"You're iwhat/i?" Alec said, his eyebrows shooting up.

Rose bit her lip and repeated herself. "I'm pregnant."

"Yeah, I heard you the first time, I'm just in shock," he replied.

"You want to run away, don't you?" she asked, looking down.

"No, it's not that. I'm just not sure how to react. I don't know if I should be happy or sad for you," he said, taking both her hands in his.

"Don't be sad. I was, at first. But I'm not anymore," she replied.

"John's?"

"Yeah."

"Oh, Rose," he said, brushing his thumb across her cheek. "No wonder you've been glowing."

She laughed. "Hardly."

"You really are, though. You're beautiful. Can I…?" he said, extending his hand towards her.

"Yeah."

He laid his palm flat on her stomach. "How far along are you?"

"Just about about twelve weeks now. Still got a ways to go yet," she answered.

"How long have you known?"

"Since the day after I got here. That night in A and E they took my blood, and that was one of the tests they ran," she replied. He still hadn't moved his hand off of her stomach.

"Does Ellie know?"

"Yeah, I told her right after I found out. I was holding off on telling you. Suppose I was afraid of how you'd react," she sit, fidgeting. "I figured if I told you, I'd scare you off."

He kissed her knuckles. "After everything I've seen, I doubt you could tell me anything that would scare me off. I mean, you told me I look just like your dead fiance, and I didn't run then. I'm certainly not going to do it now."

"I'm so glad to hear you say that," she said, lacing her fingers through his. "Most men would go running at the fiance thing, let alone the baby."

"I'm not like most men."

"No, you certainly aren't," she agreed.

"That little cottage you're in is a bit small for two, though. What are you going to do?" he asked.

"Well, when I went home, I told my parents I wanted to sell my flat in London. My step-dad said he'd take care of it. I'm going to look for a place to rent, here in Broadchurch. I've decided to stay indefinitely," she said.

"The place across the street is for rent," he suggested helpfully.

"Gee, and I don't suppose you have any ulterior motives for telling me that," she said, her tongue poking through her teeth.

"Not at all," he said innocently. "Just trying to be of help. Though I wouldn't mind having you living right across the street. Would probably be quite convenient, actually."

"Ah, but then I couldn't use the snow as an excuse to stay in bed with you," she replied.

"Fair point. But I think it'd be an even trade off, in the end," he said with a chuckle. "After all, it's only winter a few months out of the year. And maybe one day, you won't need the snow as an excuse to stay in my bed."

Rose flushed red. "I don't know when I'll be ready for all that."

"That's okay, I can wait. You're worth it," he said, brushing his lips softly against hers. "Besides, just doing this is rather nice. People rarely take the time to just enjoy a kiss for what it is."

"And what is that?" she whispered.

"It's a way to build trust and intimacy without bringing sex into it."

"Well then," she said. "What are you waiting for?"

Though they exchanged many, often passionate kisses over the following weeks, Alec remained true to his word, never pressing Rose for more than that. He would often visit her at the Soapery, bringing her tea and biscuits and other treats while she was working. Charlotte didn't mind having him around-he'd often help her move the heavier stuff that Rose wasn't able to lift in her condition They still took dinner with Ellie every Thursday night, though now they would sit next to each other and hold hands under the table while they ate. They embraced every chance they got. On the nights before Alec's day off, they would either go out to eat or Rose would cook them dinner, then they'd spent the night together. They would sleep spooned against each other, Rose's back to Alec's front and his palm spread protectively over her belly. When they woke, they would lounge in bed together, reading, or sometimes watching movies on one of their laptops. Pete packed up and sold her London flat without incident, putting the money into a savings account that she could use towards eventually renting and furnishing a new place. Around the end of January, in the middle of her sixteenth week, Rose's stomach went from flat to slightly convex overnight. She bought her first pair of maternity jeans, and lots of loose flowing tops with empire waistlines to hide her burgeoning belly.

It was the day after her eighteenth week ultrasound, Valentine's Day, that things went completely pear-shaped.

Rose and Alec had opted to stay in on Valentine's, knowing that any restaurants they went to would be loud, crowded and overly busy due to the holiday. They ordered Greek food and settled down on the couch to watch Casablanca.

The doorbell rang. "That'll be the food," Alec said, pausing the movie and getting up. Rose heard the door open, and then voices rising and falling as Alec and whoever was on the porch began arguing. Probably not the food, then. Rose heaved herself off the couch and went to see who it was.

"You need to leave. Now," Alec said firmly.

"Alec, who is it?" Rose said, coming up behind him. He was blocking the door with his body, but over his shoulder she could see a tall brunette woman standing on the porch.

"Who the hell is she?" the woman asked angrily, gesturing in Rose's direction.

"She's my girlfriend," Alec snapped. "Not that it's any of your business. Like I said, you need to be going."

"Alec, what's going on? Who is she?" Rose said, laying her hand on his shoulder.

"I'm Tessa Henchard, Alec's wife," the brunette replied nastily.

"Ex-wife," Alec said through clenched teeth.

"It doesn't have to be like that," Tessa replied, her tone slightly more gentle.

"Tess, you and I are over. Way over. You made your choice when you cheated on me with that wanker. You left me, remember? You broke my goddamn heart. We agreed that we wouldn't have contact with each other, unless it was in regards to Daisy. So you really need to get the hell off my porch and leave me and Rose alone!" Alec shouted.

"Fine. But this isn't over," Tessa threatened.

"Oh, it most certainly is," Alec replied, slamming the door in her face. He was breathing heavily with the force of his anger when he turned back around to look at Rose.

"Alec, are you alright?" Rose asked, concerned.

"No," he said, falling to his knees. "I don't feel so good. I'm cold, dizzy, having trouble breathing, my hands are tingling and my heart is racing in my chest."

"Oh my God! Hold on, here's your coat. I'm taking you to the hospital," Rose said, struggling into her pea coat and grabbing her purse. Alec did not protest, but instead let her herd him out of the house and into the car. They drove to the hospital in nervous silence, the only sound the road under the tires and Alec's ragged, shallow breathing. Rose parked the car as close as she could to the door of the Accident and Emergency department and helped Alec walk from the car to the door. After being told that he had a history of heart problems and a pacemaker, they took him right back to be assessed. Rose sat nervously in the waiting area, biting her fingernails and tapping her feet on the floor. She finally thought to go outside and call Ellie to let her know what was going on.

"Hey Rose, Happy Valentine's Day. I thought you were with Alec?" Ellie said.

"I was. We're at Broadchurch Community Hospital now. They took him back to be assessed, I'm here waiting by myself," Rose said, blinking back the tears that were threatening to spill over. "Ellie, the way he was describing his symptoms, it sounds like he might have had a heart attack."

"Oh my God! Let me call the nanny, and I'll be there as soon as I can," Ellie said, ringing off.

Rose slid her mobile into her pocket, and sat down on a bench. The wind was blowing, but she hardly could feel the cold over the permeating dread creeping through her. Finally, she began to cry, sobs wracking her entire body. The thought of losing Alec now terrified her. He'd become her rock, the person she confided in, the person who comforted her, the person who held her through her nightmares. She couldn't bare the thought of him dying, not after what had happened to John. She was still sitting outside crying when Ellie walked up about thirty minutes later. Rose accepted a packet of tissues from her, and let her coax her back into the waiting area, out of the cold.

"So what happened?" Ellie asked, once they were sitting down.

"His ex-wife showed up on the porch. They argued. It sounded like she wanted to get back together with him. God, he was so angry! And then he slammed the door in her face, and collapsed in the hallway, complaining that his heart was pounding, his hands were tingling, he was having trouble breathing…" Rose said, her breath hitching in her throat. She was so worked up she was unable to continue talking. Ellie sat stalwart beside her, clutching her hand sympathetically. About an hour later, a nurse came out to tell them that Alec had been stabilised, and they could go back and see him if they wished. Rose and Ellie followed after the young woman, who lead them through a set of double doors. She stopped in the hallway outside of Alec's room, and gestured for them to enter.

Alec was sitting up in the bed, propped up by several pillows. His shirt was half unbuttoned, leaving his chest exposed. He mustered a weak smile at the women when they entered. "I had a panic attack," he said sheepishly. "Never had one before, I thought I was dying."

"Oh, thank God. You scared the bloody hell out of me!" Rose said, running to him. She peppered his face with a dozen relieved kisses before letting him enfold her in his arms.

"Sorry. I guess I'm going to be a little harder to get rid of," he said lightly. Rose leaned back and smacked him on the chest.

"Don't even say stuff like that. I can't bare the thought of losing you," she said, burying her face in his neck.

"Well if you're okay then, I'm going to go. The nanny is with the kids," Ellie said, shoving her hands into her coat pockets.

"I'm fine, Miller. Thanks for coming to sit with Rose," he said over the top of her head.

"Anytime," Ellie replied, turning and leaving the hospital room.

"I'm so sorry I frightened you, Rose," Alec said apologetically after Ellie had gone.

She sniffed. "It's alright. Just try not to do it again."

"Some Valentine's Day this turned out to be," he said ruefully, stroking her hair.

"I'm just glad you're okay. I don't care about Valentine's Day. Although I do feel bad for the poor delivery driver who probably stood out on the porch for God knows how long," she said with a watery little laugh.

"We don't have to stay here, you know. It was just a panic attack, so they don't need to keep me. They gave me some hydroxyzine for the anxiety, and I feel much better now," he said.

"Alright then," she said, clambering off of him. "Let's get the hell out of here."

"I second that motion," Alec said, buttoning up his shirt and throwing his coat on. He offered her his hand, and they strolled together out of the hospital and back out to the car.

"Do you think she'll come back?" Rose asked once they were on the road.

He sighed. "Tessa? I don't know. I really hope not, but she said 'this isn't over', and I'm not sure how literally she meant that."

"Can't you do something? Like get a restraining order?" Rose asked, briefly shifting her gaze from the road to his face.

"Maybe. It's a bit unlikely I'd be granted a restraining order, seeing as she didn't actually hurt me or threaten me. But I have to think about Daisy. If I took out a restraining order against Tess, that would make things a lot more complicated," he said, scrubbing at his face.

"So what are you going to do then?" she asked him anxiously.

"I'm going to ignore her and hope that she takes the hint," he said.

"Will that even work?" Rose asked him.

He frowned. "Knowing Tess...probably not. But I don't know what else I can do, under the circumstances."

Rose pulled up outside of Alec's house and put the car in park. "You don't think she'd do anything to hurt us, do you?"

"I doubt she'd be that stupid," Alec reassured Rose, getting out of the car.

"I hope you're right about that," she said, following him back into the house. In their haste to get to the hospital, they'd left the front door unlocked. Inside, nothing seemed disturbed. They hung their coats up in the closet and turned to look at each other. Suddenly, Rose had pushed Alec up against the closet door and was snogging him senseless. Her hands slid up under his shirt and began roaming his chest, while he let his hands drift down to cup her bum. They kissed urgently, tongues dancing together in a fight for supremacy. He tasted of the tea with lemon he'd been drinking before they'd gone to the hospital.

"Bedroom!" Rose gasped against his lips, sliding her hands back down his chest to grab his hand. He let her tug him into his room, where they both hurried to shed their clothing before tumbling naked onto the bed.

Alec began an unhurried exploration of her body with his lips, pressing soft, open-mouthed kisses to the sweet-scented hollow of her neck, across her collarbones, between her breasts, over the gentle swell of her stomach. He laved each of her nipples in turn, licking and sucking until they'd pulled into dusky, stiff little peaks. Reaching between them, he found the damp thatch of curls between her thighs and pressed his thumb into to her clit, rubbing in delicious little circles until she was pulled taut as a wire, desperately clutching at him and biting her lip. As she shuddered beneath him, he took himself in hand, lined himself up with her entrance, and finally pushed inside her wet, hot heat, burying himself to the hilt. He pulled back and began thrusting in and out of her, settling into a gentle but steady rhythm that set her blood ablaze. She pulled up her knees and locked her legs around his waist, encouraging him to go deeper, harder, faster. He thrust with increased vigor, his eyes beginning to glaze over as sweat beaded up on his brow. When he kissed her, it tasted salty, like tears. A rush of heat surged through her body, and when her muscles clenched tightly around him and she was crying out, he gasped her name and spilled himself inside her. Panting, he collapsed on top of her, resting his forehead briefly against hers before he rolled onto his side and pulled her tightly against him. He pulled the comforter up from the bottom of the bed and tucked it around them. Dropping a kiss to the crown of her head, he sighed.

"Damn, I didn't even think to use a condom," he said sheepishly. "I was so excited to get into your knickers."

"Well, it's not like I can get pregnant. And anyway, I'm disease free."

"Yeah, so am I," he replied.

"Worth waiting for?" she asked.

When he answered, she could almost hear the smile in his voice. His breath was warm on the back of her neck. "Oh, absolutely. It was brilliant. Well worth the wait. You?"

"It was amazing. Thank you," she said sincerely.

He chuckled. "I would say the pleasure is all mine, but I both think we know that's not entirely true."

"Careful Hardy, your ego's showing," she teased.

He nestled against her. "What can I say? Maybe you just bring out the best in me."

She turned around to face him. His hair was plastered against his forehead and he was grinning broadly. The expression on his face was so achingly familiar, she felt a brief pang of sadness. Brushing his hair away from his forehead, she leaned forward and pressed her lips against his. He sucked her lower lip into his mouth and nibbled gently. She hummed in approval, raking her nails through his hair. He swung his leg over her hip, and she felt him hot and stiff against her belly.

"Well look at that. You're already hardy again," she said, her tongue poking its way between her teeth.

He laughed. "You idid not/i just say that."

"Mmm, 'fraid so. What are you going to do about it?"

His smile turned wolfish. "Oh, I've got a few ideas."