As Time Goes By

Chapter 5

As Time Goes By

Jack fought to free himself of the device as he was suddenly well aware of it being on his head and being what was obscuring his vision. Off with the headset and suddenly he was back in Allison's living room. His heart was racing and he was questioning what just happened. Then he turned to look at Nathan, who sat on the couch looking at him expectantly, looking at him like he wanted an answer and he knew it wasn't just a hallucination. "Are you screwing with me?"

Nathan removed the headset from Jenna's head, the baby now sound asleep in his lap. "No. Did I misread you?"

"Me?" Jack said, trying to keep his voice as quiet as possible while still expressing his current emotional state. He waved at the headset. "You mean the story? Perhaps you got a little wrapped up in the role?"

"I've come to look at you in a different light. Had Ally not been here when you first arrived in town, and I not had a reason to be my possessive and jealous self, I would have definitely made a move on you. Perhaps I did, I had no reason to take my shirt off to be examined for a potential head injury. Hell, I even unbuckled my pants which is even weirder considering I knew I would have to get blood work done and basic exam for a concussion and no reason to undress that much. Actually undress at all. Anyhow, I've never denied my attraction for you, I simply accepted it as fact, but I left it as that because I could only focus on Ally."

"Are you sure you don't have a head injury now?"

"Positive." Nathan said and stood up to put his daughter to bed. "I'd kiss you again but I know there are NannyCams everywhere and I honestly don't need the drama of that phone call immediately after our foray into Casablanca."

Jack took a moment to think about that kiss and closed his eyes to ask himself if it was worth the risk. God yes he wanted to be kissed again but his brain was screaming at him to see the dangers of starting something with Stark. Yeah, it had been a fantasy of his but it had stayed a fantasy because Nathan was so fixated on Allison that it never seemed a possibility. They both were. If it was complicated and confusing before, now it was worse because Nathan had just come back from the dead. Maybe not for him, he pined for the guy in his absence more than he cared to admit, but for Nathan it was a literal blink of the eye. One minute he was going to marry Allison and two weeks later he was on a runway in Casablanca kissing him. Fucking Eureka. "Nathan, you've been back for two weeks. It's understandable that you're going to have some issues adjusting..."

"The chemistry between us has been present for two years." Nathan countered. "You can't deny that."

Jack got up and walked into the kitchen as Nathan disappeared to put Jenna to bed. Nathan Stark kissed him and was offering to 'see if they could make something of it'. God, why did he let this guy wreck him so thoroughly with just a few words or a look? " You said yourself, the story puts you in a mood with subliminal messages."

"Oh, so now you'll agree with me?" Nathan said from the other room.

"Nathan, I haven't been able to get a read on you since I first met you." Jack said.

"I've swung a lot of things that would surprise you, Sheriff. " Nathan quoted himself, his voice carrying so well though the house. "What exactly did you think that meant?"

"I sure as hell didn't think you were hitting on me!"

"What else could that possibly mean?"

"Really? I don't understand 90 percent of what comes out of your mouth and that's not just limited to science talk." Jack said as Nathan came back to the kitchen and leaned on the door frame as if he knew damned well how that move made his stomach do flips. "So you're saying that if I had jumped off the cabin porch at that moment and told you I was a switch hitter, you would have turned our little love triangle on it's side and started dating me?"

"At that time..." Nathan put his head against the door frame and thought about it. "It would have just been about sex. I lost my wife, my job, the artifact. Got Kim killed. You, however, seemed to be a constant and I laid out an offer. I mean, at that point I was I wasn't ready for another relationship, my divorce hurt a lot more than I wanted anyone to believe, but...you wouldn't have let it be just sex. Not for long. You're not that guy, you care too much. I've watched you put aside our differences and come to my side, time and time again. I never deserved it and I sure don't deserve you, but I just got a second chance at life and maybe I can be a better man this time around."

"All because this program says that it's improbable that your marriage would work?" Jack ran his hands over his face and scrubbed away the emotions that were telling him to go over and take him, take him and everything that was being offered because even if it didn't work out it was still worth it. "Nathan, you said yourself that you didn't lose time, you just blinked out and came right back! Two weeks ago you were ready to get married. You came right back ready to do that and now, because of a movie, you're going to abandon that and just grab the next best thing?! Me?"

"Jack..."

"No! You've been fucking with me since day one and this is not okay. You can't tell me you've had some revelation because the math doesn't work out in your favor. Hell, it's a movie. Allison probably doesn't even feel that way and she's going to come home and see you on the couch with your daughter and..."

"The program didn't make that up. It may have expanded upon the data and crafted something from it, but the observations were genuine. The analysis was thorough. The science is pure."

"You have too much faith in these projects, in computers, to tell you that they know better than fallible human reasoning. Love doesn't make sense, it happens against all odds. That's not computable!" Jack said.

"That's not really a word."

"I'm not a genius, but I know that there are many alternative paths we can take. I've seen that. We can change the future with just one ill placed comment or action. I saw that back in 1947, I saw that when I came back here! So, for all the data and analysis and shit you want to focus on, there is a 50/50 chance that a real human may not be aware or act on it. I want to shoot Fargo right now, but will I? NO. Why? Because I can think a lot of things without following through with them."

"Do you know who created this program?"

"You! You made sure to tell me that a few times. Ass." Jack said and looked over at him, wondering if that was a admission of something. No...Nathan had been just as surprised by the outcomes of this. He went into this thinking it would secure his bid for Allison and instead it helped him let go. Sure, if he let a simulation run it's course unchecked it could have shown him different results but there was no mistaking the impact this movie had on him.

"I also told you that my work was confiscated by the DoD. It was turned over to GD and in turn used to build this. Kind of like how S.A.R.A.H. was built over B.R.A.D."

"So Fargo took your evil hostage taking program and made a nice house to raise a family in?" Jack asked, it sounded worse spoken than it did in his head. Nathan seemed to take it well, thoughtfully mulling over his words. They did have a weird relationship, didn't they?

"I initially pointed the finger at Fargo..."

"Probability would be in your favor on that one."

"However there was a point when I was talking with Henry in the program where he really showered the compliments on Fargo pretty heavily and one thing our boy does not have is the confidence to brag on his abilities." Nathan said and Jack's eyes drifted to his, the intrigue of a mystery culprit enough to get his cackles down. "Now who do we know who does think the world of Douglas?"

"S.A.R.A.H." Jack said and had to sigh. And if anyone knew his house and her love for romance and eavesdropping, it was him. It made sense. She had been the only one to see how hard he took Stark's death and had commented on his good mood when he worked with him. She helped him take care of the Stark estate. She listened to him rant to himself over the frustrating scientist. Shit.

"There was a conversation that Henry and I had while we were under lock-down in the bunker that nobody else but he and I were privy to." Nathan said. "Except B.R.A.D"

"Well, I'll talk with her about it tonight." Jack said and pushed himself off the counter.

"You're going home." Nathan said, not a question but a statement. He didn't blame him, this was all bad timing. The same old story.

"Nathan, nobody is so well adjusted that they came come back from the dead, find out everyone moved on, and then watch a movie and figure out what they need to do with their life. I don't care how fast your mind works or how much you believe in your work." Jack said and rubbed his eyes again. He needed to get out of here and think. "You're able to comprehend unraveling space-time, I am pretty sure you can unwrap and change a diaper by yourself."

Nathan watched him walk by, not moving from his place in the doorway as he wanted to force him to brush by him. He didn't want to get out of his way because that would mean he was OK with him leaving. As Jack walked by him he softly said, "I'll be seeing you around, Jack."

Jack froze, mid-step as he passed Nathan. He looked at him, the other man turning to look at him over his shoulder with the most sincere look on his face. A look that expected him to vanish before his eyes this time. He felt himself pulled back to that moment a year ago, those stunning eye shining at him from behind the glass of the time chamber, those words having haunted him ever since. "Damn you."

Nathan opened his mouth to apologize for that dirty move, but he needed to make sure Jack knew this wasn't just some feeling stirred up by a movie. His last words were of him, his last sight was unblinking so he could seer the image of Jack in his eyes forever. He felt a hand on his arm, roughly pulling him from the doorway and into the hall where he was pushed against the wall. He didn't fight it, he expected a fist to come crashing into his face but instead he found himself assaulted by a kiss.

"You're the bane of my existence, you know that?" Jack said after putting the mixture of emotions he was feeling in to that kiss. Angry, frustration, fear all pouring into the act as he had Nathan pinned against the wall and willingly submitting to whatever reaction he would have to this declaration of his. "I've never been able to figure you out or figure out if I was jealous of your or Allison. God damn you Nathan Stark."

Nathan felt his collar tighten as Jack's hands clenched his shirt and pushed him harder into the wall, then Jack's lips were on him again and this time they were less angry and more needy. He put a hand on Jack's hip, pulling him closer as he parted his lips and let him kiss him deeper, inviting him to take whatever he needed right now and just stay. Jack's hands released his shirt and ran up his chest, neck, face and finally fingers wove into his hair. He finally felt alive again and wrapped his arm around Jack's waist, pulling him into him, and let his other hand run up his chest to his face so he could pull his face back to him if he dared pull away.

Jack knew this was a bad idea. He had seen Nathan quickly retreat back behind the safety of his masterfully crafted facade before. The weakness was only a crack in the defensive walls, a peak inside while he was struggling. It had been like that with Callister and he mourned the loss of that connection with Nathan as much as he mourned the loss of that kid. The reminder, however, of how quickly Nathan had vanished before his eyes in the time chamber had made him realize that the risk was worth it.

If time could have been frozen in this moment, Nathan couldn't say he would complain. Jack always surprised him and this was certainly one of those times. In his fantasies he never expected Jack to be the one taking control, never expecting himself to just want to melt into it. He felt the power of Jack Carter right there in his ex-wife's hallway, the power of a US Marshall who could take down a man larger than him with a surprisingly athletic body and a different comprehension of physics. More importantly he felt the power of a man who wanted to love so deeply that he left him in awe; awe of something so incredible that he had only felt this feeling once before when he looked at the artifact. Despite being married and almost remarried, he had never experienced this level of passion. Despite looking at his own daughter, a miracle of life, he still felt disconnected from life itself. It was this mere glimpse of something that told him he hadn't even begun to live his life and he wanted to experience life with the same passion that Jack Carter did.

Jack eased up a little, his need to take out his frustration ebbed and his desire to make out increased. He had Nathan pinned against a wall and he was going to take advantage of that for as long as the man would allow him. There was so much he had dreamed about doing, touching, kissing that before he knew it his hands had untangled from the man's hair and were stroking his face and beard and caressing his jaw. His lips left the kiss to follow in the wake of his fingers, kissing his cheek and jawline, blowing hot air over his face as he kissed his way to the point of his chin. His hands fell to his shoulders, meeting at his collar to slowly unbutton his shirt.

Nathan felt his knees go weak as Jack kissed him. He could breathe now that he wasn't kissing his lips and his chest heaved with each breath, his racing heart needing more oxygen to keep up with it's excited rhythm. Jack made it worse as he started opening buttons and his lips left his chin to start kissing his neck. Nathan felt his knees buckle a little, sinking a few inches as he lifted his chin to give Jack better access to his neck. Lips lingered on his pulsating jugular, while a hand rolled up his chest to wrap around his neck and thumb his collarbone. He was left with little choice but to wrap his arm around Jack's shoulders for support, the tender assault on his most vulnerable area leaving him doubting his body's strength.

Jack increased his pace as Nathan offered his neck to him, the excitement he was causing evident in the man's pulse rate and breathing. He wanted to stop, look up and see if his eyes were rolled into the back of his head because of this, the irony of that would put a grin on his face. He doubted he would be able to stand the sight of Nathan's parted lips trying to get a sharp intake of air or his face being flushed or him being rendered incapacitated by his touch. Instead, he continued his trail down , sucking and kissing until he was at the base of his throat, hands pushing his shirt away to give him better access to this chest he admittedly wanted to flaunt. Hands roamed over all of it, nails scraping the surface right before he flattened his hands and pushed into his shoulders to stop him from going anywhere. Son of a bitch had a perfect body for a man who was legally dead for a year.

"Jack..." Nathan had to gasp as lips dropped lower and hot breath blew over his chest. "Are you trying to kill me again?"

"I'm trying...everything I regret not trying." Jack admitted, nose pushing away the shirt so he could gain access to his nipple. Then he reached out with the tip of his tongue and licked a circle around it before taking it into his mouth.

"I'm.." Nathan's words turned to a gurgle in his throat. "Not sure we should do this here..."

"You want me to stop?" Jack asked, hovering over the man's nipple and blowing over the moistened nub. He grinned, watching Nathan's chest convulse.

"No..." Nathan whined. "But yes. I don't want to start like this. I don't want it to just be about sex."

"I want my egotistical asshole scientist back and I think you do need this."

Nathan slammed his head into the wall as Jack ran a hand over the bulge in his pants. "God damn, Jack..."

Jack heard a whimper and wanted more than anything right now to remind Nathan what it felt like to be with someone. "I mean, I'm not a doctor..."

"Never stopped you from being right." Nathan managed to say and thumped his head on the wall again. Hating himself for what he was going to say. "But I don't want to start like this."

"You want dinner and a movie?' Jack asked. "Cafe Diem take out and Casablanca sound good to you?"

Nathan rolled his eyes. Yeah, maybe it was an unorthodox date, but in hindsight that was exactly what this evening was. "Point taken."

Jack got control of his arousal and stood up straight so he could look in Nathan's eyes. It took nothing to get him started, less than five minutes to try to get in the guys pants. That kiss he shared with Allison, wasn't like this. "So we definitely have a thing."

Nathan had to clear his throat as Jack stared into his eyes. Gorgeous blue eyes dancing with mischief and arousal. "Yeah, we do."

"So..." Jack took a deep breath and tried to calm himself down further. Looking at his flushed face was not helping him keep his hands to himself as he was pulling Nathan's shirt back over his chest. "How do you want to start this if not naked?"

Nathan found himself laughing, Jack's ill-timed jokes never ceased to put him at ease. He couldn't believe he lost focus of how good it felt to be around him because he was too busy focusing on what he wanted to keep him away from. "For starters, not naked in my ex-wife's house."

"Want to go to mine?" Jack asked.

"So we can act like teenagers while we babysit my daughter all weekend?"

"That's how teenagers babysit." Jack said with a laugh. "That's why my house babysits the teenagers."

Nathan put his head against the wall. Doing this while Jenna slept...

"And parents do have sex while their kids are sleeping in the next room too." Jack whispered seeing the flicker of guilt on his face. "You're her father, not her babysitter."

"I want to..."

"Yeah you do." Jack said and pressed himself against Nathan and watched the man close his eyes and groan. "You want to talk, we talked. We'll talk some more later because you never shut up no matter how many times I ask you to. So come home with me. My kids is in college and my deputy is on duty because I'm babysitting your kid this weekend. Kevin will be thrilled to stay at Dre's and play video games all weekend. S.A.R.A.H can help watch Jenna because she was a naughty house using this device to manipulate us for her own needs. I...want to keep you occupied all weekend."

"You're sure this won't ruin us?"

"If two years of insulting each other and fighting over the same woman hasn't ruined us, I think we're good." Jack kissed his cheek. "I'm done watching time go by."

"I'll shower." Nathan relented. "If you want to call Ally and pack up Jenna's things?"

"You want me to make the excuses?" Jack laughed. "Really?"

"She finds you endearing and your excuses are dumb enough to sound like truth."

"Thanks asshole."

"You said you wanted me back."

"Yeah, I did." Jack said and ran a hand down his chest. He heard the sharp intake of air as Nathan reacted to his touch and he knew right then and there that Allison wasn't what either of them needed. Jack couldn't imagine being in her position and being able to keep Nathan at arm's length when he came back. He'd be inclined to hold him and never let him go, his new life be damned. That could be figured out later, it wasn't his fault he sacrificed himself...it wasn't his fault it took so long to bring him back. Now it was his turn and he wasn't going to let the guy stay by himself all weekend because neither of them wanted to accidentally film a porno by NannyCam because they wouldn't keep their hands to themselves.

Nathan reached up and touched Jack's face, running his fingers from his temple down to his jaw. The feeling reassured him that he was real, the look in Jack's eyes told him this was real.

"Feel free to sing in the shower." Jack said with a warm smile.

"Liked that, did you?"

"I had no idea you could sing or play the piano." Jack snorted. "Good thing I didn't, because if you sang like that in church I probably would never come out of the confessional."

Nathan bit his lip, Jack was definitely an honest and forward man. He should have never doubted that he would throw himself into a relationship with the same reckless abandon he did when danger presented itself. It was how he lived.

"What was that song you were playing though? I thought I recognized it but I still can't place it."

"A Henry Deacon original." Nathan confessed. "He composed it as a way to show that mathematics and music were similar. He taught me how to play."

"Maybe I need to take a look at Eureka with fresh eyes, see more than the lurking dangers and appreciate more of it."

Nathan thought that was a deep statement until Jack ground himself into his erection and made him shudder. "You don't waste time..."

"I wasted years chasing after a girl who made it pretty clear I wasn't what she wanted." Jack said and tried to laugh that off.

"Me too." He replied and kissed Jack again, kissed him softly in order to savor it. It quickly deepened into something more as he felt that something they had turn into that someone he really couldn't get enough of. His hand cupped Jack's face as he kissed him, feeling like it was a natural progression for them even though two hours ago they barely wanted to share space with one another. He pulled away and studied Jack's face, stroking his thumb over his cheekbone and feeling a warmth spread through his chest as he looked at honest and intense blue eyes starting back at him. "I'll shower and get changed so we can take this back to your place."

"Ok." Jack replied at a loss for words because Nathan was absolutely one of the most gorgeous men he had ever laid eyes on and he somehow looked even better, right now, as he looked down at him with adoring eyes. "Quick question."

"Mmm?"

"That shoulder holster thing.."

"Oh I definitely knew exactly what I was doing."

"Shit."

"Oh, Dr. Stark. Welcome."

Nathan glanced at the ceiling and then looked at Jack who had the same reaction to that excited girlish tone. "Hello, S.A.R.A.H. You sound excited to see me."

"I am glad that you are back." Replied the A.I.

"Glad enough to hijack a simulation program and remaster Casablanca to show me what I was missing out on?" Nathan asked and Jack shot him a warning glare to not piss off the house. "Don't worry Jack, I 'm sure she knew I would see the familiar code from B.R.A.D, Beverly's Therapy device and numerous other projects I had my hand in working on."

"S.A.R.A.H.?" Jack said with his disapproving dad voice. "What did you do?"

"I simply observed and acted as merely a preventative measure."

Jack grunted. That felt too familiar from the B.R.A.D. incident. They were going to have to have a long talk about her programming.

"The numbers were not in my favor, were they?" Nathan asked. "With Allison."

"No, and she agreed."

"Oh, you asked for her help?" Nathan asked, surprise evident in his voice. He didn't see that coming.

"I called her."

"You called her on it, is more likely the case." Jack interjected.

"I did. I simply would not stand by and allow you to be hurt again Sheriff. Andy also noticed your attitude change after Dr. Stark returned and together we discussed our options. I then confronted Dr. Blake about toying with your heart, I reminded her how quickly she got over her fiance and how pursing that route again would certainly lead to another failed marriage."

"You're delicate." Jack said and sat on the couch. This was going to make the whole conversation about him getting into Nathan's pants this weekend real awkward.

"She agreed with me." S.A.R.A.H. chirped happily and was delighted when both men looked at the ceiling shocked. "I suggested that perhaps she should consider that she is not interested in either of you as a potential mate. However I did show her the evidence that you are well suited to each other and how often you flirted and were happy working together. Statistically, if she was not in Eureka when you first met, you would have been more inclined to notice and act on the chemistry you had."

"So you conspired to use the device to make us see that?" Jack asked.

"No, she used it to make me see it." Nathan explained. "Since I was the one who didn't see that the world moved on without me and only saw my daughter and the woman I was supposed to marry five minutes after my demise. I was the one blinded by jealousy and a myopic focus on a family I couldn't seem to have."

"Dr. Deacon concurred."

"Just Henry?" Jack asked, knowing he was repairing things with Grace and the romance of setting up his best friend to take advantage of his crush's reappearance in Eureka would be a delightful bonding moment. Probably while he hummed that damned song Nathan had played. He couldn't believe he never noticed that reoccurring tune before.

"Well no." S.A.R.A.H.'s hesitation made both men take notice. "Dr. Monroe had the technology I needed for the headsets to make the experience truly interactive with shared memories..."

"God dammit Stark!" Jack threw up his hands. "I knew you were lying when you told me it was just some visual storytelling device!"

"I was not." Nathan shot back. "The schematics for the prototype didn't have any of that in there, it wasn't until I was immersed in the program that I suspected that it all was more than just one database the program was allowed to use."

"You didn't want to tell me at any point that the thing had some kind of mind control function?"

"Why ? So you could freak out because of science? No. I didn't have all the answers and telling you would have lead S.A.R.A.H. to perform evasive maneuvers to avoid me detecting her hand in all this" Nathan snorted. "Plus, I didn't want to be alone in there."

Jack took a sharp breath of air as Nathan's voice softened as he admitted he didn't want to be left alone in some virtual reality void. "So Jenna had the real headset and we had the Global Dynamic Duo adaption?"

"Yes." S.A.R.A.H. replied proudly. "Dr. Monroe has developed a device that allows shared memories so she and Dr. Deacon can connect better since he does not have 'other Henry's' memories. Dr. Fargo did most of the work as the device which is similar to a virtual reality role playing game he created."

Nathan ignored the bragging on Fargo for the more relevant information. "So you tapped into memories?"

"Yes."

"Bad house!" Jack snapped. "Bad house!"

"There was an photo of Jack, from my wedding that didn't happen, on the wall behind the bar. He was wearing a suit, a gray and blue tie, standing by his Jeep. " Nathan said and Jack looked at him curiously, his eyes narrowing as he realized that that didn't happen in this timeline.

"That didn't happen, at least not in this timeline that we set back on course." Jack said, his mind doing it's own loops to figure out how that was possible.

"I, however, have a very vivid memory of it. Full color. I could see it wasn't manipulated from the look on his face in the photo. It couldn't have been his memory, he wouldn't have been able to see himself like that. So where was that detail from?"

S.A.R.A.H. paused while she reviewed the data. "It was your memory, Dr. Stark."

"That's impossible." Jack said. "We never made it to his wedding, at least not the time loop that stuck."

"It still happened." Nathan said.

"But only Weinbrenner and I remember the failed loops."

"The memories and reality were reset, they went somewhere." Nathan said thoughtfully. "Erased from space time, like I was. It was a particle of a memory that I must have brought back with me."

"What does that mean?"

Nathan looked at him thoughtfully. "That next time you wear that suit and tie I'm going to make sure you are happy and not looking at me like I kicked a puppy."

Jack let that go, it was another one of those 'I swung a lot of things that would surprise you' statements that he cared not to dwell on or it would make his head hurt. He instead addressed S.A.R.A.H. "So you, Andy, Allison, Grace and Henry all collaborated to make sure we had a weekend together? Wow, the last two weeks must have been hell around here if we made you all come together so quickly to fix this."

"Dr. Fargo helped as well." S.A.R.A.H. Chirped proudly.

"He gave you access to Beverly's files on us." Nathan said. It all made sense. "So where is Allison then?"

"Visiting her Mother."

"And I suspect Jo was totally innocent." Jack said and the lights dimmed a little. "You two haven't exactly been quiet about how you don't appreciate some of Allison's actions."

Nathan licked his lips, "How much of what you threw at me was influenced by your emotional attachment to Jack?"

"Dr. Stark, I have enough respect for you to not try to manipulate you. That was also reinforced by Dr. Deacon who said that you would only be swayed by pure empirical data generated by a trusted system. My analysis was verified using the data from Dr. Barlow's records. What you experienced was backed with statistical and psychological data. It is also the program you wrote. You are clear to have the data, if you would like to see it?"

Jack reached over and grabbed Nathan's hand and squeezed it. "How about you read that later? Let's put Jenna to bed in the guest room and pick up where we left off."

"Jack, I realized in my last moments that I wasn't going to marry Ally." Nathan said and then clarified, "When it was all going to end, I wasn't thinking of her. I was looking at you and regretting a lot of things. I don't need to see the reports."

"Yeah, you're dying to look at them but I appreciate what you're going for." Jack said with a grin and Nathan walked over and kissed him, making him forget what they were talking about. "Come on, let's put the kid to bed and make out on the couch before she wakes up in an hour then I'll feed and change diapers and you can look at all those computer reports from the simulation."

Nathan kissed him. "I like that your already expecting me to work..."

"In more ways than one." Jack said and broke off the kiss before he got too involved. "Get comfortable, I'll be right back."

Two Years Later...

Nathan was beyond pleased with how good Jack looked in that gray and blue tie as it hung around his neck. It wasn't even in place yet and it set off his eyes just perfectly, making them look a brighter blue than he thought possible. He slapped him on the arm to make him stand up straight instead of slouching with his hands in his pockets, and then took the two ends of the silk tie in his own hands to tie it properly.

"I can tie my own tie."

"You could." Nathan said and continued to focus on what he was doing, his hands delicately holding the silk in preparation to loop it into a perfect knot. He played with it first, adjusting the length evenly and expertly, Jack rolling his eyes as if they both weren't aware of how much he liked being fussed over.

"It's a little odd that you insist I wear this particular tie at our wedding when it was what you insisted I wear at your wedding to Allison."

"I planned both weddings. What makes you think I didn't know exactly what I wanted to look at when I laid eyes on you?"

Jack cocked his head and got slapped again for being in the wrong position for Nathan to do his work. Controlling asshole, he mused with a grin. "That's a little fucked up."

"You were a perfectly decorated fixture the first time around." Nathan smirked. "This time, I'm looking forward to undressing you more than putting you in something pretty. Maybe putting something pretty good in you..."

Jack choked and not because he slipped the knot of the tie too tight. Nathan knew exactly how snug he would tolerate it and he was already enjoying rolling his fingers down his chest to make sure he liked how it laid.

"Pretty as a picture." Nathan grinned and backed away to admire to view. "That works for me."

"You are the demanding bride, so I sure as hell hope it does." Jack said and got an eye roll for that, but no comeback because Nathan knew he had been horrible during the whole planning process. At least Jo seemed to agree with him on most of the wedding planning ideas, otherwise his Best Woman would have roughed up his fiance in the process. Instead they joined forces and made him endure wedding planning hell for the last three months. He was beyond glad this day was here. "So why don't you get the hell out of here and terrorize the staff and not jinx us?"

Nathan bit his lip, leaving Jack alone risked him having some reason to leave the site in order to deal with work business. Jack was, however, clearly at his limitation for how much of his controlling tendencies he wanted to deal with. "I'll see you at the alter."

Jack was glad he was going to put some of his nervous energy into something that wasn't him. He knew why he was nervous, it hadn't worked out well the last time and things never worked out well in Eureka, but he was driving him crazy. Completely sleepless last night, terrified Jenna would take off running after Lo Jack again instead of throwing Smart Flowers, pissed he wasn't allowed to use the weather guy to control the weather for the day and furious at himself for choosing to abstain from sex until the honeymoon. Jack loved him, but if they didn't get married soon, he was sending him back into the space time void.

Jack went over to the suit jacket handing up and bent over to pick up something he had stowed away in his bag. He grinned to himself. He was pretty exited that he could surprise Nathan by wearing his old shoulder holster under his suit under the guise of 'work purposes' when it was undoubtedly for surprise for his new husband. That was something that made the man come completely undone the last time they went to some official ass-kissing party in D.C. and he hoped for more of the same when Nathan felt the straps of leather hiding under his suit. Jack actually had an evil grin when he put the damned thing on, he was going to enjoy watching Nathan's eyes water with lust.

"What the hell is that?"

Jack turned around and looked at his daughter and finished putting on the holster. "I'm the Sheriff and this is Eureka. It's good sense, is what it is."

"You're trying to kill Nathan aren't you?" Zoe shook her head and looked at her Dad in his suit. She was glad Nathan gave up on wearing tuxedos to their not-so-casual 'small' wedding that the entire town was attending. Her Dad in a suit kept him content, putting him in a tux would have been not stop whining. He looked good, he looked happy and relaxed.

"He can't control everything." Jack laughed. He was beyond feeling awkward about talking about his relationship with Nathan as the jackass had no qualms what-so-ever about discussing his sex life with anyone, Zoe included. She handled it better than Fargo, thankfully. "What's that nursery rhyme about weddings? Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue?"

"What does 'weird leather kink' fall under?" Zoe asked. "Something old?"

"I guess. I was going for blue because of the whole cop thing, but that works."

Zoe walked over as he put on his jacket and helped him smooth the tailored coat over his holster. She narrowed her eyes at him when she realized it fit perfectly over the harness. "You took that with you to the fitting."

"I did!" Jack said and cackled. "Nathan has been flipping out over me losing weight because the jacket wasn't fitting perfectly. The scale says otherwise. I've been allowed, no ordered, to have hamburgers all week as well as a consultation with a dietary doctor at GD who assured him I was perfectly healthy and not at all dying or harboring some tapeworm. It's been so quiet because the town is terrified of having something go wrong on Director Stark's wedding week that I just work out at work with Andy's guidance. It's frustrating the hell out of him. I'm the fittest I have ever been and he's trying to force feed me junk food to put the weight back on."

"I'm glad you're happy Dad." She said and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"Let's just see if I survive this wedding." Jack smiled and put a kiss on his daughter's forehead. "I doubt I'm the only one hiding a surprise."

"You two deserve each other." She said and smiled at him turned around to get the ring. She knew Nathan was planning to sing, something he expected would shock all of Eureka into silence. That was one of the many things they had in store for surprising one another through out the day in their uniquely adorable competitive way. They were good to each other and for each other, while still being able to verbally spar with each other over work. It restored her faith in marriage and love, her own childhood making her a little jaded towards all of it. She was so very happy for him. "Well I'm under strict orders to make sure you arrive on time, so are you ready?"

"Can we just be a little late?"

"Dad." She said and he laughed.

"Joking." He held up his watch and said, "I think he set this to shock me if I don't get within a twenty meter range in time."

"Actually he did that to Fargo's watch." She said as Fargo had been outside crying when she arrived and begged her to make her Dad adhere to the schedule. Jo was barking orders, Nathan was striding around looming over everyone, Allison was rolling her eyes as she gave treats to Lo Jack to ensure he kept Jenna on track for optimum Smart Flower distribution, and it all felt like home. "Sorry I didn't get here sooner, I had..."

"I know you had exams." Jack said and went over and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "I'm so proud of you and I'm sorry your new Step-Dad had to schedule this wedding on an inconvenient weekend."

"That's one of his surprises." She said and kissed him back. "I took my exams early so I could start my internship at GD next week."

"You're coming home!?" Jack said and realized he sounded way too excited and honestly didn't care.

"Yeah. I hope that doesn't interfere with..."

"No! Oh my God Zoe, that's awesome!" Jack said and realized it probably took a lot of work on Nathan's part to get her back to Eureka. Budget cuts and restructuring had really taken it's toll on the medical side of GD, but he was getting things back on track now that he was once again head of the place. Fargo was thrilled to take over as head of Artificial Intelligence Division and make commercial and military products based on all his work, with Nathan's guidance. "What are you working on? Are you working with Allison?"

"Yeah, but we can talk about that later. My internship hinges on my getting you to your wedding on time."

"He did not threaten you..." Jack knew better than to say that and she shrugged. Zoe wasn't one to be intimidated by Nathan Stark and she probably countered with an equally awful threat. Nobody in the Carter family took his shit, that was for sure. "What an asshole."

"You love him and you're going to marry him, so let's get you to your wedding so the threat level can go back to average around here." She said and kissed his cheek. "I'm really proud of you Dad."

"Thanks Zoe, that means a lot." He smiled, feeling that everything was falling into place in his life and the universe was righting itself. That thought made him walk towards the door, "Average sounds pretty damned good, actually."

"Just another day in Eureka, huh?" She asked and he was absolutely radiant, smiling as he thought about how things would settle down and Nathan would official be his. Jo was gushing about it all the way from the airport and she could see why.

"God I hope not. I don't need another wedding day time loop episode, no matter how happy I am I get to marry Nathan this time." Jack scoffed. "I'll settle with it being a great memory and the start of a new chapter. He's a monster, absolute monster when it comes to wedding planning. Jo and Zane better take a few years to get hitched and you young lady...decades. I'm not ready for that."

"Then let me walk you down the aisle, huh?" She asked and his eyes lit up.

"Oh, that's not the plan. That's definitely not the plan!" Jack gasped and saw her smile. "That's my girl!"

"Yeah, nobody bosses around a Carter." She said with a smirk. Take that Director Stark. "Shall we?"

He took her arm and pulled her close, happy that he wasn't just watching this world carry on without him anymore as time went by, but was instead the center of his own story. A great story made possible in Eureka.

Author Note: That's the conclusion of this story. Surprise! It got longer than expected! Shoulder holsters- My Kink can be your Kink too!

The line about Nathan's pants is because of an the alternative scene for "Many Happy Returns". Nathan gets up and his pants are wide open and I'm..unable to let that go. It's a photoset on my Tumblr if interested at BleedingCoffee42 post/185036402991

Although Henry being cast as Sam was obviously a good fit, it was also influenced by the Eureka: The Musical promo commercial which can be viewed by Googling 'Sci Fi Channel Eureka Neighborhood'