Chapter 2

Sherlock awoke first, they were tangled together, Irene was leaning on him with one of her legs draped over his, her hand on his chest and he was holding her waist possessively.

He had no idea how they had got into this position subconsciously, but he was surprisingly comfortable. Sherlock would have moved ages ago but Irene was putting most of her weight on him, he could move her out of the way but that would mean she would probably wake up and catch him in the act which would lead to more embarrassment than just leaving it as it was.

About half an hour later Irene awoke, she stretched her arms then replaced them in the same position, nuzzling her head into his shoulder.

"Good morning Mr Holmes" she said while looking up at him.

she moved her hand to place it over his heart.

"Your pulse is elevated" she said with a beaming smile on her face and looked up and into his eyes then stretched up and whispered "You're pupils are dilated"

She rolled out of the bed and went to the kitchen to make tea.

"No they're not!" he said sounding slightly embarrassed and childlike. Irene just sniggered at him and continued to make tea. Sherlock jumped out of bed and strode into the bathroom, he looked in the mirror, she was right, his pupils were dilated. He was shocked but decided to not talk about it any more, he hated being wrong.

Sherlock grumpily sat at the dining table as Irene handed him a cup of tea, sat opposite him and smirked, probably too long for comfort.

"What?" Sherlock suddenly stated

"I was right wasn't I you're pupils we're dilated" she said with a low voice

"...maybe they were, but that doesn't mean anything"

"Mr Holmes you have proved that theory wrong yourself"

Sherlock stormed off onto the balcony, Irene decided to leave him alone for a bit so she sat down and turned on the television. She quite quickly found the English channels, the news was per usual, nothing interesting. She thought "oh if I was still 'alive' I would have the nation at its knees once again."

Leaving the television on she went into the bathroom for a shower taking some more clothes from the suitcase with her.

A couple of minutes later Sherlock poked his head out the door and made sure the coast was clear he did't want a replay of earlier on.

Irene returned dressed in a black lacy top and a white pencil skirt, sherlock was waiting on the chair outside waiting to have a shower.

"You know what Sherlock"

"..."

"We could have just showered together, it would have taken half the time" she smiled

Sherlock rolled his eyes and speedily retreated to the bathroom.

"Ok then, we need to get going. The plane takes off in two hours."

"And may I ask where are you taking me?"

"Somewhere safe"

"And where is safe?" She said approaching him confidently

"I'll tell you when we get there" Sherlock pulled the handle of the suitcase and began to roll it on the floor and handed the second one to Irene then led her out the door.

Once the door was locked and they had entered the elevator Sherlock spoke.

"I've acquired fake passports and driving licences" He seemed tense.

Irene deduced she must have shocked him a bit when proving his possible sentiment for her. She was thrilled with his feelings, secret or not she new she was right and he had no way around it.

"Will you be staying long?"

"A week or two give or take, just until you've settled down"

"I'm looking forward to it" She linked her arm to his and held his hand as they exited the elevator and entered the reception to check out.

Sherlock whipped his head round only to see her grinning like a cat. He was so confused about his feelings for her, Sherlock Holmes doesn't do 'sentiment' and especially not romance, he did't know what he felt for her but it is defiantly more than friendship whether he liked it or not.

When they arrived at Jinnah airport and passed customs successfully they went for lunch at a small cafe, just as they sat down Sherlock's phone rang.

"Hello"

"Sherlock where the hell are you? Lestrade checked the case you said you were on it doesn't exist!"

"It's a private case none of his or your concern"

"But Sher-"

He hung up and took a deep breath it was going to be hard keeping up this act for a while, it was worth it if it ensured Irene's safety.

"He'll never stop calling you, you know"

"He worries about you, nearly as much as you worry about me Mr Holmes"

He gave Irene a sharp stare, he couldn't argue with that she did have a point.

The flight was nine and a half hours, they planned to sleep on the plane, it would be 9 in the morning when they landed.

Sherlock was taking Irene to a small village set into the mountains of Iceland. He had hired an architect he had solved a case for to build her a house, he had no idea what it was like though, everything had been organised in such a rush the house had just been furnished two weeks ago. They'll just have to wait and see, he requested modern and luxurious and it had come with a hefty price tag even with the discount he was given.

They sat down and sunk into their first class seats, it was comfortable enough two small televisions and complementary wine was provided.

"So we're going to Iceland then? I've never been there before."

"Which is what makes it so safe and also Moriarty's crime web doesn't spread that far."

"And how do you know that?"

"Mycroft."

"Of course I should have guessed" She said taking a sip of her wine. Sherlock was being awkward, this was going to be a long flight.

After a couple of hours of watching the television Irene fell asleep.

While Sherlock was reading his copy of the times he felt Irene's head begin to lean on his shoulder. He turned to look at her.

"Hello Sir would you like to order lunch?" said a stewardess with a strong Icelandic accent; interrupting his gaze.

Now it was about two thirds of the way through the flight Sherlock felt Irene lean closer to him and let out a soft groan her breathing pattern had changed and Sherlock knew she was awake.

"You've been leaning on my shoulder for five hours!" He said quietly but with some annoyance in his tone.

"And good morning to you too Mr Holmes" She said with a tired voice returning her head to the seat.

Sherlock breathed out heavily. "I got you some lunch earlier its probably cold by now though."

"I could eat anything right now I'm 'starving'." She emphasised the word never letting her eyes leave his.

After lunch Irene fixed her hair which had messed slightly when she slept.

Finally the flight came to an end. They left the airport and picked up the car Sherlock had bought for Irene.

It was a land rover, Irene was convinced she looked absolutely ridiculous driving it but Sherlock insisted it was necessary with this terrain.

Yet he ended up driving it to the house anyway.

She was really quite excited about her new abode, of course she knew it would feel lonely with just her there but she had no choice.

"So what's my new house like then?" She said with a positive voice

"I have absolutely no idea"

"What do you mean you have no idea!"

"I hired a designer a couple of months ago I did't have any time to come to Iceland to see it."

"Great" she said sounding slightly stressed.

When they arrived they found a four story glass house set into the beautiful snow topped mountains. Even with the cold weather and the modern building it somehow still had a cosy feel to it, so far she was surprisingly impressed.

After parking the over-sized car they walked up to the porch unlocking the double doors to reveal a stunning entrance, next to it a shower room, through another pair of doors there was a white gleaming kitchen and a matching dining area.

Up the spiral staircase was a living room with a gigantic television, it was almost like being in a cinema! Sprouting off of that was a large bathroom, a professional looking office and a small balcony.

On the top floor was a small but luxurious bedroom with a en suite and walk in wardrobe. An equivalent to a garden was a patio on the roof topped off with a hot tub and outdoor dining set.

They went back into the bedroom and Irene sunk into a sofa.

"Wow it's amazing."

"I'm glad you like it, but don't you want to see the basement?"

Without saying a thing Irene grabbed his hand and they travelled all the way to the bottom of the staircase.

She found a beautiful family room with a fireplace in the centre. Sherlock stepped forward and opened some double doors, behind them was a light blue pool. He smiled and turned to her for approval. Irene was absolutely speechless, and to think Sherlock had paid for all this out of his own money. He must be rich.

She almost jumped at him, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck.

"Thank you so much, I really don't deserve this" he did't reply but she kissed him on the cheek quickly before he could pull away.

"We need to get some food, I'll go to the supermarket and I'll leave you to settle in for a bit." He said whilst straightening his suit then walking towards the staircase.

She followed him, when they got to the front door she hugged him again; but this time he returned the hug.

Watching the car go into the distance she sighed sweetly. Sherlock was the only person she had ever truly loved. And that was true she did love him even if it went against anything she believed about relationships he was different to everyone else and she was convinced that he felt the same way.