Sorry you've had to wait a little longer for this chapter! The run up to Christmas is very hectic for us both at the moment and all spare time is spent watching Series 8! I'm sure you'll forgive us that one...

"Ruth?"

"Mmm," she mutters, sleepily, face burrowed into the pillow. He smiles and sits beside her on the edge of the bed.

"Work called and I have to go in early," he explains, softly, and wonders if she is listening to him or not. He pauses and gives her a warm smile as she turns her head and lifts it off the pillow so she can look at him properly. "Go back to sleep," he says as he kisses her, "it's still early."

She squints at the clock as he releases her and reads that it is only five past four. "What's going on?" she asks, tiredly, as she sits up.

"Nothing to worry about," he says, enigmatically, and kisses her again. "Go back to sleep. I'll see you later."

As he gets up and starts to walk across the room, there is a niggling thought in her mind that there is something important that she needs to say to him but her sleep fogged brain is making it difficult for her to remember what it is. He is almost out of the door when he hears her shout his name. He turns back to find her getting out of bed and jogging over to him.

"Happy Birthday," she whispers, breathlessly, when she is finally in front of him.

He laughs and cups her cheek. "Thank you."

There is time for a quick hug and a kiss before he has to leave her and go to his meeting.

---

By the time he sets foot back on the Grid properly it is very late. He has had a string of endless meetings the entire day and, as a result, hasn't had time to exchange more than pleasantries with Ruth as their paths crossed briefly. He hopes that she might still be waiting for him but isn't sure that she will be. He knows she had something planned to celebrate his birthday and knows, without doubt, that his day has ruined it. It's the first time since becoming a couple officially that work has prevented them from doing something together and there is a part of him that is worried to see what the fallout from it might be.

When he steps inside his office he is surprised, and amused, to find Ruth sitting behind his desk with a slightly off kilter party hat on her head.

"Nice hat," he teases as he perches on the edge of his desk.

"I'm glad you like it."

She doesn't look upset, in fact, she looks genuinely happy that he has finally arrived but he still feels the need to test the waters. "Have I ruined your plans?"

There is something in his expression which alerts her to the fact that he is slightly fearful of her response, and she is quick to reassure him. "Not at all."

"Oh...I thought you'd, that you might be-"

Her hand on his thigh silences him. "Harry, I'm not upset if that's what you're worried about?" she probes, gently and gives him an encouraging smile when he gives a small nod. "Work comes first, I understand that. It's how we both choose to live our lives."

He releases a breath he didn't know he was holding and leans across to capture her lips in a tender kiss. "I love you," he whispers, as he retreats, and watches in wonder at how her face lights up at his words.

"You're going to love me even more when you open your present." He raises an eyebrow at her, curiosity piqued. "But first you need to look like it's your birthday so I think you should wear this," she stands up and puts a matching party hat on his head, securing it with the little elastic strap. He doesn't say anything but the look on his face is enough to set her laughter off.

"So help me if anyone we know suddenly comes barging in here," he growls, making her giggle even more.

"I promise we're alone," she assures him as she hands him an envelope. She watches with interest as he turns it in his hands before prising the flap of paper open and lifting the card out. The message inside is handwritten and her words and heartfelt declarations bring a lump to his throat. He leans over to kiss her again and whispers 'thank you' against her mouth before pulling away again.

"Look inside the envelope," she directs, feeling slightly overwhelmed at his reaction to her card. She looks on as he scrabbles about inside the envelope and drags out two tickets for the England Vs New Zealand match at Twickenham on Sunday.

He looks at her, then back to the tickets, then to her again. "You don't like Rugby," he says, eventually.

"It's a good job it's not a present for me then," she jokes, "and besides, when I thought about it I realised there might be one or two bonuses of watching a rugby match."

"If you say anything about shorts and muddy thighs I'm going to give my spare ticket to Adam," he warns but can't fully suppress the grin that flickers at one side of his mouth.

"As if I would," she replies, with a soft laugh.

"I'll take you with me then."

"I should bloody well think so!" she teases. "Cheeky git."

He flashes her a smile and whips the party hat off his head. "You love it."

"If only I could deny it," she answers, making him laugh.

"Home time?"

She nods and takes her hat off. "Definitely."

--

"Are we going on an expedition to the Arctic?" Harry enquires as Ruth opens the door to him and he takes in the sight of her.

She's wearing the thickest, most padded coat he's ever seen, over what looks to be not one but two thick jumpers, a scarf hangs limply around her neck and he can see gloves and a woolly hat poking out of her coat pocket.

"You told me to wrap up warm," she reminds him and smiles when he closes the gap between them and kisses her on the cheek.

"Yes," he murmurs, his mouth next to her ear, "but I didn't mean for you to wear all of your clothes at once, Ruth."

"Should I change?" she asks, slightly embarrassed and worried that she has got it wrong before they've even left for Twickenham.

"No time really." He pulls back and gives her a mischievous smile. "I'll just have to help you lose a layer or two."

She splutters and then smacks him lightly on the arm. "Harry!" His answering chuckle reverberates down the hall and she gives him a shove towards the kitchen. "Go and make yourself useful and feed the cats for me whilst I get myself sorted."

He smiles and does as he is bid, giving her a friendly warning as she races upstairs that she has two minutes before they need to leave. To her credit she is back downstairs in record time and appears in the kitchen just as Harry is washing his hands.

"Better?" she asks, giving a twirl. The previous coat has been replaced with something that now looks more like a coat and less like a sleeping bag and she's limited herself to one fleece instead of two.

"Much," he says as he crosses over to where she is standing, "at least you'll fit in the car at this rate."

She pokes her tongue out at him. "Funny."

"Ready to go?"

"Yeah," she chirps, brightly, and reaches past him to grab her keys from the counter, "let's go."

--

Ruth watches Harry with barely concealed amusement as he shouts something in the direction of the rugby pitch. She lost the thread of the match a while ago and is content to spend the remaining time of the first half watching Harry as he enjoys himself. She shivers from the cold and stamps her feet together to try and circulate a bit of warmth again but her efforts are futile as a gust of ice cold wind slices through her and chills her to the bone. A look at Harry confirms her suspicions that he is somehow immune to the arctic conditions and she decides to slope off to the bar in search of a hot drink before the half time crowds descend en-masse.

She returns in less than ten minutes to find that the first half is just coming to an end. "Here," she says, smiling, and offers Harry one of the polystyrene cups in her hands.

"Tea?"

"Hot chocolate," she corrects.

"Just what the doctor ordered," he murmurs, smiling at her, and peels off the plastic lid to take a drink. "Were you bored?"

"A little," she admits, bashfully.

"Yes, well, I suppose there's only so much time you can be entertained by ogling the players' thighs," he teases, smirking at her from over the rim of his cup.

"I did no such thing!" She is almost convincing in her indignation, but not quite convincing enough.

"Fibber."

"Well, ok, I admit to some ogling," she mutters, darkly, a distinct flush creeping up her once pale cheeks, "but it's your fault!"

"My fault?" he asks, thoroughly amused.

"Entirely your fault," she confirms with a serious nod of her head, "because I was trying to picture how you would look after a game of rugby."

She sees the immediate flash of interest in his eyes and laughs throatily as he shuffles in closer and kisses her just below her ear. She shivers at the sound of his voice and the tickle of his lips against the shell of her ear as he whispers, "And how do you think I'd look, then?"

"Sexy as hell," she says, flirtatiously, a throaty chuckle escaping her as she leans back and watches the delight sweep across his face. He rewards her with a demanding kiss and, by the time he releases her, she is breathless and slightly shaky. He tucks a stray strand of her behind her ear as he looks adoringly at her.

"What's the smile for?" he asks, noticing the happy smile gracing her face.

"I think I might like rugby after all."

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