“Mind and Heart; Body and Soul”

by Kazroo

Part 7

"Without Further Interruptions…"

That evening, John came walking out of Jane's bedroom and found Jane and Nicky in the livingroom.

"So you'll be…"

"At Nina's, I told you."

"All night?"

"Yes, all night, unless you need a chaperone."

"No."

"I could keep an eye on the two of you."

"Goodnight, Nicky."

"No, I think I'll stay around, sit between you, make sure you don't get up to anything. After all, you never made it home last night…"

"Goodnight Nicky," Jane said again, gently pushing her out and closing the door before Nicky thought of something else to say to keep her around.

Jane turned the lock, and turned to playfully run at John.

"Now we're alone," Jane explained, planting a kiss on John's lips.

He wrapped his arms around Jane, lifted her from the floor, and turned toward the bedroom. Jane smiled and exhaled, feeling all the pent up energy from the past week. Once Jane's feet were back on the ground, John began caressing her face and kissing her. John again fumbled with the buttons on Jane's shirt. She helped him this time, and once enough buttons were undone, she pulled the shirt off over her head.

The strap tee shirt now on the surface exposed Jane's arms and shoulders. John ran his hands up her arms and across her shoulders. The tips of his fingers stroked the back of Jane's neck, and played with her hair. Jane was running her hands up John's back, lifting his shirt as she went. As she reached his shoulders, she pulled the shirt over his head, and ran it out his arms until it fell away.

Jane leaned back and clasped John's hands. She rolled her hands around his, and locking a grip on his wrists, began pulling him, and walking backwards. They missed the doorway, and ended up against the wall outside Jane's bedroom. John pressed tight to her, and they began to kiss again. Their eyes were wide, and their hearts were pounding.

They rolled around the corner into Jane's bedroom, and she slowly backed him to the bed, where it caught the backs of John's knees, knocking him to the mattress with Jane falling on top. Using her arms, Jane steadied herself, and brought her knees up to straddle John's hips. Jane kissed John, and ran her fingers through his hair. John pulled Jane's upper body tight against his, and he swung his knees up, creating the momentum he needed to get to his feet holding Jane. As they reached vertical, Jane hurriedly exclaimed, "John what are you doing?"

John smiled mischievously, spun around, and plunked Jane and himself back onto the bed with their heads at the foot end. As they kissed and touched, they continued to remove each other's clothing.

Now wrapped only in sheets, they were done with the playing, and fully lost in the loving. The week's worth of "almosts" had grown into a fiery passion. John was far more confident and adventurous this time. He remembered every inch of Jane's body, and he showed her he knew what she liked and wanted.

For the first time, Jane knew she had found her equal in both passion and physical stamina. All John knew was that he had Jane, and nothing made him happier than when he was with her. They pushed each other to their limits and beyond, and kept coming back for more. Jane was learning that gentle and wild were not mutually exclusive, and it was an education she wouldn't trade for anything.

In their zeal to satisfy each other, John and Jane rolled right off the bed, and landed hard on the floor. For a moment, they were stunned into stopping. They found each other's eyes. Jane smiled and laughed. John saw she was OK, and smiled back. The floor was no deterrent. They continued their passionate interlude until both were spent. They just lay in each other's arm, and drifted into a blissful sleep.

It was so easy to forget there was an outside world when they were together. An entire universe of two; it felt perfect.

As the morning sun began to filter into Jane's bedroom, John was already awake, watching Jane continue to sleep. He watched lovingly as she began to stir, and turned toward him. As Jane's eyes slowly came into focus, they blinked shut again as the sun glinted off John's golden locks. She leaned against John's chest, and then again opened her eyes.

"Morning," Jane mumbled.

"Did you sleep well?" John asked.

"Yeah, but this floor wasn't meant for sleeping. My back won't soon let me forget."

Jane rolled onto her stomach, and put a hand on the small of her back.

"Ow, umm."

John put his hand on Jane's on her back. He kissed her along the spine just above their hands.

"Oh, that feels so good."

John rolled over Jane, at first putting his hands on Jane's shoulders. He lifted her hair, and kissed her neck.

"You have healing powers, I swear," Jane remarked, as her back pain was fading, and feeling distant.

It was several more hours before they left Jane's bedroom floor, and by then, Jane was feeling quite limber.

A rhythmic dull thud was pounding on Jane's apartment door.

"Come on Jane, it's almost noon," Nicky's muffled voice said in the hall, her head continuing to pound the door.

Jane unlocked the door, and the seated Nicky tumbled into the room.

"Well, it's about time - I said I'd be away all night - not the whole next day."

Nicky picked herself up off the floor.

"Nicky, you have a key."

"Like I wanted to walk in on anything… Hi, John."

"Good morning, Nicky."

Kathleen pushed her way past everyone on her way into Richard's office. She threw a folded tabloid paper onto his desk.

"You don't waste any time, do you?"

Richard looked up from his desk.

"I'm afraid I have no idea what you mean."

"You didn't think you'd just slip this pile of slander into public domain without someone clueing me in first? I am in publishing, after all."

Richard picked up the paper Kathleen had tossed on his desk, and he stood and circled around the edge of his desk. As the paper unfurled, the headline was clearly visible - "Heiress and Publishing Magnate Kathleen Clayton Sets Up 'Jungle of Love' for Wild-Child Nephew and City Cop".

"Looks like they got you're bad side, Kathleen."

"You rat. You don't care who you hurt as long as you come out on top. I can't believe we come from the same parents."

"John needs a firm hand - I can provide that. All you and Jane Porter do is indulge his fantasy that he doesn't need to change. When he gets in trouble the next time, you'll see I'm right."

"You just don't get it. Ruining me, ruining Jane, it will just make John more resistant."

"I can make him the man he was meant to be."

"I wouldn't trust you to train a dog, let alone mold a human life. The story was killed, by the way. Don't try this again."

Kathleen left Richard's office, and Richard got on the phone.

"Time for plan B. You know what to do."

Richard's mind envisioned who John might have become had he found him earlier…

"There he is," Richard told the councilman as John approached across the room full of high-class cigar smokers in the private club. John was wearing the perfect navy dress slacks, and the superbly tailored, crested jacket, also navy, that matched the one Richard had on. His hair was neatly pulled back, almost hiding the length of it. His $400 pointy-toed shoes had been freshly shined, and they tapped rhythmically as he walked. His demeanor was just as polished, with perfect posture and not allowing a smile that wasn't planned to appear on his lips.

"John, I'd like you to meet Councilman Blanchard, he's going keep Kathleen quite busy with red tape while our plans go ahead."

"Councilman," John said, bowing his head in greeting.

"Uncle, may I have a word, in private?"

"Of course, you will excuse me councilman, John has been working on something for me of the utmost importance."

John and Richard found a small unoccupied corner in which to talk.

"What have you found?"

"Kathleen has a few skeletons she may have forgotten about."

John passed a folded selection of papers from his inner coat pocket to Richard. They both cracked an evil smile.

"Very good, I've trained you well."

John turned his head to have a look around the room, and his pulled back hair stuck out behind him, catching Richard's eye.

"Aren't you ever going to cut that," Richard commented, giving John's blond tail a little tug.

"Hey, that's non-negotiable. I gotta stay a little wild or I'll just be another suit. May I go? I've got people to meet."

"Anyone important?"

"Several, and each one more willing than the last."

"Go sow your oats - just don't plant any seeds. We wouldn't want the extra branches on the family tree."

John took off, and was soon dodging the midtown traffic in his foreign convertible. He had freed his hair and it was flying wildly. The blazer was tossed in the back. Even a moment of having to lay off the gas had him laying on the horn as he continued to speed along. Ahead of him, he saw the space in the intersection quickly shrinking, but he hit the gas even harder, intending to beat them all. He had almost made it too, but a quick sideswipe knocked him out of the race. The car he hit was a police car in a pursuit. One of the detectives in the car was quick to get out.

"What did you think you were doing?" Confronted angry detective Jane Porter, slamming her car door, and heading toward John's driver side. "You could have gotten us all killed!"

John slid out of his car, and smiled broadly at her, shaking his hair until it all fell perfectly around his face. He kept looking and smiling, sure she'd melt from his silent charm.

"You have nothing to say? Honestly, I should cuff you and lock you up on the spot."

"Ooh yeah, your place or mine?"

Jane's face was full of indignant rage. She wanted to swat some manners into that arrogant, sports car driving, self-important twit, and she nearly did too. Sam came around the car and held Jane back.

"It's not worth it, he'd be out in a blink. You know who he is?"

"Yeah, he's the guy who let a major criminal get away from us." Jane yelled right in John's face. She turned toward Sam and concluded with, "He's halfway across town by now."

"Jane, he's a Clayton. You don't keep them in jail."

"At least one of you know your place. It's your loss red, we could have done some real umm hmm umm," John hummed, looking Jane up and down, almost licking his lips.

"Ugh, those are images I could do without. Wash my mind out with soap, and his mouth while you're at it."

John smiled at her resistance to the thought of them together.

"I'm sure I'll see you again."

John tossed his hair about and leered at Jane.

Richard's fantasy faded back to reality.

"That's my boy," Richard smiled. "No loyalty to Jane or Kathleen, no problems; that's the life I, er, you should have had. If only I could have found you sooner."

Richard now looked pensive. That little Freudian slip was more telling than any intended words or thoughts could have been. Richard wanted for John that which had been denied him as a young man. The freedom that wealth brings, and any other perks that could have been John's had Richard found him as a young boy instead of fully-grown. A mind to mold; a life to control; attitudes to instill. To Richard, there was no better way to ensure the Greystoke legacy.

There was a knock at Jane's door. Jane opened it to find Kathleen waiting.

"This is a surprise. Come in."

"Is John here?"

"I'm here," John answered, approaching them.

"I just thought I should warn you, Richard made his next move. I managed to stop him, but…"

"But, it will get worse."

"I'm afraid so. I don't know what he'll try next. Be extra careful. I'm sure he has spies all over the place."

"What did he do?" John asked.

"He tried to put an article in the paper making all of us look bad. Since I was able to stop him, he'll up the stakes.

Jane picked up her phone.

"Who are you calling?" Kathleen inquired.

"I've got a few contacts myself. I'll see if I can ferret out his plans…Hi, Sam, I need you to look into Richard Clayton's recent activity. He's coming for us, and I'd like to know which way he's coming - do we still have that favor owed to us? Good - it's time to cash in."

Jane hung up the phone. The three of them stood there in a triangle formation. The worry hanging in the air. John leaned his head against Jane's shoulder, and she leaned her head against his, closed her eyes, and let out a deep breath between her clenched teeth.

Richard was taking the game to the next level. Would they be ready?