Gwen made a face at the lump on her bed. It was 3am in the morning and it looked like she was going to have to make do on the couch. Her hard, not-very-good-for-sleeping couch. This was the last time she was going to do Merlin a favour - except she told herself that the last time and look what happened.

The lump groaned and shifted.

Sighing, Gwen grabbed a blanket from her closet and made her way to the couch. It was a good thing tomorrow was Sunday and she had no reason to wake up early.

She was up by 9am the next day, aided by the least comfortable night she'd ever had. Her first thought was to call Merlin and demand he come by and sort out the problem but then she remembered that Freya was in town. As put out as she was by the unexpected guest, she still hadn't the heart to interrupt Merlin's time with Freya - their long-distance relationship was tenuous enough without her interference. Which meant she was left to deal with her unwanted guest on her own.

Torn between letting him continue sleeping and waking him up, she paced around her tiny apartment. She let her gaze wander around the apartment - it was small but for the first time in her life, she had a place of her own and she was immensely proud of it. Sure her landlord was incredibly fussy about every little thing - from how late she was allowed to have guests to how often she should clean her floor - but Gwen was willing to work around these rules to have her own apartment.

"Hello? Where on earth am I? Hello?"

So her unwelcomed guest was up. Her heart thumping heavily, Gwen popped her head into her bedroom.

Damn. He was topless.

"Umm, hi!" She kept her eyes focused on the ground. By now, her heart was beating madly. It wasn't like she was inexperienced or anything but how often did someone like her have the city's most eligible bachelor in her bed?

He flung his legs across the bed and made to get up. Although she had meant to keep her eyes firmly on the ground, she found herself staring at his chest as he yawned and stretched, watching his muscles move.

"Are you staring? Why don't you make yourself useful and get me a towel so I can take a bath. I am going to kill Merlin for leaving me here."

That snapped Gwen out of her stupor. For a brief moment, her hormones had over-ridden her common sense and she'd forgotten who he was. With Merlin's stories and the reports in the various gossip magazines, she had a good idea what kind of person Arthur Pendragon was - rude, arrogant and selfish, all thanks to the millions from his father's company. Whatever he wanted, he got.

"Hello? Are you deaf or something?"

Anger bubbled up in her but she reminded herself that he was Merlin's boss. She could tolerate his rudeness for a few minutes. Gritting her teeth, Gwen fetched a towel from her cupboard and tossed it to him.

"The bathroom is over there. Sorry it's a bit small," she added a little churlishly.

He merely grunted in reply and shuffled off to the bathroom.

It was about 20 minutes later that he finally emerged from her bedroom. Hopeful that they could end their brief acquaintance on a more positive note, Gwen had prepared a simple breakfast for the both of them. Perhaps after a shower, he would be more agreeable. She was still going to kill Merlin, after Freya left that is.

"Hey," he looked suspiciously at the table and then at her, "You look familiar. Do I know you?"

"I'm Gwen, Merlin's friend. I am also your sister's personal assistant."

"Right, right. Gwen. That's not really your name is it?"

Slightly stunned that he even knew that, she only managed a choked "yes" before quickly pouring him a mug of coffee.

"So," he shifted in his seat, "how did I end up in your bed? Wait, did we …"

"What? No!"

"You don't have to sound so horrified," he smirked, "I'm not that awful in bed. In fact …"

He was putting images she didn't want in her head. "Merlin dropped you off. Apparently you'd gotten yourself sloshed and well, Merlin said you refused to go home."

"So why didn't Merlin just bring me back to his place?"

"Because Freya was there. I don't think you would have contributed to the romantic atmosphere. Not with your snoring." The moment the last line left her mouth, regret set in. Why did she have to say that?

"I do not snore!"

Apparently, her mouth was not listening to her brain. "You do! I thought a pig had entered the house - I think I'd better stop talking."

He narrowed his eyes at her, clearly annoyed at her runaway mouth. Dumping his half-finished coffee mug on the table, he stood up. "If you can gather up my things, I'll be on my way and you wouldn't have to bother with me or my snoring."

Annoyed at his constant demands, she refused to move and continued sipping her coffee. Clearly her refusal to move from her seat surprised him. He was probably used to having everyone jump when he snapped his fingers.

"Well?" He asked imperiously and she snapped.

"Do you think I am your servant? This is my home and you are a guest - an unwelcomed one I might add. I know you're probably used to having people wait on you hand and foot but that is no excuse to be so rude! I gave you my bed, I provided you with breakfast and do you say thank you? No. Instead you order me around. Would it kill you to say "please" or "thank you" once in a while?"

Oh god, he was really going to fire Merlin now. She really should have just kept her mouth shut, picked up his clothes, shoved him out of her door and just made sure she never had anything else to do with him again. But he was so unbelievably rude!

"Do you have anything else to add?" He had moved closer and was staring intently at her.

She gulped. "No. I think that's it." This was probably a good time to get his clothes so she made a move to leave the table.

"Wait. You're right. You allowed me into your house and I have behaved appallingly."

He had grabbed her arm and she felt a slight thrill go through her body. How ridiculous was it that she could simultaneously feel annoyance and attraction to him?

"I didn't mean to make you feel bad."

"Oh really?"

"Well, perhaps a little," she admitted reluctantly. He was being very nice about her outburst and it made her feel even more nervous. For some reason, he was staring at her, his eyes flickering between her eyes and her lips. She gulped but she found herself unable to look away. Something seemed to hum in between them.

Finally, he turned away and walked into her bedroom. When he emerged with his things, she moved to open the door for him, mostly relieved that this situation was coming to an end.

At the door, he turned to face her. "Thank you for everything. I will make it up to you." Then, he smiled, a big sunny smile that turned her knees to liquid.

Her brain must have stopped working too because she opened her mouth and said, "Please don't fire Merlin."

That elicited a laugh from him. A quick wave of his hand and he was gone.

Hopefully she would never have to interact with him again.