Title: Midnight Shift: Chapter Twenty-six, More than Gold
Rating: PG-13 [language, heavy petting]

Summary: Jimmy and Summer get closer. Robert makes plans.






Waking with a start, Jimmy quickly pulled away from Summer so as to not wake her. Slipping out of the bed, he made his way over to the window. Slipping between the curtains and the window, he looked out at the ocean waves crashing on the beach below. Normally he would shake a dream from his thoughts and think nothing on it any more. This morning’s dream would not leave his thoughts at all. He was certain if he closed his eyes, the images would be burned on eyelids.

For a brief moment, he did not wish his band was named after something that exploded horrendously in the sky, plummeting to the earth. It suddenly felt like an ominous name.

But it was merely a dream. It was not a vision or anything of that nature. Merely a dream.

Perhaps he could sneak downstairs and chase away the demons in his mind with a quick drink and slip back in bed with Summer before she woke. Deciding this was the prudent course of action, Jimmy moved out from behind the curtains, making certain they still covered the windows as the sun was beginning to warm the sky. His dark eyes looked to the young girl curled up in her bed. Her toes peeked out the end of the awry sheet, just enough he could see a tiny part of the white gauze covering her burns. His eyes travelled up the slight curves of her body, silently wishing the sheet did not conceal her from his vision, knowing full well the shirt she slept in was bunched around her waist. She shifted slightly, rolling more fully onto her back and pulling the sheet even tighter about her. Watching her sleep for that moment nearly made Jimmy forget his nightmare.

“Jimmy?” her soft, sweet voice muttered, snapping his attention to her eyes.

“Go back to sleep, princess,” he uttered.

Summer instantly sat up, propping herself up with her elbows, “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. Go back to sleep.”

“I don’t believe you,” she replied. “What’s wrong?”

Jimmy sighed, “Do not worry about it, princess. Just go back to sleep.”

“Not until you come back to bed.”

His eyes remained on hers unblinking for a moment before he relented and nodded. Summer quickly shifted and lifted the sheet. Even in the dark light of the room, Jimmy could see Robert’s shirt gathered just under her small breasts. Deciding that her invitation was enough to keep the demons away, he crawled across the bed to her, settling down on his side next to her. Her eyes remained on his, her arm holding the sheet up. Reading her silent instructions, he slipped his arm over her bare abdomen and molded his body to hers. Only then did she lower the sheet, her arm folding over him.

“What’s wrong, Jimmy?” she breathed.

“Nothing.”

“I don’t believe you. Tell me.”

He sighed, “Worry not, princess.”

“Tell me.”

“I merely had a dream… that was unpleasant,” he claimed.

Summer shifted so that she faced him. Her fingers left his arm and danced along the side of his face. With her fingers on his chin, she guided his mouth to hers and gently kissed him. His body tensed as she held the kiss for a moment. Summer shifted a bit closer to Jimmy, her thighs pressing into his, and kissed him again. His hand moved from its idle position on her hip to press against her lower back, pulling her closer. As her lips parted to deepen the kiss, Jimmy felt the darkness retreat. Summer was his sunshine princess and he knew that for certain with their kiss.

“Has anyone ever told you that you’re beautiful?” Summer asked softly.

Jimmy blinked, “I… no, I don’t think so.”

She kissed him briefly again, “You are. And… I am so grateful to have you in my life. I… thank you, Jimmy.”

“It is I who should thank you,” he reached up and caressed her cheek. 

“You have no need,” she replied, but smiled.

Jimmy leaned forward for another kiss. Her lips eagerly met his, parting once more to deepen the kiss. As he certainly was no fool, his tongue slipped past her lips, gently tasting her sunshine. His hand slowly traced down her neck and ran down her shirt. With little thought, his fingers slipped under the hem of the large borrowed shirt, his palms flattening against her flesh. When Summer did not protest the placement of his hands, Jimmy slowly began to caress up her body. When his fingers encountered the small underswell of her breasts, he smiled into the kiss slightly. As she still did not tell him to stop, his hand slid over her breast, gently cupping it.

“Jimmy,” she muttered against his mouth, causing his hand to freeze.

His thumb and forefinger gently pinched her small nipple, “Do you want me to stop?”

Her mouth eagerly kissed his once more in response. Smirking Jimmy kissed her with passion, his hand playing with her breast. He could almost not believe his luck; to go from a nightmare into a passionate embrace with Summer. Things like that never happened to him. He was–

The shrill ring of the phone punctured the silent morning air. Summer instantly sat up, clearly hearing the call as he had. She pushed away his hands, threw back the sheet, and pivoted in the bed. Her gauze wrapped feet reached for the floor, but Jimmy instantly scrambled out of bed himself. Not only did he not want her running on her injured feet, he honestly did not want her answering the phone at all. He hurried out of the room to the phone in the hallway and quickly picked it up.

“Hello,” Jimmy answered a bit breathlessly.

“Hello? Pagey? Are you okay?”

“Jonesy,” his shoulders relaxed, “for what do I owe this honor?”

“Mo and I have decided to take the girls to Disneyland. Perhaps Summer would like to go?”

Jimmy glanced over his shoulder at the young girl sitting up in bed, “I am certain that she would like that. However walking is really not a good idea.”

“Why is that?”

Sighing, he quickly explained to the bassist what happened. John Paul went silent for a long minute before requesting to speak with Summer. Setting the phone down, Jimmy returned to the bedroom to help Summer to the phone. She flinched slightly upon resting her weight upon her tender feet and walked very slowly, leaning upon Jimmy. As she picked up the phone, he found a chair and pulled it out into the hall next to the phone.

“Hello?” she answered with hope in her voice.

“Hey, Summer. Jimmy told me what happened. Are you okay?”

She frowned slightly, hoping the call had been Robert, “As okay as I can be. My feet hurt more today than they did yesterday.”

“I am bringing Mo and the girls to see you. We will be by tomorrow.”

“You don’t need to do that, John.”

“I know. But I am concerned about you. And I want you to meet my girls,” he responded. “We will see you tomorrow, okay?”

“All right.”

“Take care of yourself. I shall see you soon.”

“See you soon, John,” she replied before handing the phone back to Jimmy.

“Jonesy?”

“We shall stop by tomorrow. And Jimmy? You better be taking excellent care of that little girl. Excellent care.”




Opening his arms, Robert laughed as Karac jumped into his embrace. He smiled as the boy instantly launched into some baby babble. Though he understood little of what his son was talking about, he pretended to understand fully, even asking the boy random questions. Neither Karac nor Carmen seemed to really care about the details, merely just enjoyed spending time with their father. Their smiles were worth more than gold and nearly chased away his blues.

But if he was going to hold onto his gold, he was going to have to leave England soon, especially since the warm-up prior to the Earls Court shows would count against him. He would have to leave the country or face taxation from hell. Where was he to go? No, correction, where was he going to take his family? Robert did not want to be apart from his babies if he did not have to be. He would take Carmen and Karac with him. 

He had no intentions of taking Maureen, but rather having Summer flown over to spend the holiday with him.

No, he would just take the kids back to America with him. He was uncertain as to whether or not Summer could leave the country yet.

“Come along,” he instructed, glancing at Carmen.

“Why, Papa?”

“We need to pack.”

“Why, Papa?” the girl repeated as she trotted after him.

“We are going on a trip.”

“Where, Papa?”

“Going to California.”



With her feet propped up on a pillow but happily free from gauze, Summer watched as Jimmy flipped through the channels on the TV. She had never really watched TV, other than the few times Robert turned it on as a sound barrier when they were… Shaking her head, she watched Jimmy leave the TV and settle on the couch next to her. His arm casually draped on the back of the couch. Without pause, Summer shifted on the couch, into his arms.

Her eyes flicked from him to the TV screen. Within minutes she was completely wrapped up in what was happening on the screen. Her hand reached across Jimmy to grasp his hand. Tense scenes caused her hand to tighten on his. She shifted closer to him on the couch until she was practically in his lap. As Jack the Ripper sliced through yet another victim, she gasped and buried her face on his shoulder. Smirking, Jimmy pulled her hair back from her face and kissed her forehead. Her large eyes opened and looked up at him.

“Jimmy, he’s not going to come and get me, is he?”

His fingers gently touched her cheek, “Of course not, princess.”

“Are you sure? They never caught him,” she pointed out.

“Sweetheart, that was a long time ago. He is long dead.”

“But… but…. The TV…”

He leaned down and kissed her softly, “It was merely a movie, Summer. You are safe. I would never, ever allow anyone to hurt you. Ever.”

“But… but…”

He kissed her again, “You are safe, Summer. I promise you.”

She nodded slightly, “Will you… will you play for me? I think that will make me feel better.”

“But of course,” Jimmy answered. “I will be but a moment.”

Leaving her on the couch after a quick kiss, he crossed in front of the TV and turned it off. He could feel her eyes on him with every step and purposefully slowed his gait slightly. Reaching his guitar, he slowly bent to pick it up. Glancing sideways at Summer, he stood back up and returned to her side.

“What would you have me play?” he asked, strumming a few notes to check the tuning.

Curling up on the couch, Summer responded, “Anything you want, Jimmy. Your music soothes my soul.”

With a slight flush to his cheeks, he nodded and turned his attention to the guitar in his hands. His fingers began to dance over the acoustic strings. Within moments he settled into a melody, drawing an easy smile to her lips. Her blue eyes focused upon his fingers, watching them intently. Noticing her stare, he purposefully began to change up the song.

“Hey!” Summer perked up. “That’s not how it goes!”

He instantly stopped playing, “Oh?”

She shook her head, “You’re playing it wrong.”

“How can I play my own song wrong?”

“I don’t know. But you are.”

He held the guitar out to her, “Then show me where I messed up.”

Summer shook her head, “I don’t even know how to play that one, Jimmy.”

“Yes, you do. You noticed when I changed it up,” he pressed the guitar to her.

Pulling her sore feet out from under her, Summer sat more appropriately on the couch before accepting the guitar. She glanced briefly at him before turning her attention to the guitar. Hesitantly she began to pluck the notes to his song, playing it slower than he had, but playing it all the same. She continued through the bridge where Jimmy had changed the tune, keeping to the song’s original structure. As the final note hung in the air, her eyes went back to his.

Grinning Jimmy quickly kissed her before saying, “Summer, that was amazing. You played it very well your very first time, without even watching me play it fully before. Do not tell me you have no talent.”

“I… I guess,” she responded, holding the guitar out to Jimmy.

He shook his head, pressing it back to her, “I think you should play some more for me.”

“But Jimmy, you’re the–”

“I like listening to and watching you play. Play for me again?”

Her eyes held his for a moment before she relented and pulled the guitar back towards her. As her fingers danced over the strings, images of Jack the Ripper slaying women in London were completely forgotten. And that was precisely Jimmy’s intention.



“What are you doing?” an angry voice asked from the doorway.

Glancing up from his packing, Robert met Maureen’s eyes. He said nothing and returned back to his task. Though he could feel her glaring at him, could likely cut the anger shot from her eyes with a butter knife, he did not wish to engage. He would merely take the children and leave. No interaction necessary – at least in his mind.

“Robert, where do you bloody think that you’re going? You have only been home for a two days. The children–”

“Are coming with me,” he interrupted and closed his suitcase.

“Excuse me?” Maureen instantly fired back.

His blue eyes met hers, “I am taking the children with me.”

“Are you bloody out of your mind, Robert? You are not taking our children anywhere, especially without asking my permission,” she snapped.

“Maureen, you know I cannot remain here or they will tax all of my money. I need to preserve some of those days for when we come back for the couple of concerts next month,” he declared evenly.

“I care not. You are not taking my children anywhere.”

“Maureen,” Robert struggled to remain calm, “I have not see the children in months. I miss them. They miss me. Clearly the solution here is to take them with me.”

“But not your wife?”

He blinked, “Maureen, that is something we need to talk about.”

Her eyes narrowed, “You are not taking my children anywhere without me. And you most certainly are not flying them some place to be with some whore your prick found during your bloody tour.”

His eyes widened, “No, Maureen, you do not understand.”

“You are bloody right about that,” her voice raised an octave. “Who the fuck is she?”

Robert swallowed, “No one.”

“Then where are you taking my children without me?”

His mind quickly scrambled for an answer to the question, fearing she would keep his children from him if he answered truthfully, “France. I wanted to surprise you.”

Her face instantly softened, “Really?”

“Really.”

“When?”

“The car will be here within the hour,” he answered.

“That does not give me time to pack!”

Robert smirked, “You need not. I am handling everything.”

She eyed him suspiciously, “Why do I get a bad feeling about this?”

“I do not know. Relax. And go make certain Carmen has packed her bathing suit.”

As his wife walked away, Robert sighed. His cowardice had completely changed everything. He had not wanted to go to France with Maureen and the children. That had certainly not been in the plans at all. A part of him wondered if he would be able to lose his wife at the airport. But he had a feeling he would not be able to slip the children onto a plane to America without her noticing. Where did his balls go when she was around?



Curled up in Jimmy’s lap after he inspected her feet, which had remained fully uncovered that day in hopes of speeding along the healing, Summer sighed. It had been three days since Robert left, a full day without Bonzo, and she had begun to ache. It was not that she did not enjoy Jimmy’s company immensely – because she did. He placed her on a pedestal that she knew she did not belong on, but it made her feel glorious most of the time.

But she was still feeling lonely.

All her life she had been surrounded by lots of people, even her life with Led Zeppelin had been full of people. But now they were secluded in the beach house, her dog their only company. They did not even have other members of the band currently, as they were all off with their families. She did not know what to do with alone.

“Princess?” he muttered softly, sweeping her hair to the side so he could see her eyes better.

Her blue eyes left the ocean surf to meet his and she forced a smile before cuddling with him.

Her lack of verbal response and her actions concerned him more than anything, “Summer, is something wrong?”

“I… no, of course not, Jimmy. Why would something be wrong? I have you and Queenie and the beautiful ocean. How could anything be wrong?”

He sighed, “Summer, something is wrong. Even if you will not tell me, I can feel it in my soul. I cannot make it better, if you will not let me.”

“I…” her fingers travelled down his arm to clasp his hand. “Jimmy, I… I am not used to this.”

“Used to what?”

“Lots of things. I mean… I was not used to travelling like you are, but that is not what I mean. That was easy to adapt to. There was always someone around, something going on. I still felt like I was… apart of something bigger. But now… now… I hear the silence of my own breathing. And I… I don’t know what to do with it, Jimmy,” she admitted softly.

He kissed her temple, “I understand, princess. I am not one who likes to be around people all the time. I appreciate the quiet moments in between, especially after the hectic days of touring. But my darling, this is merely a calm amongst the storm. Jonesy and his family will be here tomorrow and would like to take you out. We are expected at a Swan Song party at the end of the week. Worry not, the activity you are used to will return soon.”

“I… I do not mean that I do not enjoy your company. You are amazing, Jimmy. I just…”

He kissed her again, “I understand fully, Summer. Can we not just accept this quietude as a gift of allowing us to get to know each other without intervention?”

Her eyes fully went to his with his comment and she smiled slightly, “Yes. That is exactly how we should look at it.”

Jimmy’s lips touched hers briefly, “And that to me is worth more than gold, diamonds, even guitars.”

Summer smirked, “More than guitars?”

He nodded, “Yes.”

“I don’t believe that I am worth more to you than guitars, Jimmy.”

“Then clearly I need to prove it to you.”

Her eyes remained on his, “And how do you intend to do so?”

He remained silent for a moment, “I do not know at this very moment, but I do know that it is not something I will likely convince you of overnight.”

“Hmmm. Then I suppose I look forward to you convincing me of that.”

Jimmy quickly kissed her, “You are wonderful, Princess.”

She tilted her head to the side, “Why do you call me that?”

“Because you are one.”

Summer shook her head, “No, I’m not. Not at all.”

“Yes, you are.”

“No, I’m not.”

“What makes you think that?”

“What makes you think that I am?”

“Because you are.”

“I am not.”

Jimmy sighed, “You are, Summer. I cannot find the words to explain it. But you are.”

She looked at him for a long moment, “Fine, I guess. But some day you are going to have to explain what makes me a princess as well.”

“All right.”

The pretty blonde shifted in his lap, her eyes returning to the waves crashing upon the beach. The hot globe of the sun began to sink beyond the horizon. Smiling to herself as she could practically hear it sizzle. Unable to contain her naïve glee at that thought, Summer tilted her head up just as Jimmy slid a cigarette between his lips. Seeing her eyes, he removed it without lighting it and kissed her forehead. Saying nothing, she grinned at him and turned her attention back to the setting sun. In that very moment, seated in Jimmy’s lap, Summer was more than just content; she was actually happy in the silence. All of the darkness that threatened at the edge of her thoughts, about her mother, about Robert, seemed to disappear in that beautiful moment. She did not understand it at all, but sometimes the best things in life could not be understood simply. They just were; just like she and Jimmy were.

And there was perfection in that moment.