Sorry for the very long wait everyone! I've been on vacation again the past couple of weeks. But now that I'm back home to real life I've been trying to get this chapter written as quick as possible. I hope you all enjoy it!

Chapter Twenty-five

The following morning, Louisa woke to the unpleasant sound of her husband's groans coming from the bathroom. She rolled her eyes, remembering the warning she gave him the previous night about overdoing things. He could be very stubborn at times, her as well, but with his injured shoulder he was even more irritable than normal, especially when he was ordered not to work for a week.

"Dammit!" she heard him shout from the other side of the bathroom door.

"Martin, are you alright?" Louisa asked as she pulled back the sheets and slipped out of bed, concerned that he might be causing himself further injury.

"No!" he exclaimed. "I'm bloody not alright!"

"Martin, please watch your language. I'm coming in." She opened the door and stepped inside the bathroom. He was standing in front of the sink, his back to her, with his white dress shirt hanging open. "Do you need help?"

He didn't turn to look at her. "No!"

Louisa rolled her eyes. "Stop being stubborn, Martin. Is it your shoulder? Does it hurt too much?"

Martin let out a frustrated sigh. "I'm not a child, Louisa. I can handle a little pain and discomfort."

Louisa furrowed her brow, having an idea of what seemed to be angering him. "Then what is it? Martin, I can't help you unless you tell me what's wrong."

"I don't need any help!" he spat out while attempting to button his shirt for the third time.

Louisa crossed her arms. "You don't need help? Okay, so should I expect to see this new look of yours from now on?" she asked, nodding towards the reflection of his open shirt in the mirror. "It does suit you, but I might get a bit jealous if you walked around the village looking like that." She smiled and stepped up behind him, wrapping her arms around his waist.

Martin stared at her through the mirror, feeling his anger and frustration begin to subside at her closeness. Her fingers brushed the exposed skin of his abdomen, sending a shiver down his spine. Noticing the dilated pupils in his reflection, he forced his carnal thoughts to the back of his mind. This was hardly the place or time for that. Instead, he turned around to face her. "I can't get my shirt buttoned without my shoulder throbbing," he finally admitted.

Louisa smiled up at him. "There, that wasn't so hard, was it?"

"Mm."

"So what are your plans for today since you can't see patients for a week?" Louisa asked as she began buttoning his shirt.

"I don't know," he said, gazing down at her fingers as she worked each button through its corresponding hole. "I was, um, planning on going with you to drop James off at school."

Louisa finished with the second to last button at the top, leaving the collar of his shirt open. She secured his navy cufflinks then patted his chest. "There, all done." She paused for a moment, thinking. "Are you sure you're well enough to come with, Martin? The sun's finally out today and I planned on walking with James to school. But if you think you can manage, then of course you can come along. James and I would really like that."

The corners of Martin's mouth twitched. "Good." He looked down at his shirt, then shyly glanced up at his wife. "Um, could you help me with my tie as well?"

Louisa would have preferred that he didn't wear a tie, but she didn't want to argue with him, especially when his mood was so unpredictable. "Of course. Which one?" she asked while leading the way to his wardrobe.

"Um, why don't you choose? You always pick the ones that match my eyes."

Louisa smiled at him then turned to look at his vast array of ties. She chose the striped red one, which was her favourite. "This is my favourite," she said as she looped the material around his neck then turned up his collar.

"I didn't know you could tie a tie," Martin said as he watched his wife deftly work the silk material into his customary Windsor knot.

Louisa nodded. "Dad taught me - years ago. I'm surprised I still remember."

She didn't elaborate, so Martin didn't press her for further details, suspecting that the subject of her father was still a sensitive topic for her. "Well, he, um, taught you well."

Louisa fastened the final button before folding the collar of his shirt down, then straightening his tie. "And I know you'll be the one to teach James."

"Mm, yes." Her comment sparked something in him. In the years to come, he could imagine all the things he would teach his son that his own father had not; it caused a small smile to form.

"What?" Louisa asked, noticing her husband drifting away in his own thoughts.

"Hmm?" He returned his gaze to hers.

"What are you thinking about?"

He shook his head, feeling flustered that she caught him off guard. "Nothing. I - it's nothing."

Louisa let his clumsy answer slip by. He looked content, even happy, and that was all she needed. "The navy suit?" she asked, looking down at his dark trousers.

"Yes."

Louisa was gentle with his right arm as she slipped the jacket over his shoulders. After buttoning his suit, she smoothed her fingers over the lapels. "There we go. As handsome as always."

Her comment caused a slight blush to creep out across his cheeks and to the tip of his ears. "Could you help me with the sling as well?" He looked down at his stockinged feet, feeling embarrassed.

"Of course."

"I hate to make you do this," Martin said as Louisa fastened the straps of the sling around his right shoulder and arm.

"I don't mind. I enjoy doing things for you, Martin."

"I appreciate it and, um, everything that you do for me."

Louisa's smile widened. "Oh, Martin."

"I mean it. You do so much for our family that it gets overlooked."

"Thank you for saying that."

"Mm," he grunted, "you're welcome."

"I should shower and get dressed," Louisa said as she looked down at her pyjamas.

Martin nodded. "I'll get James ready, then."

"Yes, thank you." He turned to leave but Louisa stopped him. "Hey, come here." She took hold of his hand and pulled him back to her. Leaning up on her toes, Louisa captured his lips in a gentle, lingering kiss. "Good morning . . . husband."

Martin smiled, liking this new ritual of theirs. "Good morning . . . Mrs. Ellingham."

"I shouldn't be too long," she said, giving his hand a squeeze then releasing it.

Martin nodded and remained frozen in place as he watched his wife saunter away to the bathroom. The fingers of his left hand twitched at his side as he thought of her enticing curves. But then the sound of the shower running snapped him out of his daze. Giving one last lingering look towards the bathroom, he finally turned and headed for the nursery to begin his fatherly duties.

A short time later, the Ellingham family began their trek to the nursery school. With his good arm, Martin had carried James down Roscarrock Hill but then set him on his feet once they reached the Platt. Mesmerized by the shining sea in the harbour and the boisterous fishermen readying their pots, James let out a squeal and ran towards the water.

"Martin!" Louisa shouted as soon as she noticed their little boy scurry off on his own. "Grab James!" She grew panicked as she followed Martin, the two of them hurrying after their son, afraid he could be swept away with the tide. But thankfully one of the fisherman scooped the toddler up before he could make it to the water.

James let out another squeal as he was swept up into the air, but then started to cry as he realised he was in the arms of a total stranger. "This one yours?" the bearded fisherman asked, seeing two frantic parents rushing towards him.

Louisa took James into her arms and squeezed him tightly, relief coursing through her now that her little boy was safe. "Oh, thank you for getting to him before the sea did."

The fisherman bowed his head. "No problem, miss. Looks like he may have his sea legs. Best watch out for this one." He poked and tickled James' stomach.

Louisa chuckled while Martin frowned. "I guess we'll have to. Thanks again for your help." She waved to the fisherman as he continued on with his work.

"Is he alright?" Martin asked as he turned to look at James.

Louisa kissed the top of their boy's head. "He seems fine." Then she looked down at her son, scolding him, "James Henry, you cannot go running off like that on your own. Mummy and Daddy were very worried that something could've happened to you."

James stared up at his mother with a confused expression, a few tears staining his cheeks, not quite understanding what she was saying. He reached up and grabbed a strand of her loose hair. "Mum-ee!" he cried.

Louisa nodded. "Yes, James, Mummy was very worried. You need to stay with either me or Daddy, okay? No running off on your own."

"Da-ee!" the toddler squealed as he reached out for his father.

Martin touched his son's cheek as Louisa set him back down on his feet. They continued their walk to the nursery school, with James between them, each holding one of his hands in case he tried to run off again.

Today being his third day of school, James was a little more comfortable being separated from his parents. As soon as he heard the sounds of the other children, he'd squeal and clap his hands in delight. It brought a smile to Louisa's face, happy to see that their little boy wasn't afraid to interact and have fun with other children his age.

She watched as her husband bent down on one knee in the lobby to hug James. He brushed his hand over their son's head and James placed his palm on his father's nose. He giggled as Martin pretended to sneeze.

Not leaving her forgotten, James rushed over to Louisa and threw his arms around her legs. Bending over, she hoisted him into her arms, planting a big kiss on his cheek. "Bye, bye, sweetheart," she said, hugging his small body tightly. James returned her hug, burying his face in the crook of her neck. Closing her eyes and inhaling the scent of her son's bath soap, Louisa wished they could have stayed like that forever. She cherished the moment, hoping that no matter at what age, James would always welcome a hug and kiss from his mother.

"Alright, be on your best behaviour, young man," she said, setting a wriggling James back down on his feet then playfully patting his bum. "I'll be back in a little while."

Martin awkwardly stood up, the sling immobilizing his right arm affecting his centre of balance. "Um, Louisa," he said while they waited for one of the teachers to arrive. "Do you think I could collect James later today?"

Louisa was caught off guard by his request. "Are you sure, Martin? I mean, won't it put more strain on your healing shoulder having to carry James all the way home?"

"I can bring his pushchair. He hasn't outgrown it yet."

Louisa smiled at him. "Hmm, I see you've thought this through, then."

"I want to do this. It'll give you more time for lunch and to get more work done at the school - if you need it."

"Okay. Sounds reasonable to me."

"Thank you. I was thinking that on the way home James and I could stop at the beach and have lunch. Maybe, if you're not too busy, you could join us?"

He sounded hesitant as he asked her, reminiscent of the few times he had asked her over for dinner in the beginning of their relationship. But Louisa was thrilled. It would be just the three of them. With Martin on leave for a week there wouldn't be any patients or nosy receptionists to interrupt them. "I'd love to, Martin. How can I say no to lunch with my two boys?"

Martin smiled slightly, happy that she accepted his invitation. "Um, I can bring something along for James and myself if you've already packed your lunch for the day."

Louisa nodded as one of the teachers approached them to take James to his designated classroom. The couple waved to their son as he turned to take his teacher's hand then disappeared down the hallway.

Martin accompanied his wife the rest of the way to the primary school. "Do you want to come in for a bit?" she asked as they stood outside the front entrance.

Martin shook his head. "No, I have some work I need to get done back at the surgery - paperwork, that sort of thing."

"I see."

They remained silent and unmoving, staring at each other. Glancing over towards the gate of the school, he made sure nobody was watching them. And like a hesitant man on a date ready to say goodnight, Martin leaned down and embraced his wife in a soft, somewhat-passionate kiss.

"You're just full of surprises today," Louisa said as they pulled away from each other.

"Mm. I'm trying to be a better husband - the sort of husband you deserve."

Louisa ran her fingers down his cheek. "And you do deserve me, Martin - no matter what."

Martin took hold of her hand, brushing his thumb over her knuckles. "I love -" Suddenly, they were interrupted by children's laughter as a large group came barreling through the gate towards the entrance.

Martin stepped back as one boy rushed past them into the school. "I should probably go," Louisa said, now that their intimate moment was over.

"Yes. Right. Um, have a good day." Before she could say something more, he turned and headed for the gate, dodging children left and right.

"I'll see you later," she called out to him, unsure if he heard her or not. Biting her lip, she fished her phone out of her purse.

As Martin finally escaped the hordes of bustling schoolchildren, he felt his mobile vibrate against the side of his chest. He pulled out his phone and smiled to himself, reading the text message from his wife: I love you too

When Martin returned back to the surgery, Morwenna was all smiles as he walked past her towards his consulting room. He had no idea why she was so happy. Women usually confused him, especially Louisa.

Sitting down behind his desk, Martin began going through the notes of the patients that were scheduled for the rest of the week. He'd instructed Morwenna to transfer his patients to Wadebridge until he was cleared to resume work again. For now, he was stuck familiarising himself with medical histories.

A little while later, as Martin scanned through his diary, he noticed he'd written down the welcome back party Louisa had planned for Elliot, which was tomorrow. Now that he was unable to see patients for a week, he felt obligated that he stop by, at least for a few minutes. Then he remembered Elliot's condition. Picking up the phone, he called the hospital in Truro to have Mr. Keane's latest EEG results and MRI scans be sent over as a follow up as soon as possible. The last thing he wanted was another Mr. Strain incident.

Looking down at his watch, he frowned. It was only ten o'clock and already he was growing bored. Without any whinging patients to examine or an energetic toddler to look after, Martin was at a complete loss over what to do. Opening a desk drawer, he pulled out a stack of old medical journals. There was bound to be an article that would grab his attention.

. . .

At lunch, Martin sent another text message to Louisa while he and James waited for her by the gate. A moment later, his phone chirped, her message relaying that she'd be out in a few minutes.

It was a pleasant afternoon; a bit of a cool breeze but plenty of sun, unlike the past week. He looked over at the harbour and the expanse of sparkling blue water. There wasn't a more beautiful view than that. Though at times he missed the hustle and bustle of a big city like London, he couldn't imagine being anywhere else in the world.

"Hello!"

Hearing his wife's voice, Martin turned to look at her. Her coat was unbuttoned and the ends flapped wildly in the breeze as she made her way towards him. With the sun shining overhead, she looked so beautiful that he thought he might have felt his heart skip a beat. He raised his left hand in greeting.

"Hello, James," Louisa gushed as she knelt in front of their son. "Did you have fun at school?"

James reached out for her but was restricted by the safety strap of the pushchair keeping him in place. "Mum-ee!"

Louisa leaned forward and kissed her son's nose, making him giggle. Standing back up, she addressed her husband, "How was your morning?"

Martin held his left hand behind his back. "It was fine."

Louisa arched an eyebrow. "Staying busy I hope?"

"Mm," he nodded. "Um, shall we?" He extended a hand towards the harbour.

"Yes." Slinging her school bag over her shoulder, they began their walk to the beach.

Martin had brought along a blanket to go with their lunch, so after finding a decent spot, they were able to set up their picnic. James was full of energy, not wanting to sit still, preferring to chase the gulls and play in the sand.

When Martin was finally able to get his son to sit and eat his lunch, Buddy scampered up out of nowhere and playfully licked James' cheek. The toddler laughed and swatted at the dog, attempting to pet his furry head.

"How disgusting!" Martin sneered as he shooed the canine away with a chunk of turkey then wiped the slobber from his son's face with his handkerchief.

"It's just a dog, Martin," Louisa tried to assure him.

"It's a disgusting, flea-ridden creature. Who knows how many germs were transferred to James."

Louisa rolled her eyes. "James is just fine. He likes Buddy, don't you sweetheart?" James looked up at his mother and gave her a toothy smile. She swiped her fingers through his short hair.

"Louisa, dogs and other household pets can be notorious carriers of disease. Remember a few years ago when that other dog caused an epidemic in the school?"

"Yes," she nodded. "And you almost ruined my chances of getting the head teaching position."

"You kept allowing the infected children to go to school," he argued. "What was I supposed to do?"

Louisa turned to look at him. "I wish you would have came to my celebration at the pub that night."

Martin ducked his head as he picked at the edge of a fingernail. "Mm, yes. I wanted to, but something came up."

She reached for his hand and Martin curled his fingers around hers. "It's okay. That was the past. Right now, I'm just happy you're here with me - us." She pointed towards James, who was a few feet away from their blanket digging in the sand with a shell.

"Yes." He tightened his grip on her hand as they watched their son. "He's growing too fast."

Louisa shifted closer to him on the blanket and let her head rest on his left shoulder. "I know. I still remember how it felt to hold him in my arms for the first time. Now he's almost two years old. Can you believe that?"

Martin was quiet for a few moments. "I'm glad I stayed," he said, looking over at James in adoration.

"What do you mean?"

He glanced down at her. "Here - in Portwenn. I'm glad I didn't leave for London. I would have missed moments like this - the three of us together."

Louisa brushed a finger over his wedding band and leaned over to kiss his cheek. "I'm glad you stayed too."

Despite the amount of people exploring the beach, Martin allowed his head to dip to the side to rest against Louisa's. Though he was still hesitant about public displays of affection, he found that he couldn't help himself, especially where Louisa was concerned. Her ponytail waved in the breeze, the long strands tickling the back of his neck. He pulled away to look at her.

"What?" she said, feeling unnerved by the intense expression on his face.

He shook his head. "You're just . . ." His voice trailed off as he pushed a stray lock of hair behind her ear. "You're so beautiful."

Louisa closed her eyes, feeling the tears she'd been trying to hold back roll down her cheeks.

"Don't cry," Martin said, feeling his heart sink that he may have ruined their afternoon.

She wiped her eyes with the back of a finger and shook her head. "I'm just so happy, Martin."

"Are you sure?"

She nodded. "Yes, I am." Wrapping her arms around his neck, Louisa pulled him to her and kissed him.

Her actions surprised him, but Martin quickly relaxed, even though they were surrounded by potential onlookers. Bugger it, he thought. He was with the most beautiful woman he'd ever known. Let the others be jealous for once.

Louisa let out a long breath once they pulled apart. She turned to quickly check on James. He was still busy playing in the sand, oblivious to his parents. "Promise me something?" she said, looking back at Martin and gazing deep into his eyes.

Martin nodded, his voice husky as he replied, "Anything."

"Promise me that in the future, no matter how much we argue or fight, you'll always remember these moments, Martin - the happy ones."

Martin swallowed hard. Why was she talking like this? he wondered. "Okay. I promise."

Louisa smiled and reached up to run her finger over his eyebrow, following the curve to his temple. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Wrapping his left arm around her waist, Martin called out to their son, "James! C'mon, it's time to leave soon!"

Hearing his father's voice, James looked up from his fun in the sand. He stood up and rushed over to his parents, flopping down in Martin's lap and looking up at him with a wide, toothy grin.

Martin returned his son's smile. Glancing over at his wife then looking out at the ocean, Martin was absolutely sure that there wasn't any other place in the world he'd rather be than Portwenn.