Disclaimer: Characters are not mine, no copyright intended. Cover image "Ice" by LuvConnor

A/N: Apologies for being away so long - have been working at the Olympics for the last 5 weeks. I am working on a multi-chapter fic, but in the meantime, please accept this one-shot as an apology

Set late series 3 (after 3 x08)

Soundtrack "Need you now" by Lady Antebellum

Abby blinked and angrily wiped the stray tears from her cheeks. Crying was not something she did, especially over a man, yet she'd found herself doing exactly that in recent weeks and she hated it.

It had been almost a month since Jack had moved out and the flat was quiet and lonely. It should have been a good time; Abby liked to be on her own and had always enjoyed her independence. But the realisation that this wasn't what she wanted had hit her like a ton of bricks. She missed Connor. Not just his companionship, but she missed him – his warmth, his smile,the sound of his laughter echoing around the flat, his scent, the way she always felt at peace when he was with her – why hadn't she realised that before she made him move out?

She'd tried to occupy herself with cleaning the flat to take her mind off things, but that had been a huge mistake. She'd stumbled upon a box in Connor's old room and opened it, found it contained a bundle of photos and had sat down to look at them. They now lay scattered around her; each one a memory of the good times she and Connor had had over the last few years.

This can't go on, Abby told herself. The more she tried to shake Connor from her head, the more he seemed to get inside it. It was pointless fighting her feelings any longer. She'd fallen for him, but if truth be told she feared it was probably too late for them. Too much had happened; she'd pushed him away too many times and she'd probably confused the hell out of him when she kissed him. Who could blame him for keeping his distance from her now?

She could still taste him on her lips and she could remember how hers had tingled as they grazed against his and her fingers tangled into his hair. But he hadn't returned it and she'd walked away without looking back, afraid of what she'd see in his eyes. Part of her had wondered how different it would have been if the doors hadn't opened and Danny wasn't standing there. Maybe Connor would have been brave enough to go after her and crush his own lips against hers? She'd thought about confiding in Danny since he'd clearly seen them kissing, but when he asked if everything was OK, she simply told him that things were a little awkward between her and Connor at the moment but it wouldn't be a problem working together if that was what Danny was worried about.

She'd hardly seen Connor since then. They'd both thrown themselves into their own projects within the ARC, and the occasional anomaly calls had all been relatively easy and dealt with swiftly. They'd exchanged only the odd word and Connor seemed like he was embarrassed. It hurt, and Abby felt empty. There was a huge Connor shaped hole in her life, and she needed to fill it again.

Her fingers hovered over her mobile phone as she thought about calling him, but something stopped her. What did she say when he answered? Would he even answer when he saw her name on the screen? She had to do this face to face so that he couldn't ignore her. With a deep breath, Abby grabbed her car keys and practically ran to her car. It was only as she started the engine that it dawned on her that it was after 1am and he'd probably be asleep. No matter. If she didn't do this now, she probably never would.

-o-

Connor was not a drinker, but the second bottle of beer seemed to disappear very quickly. He sniffed at the empty bottle and tried to focus. This was what Abby Maitland had done to him; turned him into the kind of man that needed alcohol to forget what was happening to him. His mum had always told him that you should never drink alone, but what choice did he have? Until Jack had turned up, he'd drink with Abby as they watched a DVD or played on the X-Box. He'd probably only have one bottle the entire evening, and he didn't even need that. He was happy enough to be with Abby, seeing her smile and hearing her laughter. Sometimes, she'd fall asleep on his shoulder and he'd leave her there for a while, pretending she was his girlfriend and that she did that all the time. It was all just fantasy though. Abby barely gave him a second glance in that respect and she'd be horrified if she knew he still harboured strong feelings for her. Or would she?

He was confused. Abby had kissed him and then walked away, cool as a cucumber, as if all she'd done was shake his hand. How did she not realise what that action would mean to him? His entire world had frozen at that moment, and even now he could still feel the warmth and softness of her lips on his. By the time he had recovered from the shock, she had gone and Danny was shouting for them all to get into the cars and head back to the ARC. His one and only chance with Abby had passed as quickly as it had appeared and now it was too late. She'd probably been waiting for him to make the next move, but every time he tried to approach her he got tongue tied. He cursed himself; it was only Abby for goodness sake,his best friend – just how hard could it be to tell her that he loved her? He could hear Stephen Hart's voice now, just after Connor had dumped Caroline, advising him, "If you love Abby, tell her." So much easier said than done.

Of course, he had already told her he loved her, and where had that got him? Abby had once told him that everyone who had claimed to love her had let her down and that she no longer believed in the word. He'd promised himself that he'd make her change her mind and that he would show her that love was still a wonderful thing. It was that thought that had him reaching for his mobile phone now and he went straight to his contacts list. Abby's name was first and he selected it, ready to call her, but then he stopped.

"Tell her!" he said out loud. He'd wasted far too much time already. He needed to do this face to face so that she could see he was sincere, and he needed to do it right now whilst he still had the courage. Pushing his phone into his pocket, he picked up his car keys and moved towards the door. He felt himself sway and he put the car keys back on the table. Whilst he probably wasn't over the legal drink-drive limit, he was over his own limit, and driving was not a good idea. If he walked along the road that went past the docks, he'd be at Abby's flat in about 45 minutes and it would give him time to sober up and rehearse what he was going to say to her.

As the front door closed behind him, Connor decided that, before the night was over, he would know one way or the other as to whether he had a chance of a future with Abby.

-o-

Abby had been sat in the queue of traffic for 20 minutes now. An ambulance and a police car had sped past about 10 minutes ago, so she assumed there'd been some kind of accident at the junction ahead. To make things worse, it was now also raining heavily. Huge, heavy raindrops were pelting against the roof of the car and even the sound of the radio couldn't drown out the noise. The windscreen wipers were useless too, she may as well turn them off for all the good they were doing.

Some of the cars ahead of her were now giving up and turning around in the road. It didn't look like the blockage was going to clear any time soon, and Abby decided she should probably do the same. As she began to drive back the way she'd come, she slammed her hand angrily against the steering wheel. If she believed in a god, she'd probably say that someone up there was trying to tell her this was a waste of time. Connor didn't want to be with her. He'd stopped flirting with her months ago, and he hadn't responded when she kissed him. She had to accept that she'd ruined any chance of something good with him when she pushed him away all those times.

The sign ahead indicated that the road to the right would take her through the docks. A knot tied in her stomach and something urged her to take that turn instead of carrying on back towards her flat. It wasn't the most pleasant of areas to be driving in alone, but she knew that she'd be at Lester's in about 15 minutes if she went that way. Maybe it was still worth a try?

The surface water was about an inch deep on the dock road; the drains were not coping with the sudden deluge. Abby slowed right down and tried to see through the windscreen wipers and pelting rain. She was the only vehicle on the road, so there weren't even the lamps from other cars to follow. Everything really was going against her tonight, and she almost resigned herself to giving up and going back home.

Then she saw a lonely figure illuminated in her headlights. She recognised him at once. It seemed almost right that he was soaked through to the skin given what she had set out to do. The last time he'd looked like that, he'd saved her life and declared his love for her.

-o-

The rain had started about 15 minutes after he'd set off. At first, he'd hoped it was just a summer shower and it would soon pass, but there was no sign of it stopping. He wasn't wearing a jacket and his clothes were starting to cling to him. His comfy brown boots that were practically welded to his feet were not waterproof and he could feel an uncomfortable squelch with every step. Still, it would be worth it. In about 20 minutes time, he would have answers and could make some decisions about his life. He should have done this months ago.

He shivered as he felt rain water trickling down his back. He thought about turning back, but he was actually closer to Abby's flat than he was to Lester's now, so he may as well carry on forward. He saw the lights of a car approaching and he found a new strength. Surely it would be a taxi? No-one else would be crazy enough to be out in this weather. He could flag it down and get it to take him to Abby's. As it drew closer, his heart sank. It wasn't a taxi. Then it seemed to be pulling to a stop and he realised who it was.

"Connor?"

"Abby?" This wasn't right. This wasn't how he'd rehearsed it. His heart was pounding and that awful feeling of nausea he always got when he was nervous was welling up inside his stomach.

"Get in the car, you're soaked through to the skin!"

Connor froze to the spot, not sure what to do. Meeting Abby here was not part of his plan; it wasn't supposed to happen like this.

"Connor!" Abby's tone was growing impatient. "You'll catch your death, what on earth are you doing out here at this time of night?"

"Could ask you the same," Connor called back. He blinked the droplets of rain from his eyes as he strained to see Abby. She was getting out of the car now and walking towards him. Now he really had blown it. She would be annoyed that she was getting wet as well.

"You can be so bloody annoying at times, Connor Temple! Just get in the car and I'll take you home."

"Home?" He sniffed. "Not sure I know where that is any more." He saw Abby's expression change and for the first time since she'd arrived he looked at her properly. Her eyes were red and sore as if she'd been crying, but that was impossible since Abby hardly ever cried.

"Sorry," she said quietly, "I guess that's my fault."

"That's partly why I was coming to see you."

"At this time of night?"

"Had to do it whilst I still had the courage to do it, didn't I."

Abby bit down on her bottom lip. She didn't blame Connor for being afraid; she'd blown so hot and cold around him recently. This whole mess was her fault, and now it was time to put it right. After all, that was the reason she was out driving in the rain in the early hours. Looking him straight in the eye, she took a deep breath and leaned forward towards him, pressing her lips against his and allowing them to linger for a moment. She heard his breath hitch and she pulled away to wait for his reaction.

The tension in the air was so thick you could almost reach out and grab it. Abby was determined that this time she would not walk away until she knew how Connor felt. That was the mistake she'd made before and she was not going to let it happen again. She watched Connor's face, willing him to do something – anything.

"Connor? Please say something."

"I can't," Connor swallowed nervously. "This wasn't how it was supposed to happen."

"How what was supposed to happen?"

"I had it all worked out in me head, didn't I. I was going to knock on your front door, and you'd answer and I'd say 'Abby Maitland, I love you' and then you'd ask me to come in and..." Abby's lips were on his again before he could finish speaking. He felt her grasp a handful of hair at the back of his head as her body pressed into his and he melted into her embrace. He slid his arm around her waist, drawing her even closer and then he began to return the kiss. Who cared if this wasn't how he planned it; the result was better than he could have hoped for.

Abby's tongue pushed against his lips, urging them apart. Both gasped as their tongues danced and tangled together, heads spinning as they tried to take in this new sensation. This kiss said more than any words either could have spoken at this moment. Finally, both knew how the other felt. No more misunderstandings or being pushed away.

Reality hit both of them at the same time. The rain was not stopping and they were both cold and wet through. Reluctantly, they parted and Connor shivered. "We need to go home and get out of these wet clothes," Abby whispered.

"Home?"

"The flat. Our flat, Connor." She ran her thumb over the apple of his left cheek and watched his smile spread across his face and the dimple in his cheek deepen. Abby couldn't help but return the smile; she had missed him so much and now suddenly she felt complete again. Sliding her hand into his, she nodded and moved towards the car. "You can get your things from Lester's tomorrow."

Connor followed Abby to the car, then stopped. "Abby, why were you out at this time of night too?"

"There was something I needed to tell you."

"And it couldn't have waited until the morning?"

Abby felt herself blush and then she shook her head. "Great minds think alike." Connor looked confused. "I was coming to tell you that... I need you in my life, Connor."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

As the car doors slammed shut and Abby started the engine, Connor let out a happy, contented sigh. He didn't care that Abby hadn't said that she loved him; he knew it would take more than one kiss to change a lifetime of being let down by love. But he was certain that she did love him anyway, even if she couldn't say it, and that was all that mattered right now.