is here with him.
~~~
“We’ve missed you so much honey,” he’s practically crying as he holds Rose tight to his chest. He never would have guessed that the two of them would form such a close bond between them, not after everything that had happened. He still cringes when he thinks about how he treated her that first time they met and she tried to tell him he was her dad in a whole ‘nother universe.
After Canary Wharf it was especially hard, those first few months. She barely spoke to her own mother much less Pete, spending all of her free time in her room with the door locked. But then came her confession of an impossible dream and hearing the Doctor calling to her, telling her to come find him. Jackie didn’t want to believe it at first, couldn’t stand the idea of infusing that hope in her daughter that she knew would only end in heartache. It took him nearly an hour to convince her otherwise and at that point Rose, Mickey, and the jeep were already ready and waiting for them.
That was when things started to change between him and Rose but it wasn't until Jackie's surprise revelation to him and the devastating goodbye at Bad Wolf Bay before they reached the true turning point in their relationship.
With her mum spending most of her days either in the loo or resting (the pregnancy was a difficult one to say the least), and Mickey busy with a life of his own, Rose began to lean on Pete more and more for support. They became best mates, spending many a late night together in front of the roaring fire talking about life. Unsurprisingly, the topic being discussed the most was something they both had way too much experience with...loss. Rose having lost her father, to all extents and purposes twice, and then, suffering the ultimate loss of all; the man that she loved. Pete too, had a deep understanding of this painful subject. From his first wife, his first Jackie, to the most recent loss of...
But he doesn't want to think about that right now. Doesn't want to dwell on the past and the suffocating memories of that time.
“Oh, dad,” Rose sighs, melting into his arms. “I missed you too.”
There’s a slight hitch to her voice, one that he won’t pretend to believe has anything to do with the current reunion. From the moment his eyes first fell on her, being lead down the corridor by an armed guard, he noticed the tension, the way her body language was practically screaming in pain. He has no idea what's wrong but something horrible has happened to her since she left and, though he wants to find out what, now is not the time or the place to do so.
Freeing one arm from around her waist but not letting her go completely- his paternal instincts have definitely kicked in at this point and he knows, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that he will protect her from whatever it is that's hurting her - he offers his hand to the only other familiar face in the crowd. “Good to see you too, old man.”
The Doctor nods and returns the firm grip but doesn’t even make an attempt at a smile. “Yes, yes. You too Pete, you too.” He’s looking surprisingly uncomfortable and Pete wonders if whatever is going on with Rose has something to do with him…or maybe it’s because the last time they were here he lost the woman that he loved. “So tell us what the problem is exactly? We’ve come all this way to help out and it doesn’t look like you need any,” he continues, glancing around at the personnel that are moving leisurely through the halls.
“I’m not sure what you’re…oh, wait the invasion!” Pete can’t help but smile even bigger. “We halted their attempts yesterday morning. Obviously we thought they were a much bigger threat then they actually were.”
“So you’re ok then,” Rose asks looking up at him, relief written all over her face.
“Yup, and even better now that you’re here. Your mother is going to be so happy to see you!”
“Actually,” the Doctor interrupts, “since there’s no invasion to help end we really should be getting back to our own universe. I need to seal up the tears before we have an even bigger mess on our hands then you lot did.” Pete thinks he hears a note of sarcasm in the Doctor’s voice and he’d pursue the matter further but he’s just so happy to have Rose home - even if it’s just for a little bit - that he dismisses it.
“Ah, come on Doc,” he says slapping the Time Lord on the back. “You didn’t come all this way just to up and leave five minutes after you got here. I’m sure the universe won’t implode if you stay for a tic. Besides, Jackie will hunt you down and kill you if she finds out you took off without even letting her say hi to her daughter!”
It takes a little more convincing but eventually the Doctor agrees that they can manage a visit. He reminds all of them of the consequences of staying too long though as Pete happily ushers them into his office. After a round of introductions he picks up the phone to give Jackie a call.
~~~
He’d rather be any other place but here. In fact, any one of the multiple prison cells he’s spent time in over the years would do quite nicely. Not only did they arrive to late for the invasion (saving the world once again would’ve at least made the trip worth it) but now they are being forced to stay for the family reunion. He doesn’t do domestic and this is about as domestic as it comes. Just as he’s about to excuse himself to the Tardis though, the discussion turns to the aliens that had up until a day ago been poised to take over Earth.
“Mickey called them…'fampry', I think it was,” Pete begins.
The Doctor’s ears perk up at this. “Fampir? As in Nosferatu, Stregoni benefici, Incubus, Succubus, the vampire Lestat. Sharp teeth, stake through the heart, creatures of the night…blood suckers?”
“Wait a second,” Owen says turning from the large window he’s been staring out of the past fifteen minutes. “Are you trying to tell us they’re vampires? Actual, for real, “I vant to suck your blood” vampires?”
Gwen giggles at his over-the-top movie accent.
“Mickey mentioned something about them, these vampires,” Pete interrupts shaking his head. “But I’m afraid I’ve never heard of them before.”
“How could you not…”
“It’s a whole ‘nother universe here, Gwen.” Jack explains. “What’s commonplace for us may be completely unheard of for them. Heck, just take one look at the sky and you can’t miss how different things are here,” he waves his hand towards the window just as a Zeppelin floats by. “How’s that for timing?” he grins.
“So how about we humor the poor naive, alternate Pete for a minute and please tell me what exactly a vampire is?”
“Well,” the Doctor begins, rubbing his right earlobe as he paces the room. “They’re fantasy creatures really, no real truth to the myth. Though, then again…werewolves in Scotland?” He turns towards Rose, a grin slowly spreading across his face. They used to share so many laughs over their past adventures and the time they met Queen Victoria had always been one of her favorites. But she doesn’t return the smile and the events of the last few hours come rushing back to him.
“Anyway…what was I talking about again,” he babbles, crossing to the other side of the room and as far away from her as possible. “Ah yes, vampires. Legend says they are humans, undead humans mind you, that feed on blood. Dracula, the most famous on screen and in books, was actually based on one Vlad Ţepeş, or Vlad the Impaler. Nasty man. Met him once just to see what all the hubbub was about and he definitely wasn’t someone you’d want to bring home to mom.”
“Doc?” Jack breaks in, tapping his watch.
Before he can reply, Pete speaks up, “But these creatures, these vampires, they drink a person’s blood right?” After receiving a few nods of accession he continues, “Then they’re not the same thing as the creatures we dealt with. I mean they did drain a person of something but it wasn’t blood, it was - for lack of a better way to say it - life.”
A few exclamations circulate throughout the room as the Doctor stops his pacing and looks up at Pete. “They drained a person’s life?” he asks incredulously. This is certainly a new and interesting twist on the whole vampire myth.
“Yea, well they called it culling. Said something about having to feed on humans in order to survive, tried to make it sound all apologetic and nice. They even suggested that if we were to be so kind as to offer up a few sacrifices they’d be on their way, leaving the rest of us alone.”
“Yeah right, aliens with a conscious,” Owen snickers.
“Obviously we refused. We told them that no loss was an acceptable loss, told them that if they left without any bloodshed that we’d allow them to exit our airspace unharmed.”
“Which they didn’t.”
“Of course not,” Pete grins back at Jack. “And that was when we first saw this feeding of theirs. They sent a few “representatives” as they called them, down to see if they could “negotiate” with us. We naively believed them and allowed it to happen but what they really wanted to do was scare us into submission.” His gestures become more animated at this point and it’s obvious he’s getting angry. “We sent a few of our finest men, fine young men, out to meet them and before anyone could stop it they were dead. I watched it with my own eyes, watched as they visibly aged in just a matter of minutes until there was nothing, no life whatsoever, left in them.”
Rose, who’s been quiet all this time, reaches out and places a comforting hand on Pete’s arm. “’m so sorry dad. It's all my fault. If I hadn’t…”
But before she can finish her statement the doors to Pete’s office are thrown open and a giddy Jackie Tyler comes bounding into the room. “Rose, luv!” she squeals, pushing past everyone in her way in order to get to her daughter.
He has so many questions burning in the back of his mind that he’d like answered but more then that he wants to get away before the human boa constrictor turns her attentions on him. Using the distraction that a new round of introductions brings, he sneaks out the still-open door and slowly makes his way back to the Tardis. He can scour the library and database for any references to these strange life-thirsty aliens while waiting for the family reunion to end.
What he’d really like to know though is why Rose seems to think this whole invasion is somehow her fault.
~~~
Three hours and many stories later, just as the strange group of people from another universe are standing to take their leave, the young man rasps lightly on Mr. Tyler’s door. He’s only been here once before, during his preemployment interview, and he’s feeling a little nervous.
He’s heard all the stories about Mr. Tyler, how he’s a kind and friendly boss who oftentimes joins his employees for lunch or while they’re deciphering a particularly difficult alien text. He hasn’t seen it though. They say it’s because of his daughter and her recent departure; that he’s been so broken up by it he rarely leaves his office. Mark’s not so sure.
See Mark was raised with the belief that classes, for the most part, do not mix - the rich and the poor, the famous and the average Joe, bosses and their employees. In fact it’s been in his experience that bosses only care about their employees insofar as they get their work done.
He’s also seen this sort of reaction before where some higher-up authority figure gains, for whatever reason, stories of intense kindness and grandeur. Said person usually ends up sounding more like a God then just another bloke like the rest of the world. The stories are never true though and he has no reason to believe they are this time.
He doesn’t really feel comfortable being here, can’t stand the idea of intruding on his boss’ private family reunion (oh yea, everyone knows now who the mysterious strangers are that showed up out of nowhere). But Mr. Tyler’s phone is off the hook and as the low man on the totem pole Mark always seems to get the gopher jobs.
He doesn’t have to wait long before the door is opened for him. Standing on the other side, smiling kindly and waving him in, is a beautiful woman with eyes so piercing he’s certain she must be seeing straight through to his soul. From the fantastical accounts of his co-workers, accounts that he never put much weight in, he’s able to determine that this must be Rose, his boss' daughter.
Their fantastical accounts don't even come close to describing her beauty.
“Ahem, Mark?” Pete clears his throat with some amusement.
He hadn’t realized he’d been staring. “Sir!” he responds with as much confidence as he can muster. His cheeks are burning and he gives himself a mental slap for being so rude and disrespectful. He was raised with more manners then this.
“What is it Mark?”
For a second he forgets why he’s come here, still distracted by the lovely and oh-so-sad woman that’s standing before him, a look of concern marring her perfect features. “I ah…”
“Yes?”
Then it all comes rushing back to him. Arriving at work to a completely inappropriate celebratory mood dominating his department. Brushing off all the attempts at getting him to join in the merriment. Ignoring the teasing as he took his place at his workstation. Then the sudden realization, as he stared at his screen, that things had taken a turn for the worse.
“We’ve got a problem sir.”
Chapter Five...