Title: Consequences of Action

Chapter: 3

~~~~~~~~~~

Chuck wrote in feverish bursts in between long pulls off the whiskey bottle at his elbow and shudders of discomfort as he worked on a very long, graphic sex scene. Now that he knew it was all real, scenes like this made him extremely uncomfortable. He didn’t want to see into other peoples sex lives. Really! He hoped they’d end soon and he could rest, but the visions showed no sign of stopping. His head was throbbing from a migraine and lack of sleep and despite hardly having eaten in two days while writing, he wasn’t nearly as sloshed as he rightly should be for the amount of alcohol he’d ingested.

He whimpered. The scenes were coming far faster than they had, overtaking his waking hours until he was having them when he was wide awake instead of when he was asleep. He’d been pretending to be sick, but somehow he had to go out tomorrow and function because Castiel was bringing in a group of people and Chuck was going to have to deal with them. He had to pretend everything was fine and he wasn’t having visions again.

With a glance at his watch to judge the time he had left, Chuck groaned. It was already six in the morning. He’d been up all night again, filling page after page in the notebook, unaware of the passage of time.

Finally, around seven-thirty, the visions dried up and Chuck sighed with relief, his headache abating. Maybe it was the alcohol kicking in. He laid his pen down on the page, gave the pages he’d finished already a quick glance, then got up. He’d better have some breakfast before the day really began.

~~~~~~~~~~

Dawn was his favorite time of day. Dean had never understood why, though Castiel had tried to explain it to him. Dawn meant a fresh new day where something could turn out better than the previous day. There was a chance. Maybe not a big one in these times, but a chance nonetheless. It seemed to Castiel that there was a renewed freshness to the crisp morning air.

He slid his clothes on and made sure Jo was covered up before leaving the truck bed. There was an old pump behind the rest stop and he filled a jug with water, then took it into the men’s side of the building for a quick sponge bath. When he was done, he refilled the jug to take it to Jo. She was going to want to wash a little before getting dressed. He thought about offering her the use of his shower so she could have some privacy for awhile when they got to the camp. She’d like that, he suspected. A nice, long hot shower with plenty of water that stayed hot.

He wondered if she’d like to spend time with him once she was settled in. Maybe they could go for walks, go swimming, watch movies…spend nights together. Castiel wanted to take her to the little beach he’d found. It was rough and the sand was overgrown with weeds, but it was a nice secluded area to spend a few hours relaxing. Besides, it was accessible only by boat. He’d never taken anyone there before, preferring to keep it private, a place that was only his. Castiel wanted to share it with Jo. He imagined her lying on a blanket or towel in a barely there bikini, smiling at him and asking him to rub lotion on her back. He’d certainly oblige her.

Dean and Risa had a tv and fancy DVD player set up in their cabin, plus a selection of movies in a wide range of genres. As long as the electricity worked, Dean wasn’t about to give it up. Cas thought it might be nice to spend an evening with Risa and Dean -- provided Jo got along with Risa. If not, then he’d pick up a tv and DVD player somewhere and have someone set it up in his cabin. Then he and Jo could watch whatever they wanted, whenever they wanted. Maybe he’d do that anyway. If she was interested. He wanted her to be comfortable, to feel free to come to his cabin and stay awhile, and if having a tv would help….

As he walked back to the truck, one of the watch team from the previous night gave him a long, speculative stare, yet turned away without saying anything except ‘morning’. If Jo thought her people didn’t know or couldn’t guess what had happened between them, then she was really deluding herself. Cas imagined the truck had been rocking pretty good there for awhile.

He radioed in and made a quick report to Dean, amused to find Dean awake and waiting. They quickly discussed Cas’s observations from the day before and made plans for Cas to bring the group in a little after lunch time. Dean wanted to have a team out to observe them and follow them in, a guard against trouble.

Castiel sat in the seat for awhile, watching the sky lighten and thinking about all the things he’d like to do with Jo. It was odd in a way. He’d never really wanted to get to know any of the other women the way he wanted to know Jo. He wanted to learn everything about her, to figure her out, and discover how to make her happy. Cas recalled Dean rambling on about love once while drunk. It was right after he’d proposed to Risa and he’d insisted that Castiel join him to celebrate.

“It was like that.” Dean had snapped his fingers. “We were arguing like we always did and then I just knew she was the one. It was the weirdest thing I’ve ever experienced and you know I’ve experienced some weird shit. Why her? I mean, she irritated the piss out of me on a daily basis, we constantly argued, but…. Cas, I love her. I know I love her. I had no idea what love was before, you know? It’s this. It’s wanting to spend my life with her, to make her happy, to think of what she wants before my own wants. It’s feeling like I’d be incomplete without her. It’s knowing that she helps make me a better man. It’s….” He’d rambled on in the same vein for nearly an hour.

Cas remembered the day Dean had mentioned well. Dean and Risa arguing to be arguing and himself lying in the sun, enjoying the heat of it on his body and ignoring Jimmy’s insistence that they were going to burn if he didn’t put on some sunscreen already. He’d felt…something familiar in the air, something he remembered from his days as an angel, yet he couldn’t fully grasp what it was until he’d seen the sudden change in Dean and Risa. They’d stopped arguing, smiled at each other, and started laughing. Castiel had looked around in vain for the Cupid, knowing he couldn’t see him, yet trying nonetheless. It had to be a Cupid. Dean and Risa actively disliked each other.

That had been his first clue that heaven wasn’t as disinterested in what was going on down here than was pretended. Castiel had suspicions as to why his brethren had pulled up and completely left the earth, taking with them every rank of angel, but as nothing changed as a whole, he kept his thoughts to himself. He could very well be wrong and no amount of dwelling upon it would bring answers.

With a sigh, he retrieved a cloth and bowl from behind the seat and took it into the bed, placing the items near her where she’d see them when she woke. Next, Cas found her clothes, folding them in a neat pile beside the bowl and water jug. Not once did she stir. She looked like she could sleep for hours yet. It wouldn’t be a problem if she did. They had plenty of time.

Leaning over, he caressed her cheek, surprised to immediately feel another pull to have her. Castiel closed his eyes and drew in a breath. Calm down, he told himself.

Easier said than done, was Jimmy’s tart and very prompt reply. She’s a hot little number. I’m all atwitter with anticipation for more. She’s a step up from a couple of those girls you’ve been seeing.

Atwitter? When did you get so randy? Nice that Jimmy felt comfortable enough to speak so freely about Jo.

Since seeing her bounce around in that tight tank top and jeans yesterday. You think she’ll dress like that all the time? It’d be nice if she did. I certainly wouldn’t mind it. Would you?

Opening his eyes, he shook his head and moved to the bag he kept near the cooler. A quick glance showed he needed to replenish everything. He and Jo had gone through his emergency last-ditch stash of birth control methods. He’d been meaning to fill it back up again for awhile now.

Doesn’t really matter if we have something or not since she’s already knocked up. Let’s get undressed, crawl in with her and wake her up, have another go. I bet she won’t mind. She didn’t mind last night.

She’s not pregnant, Jimmy. Cut it out. We’ve got a long day ahead of us. He folded the bag down, set it against the cooler, and eased past Jo.

Suit yourself, Jimmy replied and was silent.

Castiel got out of the truck bed and closed the gate back up. He approached Mya, watched her cook a moment then crouched down to help her.

~~~~~~~~~~

Dean had trouble sleeping, but it wasn’t the sort of trouble he used to have. He couldn’t sleep because he was curious about Jo -- how she was, what had happened in the time that had passed since he’d seen her last. He dozed more than slept, waking up every other hour to look at his watch until finally, he did sleep.

He woke curled against Risa, his head pillowed on her breasts. She liked to sleep on her back and he liked to sleep on his stomach, which made for an almost perfect arrangement. He’d lie there using her for a pillow, an arm about her waist, one leg between hers. It amazed him that they were both comfortable like that.

Even when they both woke in a pissy mood, Dean enjoyed waking up beside Risa every morning. He’d lie there and watch her, unable to truly fathom that she was his. The end of the world was not the time to fall in love, yet that’s exactly what he’d done in between leading the camp.

A spot of light in the dark.

He got out of bed, careful not to wake her, but when he emerged from their bathroom, Risa was awake. She’d neglected to braid her hair the night before and it was a wild tangle about her shoulders.

“It’s still early,” he told her. “Get another couple hours.”

She rolled over, gathering the covers against her and yawning. “Why are you up at this hour? It’s not even seven yet.”

Dean pulled on jeans, a t-shirt, and button down over that. “It’s gonna be a long day. Thought I’d get an early start, maybe talk to Chuck about later.”

“You mean be ready when Castiel radios in.” She arched a brow and smiled.

She knew him well. The plan was to grab some breakfast, then wait for Cas to call-in.

“You got me.” Leaning down, he kissed her. “I want to be ready.”

Raising a hand, she touched his cheek. “I’ll be down to join you in awhile.”

“No rush. Come down when you’re ready.”

He headed for the dining hall and a few cups of very strong coffee.

~~~~~~~~~~

The bed of the truck was cool, but Jo was nice and toasty in the sleeping bag. Sure, she was a little sore from the unaccustomed sexual activity, the muscles of her hips and thighs tight, breasts tender from Castiel’s ardent caresses and mouth swollen from those constant passionate kisses, but it was a good sore. Jo rolled over and stretched, pointing her toes and arching her back. All in all, she felt more alive than she had in a very long time. Alive, content, peaceful, and more relaxed than she’d felt in months.

Jo sighed. For one moment there in the middle of the night, she’d felt like they were one and not two, a sensation she’d read about, yet thought was pure fiction. She’d looked up into his eyes and known a complete connection to him. There was something special about that moment, something to be treasured. She wondered if he’d felt it too.

She turned her head on the surprisingly comfortable thin pillow. To her left, in a neat pile, were her clothes. Beside them was a bowl and a jug of water, a small cloth in the bowl. He was thoughtful, she decided. Smiling a little, she sat up and reached for the water.

While she bathed, yet another sponge bath, Jo daydreamed that Dean’s camp had running water and electricity. She missed both. After months, they seemed like dream luxuries that she’d never see again.

Would he want to see her again? Jo hoped so. She’d enjoyed herself and rather thought she’d like a few repeats of the evening. Not just sex though. She wanted to spend time with him otherwise, get to know who he was now, since it was more than obvious he’d changed quite a bit. The Castiel she’d met years ago would never have done what they’d done. He was different now and so was she.

Sitting there in the back of his truck, she felt as though her guard had come tumbling down completely some time during the night, revealing who she was beneath the façade she put up for her people. She’d been very careful to only show confidence to them these past months. Jo dressed slowly, reflecting on that, knowing she needed to pull herself together for a little while longer.

She had finished dressing and was finger combing her hair when Castiel opened the tailgate and climbed in to join her. Her heart beat a bit faster in response to his nearness.

~~~~~~~~~~

Castiel crawled up to sit beside her. “Morning.”

“Hey.” She looked sleepy, but relaxed, her hair loose about her shoulders, slipping down across the side of her face.

Rowr, Jimmy commented. The Veronica Lake looks works for her.

Stop it, Jimmy. It’s getting old. Who is Veronica Lake?

She was an actress and pin-up model in the Forties.

You know as much useless trivia as Dean, Castiel accused him. “Hey.”

I’ll have you know Veronica Lake was a sex symbol and a good one. Vintage pin-ups aren’t trivia, Cas. They’re a rich part of history.

Right.

“Morning.”

Leaning over as though to kiss her on the mouth, he detoured at the last second and kissed the tender spot directly behind her jawbone and below her earlobe, that spot that made her gasp in pleasure every time, swirling his tongue along it until she pressed against him. Her hands raised, clenched in his shirt. “I had a crazy good time last night,” he told her, sliding his hand beneath her tank top at the small of her back. “When we get to camp, and after you’ve settled in, I’d like to keep seeing you. A couple times a week, more if you’re amenable to it.”

Jo shifted, back stiffening.

Before she could say anything, he hurried on. “I want to talk a minute without the playacting. Can we do that?”

“Yes.” Her hands unclenched from the fabric of his shirt, slid across it, smoothing it.

The open vulnerability on her face tugged at him. “You don’t have to be afraid of me for any reason. You know that, right?” He swept his hand along her back as she nodded. “And you know I’d never hold you to a bargain like that, nor would I make such a bargain in reality.”

“I know.”

“Do you want to keep seeing me?”

Her teeth grazed her lower lip. “I’d like that, but….”

“You’d like to continue the scenario,” he guessed, with a quirked brow.

“If you don’t mind.” Hesitance in her voice.

“I don’t mind at all, as long as you let me know how far is too far with it.” Taking one of her hands in his, he slid his thumb across the back. Her skin felt very thin there, the bones prominent. If she ate well enough, she’d fill out nicely. “I do get it, Jo, just so you know. The…scenario…fills some need in you. You need it -- for now. I can work with that, but let’s set down a few guidelines about how we’re going to go about it. Do you want it in private only or in public too?”

“A little of both?” She squeezed his hand. “But nothing that would seem strange to anyone.”

“Sure and you can stop it at any time. Just say that word you gave me last night and we’ll drop it and head into normal territory.”

She smiled. “Okay.”

“Okay,” he repeated, twining their fingers together. “We good on this? All set to play?”

Jo nodded. “I think so.” She tucked her hair behind her ear. “Cas…. Thank you.” She shrugged. “You know, for understanding --”

“It’s not as strange a quirk as you think.” He cleared his throat. “Mya sent me to wake you for breakfast.”

They were to have breakfast, leisurely break camp, and head out. It was after eight already, most people having slept in a little, just as he’d hoped.

~~~~~~~~~~

It was a relief to know that he understood the basic reason behind what she wanted from him despite not knowing the full reason and that he was willing to continue with her. Jo was as close to happy as she’d been in years.

She ate toast with jam for breakfast, unable to eat the powdered eggs Mya had cooked. It had to be real for Jo or none at all. The powdered were nasty in her opinion. Which reminded her….

When she was done, she pulled Mya aside and asked for the inventory list of all the items they had in main storage. With it in hand, she returned to sit beside Cas.

“Here. This is what we’ve got boxed up to share. Because we were always moving, we had to be careful how much we took, but we’ve got a little in each vehicle. Food of course, but a lot of shampoo, soap, deodorant and the like. My mom said once that those things would become luxuries as time passed, so we started hoarding a little. There’s more here than we can use at present. Each of us have extras in our bags anyway. And we have some antibiotics and things like that. Rick was a pharmacist before all this hit, so he has something of an idea what to grab up when we get a chance.”

“Chuck’s going to kiss you, Jo.” He handed the notebook back to her.

“Okay. Who’s Chuck?”

“He’s our guy in charge of supplies. He was moaning the other day about running out of personal hygiene supplies. These will make him giddy.”

“Happy to have something you need.” She watched him sip the coffee. “Shouldn’t we get going soon,” she asked with an eagerness she couldn’t hide.

Castiel cast a sideways glance at her. “In a hurry?”

“It’s been a long trip.”

“Let me finish Mya’s excellent coffee and I guess there’s no reason to wait.”

They began to break camp within twenty minutes.

~~~~~~~~~~

Dean whistled as he walked across the camp. He was in an odd good mood. Finding survivors always did that to him and Cas was bringing them in. Jo’s group. He smiled a little at the thought of Jo leading a group of people. While he’d always known she had the ability inside her, that she’d gotten to the point of doing it successfully pleased him. She’d apparently come a long way from that girl he’d met years earlier. He looked forward to catching up with her on everything.

He rounded one corner and came across Chuck. His back was to Dean and he kicked the side of the building with a foot, muttering, “Damn it, damn it, damn it,” before drinking deeply from a whiskey bottle. Dean cleared his throat. “Isn’t nine in the morning a little early to be drinking?”

Chuck swallowed and turned to face him, peering at him with squinted eyes. “I haven’t been to bed yet. Does that count for or against it?”

His morose tone made Dean study him closer. Chuck was disheveled, eyelids heavy over bloodshot eyes that were ringed by dark smudges. He smelled strongly of whiskey -- déjà vu for when they’d first met. “You okay?”

“No…yes…um…” Chuck shook his head. “No, not really. I’m not okay. I…I…I just can’t be…”

“Anything I can help with?”

Chuck gave a start at the question, eyed widening. “No.”

“Then go get some sleep. Get some of that out of your system. I’ll need you later today. Cas just radioed in again. Jo’s group, that one he found yesterday? They’ve got --”

“A very welcome addition of personal hygiene products and first aid items.” He was unsurprised, saying the words the exact way Dean had been going to say them, as though he already knew.

But he couldn’t know anymore, not like he once had, because Chuck claimed he hadn’t had a vision since the angels bugged out and flew for heaven.

“Tell me that was just a lucky guess.”

Chuck sighed, swirling the liquid in the bottle. “What else could it be? The stuff I mean. You seem overly pleased by the prospect of more people. I figured those two would add some buoyancy to your steps.”

While there didn’t appear to be deceit in voice or expression, Dean had the gut feeling that Chuck was lying. “Buoyancy to my steps? You have been drinking. Not to mention you had your back to me just now.”

“I’ve had a few cocktails the past several hours.”

“This is what you meant when you said you were sick? Hair of the dog turn into another long day of sucking down the whiskey?”

Chuck looked away. “It won’t happen again, Dean.”

“I’m not telling you that you can’t drink, just…pick your times a little better. And you don’t have to drink alone. Cas and I’d drink with you. All you gotta do is ask.”

“That’s a nice offer. Thank you. I’d better get some sleep. An hour, maybe two.”

“You do that.” He watched Chuck amble away towards his cabin, clutching that bottle like a lifeline. It was ridiculous to think Chuck was hiding something. Chuck couldn’t hide things. It was one of the endearing things about him, that fact that he lied so poorly. There was something off, though. Dean knew it. Eventually, he’d ferret out what that thing was.

Turning, he headed towards the gate to wait for Castiel’s return.

~~~~~~~~~~

“You can use my shower when we get there.”

Jo hugged herself. The idea of an actual shower had her daydreaming again and she almost forgot to respond. “How generous.”

“It is.”

He drove in silence a moment and Jo occupied herself by imagining the shower she was going to take, one with lots of soap and shampoo. She couldn’t wait to feel the water running down her body, almost crying at the anticipation.

“Or would you rather have a meal first? We’ve got a cookhouse dedicated to meals and a few pretty good cooks. The menu is limited to whatever we have, but it’s hot and filling.”

“As long as I’m not forced to eat reconstituted powdered eggs anymore, I think I’ll be fine with whatever.”

A snort of laughter left him. “Reconstituted powdered eggs?”

“Mya found a buttload of them somewhere and made Rick load them up. She said they were great when you couldn’t beg, buy, or steal real eggs, which unfortunately we haven’t been able to do in far too long.”

“They’re not real?”

“They were at some point, but I’m not sure they’re actually edible any more.”

“Mmm. Well, we have chickens, so we have fresh eggs available. We’ll save the powdered for emergencies.”

“Sounds good to me.” The cab of his truck wasn’t exceptionally dirty, nor was it particularly clean, more like somewhere in-between. There was a layer of dust on the dashboard. Jo resisted the urge to write ‘wash me’ on the dash with a finger. “The camp has running water and electricity then?”

“Thus far, yes. We had to do some work here and there on it all, but it’s all working. Hot showers, lights.” He looked at her. “We even have a few tv’s here and there.”

“There’s no service anymore.” The stations had been shut down by military demand nearly a year earlier. That had been, strangely, one of the hardest things to take. Jo’d grown up with tv and was used to flipping it on for noise. The constant quiet had been difficult to adjust to.

“Plenty of DVD’s to watch. Dean picks up all sorts of titles whenever we hit a place. We’ve got quite a library spread out over the camp.” Another longer glance her way. “Maybe we can sit down later this week and watch something together.”

She smothered a smile. “Maybe.”

As they approached a dirt road on the right, he cleared his throat and squared his shoulders. When he spoke, he used that tone he’d taken to using for their…scenario. “So, shower or food first?”

“Why are you so hot for me to decide?”

“Because we’re only about fifteen minutes away.” He turned down that dirt road, slowing to make sure each vehicle followed.

Her lips parted. “This entire time we’ve been that close?”

“Sure have.”

She tried to play with that scenario she’d requested they keep up, but excitement over finally having an end to their endless wandering across the U.S. made it hard to concentrate. Jo simply wanted the journey over. “You tricked me. We could have found it without you.” Which was entirely true. She’d been paying attention to the roads and they’d have found this one fairly quickly.

“You never asked.” He turned an amused glance to her. “You’ll probably want to see your people settled tonight and get settled yourself, so shall we say tomorrow at my cabin for number fifteen on that list? I’m sure you want to settle up as quickly as possible, so we should get right on that.”

“I think I hate you.” She spoiled the words by the smile she was unable to hide.

Reaching over, he put a hand on her thigh and gave a gentle squeeze, his hand warm, lingering. Jo covered it with her own. “As long as you put out the requisite amount of nights total, I don’t care if you hate me. It’s the end, baby. Bang a gong, get it on.”

She slid a bit closer to him on the seat. He gave her thigh a last caress, then returned his hand to the steering wheel.

“If you’re concerned about anyone seeing you, come after dusk. You don’t have to leave at dawn, of course, though you can if you really want. And like I said, Dean doesn’t have to know unless you tell him.”

“I don’t plan on telling him.” She didn’t either, but somehow Jo suspected Dean was going to find out. It was likely he knew just about everything that went on in his camp.

He was quiet a minute, frowning as though trying to figure out how to tell her something. Cas tapped the wheel with his fingers. “There’s something I should probably tell you before we get there….”

“Yeah?”

“I’ve got a couple of girlfriends.”

Jo slid all the way back across the seat, pressing against the door. “You what?” She crossed her arms. “A couple…?”

“Girlfriends. Actually, I have four, but --”

“Four? Four girlfriends? You couldn’t mention this last night?” Her face felt hot and she knew she had to have gone beet red in seconds. Four girlfriends? How did that work out? She’d thought he was single, not attached to four women already. “Oh God…. I thought --”

“Calm down. I’m not serious about any of them and they all know about each other. They’ve always known about each other and that I wasn’t serious about anything I had with any of them. Mostly it’s a physical thing, though one of them was getting her PhD in astronomy when the virus hit, so I’ve had some nice conversations with her. I’m not attached to them.”

“You’re one of those guys. My mom would kill me if she saw me now. I’m the other woman. I’m the other, other, other, other…other woman. Was that too many ‘others’?” Ellen Harvelle had had many words on women who let themselves be ‘other’ women and none of them were complimentary. Jo groaned. Like she didn’t have enough issues already without adding this to it.

“It’s not like that, Jo. Calm down.” Cas reached an arm out towards her.

“Stop telling me to calm down.” Jo pressed closer to the door. “I’m perfectly calm.”

“Any closer to that door and you’ll fall out. It doesn’t latch properly.” He snagged her belt loop and tugged her back across the seat a little, slowing down. “I’ll tell them right after we get back that I no longer wish to see them if you like. Do you want me to?”

“You…. What?” She stared at him. “What do you mean by that?”

“I mean I’ll commit to seeing you exclusively. Today. The minute we get back.”

“You’d do that?”

He nodded. “I like you, Jo. I liked you back then, but I think I like you more now. I want to see if we can go anywhere and to do that, I need to do the big break-up with Kylie, Carrie, Nat, and Vanessa.” Castiel looked at her again. “Believe me, you’ll know I’ve told them. It’ll be around camp in an hour.”

“I’ll be walking in to four ready-made enemies.”

“Two maybe. You can take ‘em though.” His grin was lop-sided. “My money is firmly on you.”

“I should be yelling and screaming and clawing at you, you know. Four, Cas? Really?”

“I thank you for not doing any of those things and yes, four. They each have their charms, but none appeals to me like you do. I’d rather spend my time with you.”

Jo looked out at the road. They were coming up on a gate that had two men guarding it. She wasn’t kidding him. She should feel outraged and wanting to yell and so forth, but she was caught off-guard by his willingness to commit to her so quickly. Was it too quick? Did quick matter at this point? He was right about one thing: it was the end. If they could make each other happy for even a little while….

They drove through the gate and down a hill into a valley. There, she saw Dean standing. Tears prickled in her eyes. Jo wiped at them. “Okay, Castiel. You do the break-up thing and let’s see if we’re a good fit.”

“I will. You’ll hear tonight by dinner.”

They stopped and Dean stepped up to Cas’s open window, arms crossing on the frame as he peered in. “Well, well. Look at what the cat dragged in.”

She could see the pleasure and welcome in his eyes. Some of the tension that had remained in her shoulders released into nothingness. “Hey.”

He studied her, fingers tapping on the frame. “Well, don’t just sit there, Jo. Come on out where I can see you.”

Getting out of the truck and around to him, she waited. “Here I am.”

He embraced her and Jo sagged just a little in the comfort of his arms. When he drew back, he glanced at Castiel, who’d joined them. “I’ll take care of Jo for now. Why don’t you see if Risa needs any help getting Jo’s people settled?” His gaze flicked towards the dark haired woman standing by one cabin watching them.

Cas saluted him. “Of course, oh fearless leader.” Jo felt his other hand in a surreptitious caress on her rear. He didn’t make any move to leave, instead doing a thorough tour of her rear with that hand.

“Who’s Risa,” Jo asked, shouldering the bag Cas had taken from the truck for her.

“You’ll meet her in a bit, I promise, but for now, let’s get you somewhere to relax. Have a meal, a nap, maybe a good long shower.” Dean’s brows raised and he motioned to the path leading across the meadow and up a hill.

“Is that a comment on my hygiene?”

“I wasn’t gonna say anything, but now that you mention it --”

Jo socked him in the arm with one fist. “Jerk! I’ve been traveling for months. You try living on sponge baths that long and see how good you smell.”

“No thank you.”

He looked good, she decided. Tired, but good. A little older, a little wiser, just like her.

“Come on. You’ve been holding yourself together long enough. Let’s go somewhere where you can unwind and let your guard down. Your people don’t need to see that. Cas, do you mind helping Risa?”

“Oh, you mean now?”

“Yeah.”

“Right this second?”

Jo laughed as Dean pointed a stern finger at him.

“Cas.”

“Just checking.” He gave her rear a last pat and walked away.

Jo followed Dean to the path.

~~~~~~~~~~

As Risa approached the new arrivals, she noticed Dean with Castiel…and a pretty blond woman. Jealousy stirred inside her when he hugged the woman. He embraced her the way he usually embraced Risa, full body pressing together with his face turned into her neck, and the woman returned it the same way.

Risa stopped walking and watched, half afraid he’d kiss her too. She held her breath until he released the woman and motioned to the camp at large. The two had a history, she could see it in Dean’s familiar manner.

After a moment, she noticed Castiel approaching her with a sauntering stride.

It wasn’t that she hated him, because she didn’t. Risa rather liked him. What she hated was how close he and Dean were. It irritated her that Castiel was always there, though she had to admit he did leave whenever she indicated she wanted Dean alone, and he did tend to go off by himself alone in the woods. Sometimes he took one of his girlfriends with him.

“Good morning, Risa. Dean sent me over to see if you require my assistance in settling the new arrivals.”

“He noticed me.” She hadn’t thought he’d seen her standing there.

Castiel frowned. “Why wouldn’t he? Dean notices you whenever you’re near.”

She motioned to Dean and the blond. “Who’s she?”

“Jo Harvelle.” He slid his hands into his pockets.

There was a sick, sinking sensation in her stomach, a queasy rolling wave sloshing back and forth. She knew that name. Jo Harvelle was the one that got away. Risa had once overheard a drunken Dean talking about Jo to an equally drunken Castiel. “I see.”

“I don’t think you do.”

She looked up at him with narrowed eyes. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

He sighed. “Just that Jo’s no threat to you. Since I know you won’t believe me, however, why don’t you tell me where you want to put these people and go catch up with them?”

Flicking her glance first to Dean and Jo’s retreating backs, then to the group waiting, and back to Cas, Risa nodded. “Okay. Put the couples in Cabot cabin and let the singles choose whether they wish to stay together as a group or not. Together, they can be temporarily housed in Carson cabin with Nell and Ryan. There are enough beds for all of them there. Separately they can have their pick. There are beds in Carson, Miller, Nichols, and Ren cabins. Let them know that Carson and Miller are the closest to the dining hall, Nichols to the shooting range, and Ren to the lake. If any of them have items they’d like to share with the camp as a whole, take them over to Chuck.”

“Anything else?”

She pursed her lips. “Dean mentioned last night that you’re going to get a little cabin ready for the leader?”

“That would be Jo. She’s single. Sort of.”

“Sort of?” He didn’t elaborate. “Will she need a bigger cabin or will a single be fine?”

He quirked a brow, a tiny curl of a grin on his lips. “I’d say one of the little ones will be perfect for her.” A mysterious expression. Risa wasn’t curious enough about it to ask.

“Take your pick, just mark it on the master list as being used.”

“Will do.”

“Then give them all a grand tour after they’ve seen their cabins.”

“Got it. In case you’re wondering, they’ll be at your cabin by now.”

“My cabin? Why would Dean take her there?” Her gut clenched once more.

“He offered her the use of your shower.”

“Why can’t she use yours?”

“Because mine is already taken.”

“Like we don’t have two different bath buildings filled with showers.”

“Come on, Risa. It’s been months since any of them had any semblance of privacy. It won’t hurt to accommodate them today, let them feel fully human again.”

He had a point. “I can’t just leave this job on your shoulders,” she protested, feeling a little guilty about wanting to run off, “not when Dean asked me to do it.”

“Sure you can. Dean asked and you delegated. You made the basic decisions, the same thing Dean does. Go on. I can do this in my sleep by now.”

Risa stared in the direction Dean and Jo had walked. “No, I’ll stay. I’ll do this and then I’ll go.”

He shrugged. “You don’t have to.”

She thought about trust and how she claimed to trust Dean, then, nodded. “Yeah, Castiel, I do.”

She’d do this job, trust her husband, and when the job was over, she’d go and meet the one that got away from him.