"I really don't like her."

Jack paused in the middle of the report he was writing – or rather, attempting to write – and spared Ianto a withering look.

"So you've said. Lots of times. In fact, I was starting to get worried. A whole half hour had gone by since you said it last."

Ianto dropped into the chair opposite Jack.

"Very funny. I know I've been a little repetitive. It's just that I really don't..."

"Like her," Jack cut in wearily. "I get it. But you're the one who kept insisting that I had to hire more people, and she's got the sort of tech skills we need!"

Ianto sighed and scrubbed his hands over his face.

"I know, I know. And I shouldn't be questioning your decisions, either."

Jack lay his pen down, abandoning the report that he was supposed to be finishing but hadn't especially wanted to write, anyway.

"I don't mind you questioning my decisions, Ianto, but I'd prefer it if you gave me a reason other than 'I don't like her'. Why don't you like her?"

A single eyebrow rose in response to Jack's prompting.

"You mean, aside from the obvious?"

Jack merely waited for an answer, and Ianto sighed again. Turning in his chair, he looked out into the main body of the Hub and soon found the object of his ire. Suzie Costello, newest Torchwood employee and recruited by Jack almost right off the street. She was beautiful and brilliant, but also cold, arrogant, calculating and condescending to anyone she considered to be beneath her... which meant pretty much everyone in the Hub except for Jack and, curiously, Toshiko.

Ianto had disliked the woman from the moment he'd met her, but had kept it to himself out of respect to Jack. That, and he remembered vividly that he'd felt much the same way about Owen, only to have his opinion turned on its head a week late. It was three months on now from when Jack had recruited Suzie, and Ianto had yet to discover any redeeming features in the woman.

For the first time, Ianto had found himself in a position where he couldn't confide to Tosh. She had been thrilled that Jack had hired another female, and whilst not exactly best friends, the two women seemed to have developed a natural bond. Indeed, the only thing that had kept Ianto from taking matters into his own hands and ret-conning Suzie himself was that Suzie appeared to have a genuine respect for Toshiko, and was never cruel or demeaning towards her.

Owen was another matter. He and Suzie traded barbs like feuding siblings, and while Suzie could be extremely vicious towards the medic, Owen simply gave as good as he got. Far from being aggravated by her verbal attacks, Owen seemed to thrive on them.

And that left Ianto, on his own and having to suffer the daily torment of a woman who seemed to believe she was superior to him in every way, and treated him as such. It was like being back in bloody school.

He couldn't help by flinch as Suzie suddenly looked up from where she was working and met his stare. Hating himself for it, Ianto broke first and turned back to his lover. She'd gloat over him later on, he had no doubt.

"I can't explain it," he admitted finally. "I just don't trust her. Do you realise she thinks she's second in command?"

Jack frowned a little.

"Where did she get that idea? I never told her that."

Petty though it was, Ianto couldn't help the tiny surge of satisfaction at the annoyance in Jack's voice. It was the first time since Suzie had joined Torchwood that Jack had exhibited any sort of disapproval towards her. He clamped down on it quickly, though. He needed to be careful with what he said here. The last thing he wanted was to compromise his relationship with Jack by being seen to use it to turn Jack against Suzie or to risk undermining Jack's leadership of Torchwood, and not necessarily in that order. Despite not liking all of the decisions Jack was making, Ianto wanted it to be undisputable that he respected Jack's authority. It was essential not only to the smooth-running of Torchwood Three, but to Jack's self-confidence.

This had to stay clinical, for everyone's peace of mind.

"Probably from the fact that I've not been going out on fieldwork since she started. She seems to think that all I'm good for is archives, making coffee and bringing her whatever she needs. Actually, she doesn't seem to have a very high opinion of men in general, but she at least affords you and Owen some respect. I don't think I even register on her radar most of the time."

Jack sighed loudly in frustration. In his hands was a large steel paperclip which he was bending thoroughly out of shape. It had become something of a stress reliever for Jack – a poor alternative to hugging the toy dog that still sat on his desk. Apparently, despite his best efforts, Ianto had not quite managed to hide his negative emotions towards Suzie.

"What do you want me to do, Ianto? Fire her? Maybe you'd prefer it if I hired that local plod that keeps hanging around on the Plass. I doubt she's got Suzie's brilliance, but I'm sure we could find something for her to do, like maybe give us a moving target for weapons training."

Ianto frowned reprovingly.

"Uncalled for, Jack. I know how you feel about authority, but you need to remember that you're in a position of authority now, too. And aside from that, they're not all bad. Remember, cariad, they're not all conspiring to lock you away again."

The last sentence was said with tender care, but it didn't save Jack from flinching like he'd been struck. Leaving his chair, Ianto strode around to Jack and pulled the immortal into his arms. Jack gave in easily, wrapping his arms around Ianto's waist and clinging to him like a child in need of comfort.

"Easy," Ianto murmured, trying to soothe the tension from Jack's shoulders and back. "Of course I'm not asking you to do to fire her, and that last bit would be more than even I could explain to the Cardiff Constabulary." A muffled giggle made Ianto smile in relief. He drew back a little and then leaned down to kiss Jack lightly. "All I'm asking is that we watch her. She is brilliant like you say, but there's an awful lot of anger simmering under the surface."

"Because of what her father did to her," Jack murmured, earning himself a surprised look from his lover.

"You did read her file properly, then."

Jack adopted an affronted pout that never failed to amuse Ianto.

"Don't sound so surprised. I do occasionally read the stuff you give me."

Ianto chuckled and started to move away, only to find himself pulled down onto Jack's lap.

"Jack, please," he groused, acutely aware that the others could see what was going on. "My dignity..."

"Is still intact," Jack retorted. "Although, I am very tempted to unzip you and jerk you off right here and now."

Ianto tried to extricate himself from Jack's grip but couldn't manage it. Jack was simply too strong, not to mention Ianto secretly enjoyed being cuddled like this. Finally, he reluctantly settled for a verbal warning.

"Don't you dare, Jack. I am already wearing my spare trousers after your over-enthusiasm this morning, and I do not have another pair."

Jack smiled fondly.

"Calm down. I'm not going to ravish you. At least, not here and now. Can we just talk about your issues with Suzie rationally?"

Ianto stroked his fingertips tenderly down the sides of Jack's face, though he took deliberate care to avoid touching his neck. It was a minor idiosyncrasy stemming from Jack's time as a prisoner. The long years of having a too-tight collar around his neck had left that part of his body hyper-sensitive to touch, and not in a good way.

"It might not be the best conversation to have while I'm sitting on your lap."

"No? I'm perfectly comfortable."

Ianto groaned and let his head drop onto Jack's shoulder.

"So much for impartiality."

The teasing grim faded from Jack's face.

"C'mon, Ianto. Talk to me. What is it about her that you don't like?"

"I look at her," Ianto said quietly, "and I can't help thinking that she's planning something. I don't feel that she can be trusted. Even though she's not actually done anything to put any of us in danger, I can't help thinking that she's a bomb waiting to go off. I don't trust her, and neither do you. Not completely."

Jack opened his mouth to protest, but that protest was lost as Ianto kissed him lingeringly.

"Jack," Ianto murmured against his lover's mouth, "she's been here for three months now, and you haven't told her about yourself, that you can't die."

That argument brought Jack up short, and Ianto knew he'd gotten through.

"I haven't told her, have I?" Jack murmured.

"No, you haven't. So can we agree that neither one of us trusts her completely for reasons that neither of us can explain?"

"I can go along with that," Jack conceded. "But promise me we'll at least give her a chance?"

With some effort, Ianto refrained from pointing out that Suzie had already had three months. Instead, he planted a lingering kiss on Jack's lips before answering.

"I promise that I'll try harder around her and be more patient. But if she puts any of us in danger, Jack, including you..."

Jack hugged his tightly.

"I'll retcon her myself, I promise."

Ianto smiled fondly.

"There's an improvement. Not so long ago, you would have cheerfully killed anyone who put me in danger."

"What can I say?" Jack joked. "I've mellowed with age."

Ianto snorted, then laughed. It truly warmed him that Jack had come through so much and still retained a sense of humour.

"Goose," Ianto murmured.

"Honk," Jack answered with a sweet smile. With reluctance, Ianto gently disengaged from Jack's arms and slid off his lap.

"I have to get back to work, and you have that paperwork to finish for Her Majesty."

Jack's adorable baby-faced pout very nearly undid him, and Ianto almost had to run from the office to avoid being drawn back to finish what Jack had clearly hoped to start.

He wasn't the least bit surprised when Suzie cut him off on his way back to the kitchen and though her expression appeared pleasant enough on the surface, the look in her eyes chilled him. Jack didn't see it, for whatever reason, but Ianto did.

"Flaunting it a bit, aren't you?" she asked. There was a smile on her face as she spoke, but that was as far as the pleasantries went. For his part, Ianto made no attempt to play word games with her.

"I'm not flaunting anything, Suzie. Jack and I have never been anything but open about our relationship."

"How does that work, anyway? Were you shagging him before or after he hired you?"

Ianto could feel his jaw threatening to lock.

"I hardly think that's any of your business."

"C'mon, Ianto. I'm curious! How is the great Captain Jack Harkness as a lover? Tell me what I'm missing out on! Tell me what the hell it is that he sees in you."

Ianto glanced beyond Suzie and felt his stomach roll unpleasantly. Jack had followed him out and was standing within hearing distance, looking less than impressed. As much as Ianto had wanted Jack to see beyond the facade that Suzie always put on for him, this was not how he'd wanted it to happen. This was akin to slapping Jack in the face.

"I believe the word he's looking for is innovative," Jack intoned, causing Suzie to turn around sharply.

"Jack..."

"Is there any reason in particular that you're questioning Ianto about our sex life? Because if you must know, it's very healthy, very regular and very much none of your business."

Suzie never argued, to her credit.

"Sorry. You're right."

"I think you owe Ianto an apology as well," Jack said It was neither a question nor a suggestion, and Suzie seemed to comprehend that.

"Sorry, Ianto," she apologized. Though he acknowledged the apology with a polite nod of his head, he couldn't help but be sceptical of its sincerity. He felt some small relief when a glance beyond Suzie told him that Jack was similarly sceptical.

"Come with me, Suzie," Jack said in a flat tone that gave away nothing of what he was thinking. "I've got a new piece of tech that I want you to have a look at."

He led her away, sparing Ianto an apologetic glance as they went. A sigh escaped Ianto once they were out of sight. As badly as he felt that Jack's decision to hire Suzie had not worked out, he couldn't help but be relieved to know that Suzie would soon be retconned, and by tomorrow would no longer be a problem for any of them.

to be continued...