It was past eleven when they finally made it into bed. Richard hadn't had any objections to staying in the sitting room – it had been easier that way, and the fluffy carpet had been more than good enough for them. Later, they had curled up on the sofa together with a blanket, but although it had been snug and intimate, and he had been happy to feel Camille cuddled up to him, it had become a little uncomfortable with time…

So they decided to change the venue and went upstairs.

Camille was in bed only a few minutes later. Richard put the strawberries in a bowl, carried it upstairs, along with the champagne and two glasses, and Camille's eyes widened when she saw him coming in, juggling the bottle, the bowl and the glasses. He smiled at her and said "We don't want this to go to waste, do we?" With that, he put down the bowl on the nightstand, poured the champagne into the glasses and then dimmed the light before joining Camille.

So, they had a little feast, and as she watched him sipping his champagne and eating a strawberry with obvious relish, Camille couldn't help but giggle when she remembered how uptight and stuffy Richard had been when he had greeted her in his office earlier that day. "What's so funny?" he asked. She explained, and he said remorsefully "Oh, I had to, you know… couldn't do anything else with Shaw being present, and then I was nervous, too."

Before she could ask any more questions, he explained "I mean, I didn't know how you would react. After all, I had acted behind your back, and I wasn't sure what you would think about that. I'm glad that you don't hate me for contacting the French… I know that you wouldn't have needed my intervention, but it has perhaps helped to speed up things a little. Sooner or later, something would have come along, anyway, I know, but I so wanted you to be closer, so I felt I had to do something…"

She nodded and put her hand on his arm as she said appreciatevely "I'm glad you went ahead. You did the right thing, so don't worry. Although I wasn't so sure for a few days if I was really qualified – I mean, they mostly approached me because of my undercover experience in the first place, and after I had agreed to apply and was offered the position, I suddenly got doubts. My last undercover mission didn't end so well…" She gave a half-suppressed laugh.

He had the decency to blush and then began to defend himself by saying that if he had been informed by the Commissioner back then that she'd been on a mission, he wouldn't have blown her cover… but she only laughed out loud and said "Take it easy, Richard. I don't hold it against you any more. It's history. And after all, it all worked out well, although I didn't see it that way for a while. But once I got over my grudge, working with you was a very valuable experience, and I learnt so much from you. I can tell you now – you drove me nuts, and I found you infuriating, impossible, and pedantic, but once I had realised that you weren't annoying anyone on purpose, all was good! It was so much fun to work with you…"

"Was it?" He knew it was pathetic, but he wanted to hear more. She smiled and fed him another strawberry. "It was..." Then, thoughtfully, "Didn't you notice? I mean, you may have been the most annoying man on the island, but you also were the smartest one, so why didn't you ever make a move? Did I scare you so much?"

Richard raised his eyebrows. "In one word? Yes. You scared me out of my wits… and you made me look stupid. And I just didn't know how you did it. I mean, you are disorganised, impulsive and cheeky – ouch!" – at that point, she gave him a punch, but he continued "… and I couldn't understand why I would feel inferior to someone with dubious qualities like that… who threatened to take me in a fistfight, on top of everything else… It took me a while to understand that you also are compassionate, smart and thoughtful. And of course, you're very pretty. And smart and pretty women never looked my way, so… But when I left for England – when we had solved the Powell case – I felt that you didn't really want me to leave. And although going back to the UK was like a dream come true, I wasn't so happy about it any more when I finally had the chance to do so. I missed you during that week, and I was confused. Then you threw that welcome party for me when I came back, and I felt that things were shifting, but well, you know me… reading people is not my strong side, so I was afraid I might misinterpret your friendliness… As far as I'm concerned, I knew then that I was very much in love with you, but well…"

"And you hid it," Camille said sadly. "You hid it when I was waiting for a sign from you. I mean, I had a faint idea and a little hope, but… I have never told you, have I, how I sat on the steps of your shack and cried when your plane left…" He looked at her incredulously, his eyes wide. "You did? Good Lord. If only I had known. But then again, maybe it would have scared me even more. I don't know. I hate to say it, but I really don't know…"

He looked at her, remorse and regret in his eyes. "And I have never apologised for not responding to your cards, have I?" She shook her head. "You haven't. But I think I know why you didn't write or e-mail. Let me give a guess… you didn't know what to say?"

He nodded. "And I felt… weak. Invalid. There was nothing I could offer you. I mean, I had no idea what the future would bring, whether or not I'd recover, how my job situation would develop… how could I write to you? How could I tell you I missed you when all I had was my misery, my poor health and my worries? Why would you want to hear from me?" "Because you're a friend?" she suggested softly. "That is, if you hadn't understood by then that – while I do a lot for my friends – I wouldn't have spent most of my spare time in the hospital on Saint Marie, travelled to Guadeloupe twice a week to see you there, and e-mailed with your mother on an almost daily basis so I would not miss any little bit of progress you'd make…" She looked at him, a hint of sarcasm in her eyes. "I think we both agree that I wouldn't have done all this if you hadn't been more than 'just a friend' to me…"

Richard was embarrassed. But then her gaze softened, and she continued "I know you didn't know all that. And while I was hurt at first that I didn't hear from you, your mother kept me updated, and she also told me about the struggles and difficulties you had to face, the lack of progress and everything else. If it hadn't been for her, I don't know what would have happened, but she kept me informed, and she said that she knew you missed me. That kept me going… and when she asked if I could stay for a few days when I had to travel to Manchester, I knew I was going to see you… and that would perhaps change everything – and it did… "

"I'm glad that you came," he said. "Once you were there, it was much easier, and by then I had understood that I was even more miserable without you… Still, it was difficult enough. You know, you were there, as beautiful as ever, and I… I wasn't much of anything. But you can't imagine how much I had wanted to see you again. I just didn't know how to do it…" He looked up and gave her a crooked smile. "We must remember to get a bow and an arrow for my mum some time, and maybe a set of feathered wings" he said. "I've never thought of her as the personification of Cupid, but obviously she's just that!"

He shifted to get a little more comfortable and pulled Camille towards him. "Thank you," he whispered, "for not holding it against me that I was such an idiot…" He felt her giggling in his arms, and as her hand stroked him softly, she said mischeviously "I guess I'm used to you being just that, Richard… but really, I love it!"

Then, after a few minutes of silence, she asked all of a sudden: "Tell me, what is Potter like?" "My boss? Hmmm…" "Is he like you? I mean, nobody could be like you, of course, but well… is he…" "English? Yes, Camille, he is… of course!" "Oh, be serious, please! I mean, I want to be prepared… Will you be present during the meeting as well?"

Richard frowned, thinking about how to describe Potter. Finally, he said "He's in his early 50s, I'd say. Tall and lean. From what I've heard, he's into long distance running. A bit obsessed with healthy lifestyle altogether. Oatmeal and dried fruits and all that, you know. Shrewd. Observant. Not into flattery and that sort of thing, but good with people – he's not the kind of person who will butter up people, but he knows how to make them feel appreciated without being slimy." "You like him," said Camille. He nodded "Yes, I do. He's clear about what he wants and why he wants you to do something. Won't trick you into something like – er – the Commissioner does."

Camille propped up on her elbow and laughed. "You still haven't forgiven him?" she asked. Richard raised his eyebrows and said "Ah no, Camille… I have forgiven him, but I haven't forgotten how he made me stay on Saint Marie in the first place. That was sneaky. But it's history, and if you look at it from a different angle, he has actually done me a favour because I wouldn't have got to know you if he hadn't made me stay…. Plus I actually enjoyed the work there! And he cooperated very well when it came to your transfer. But in any event, back to Potter… yes, he's a good boss. A bit too 'generous' with details sometimes – I mean, he sometimes glosses over things to make them look better. But well, you might have to do that in his position…"

"Does he know about us?" Camille asked. "Erm… you mean if I told him that you and I…? No, all he knows is that we worked together on Saint Marie. He has read your file – and the Commissioner also recommended you warmly in the letter I had asked him to send. I said you're the best partner I ever had – which is true – and that you're more than qualified to teach. Mentioned that you're bilingual. That's a big plus in his book. Also said you've got a knack with people." "What did he say?" Camille was curious.

Richard laughed. "He actually said that you've got to have a knack with people if you were able to work with me." She was a little shocked and said "Now, that doesn't sound very nice! Although he's got a point! Does he wear a suit and brogues all the time?" Richard grinned. "Why do you want to know that? But yes, he does. And in winter, he wears a jumper or a waistcoat as well! Oh, and you might want to steal a glance at his socks when you see him tomorrow…" She looked at him inquiringly. Now, what could be so remarkable about socks? She wanted to know more, but he refused to tell her. "Just wait and see," he sniggered.

She gave up and began to ask him about Shaw. "What does he do in the department? Is he your assistant?" Richard wrinkled his nose and said "Yes, he is, but don't tell him… No, seriously, he's one in a group of four sergeants in the department, and he does all sorts of administrative stuff. He seems shy at first, but in fact he's really quick-witted, and he can be quite funny. He's basically – er – a decent guy, if you know what I mean… authentic, honest and polite. You don't find that very often these days… He's pretty good at what he does, and he's got an incredible network – it seems he knows everybody and their sister, all over the place. That's an unbelievable advantage as he knows whom to ask when you need something extra. When I got that office, I wasn't happy with the visitor chairs they had given me – they were ugly and smelly, and I suspect they had taken them out of some mouldy cubbyhole where they had been sitting for ages. I didn't want to have anything unhygienic like that in my office! Shaw was on the telephone within minutes, and on the very next day, I had the furniture that you saw today. In jest, I like to call him my adjutant, if you know what I mean."

Reflectively, he added "He's a bit like Dwayne in regard to the networking aspect, but altogether not quite as laissez-faire as Dwayne… fortunately! You'll have to deal with him every once in a while when it comes to time tables for courses and all that – he does all the petty work. He never complains, mind you… and he's always friendly."

Camille nodded and said "He was very nice to me, that's right." Richard said drily "That does not surprise me. I saw the look on his face when he came into my office with you today – he's clearly smitten with you. I'm afraid you have another admirer already…"

She grinned. "And does it disturb you?" she asked cheekily. "Not seriously," he said, feigning disdain. "He's far too young for you, and he doesn't have much more hair than I do, so I don't think he's a threat."

With that, he pulled her closer again and said softly "And now, my love, let's finally go to sleep. You'll be busy tomorrow – after the meeting with Potter at 10 you'll meet a few people of the British team, I suppose we'll have a lunch break with all of them, and we'll have to discuss the tentative plan on what courses you'll teach, you'll get a list of workshops you might be interested in, and there'll be administrative stuff to handle, like getting a guest chip card, an ID and all sorts of other things. The alarm will go off at 6, and I'll get up then as I'll have to go into work straight away. You can take a little more time, but you can't really dawdle too much, so…"

Camille snuggled up to him and smiled as he switched off the light. Tomorrow would be an interesting day…