Assumpta froze at the sudden sensation. Had she really just felt that? Her eyes flew open, the dancing flame in front of her swimming in her vision as she felt Peter's lips caress her neck again. This time there was no mistaking his intention. This was really happening. For better or worse that final wall had been breached and it was up to her to decide what was going to happen next.

Her thoughts were brought to an abrupt halt however when she felt his lips against her for a third time, slightly higher, resting over her pulse point.

Peter could feel her blood pumping under his lips. It made him physically ache as he held her tighter. He wanted to feel her, taste more of her. He gently ran his tongue out between his teeth as his lips closed over her pulse again and when his tongue gently made contact with her skin he felt, rather than heard, her make a deep throated moan. The vibrations ran through him, liquefying his insides.

Assumpta couldn't help it. The sensation was better than any dream, better than any reality she had previously experienced. It was a painful kind of heaven and she was completely lost in the feeling.

Peter continued to plant soft wet kisses on her neck, keen to acquaint his mouth with every curve of her skin. Assumpta's brain began to shut down at the sensation. He had finally done it, finally taken that last leap and gotten of the fence. He was kissing her. She could feel his hands holding her tighter, his kisses becoming bolder, the moisture of his eyes running down his cheeks….

Oh no…

Her eyes flew open. This wasn't right. He had turned to her for comfort and his breaking heart was confusing his emotions. If she let this continue she would be taking advantage of his vulnerable state. He couldn't be counted on to think straight at the moment, so she had too for him. If she didn't stop this soon he would regret his actions tenfold later and she would loose him forever.

As these thoughts came rushing into her mind she used all her remaining will power and, putting her hands on his shoulders, pushed him firmly back from her.

Peter didn't know what to think. His brain was so fogged with desire he couldn't string the words together to ask. He just looked into her eyes, silently pleading her to understand how much he wanted her, how much he needed her.

Assumpta couldn't take the disappointment she saw in his eyes, so she turned her face away and stood up so quickly that the flame of the solitary candle flickered dangerously, causing deep shadows to be thrown across the room.

She ran a shaking hand through her hair as she took a few steps away from him, her back turned, keen to put as much distance between them as the small space allowed.

Peter sat, completely still, exactly where she left him, feeling the sting of the cold cellar air invade the space where Assumpta had been. He looked up at her retreating back and didn't know what to say. Had he completely misjudged her affection for him? Could he have been so wrong about it all? At this thought the blood in his veins ran cold at the prospect of losing her forever because of his rash actions, or even worse, that he may never have had her affections in the first place.

He sat back upright, bought his knees up to his chest and hugged his legs, desperately trying to hold back a new wave of tears. He heard her whisper, her back still turned to him,

"Peter…"

He didn't reply, he was too upset, too embarrassed. It hurt deeper than he ever thought possible. Her rejection compounded his grief, he felt he was being consumed by it.

"Peter, it's not right."

Still he made no response, just stared into the flame, as it danced merrily in front of him, mocking him.

Assumpta didn't know what to say to him. Her heart was breaking at the possibility that he may have kissed her in that moment out of misguided emotion rather than true affection for her. She wanted him so badly, but didn't want him to regret anything they might have together. She was so confused.

His silence encouraged her to keep talking. "I don't want you to do something you will regret. You are upset about your mum. I don't want you to get lost in your grief and regret it later."

The use of the word 'regret' seemed to break Peter from his silence. He turned his face up towards her turned back and whispered, "Regret? What do you mean regret?"

Assumpta was desperately trying to keep her voice steady, "I mean I don't want to take advantage of you. I don't want you to make any rash decisions in the state you're in."

At her words a new fog of emotion flooded Peter's mind, but this time it wasn't passion. He suddenly felt angry, really angry. Everything was going wrong in his life; his mum, his faith, his feelings for Assumpta. Assumpta had been right when she had said he lived his life by such a restrictive set of rules that he wasn't able to express himself. He felt caged, like he was suffocating under the emotions he wasn't free to express. At Assumpta's words all that pent up pressure seemed to burst forth unbidden inside of him. His vision flooded red as his hands began to tremble. She was the only thing he had left which he truly cared about and now she too was treating him like he was incapable of making decisions about his own life. He was sick of having his wants and needs blocked at every turn.

"What right do you have to tell me what decisions to make here Assumpta?!"

The anger in his voice was uncontainable. It erupted from his so violently he stood up quickly to his full height and yelled at her turned back from the other side of the small space.

Assumpta visibly flinched at the raw emotion coming from him. She had never heard him really yell before. She had never heard him so angry. It frightened her.

Peter wasn't even registering what he was saying. His inner most thoughts came racing out of his mouth, his head too clouded with anger to control what he was saying.

"I'm not the one who has made the rash decisions here! I'm not the one who ran off and got married on a whim!"

Assumpta inwardly recoiled at the harshness of his words. How dare he throw Leo back in her face like this? Peter wasn't the only one carrying around a magnitude of built up frustration at their situation. His life wasn't the only one falling apart at the seams.

She turned around slowly to face him. They were only a few feet apart and the candle on the floor at their feet threw an eerie half-light onto their faces, shadowing half their features. But Peter could still see her eyes glowing darkly.

"How dare you," she whispered in a low, dangerous voice. "How dare you throw that back at me."

Peter stared at her defiantly, his face screwed up with anger. As stupid as it sounded he wanted her to get angry at him, to yell and scream at him. He was so sick of all the dancing around each other of the last 3 years he wanted something real between them, even if it was hatred.

"Well it's the truth!" Peter threw back at her, not attempting to moderate the volume of his voice. "You ran away and married another man!"

Assumpta couldn't believe what she was hearing. The full force of the Fitzgerald anger came pouring out as she dropped the quiet menacing tone and matched Peter for force and volume.

"You ran away first! You told me there was no hope for us, you didn't want me! YOU LEFT! What was I meant to do!?"

"I was confused! And I didn't expect you to go out and marry the first old boyfriend you could find! It was hardly a way to fix things WAS IT!?"

"I thought it was over! You told me it was over! You broke my heart Peter! What did you expect me to do?! Wait around and pine over you forever?!"

"Oh please! You couldn't wait to fall back into his arms at the first opportunity!" This was a low blow and he knew it. Deep down he also knew it wasn't true.

Assumpta saw red at these words and couldn't contain herself anymore. That he could blame her entirely for the mess they were in was unbelievable! She grabbed the first thing that came to hand, a can of beer, and threw it with all her might at Peter's head.

In the half-light Peter didn't see it quick enough and moved aside too late as the can hit him on the shoulder. He flinched at the pain it caused and looked up at Assumpta's face, contorted with rage, as she lifted another can ready to throw.

Peter felt possessed and reacted immediately, taking two long strides towards her. He stopped only inches in front of her and seized her raised wrists forcefully in his hands, causing her to drop the can she was holding. He gripped her tightly, almost painfully, and looked down into her blazing eyes, the candlelight throwing dancing shadows across their faces. They were both breathing heavily with frustration, their hot breath blowing sharply into each other's faces.

He spoke in a low, harsh voice, as he practically spat his next words at her.

"Yours wasn't the only heart that got broken Assumpta. Do you know what it was like to come back and find you married to another man? Do have any idea what that did to me?"

He stared hard into her eyes, almost daring her to contradict him. How could she not know the pain it had caused him, her coming back here with Leo? How could she not know…

Assumpta returned his hard look, her arms still painfully held in Peter's tight grip.

"Not half as much as it did when you told me you were choosing your vocation over me. You told me you didn't want me Peter….you didn't want me."

The anger drained from her voice, her last words spoken very softly. The anger was replaced by a pain she had tried so hard to bury since that fateful day in her kitchen not so long ago. Her eyes stung as unbidden tears filled her vision.

Peter felt his rage melt at the sight of her. The anger had gone from her eyes, replaced by a pain he had caused. He couldn't bare it.

He continued to stare down at her as his face fell and he loosened his grip on her wrists. He brushed his fingers over the skin of her forearms in a light caress, and spoke to her in a much calmer, softer voice, letting his own pain come through.

"I wanted you, I always wanted you. I just didn't know how much until I came back and found you with him."

Peter's usual instinct was telling him to stop talking, to not reveal too much. But this time he ignored it. If he wasn't finally honest with her now, in this moment, it was going to eat him up inside.

"I was frightened of the feelings inside me…you consume me Assumpta. You always have."

His last words where so soft she could barely hear them. His eyes too had begun to fill with tears as a single drop fell from her own eyes and slid down her cheek.

At this moment he let go of her completely and took a small step back. He knew what had just happened. He had admitted it, to himself and to her, how he truly felt. There was no going back now. He couldn't bear to continue looking at her, waiting for her rejection. It was too late for them now, he had had his chance before going on retreat and he had missed it, now it was too late. Too much pain had been caused on both sides to ever go back. So he turned his back on her and dropped his head to his chest as the tears began to flow.

Assumpta watched him turn away from her in shock. Had he really just admitted that? Could it be possible? There had been so much misunderstanding between them, so much hiding of their true feelings, that the truth was almost completely lost for them.

She knew in that moment she had to end this now, for both their sakes. She needed to be the one that took that last leap otherwise they would continue this painful dance forever.

She moved forward very slowly to Peter's turned back. She reached out her hand and placed it lightly on his shoulder. He flinched ever so slightly at the contact but didn't move away.

"Peter? Peter, look at me...please."

Peter reluctantly turned to her but refused to meet her eyes. He didn't want to see the rejection he was convinced would be there if he did.

She kept her eyes locked on his downturned face as she moved forward, painfully slowly, frightened he would back away from her.

"Look at me Peter," she whispered.

Peter slowly lifted his head to her and watched, mesmerized by the way she seemed to glow in the candlelight as she moved towards him.

"It's time to face your fears Peter," she whispered. "Time for both of us to face our fears."

The way she spoke, the seductive, finite tone, seemed to electrify the air around them. Suddenly everything came into sharp focus as their eyes drank in the sight of each other in the soft light. This was the moment, the catalyst of their future, they could both feel it. He knew if he touched those lips with his own there would be no going back.

She continued to lean in closer, and when there were only a few millimeters between their lips she softly whispered,

"Kiss me Peter."

Her deep, husky voice, so laden with desire, proved all the encouragement Peter needed as every defense he had ever erected around his heart against her came crashing down. He squeezed his eyes shut and, as a strangled cry emitted from the back of his throat, his lips collided passionately with hers.

As their lips finally met, the small flame at their feet flickered and died.


I know this is a long chapter, but I couldn't think of a good place to split it without ruining the building tension.

I would really like to know what you thought of this installment.

Please don't hate me for having them say such nasty things to each other! It's just I honestly think that they needed to have a real argument to get everything out in the open. I think it was important for them to have a proper fight about Leo and the pain they had caused each other. It seems the only way to get past it and move on properly. (Well it is in my head anyway!)

Please let me know if you liked it :)