Life's hard and sad sometimes… and that's why you had to wait three months (again) for this chapter. I hope it will never happen again.

And many thanks to my lovely proofreader who was so busy yet she helped me get it done in time :)

Enjoy!


Chapter 28

A dog barked somewhere outside, in the neighbourhood, and Harry woke up; without opening her eyes she realized where she was. A faint smile appeared on her lips. Earlier that morning, perhaps an hour ago James left the bed and went to the bathroom but he soon returned and now spooned her from behind, with his left arm under her head, his right one wrapped around her, his hand resting on her belly, their legs twined together beneath the duvet. She felt his hot body pressing against hers and his breath in her hair. It was quite a possessive and intimate position but it didn't feel awkward or uncomfortable. On the contrary, Harry felt safe and relaxed and wanted to stay like that as long as possible.

Lying quietly in his arms, listening to his steady deep breath she returned her thoughts to what had happened last night. If she was asked to describe it with just one word she would use 'breathtaking' or 'exhilarating'. Damn, she'd never experienced anything like that before. She had never had such a lover before. She had always known he was good, if that's a sufficient word, a great lover, with many interesting skills. It was obvious to her and probably to every woman who had eyed him up, but anyway - the reality was sky high in comparison to any expectations she might have had and she had had. Passion, desire, but also respect for her needs, tenderness - not too much and not too little - and a purely disarming concentration on her. The second time of their lovemaking she had tried to make him focus less on her and more on himself, she had given him a lot of attention but as a matter of fact that was unnecessary: they were so good together, so perfectly matched, it seemed they had worked as one from the very beginning and it turned out to be so easy, it had taken literally a few minutes to find a way and then to ride this wave of pleasure together…

He stirred in his sleep and mumbled something, nuzzling her hair, his body beginning to wake. He pressed himself a bit harder to her and she had no doubt his body was returning to the real world much faster than his mind was. She could not suppress a grin; it was really funny how a man's body worked. Well if truth be told her own one also reacted immediately, she felt a delicious shiver of anticipation running down it, a reaction that was quite beyond her brain but was much more physical. It took her thoughts back again to the night hours, their kisses, their caresses, their activity in bed, exhilarating and taking them both to seventh heaven.

A rush of tenderness ran through her and she lay comfortably, safe and snug, in his arms. During that night they had been so lovely to each other, they had said so many nice things to each other, it made her totally happy and several times she had wanted to tell him how much she loved him… but she hadn't. It would be too much for one night, she had thought. And what if he hadn't been able to reciprocate? It was better to restrain herself from this kind of confession for now. Although she thought she knew from what she saw in his looks, sensed in his touch, heard in his voice. But she couldn't be sure. Her life experiences wouldn't allow her - so far - to think she could be just loved, implicitly and unconditionally. She knew only one thing for sure, that James Dempsey was the love of her life, now and forever, no matter how sappy and gushy it sounded even in her own mind, no matter how long it would last.

As he was still sleeping she cautiously slid out of his arms and, dragging his shirt on, she made her way to the bathroom, to freshen up a little; she looked in the mirror above the wash basin and she liked what she saw: shining eyes, flushed cheeks, swollen lips, messed hair - just a sexy look of a shamelessly happy, satiated woman. Smiling to herself she came back to the bedroom, took the shirt off and again slid under the duvet naked, nestling comfortably under his arm.

A few minutes later he really began to wake at last, holding her tighter and lightly brushing her belly with his right hand; she reached out her hand locking their fingers together and for a while they remained quiet in each other arms, savouring the moment. But obviously James couldn't stay like that for too long, and soon she felt his lips on her bare shoulder.

"Mornin' Tiger" he murmured into her tingling skin "how're ya? No regrets, I'm hopin'?" his lips moved to her neck, building a lovely sensation within her again. She sighed contentedly.

"Oh come on, of course not" she turned to face him and kissed him bravely, catching his lips by surprise; he responded with great enthusiasm. She wrapped her arms around his neck and rolled him over back onto the pillow, then she leaned over him, her face close to his. "Hello there" she whispered. "Sleep well?"

He cupped her chin, running his thumb along her lower lip, looking at her slyly.

"Well well well… Harry Makepeace in my bed. Whaddya know."

"Well that's what you wanted, didn't you?" she lightly touched his lips.

"Well not exactly" he murmured "I wanted Harry in my life."

"Then you got that too" and, not waiting for his response, she sat astride him and started kissing and caressing him as she took the lead. He purred with delight, feeling the trail of her mouth and fingers down his body.

Oh God, never in her life had she felt so strong, so beautiful, so sexy and mighty as when she was looking down at him, meeting his burning gaze, when they were moving together slowly with passion, until the moment of pure happiness and ecstasy.

They had breakfast in bed, another thing Harry had not been actually used to; well, at least not the entertaining part of it. She found it really funny, amusing and cute, to be having boiled eggs and toast between the messed sheets, sharing the bites and drinking coffee and juice, trying not to spill a drop, laughing and talking. And everything tasted unbelievably good.

"What an appetite, Lady Winfield, never seen you eatin' anythin' for breakfast like that" Dempsey teased.

"Oh, shut up. I am hungry. And it's your fault I am hungry" she said so slyly that he gasped.

"You shouldn't say that. You really, really shouldn't" he stared at her with this look but instead of trying to kiss her he handed her a slice of toast with peanut butter and strawberry jam. She winced with mild disgust. "Take it away, there are limits, James."

Grinning from ear to ear, still keeping his delighted eyes on her, he shifted the toast with two huge bites.

After the breakfast they just lay in bed, not giving a damn about the world outside; what surprised Harry the most was she didn't feel any need to leave the bed although it was quite late. But after all it was Sunday, a very intimate Sunday, a weekend of delicious lovemaking and it was so pleasant to lie in the warm bed, with James' head resting on her belly and her fingers in his hair.

"Best Sunday ever" he sighed, as if reading her thoughts. "I guess we could stay in bed all day long."

"I guess we could" she agreed "but we might do something out of bed as well."

"Ya mean in the shower or on the kitchen worktop?" he grinned, moving back to her and holding her from behind again, nestling his face in her neck. "Bed's more comfortable when all your muscles are achin' from the night time activities…"

"I mean we could relax the aching muscles, for example, by going out in the afternoon" she protested, laughing at his very predictable suggestion "like for a walk."

"A walk."

"Yes, why not?"

"You wanna go for a walk with me, today."

"Yes…" she paused for a while "actually, James, yes, I thought we could go for a walk. And have a nice lunch. And then… go to my place for a change and… stay there till tomorrow morning" she trailed off.

"You invitin' me to the sanctuary of your bedroom, Princess?" he reacted with much more joy. "At last!"

"You've been to there hundreds of times!"

"Yup but not in the role I wanted to be" he noticed. "I like your idea then. The idea of the walk" he added quickly. "However I have my own idea too."

"Which is?..."

"You'll put this sexy red dress on again when we're at yours."

"Why?"

"'cause I didn't take it off you yesterday. So the whole thing don't count properly."

"Oh doesn't it!" she tried to sound surprised and offended. "How sad! And I guess it also refers to my silky lacy underwear you didn't take off me either?" she teased.

"Oh you know me so well. So you have to put all the stuff on before we leave this house."

"Not quite. I mean, I won't put the red dress before we leave as it's an evening one. I've got some casual clothes in the bag in the car boot so I will kindly ask you to bring it here for me when we're going to get up."

"I think I am getting up right now" he chuckled, pressing himself to her from behind, leaving her no doubt of what he was talking about.

"Surprise-surprise" she turned to him, kissing him lightly but soon the tip of her tongue teased the tip of his and she heard a moan coming from his throat. "I have to say your stamina is impressive, James" she really purred this out, oh God. Her hand rested on his buttock and squeezed it in a way that sent him to the stars.

"You do that to me", his hands were also caressing her body and between the kisses he asked "why do you always call me James in private?"

"Well that's your name isn't it?"

"Why don't you call me Jim like the others do?"

"Cause I am not the others and you're not Jim to me. Try another name I might find acceptable" she joked as in fact to her he's always been James and only James.

He was kissing her knees and thighs lazily and sensuously. So sensuously that she felt as if she was melting into the sheets. He murmured against her skin: "If you don't like Jim...what do you like?"

He moved his lips upward, towards the V her thighs converged.

"I like what you're doing to me right now… James."


"So what was that, that thing with your name?" Harry asked casually, unwrapping the silver foil of a fresh bagel with creamy cheese, and settling back, leaning against James' shoulder. Her cheeks flushed a little when she recalled the moments they had raised the subject for the first time. He chuckled, tightening her waist with his left arm, a bacon roll in his right hand.

Ruskin Park near Harry's house was crowded on Sunday afternoon but luckily they found a bench standing alone and sat there, cuddling up to each other. Harry hoped none of the SI-10 guys would decide on spending the pleasant sunny hours of the afternoon at the same park. It was barely possible, however anything could happen.

"Just no one's never called me James before. I was always called Jim when I was a kid. When it was James I knew I was in trouble. Usually at school."

Swallowing, she only nodded. She had almost never allowed herself to have a snack in public, on a street or in a park unless it had been a picnic or a social event. A bagel with cheese was, however, proper enough to eat it in the open without being self-conscious.

"James, it just don't sound like me!..." he continued "but then, nuthin' about us is normal is it, huh, Princess?" he said matter of factly. "I like that you're the only one that calls me James. Makes it kinda special. Now that is like us," he smiled looking straight in her eyes and she thought she detected a slight bashfulness in his eyes. It made her heart flutter.

"That's sweet" she murmured, brushing his cheek with her nose. He decided to leave the fluffy subject for now and caught her lips in a tender kiss.

Kissing in public was another thing Harry wouldn't do normally, after all she was English and she was a lady. But today, well, the bench they sat on was partially hidden behind a huge tree that shielded them from the looks of people walking down the main park path so...

The afternoon was warm and sunny, though not stupidly hot like it was just a few days ago. Harry thought there was something in the air, announcing the incoming end of the summer, although it was only the end of July. "Ooh what a day. Might be the last day like it" she thought aloud.

"No" he contradicted nuzzling her hair "it's the first one. Wish all Sundays could feel this good." She heard a smile in his low voice. "Shame tomorrow is a bloody Monday."

"You mean, work?"

"Yup, not only that, though." The smile disappeared.

Suddenly she understood. "Oh, you mean your meeting with The Commissioner!"

"Uh-huh." There was a shadow in his voice.

She looked at him with concern. "You're worried" it was a statement, not a question. He was avoiding her eyes, observing two boys playing with a ball on the grass. "You're worried, James" she repeated. "And that makes me worry too. It wasn't just Spikings who offered you the permanent job at SI-10, we know it. Since upstairs want you here, why wouldn't The Commissioner? I mean, he might be against the idea but he can't do anything about it!"

"He loathes me, Harry. I know he's gonna give me a hard time. He won't play fair and square. He's gonna do ev'rythin' to make it ugly for me, to nick me, to show me what a useless piece of crap I am in his eyes. And of course it wouldn't bother me at all... if it wasn't so important to me, to stay here with you. He'd love to show me ev'rythin' depends on him and yes he may reject me just to show me who the boss is... and I might not be able to stand it and, you know, if I lose my temper…" he stopped suddenly as she closed his mouth with another kiss.

"James Dempsey, I am serious now" she whispered, her lips moving on his "you won't. You won't, you hear me? Don't you dare. You'll be like a little fluffy bunny in his hands or I'll... I'll…"

"Yeah, Princess?" it was so sweet and yet so sad to talk to each other so intimately about such important things, eye to eye, mouth to mouth, breath to breath.

"I'll never let you in my bedroom again."

Was there a real threat in her whisper?

"But Harry, we haven't got there yet" with his smile the corners of his eyes crinkled in the way she adored. They were looking at each other with tenderness and devotion.

"No, but my permission has been given already, hasn't it?"

He took hold of her hand, turned it and kissed the inner side of her wrist where the blue veins created a lovely map of the throbbing rivers under her skin. "We'd better go to your place then, Tiger, and make the most of our time today. After all, this day belongs to us."


He woke up late at night, it was two thirty. Harry slept soundly in his arms, clinging to him, her arms wrapped around him like his were wrapped around her, her golden hair spilling all over his torso, her cheek against his bare chest. His mind wondered back to the happy afternoon in the park and then the evening at her place where they sat in the lounge, having a very early dinner, kissing, laughing and talking, slowly and with no rush rekindling their desire.

At the point of the evening, when their kisses deepened and their hands wandered more feverishly and restlessly, over and underneath each other's clothes, when the air in the room felt hotter, she whispered to his ear she had to leave him for a while… and after ten minutes she returned to the lounge, dressed in the yesterday's fancy red evening dress, and - as he supposed - the sexy silky creamy lingerie underneath. Her cheeks flushed, lips were parted and her eyes shone with happiness but also there was a shadow of uncertainty there when she said quietly, her voice trembling slightly with emotions: "Now, are you going to make the whole thing proper, Lieutenant?"

… and then they made their way upstairs, where, in the seclusion of her bedroom, he finally could slowly, holding his breath, take all the clothing off her, and they finally made love again, had a long bath together, talked in bed and then fell asleep in each other's arms in the end. All this still seemed like paradise to him, a fairy tale come true, but it was real and it was for real, Harry and him, together and as one.


"Ready?" Harry stood at the kitchen door, looking at him. She looked great in a dark blue dress with a white collar. "Off we go then, we've got thirty minutes."

Dempsey looked in the mirror with disgust, eyeing his own outfit, a white shirt, a tie and a jacket. It didn't make him comfortable and confident. He wished he could arrive to the office relaxed and grinning at his own thoughts but the inevitability of today's meeting was hanging over his head like a dark cloud. Quickly he grimaced with something that was supposed to be a nonchalant smile, but from her look he judged he had failed.

"Yeah" he mumbled, heading towards the door. "Ready. So tell me Tiger, are we gonna get into the office together?" he tried to joke. She shrugged.

"It won't be the first time, will it" she noticed. She was right; tens of times they would arrive at the factory arm in arm and it might have caused suggestive smirks and quiet comments behind their backs a couple of years ago but definitely not anymore; everyone had known the Dynamic Duo had always stuck together. She took her handbag off the hook in the hallway and turned to face him. She looked into his eyes, with a mixture of a concern, tenderness and devotion. Opening up the front door she wrapped her free hand in his hair, and stroked it gently. "Cheer up" she said quietly. "Everything will be fine. I love you."

She really didn't intend to say that at this moment - it just slipped out of her lips! Realizing what she had said and seeing his eyes widening she held her breath, feeling her heart lurching. She stood frozen to the spot, embarrassed and visibly frightened.

She was about to open her mouth to say something to turn it into a joke but fortunately she didn't have time for that as at the next moment she found herself in his arms, kissed by him and he gently cupped her face as if it was a precious treasure. There was absolutely nothing erotic in it, it was a slow, hot and unbelievably tender kiss, and she gave herself up to it totally, hanging her arms around his neck and saving any thoughts, doubts and worries for later.

"Good morning, Harriet" said Mrs. Whishaw, the neighbour, who had always been polite and discreet. But nobody could be discreet enough seeing Lady Winfield standing on the doorstep of her house at the door wide open, kissing a handsome man she apparently had spent the night with…

"Morning, Laetitia" Harry answered weakly. Mrs Whishaw passed them with a sly smile at the corner of her mouth and Dempsey was about to get back to what had been interrupted so… indiscreetly, when Harry glanced at the clock sitting on the small cabinet in the hallway and she jumped up, shocked. "Oh my God!" she shrieked "look what time it is!"

And she literally flew down the stairs, fishing for the car keys in the bag. One look at the clock was enough for Dempsey: twenty to eight!

What he yelled was definitely not as polite as Harry's oh my God was, but resulted in the same: seconds later two cars took off with screeching tyres, down Camberwell Grove, heading towards East London.