Danger threw the pair together when they were menaced by an evil man named Ernesto Toscano Though Jack and Jenn camped out in Deveraux's bedroom — for safety's sake, of course — nothing happened.

During a terror-filled cruise on a ship called the Loretta, Jack and Jennifer nearly had sex when they believed they were going to die — but they were interrupted. Soon, the ship was blown up and the pair were shipwrecked on an island. Jack dropped his uncaring façade when Jenn was injured. Then Jack and Jennifer finally confessed their love — and made love. It was a new beginning.

If the mail at Soap Opera Digest is any indication, the decision of DAYS Head Writers, Anne Schoettle and Richard Allen to unite Jack and Jennifer will be well received. At the time Jack and Jennifer began interacting, Allen points out that he and Schoettle were contributors, not the final decision-makers, regarding stories Allen recalls, "The suggestion was, `Let's see Jack and Jennifer together. It will be fun and let's see what happens.'" The writers realized that they had to proceed "extremely carefully" with the story. After all, they were paring a sleazy guy in need of reform with an innocent virgin.

Along the way, Jack and Jennifer became known as a fun couple — a contrast to the sturm und drang experienced by DAYS's other romantic duos. Did the writers create the comedy, or did the actors do it? "I think with that couple it's fifty-fifty," observes Allen. "At the beginning Jack was devious and clever, but he was a little bumbling. That started turning into humorous things and we added humorous twists and Matt went with that and we had to adjust. We started finding humor and now it goes both ways."

For a while, it was Jack/Jennifer/Emilio triangle and it wasn't always clear which man Jennifer would choose. Allen maintains the writers considered Emilio a serious suitor, "After Frankie left town, Emilio was there and he was very different from Frankie. Dating Frankie was like being a guest on DONAHUE. There was a time that Emilio and Jennifer were a couple, but there was a depth and contrast to Jack and Jennifer. Their emotional makeup put them at odds. That's different from external differences."

When Richard Allen and Anne Schoettle took over as head writers in January, they realized Jack and Jennifer were more than a "fun" couple. Though they did their share of frolicking , the relationship was taking a serious turn.

"When Jennifer was saying to Jack, "If you would just say you want me, then I won't marry Emilio," she was putting her heart on the line. We had to work on Jack's responses," Allen notes. He feels that their isolation on the cruise and the ensuing shipwreck were the catalysts for Jack to acknowledge his feelings.

"He was seeing he was able to protect her, and that they protected each other. It's not always Jack coming to Jennifer's rescue," Allen points out. "This is one couple where there's very little sexism. They're equals. Even in sexual scenes, she's assertive, he doesn't always make the first move. That comes from Anne and I. We work together. Anne is often the tough one and I'm writing the sappy dialogue."

Along the way, a number of viewers came impatient for things to happen, "Emotionally, we try to move them forward and see a progression," Allen explains. "The audience would have been disappointed if their coming together came about in a casual way. The fans should be happy [with the way it was written]," He promises. "Once they make love, though, their story isn't over."