Ready! Steady! Go!

.

"Oh, bloody..." Barbara quickly got up and hurried into the bathroom and under the shower. Tommy picked up the rose he had thrown away carelessly some hours ago and followed. His luxurious shower cubicle was big enough for three. He entered and placed a kiss on her shoulder, his hand on her arm and the blossom of the rose on her belly.

"I've been a little too distracted when I went to bed." he smiled. His mind already was gone into the gutter when he had seen her lathering her soft white skin. The shower needs to be christened soon. His best part brushed her behind. "I can't help it."

He gently bit her shoulder.

Barbara had to scrape up all possible willpower to not give in, to withstand this time. They really should hurry and quickly show up at the office.

"Behave, Tommy. We should rush now." Barbara wonders why Denton did not wake them.

"Well, ususally he wakes me at around seven thirty if I'm not already up." Tommy said with the water running over his face. "But he never would knock when I've told him to leave me be, to not disturb me, on no account, even if hell freezes over or the Queen would abolish the monarchy."

"That's what you told him?"

"Exactly." Tommy broadly grinned. "He only would have come here if at minimum seven hints might indicate that my life is in the utmost danger." he winked.

Then he sighed. They had finished the shower and there was no more excuse to stay. "Tonight we'll christen the shower!" He whispered into her ear and wrapped her blushing figure in a huge towel.

After the refreshing body care Tommy learned about the duffle bag she had collected from her car tonight. She had her toiletries and some extra clothes in it. It was her overnight bag, her emergency pack she always kept in her car.

"For situations like this?" he asked with an expression between shock and amusement.

"Bollocks, Sir." Barbara frowned at his insinuations. "It's for those situations when you once more call me to be on duty in ten minutes. When you've had your stuff packed by one of your multiple servants while you calmly shave and think about the weather before you finally decide to get your DS Sidekick informed that I need to be on my way to the outer hebrides in ten minutes. I've come to believe this has turned out to be some kind of sports for y-"

Any more words were stopped by his lips on hers.

"Shut up, Havers, and get dressed. I expect you to be ready in five minutes."

Standing in his kitchen they quickly downed a cup of coffee and munched a half-toasted bread with butter - Barbara's comment on that had been that it is her usual breakfast so Tommy should get used to it - and then they were ready to leave. Over breakfast they had decided that they would drive in his car since nobody cared if they would arrive together. They had done it before and it always had been equally late for different and harmless reasons. Even Nkata had stopped making fun of that.

Receiving a last kiss from Tommy in the kitchen Barbara wickedly smiled.

"I'm utterly sorry, Sir, and I know you'd not be happy about it but I need to wear this outfit that you fear to be too distracting for you at work, because I only have spare smalls in this duffle bag."

It was a lie. He knew it and he had a jubilant but wolfish expression on his face. He gave her a last fervent kiss next to the fruit bowl on the table in the corridor.

"You're a bad liar, Miss Havers. And I'll spend the rest of the day thinking of an adequate punishment. Await the verdict in the early evening."

Barbara smiled back. She would like to tease him the whole day. Joy was dancing in her eyes and Tommy had a vague idea who had put it there. He knew for sure who it was that had set his own world in a happy fire that would be hard to quench.

"We're not rushing things, are we?" she earnestly asked, the happiness never leaving her eyes.

"Not at all." Tommy laughed.

No one would call the events of these two nights 'rushing', would one? Well, the two had talked about everything important, they had a first proper date, they had declared their love, they had made love. He had proposed, she had accepted. And all this in less than forty hours. No one could come up with the idea this would be rushing things.

It simply was about time.

Barbara stood on tiptoe and placed a last kiss on his lips. Then she whirled around and nearly danced out of his door.

"C'mon, Sir, I'm sure somewhere there is a body for us, waiting to be 'interrogated'." She laughed.

Tommy shook his head and followed her with a broad grin.

This is going to be some kind of a day...!

.

...