They were both quiet on their way back to Rose's flat, Alec wondering whether to ask Rose if she could now tell him about her past, not the official versions and more importantly, about the man she had lost, since Pete said it was up to her if she told him, Pete had sworn he would never interfere.

Rose was still wondering why Alec could be so gentle and loving in bed but so fierce when it came to insisting he would leave her at the first indication he discovered she had helped him secure a job or made it sound more attractive for him to stay in London. Just what was it with him? She dare not come right out and ask him though, for fear he would just pack and leave but she came to the conclusion it was his way of coming out of a long illness and getting divorced from his apparently cheating wife.

Since Rose had booked time off work, neither of them set their alarms for the following morning but Alec woke up early anyway, something he had got used to after waking up from his nightmare he was drowning over and over again, though not so much these days since the killers had been locked up. He had thought just let some fancy solicitor get them out of it and he now swore if they did, he would forget his pride and ask Pete Tyler to get something done about it but that would mean the convictions were not solid enough and he just knew his unusual methods of discovering the truth were less than conventional and he'd had to hand the whole thing over to Tess.

At least she had agreed to give him some credit for it though, saying if he was asked to say he just consulted on it to save getting him in more trouble than he probably already was but now he'd just been cleared on it so he may get some of the glory after all but it hadn't been about that, it had been about Ashworth being smug and thinking he'd got away with it.

As Alec waited for Rose to wake up, one arm under his head and the other, Rose was sleeping on, he was debating his decision to take it out on her, to drill it in to her he wasn't going to accept her help just because she could help him. It could have been different if she wasn't famous, any woman could have been the one he'd asked directions that night but it had to be her, out of the millions of people in London, at that exact moment he had turned from looking at that board, it had been Rose Tyler. Was it his destiny to meet her, his reward for all the crap that had come his way the last few years? Maybe it was but if he kept on having sex with her one minute and the next he was telling her he would go to work in Sheffield after all?

Why had he become so bitter lately? He should be happy he'd just solved the case that had got away from him, treated Rose differently, she didn't deserve to have him in her bed then him saying he would leave if he suspected she was helping him. He made his mind up, he would take her somewhere nice tomorrow night in Brighton and tell her he was sorry, not all women were like his ex, or Claire Ripley. Not all women used men to their own ends or cheated on their husbands, he shouldn't class Rose as one of them who did.

He felt Rose moving on his arm and tried to lean over to kiss her as she moved into his side. She was a beauty, there was no mistake about that and she could have easily thrown him out on Monday night when he had come on to her and when he had been so insistent on leaving the next morning, something had made her ask him to remain with her and something had made him want to, with certain conditions. He knew he had to at least lift some of them, if he wanted her to open up to him about her past.

"Hi beautiful, you woken up properly yet?" he asked, kissing her neck instead so she wouldn't back away from him.

"Hey, yeah, I'm awake, how about a good morning snog? You were amazing last night Alec, did I tell you? I'm sorry I've been so shy in that department but last night, I felt differently, now I know I can tell you things but I need something from you first, before I tell you."

"Such as? Do you want another demonstration of my capabilities? If you do, I'm more than happy to do so, you only have to ask. Speaking of which, about us, having sex, do I need to actually ask you if you want to?"

"No, do I have to ask you? We can give each other subtle hints or otherwise. If I don't really feel like it, especially next week when I start to feel a bit off, I'll let you down nicely, I won't kick you out and if you're not in the mood, we'll just do some snogging, let's not make a big deal out of it. I'm in the mood now, if you are?"

Was she kidding? Rose continued as Alec pulled down the straps on her vest top, it had already worked its way up, showing her tummy as he pulled back the covers, putting one hand on her bare skin and leaning down to kiss his way across. Rose ruffled his hair as the other hand was on the waistband of his shorts, Alec's other hand trying to ease down her underwear over one of her hips. Suddenly she tried to flip him onto his back, pulling her with him, Alec taking advantage and relieving her of the offending piece of underwear but leaving on her vest top, ran his fingers across her tummy.

"I'm sorry Rose, for what I said, for keeping on about leaving to go to Sheffield. I'll stick the six months out then see what happens, I'll stay here or try for my old job in Broadchurch back but only if you want to come with me, if we're still together. I've been an ass Rose, I don't deserve you."

Rose leaned down to kiss him. "I know you don't want any help Alec, I'll try my best not to offer any but it's what I do. That friend I lost, that's what we did, we helped people and a lot of it rubbed off on me and now I'm in a better position to help even more people but I promise not to interfere with your new job. What has Pete already told you?"

"Later Rose, come here love, I want you."

As they both forgot about Alec being told exactly what Torchwood were about and Rose telling him about her painful past, Alec was just getting used to all the old feelings he used to have as Rose lay on him after they had both satisfied each other, kissing and hands all over each other. Neither of them wanted to be the first to stop and Alec knew just a few weeks ago, it would have finished him off for good. Had he somehow known he was going to meet Rose?

After a late breakfast, they packed what they needed for a weekend away and Alec insisted on doing the driving down to Brighton, finding the hotel and leaving the car there after they informed the reception. Rose wanted to go for a walk on the pier, the first time they had really been out together during the day apart from the shopping trip and halfway along the pier, they stopped to sit out and have a late lunch. Rose of course wanted to go into the funfair, Alec was sure she was going to drag him on some of the rides but they just walked around. She did try to get him to win a cuddly toy on the shooting range but he said he had an unfair advantage, given he'd had firearms training, which made Rose giggle and said she wouldn't tell on him.

So walking back down the pier with a large pink elephant that Rose was going to name grump after him, they went to book into the hotel, getting a funny look from the receptionist whom Alec hoped wouldn't think Rose was anything other than his girlfriend. He knew he was going to find it difficult to convince people of their exact relationship but now, he didn't really care what people thought, Rose was with him and that was that. They stayed in the hotel for dinner and a few drinks, Alec saying he would look up places to go the following night where they could have a meal and a drink and he asked her what she wanted to do the following day.

"Maybe we can have a look around the shops and in the afternoon, have a drive somewhere?"

"Fine but I'm doing the driving, I quite like your car, at least it's an automatic, unlike Miller's. I borrowed it once and I kept crashing the gears, she never forgave me."

Rose smiled and put her arm in his, leaning on his shoulder. She had chosen the blue patterned dress and Alec thought it looked better than when she had tried it on in the store. The rest of the weekend went well, apart from Alec getting dragged around the shopping arcade much to his dismay, waiting for her trying yet another dress on as though she didn't have enough in her wardrobe already but she insisted she wanted to look nice for him tonight since he had already seen her wearing the other one she had brought with her.

During their meal later on, Alec was figuring out how to apologise to her for being a complete ass in the way he had been treating her.

"Will you take me to my new job on Monday morning Rose?" he asked hopefully as they waited for their dessert.

"Yeah, maybe I should just go on the tube with you, to get your ticket and show you where to change though I think it's only one stop."

"Well you never told me I would have to change when we looked places up the other night but no matter. I got offered one nearer but you warned me about them, remember?"

"Yeah, sorry but I'll go with you because it's a fair way to drive in morning traffic. Once I drop you off, I'll wait close by then we can go up into the centre, take that tour bus."

"If you insist but I may have a while to wait to go back to work, no sense in getting a weekly ticket, I'll just get a day one. If I have some more time off, I could take you down to Broadchurch for a few days, if you want me to consider going back to work there?"

"I'd like that, yeah but how about we go somewhere for a week or so? I could book a last minute holiday if you like?"

"What? Sitting by a pool all day that I can't go in? Sorry Rose, I still can't face going in water just for the fun of it, it's all still too fresh in my mind, especially after just locking up the killer."

"Not even to see me in my bikini? We could rent a villa, have our own pool and well, I wouldn't need to wear one then, would I?"

Alec smiled at the thought, maybe she would make it worth his while to sit with his feet in the pool and what harm would he come to with her there? She wouldn't let anything happen to him, he would be safe enough with her.

"I'll think about it, let's see what happens on Monday first. Do you want to go to a bar or something?"

"Mmm, maybe one where we can dance?"

"Really? You want to go dancing? I'm not up to that modern stuff that passes for dancing, in case you haven't noticed, I'd stick out from the crowd."

"Well just look up bars on your phone, maybe a piano bar or somewhere that plays smoochy music, if that's more to your liking?"

They eventually found somewhere a five minute walk from their hotel and went inside, the music indeed being more to Alec's liking as Rose found a table and he went to the bar, Rose asking for a fruit cocktail she had seen on a poster in the doorway. Alec wondered if she was going to drink it or eat it when he asked for one and was presented with a tall blue glass complete with a straw-type spoon and a paper umbrella. He took the drinks over and Rose smiled at him, noticing two men on the next table were already eyeing her and daring them to come over. Rose was aware she was being watched and leaned over to kiss Alec, putting a smile on his face and he then took her hand, pulling her back. The two men soon turned their attention elsewhere after Rose and Alec kissed again.

Rose had another cocktail, between getting Alec up to dance and holding tightly onto him, both of his arms around her waist, straying to her rear and making her smile. When they walked back to the hotel, first crossing the road and looking across at the pier all brightly lit up and them kissing briefly, they went back into the hotel arm in arm and up to their room, Alec deciding he was really going to make it up to her and tell her he loved her. If she felt the same then all the better and if not, he deserved for her to kick him out for the way he had treated her since they met but judging as they stopped to kiss outside their room door, he didn't have to worry on that score.

Neither of them knew it was the calm before the storm.