A/N: Thanks again for your lovely reviews. Here's the Epilogue. It's nothing special, really, I just wanted to round off the story. I'm glad so many of you liked it! :)

Epilogue:

Little specks of ice were collecting on the window as the plane slowly descended into London Heathrow. C.C. shifted, experiencing a familiar and dizzying pulling sensation just above her navel that this time she wasn't sure was because of the plane's movement. Instead, she thought, that the new part of her life that she was going to embark on once they had touched down in London was enough to make her feel a little bit queasy.

It had taken a year to figure out her options in London, to find a flat and to ship the contents of her life across the ocean. And it had required quite a lot of discussions between her and Niles as well. She'd known from his proposals, of course, what kind of life he had envisioned with her. And as afraid as she was to not fulfil that perfect image he had of her, she had had to confess in the end, that she was afraid of taking any such big step yet. She knew now that she cared deeply about him and she didn't want to miss him anymore but at the same time she was scared of rushing into the relationship, rushing into living together and consequently ruining things again. She'd need time to adjust and fortunately he had been more than happy to grant her that. A faint smile appeared on her lips and she relaxed somewhat against her seat while the wheels of the plane came in contact with the tarmac.

As the air hostess' voice welcomed them into London and then droned on about the weather and further information, C.C. suddenly felt blissfully excited and free of any other anxieties. For the first time since she had set off she couldn't wait to see him again. But Heathrow was doing its best to hinder her progress. The walk to the border control was long and the terminal was filled with far too many people. 40 minutes passed until finally, she only had to wait for her luggage. Lifting her three suitcases one after the other onto a baggage trolley, she took a moment to collect herself before stepping out into the arrival zone. She fished a mirror out of her purse and freshened up her make-up, then ran a hand through her hair to stop it from being so flat. She knew that he'd tease her in anyway, but she still wanted him to find her appealing. With a click of the tongue she finally decided that this was as good as it was going to get, stowed her things away again and then started pushing the trolley past customs and out into a fresh throng of people, all of which were craning their necks to spot their friend or relative.

It was him who saw her first and before she had the chance to realise what was happening, he had wrapped his arms around her and pulled her against him.

"Hello, Babcock," he smiled and then captured her lips in a gentle but heated kiss.

"You seem excited," she mumbled back, barely able to contain her own smile.

"Well, my favourite sparring partner has returned. How could I not be?"

She slowly freed herself, nudged the trolley towards him and then slipped her hand into his. "Let's see if you'll still be saying that once you've lost the first round."

"You should only get so lucky," he chuckled and together they started walking towards the exit.