Thank you for the reviews.

Now... to give Rachel a little boost and maybe to see what Eddie's plan is.

Love and Admiration

If anything, the flowers on her desk made Rachel happy and cautious. She had confirmed to Eddie, when he asked, that she loved getting flowers but there was a part of her that also knew that Danny knew that she loved getting flowers as well. Mainly because that was what he bought her in her late teens to 'try and cheer her up' on occasions. Like when he scared off her boyfriend.

There was only one way to know who they were from and that would be to find the card that went with them. They looked like they had been delivered and, therefore, should have a card attached. She found it as Bridget came back from her lunch.

"They arrived just after you went to lunch. Rather nice aren't they?" She said.

"They are beautiful," Rachel replied.

"Carnations. Someone is obviously trying to make an effort."

Rachel smiled at her before she pulled the card out of the envelope and let out a sigh of relief.

Red carnations. Means love and admiration. E.

Her lips curled into a smile and she almost left to go and thank him until she remembered that he was teaching all afternoon. She replaced the card in the envelope and placed it safely back where she had picked it up from before taking a closer look.

She knew that this was all due to her comment about not believing that he loved her and, even if she was only starting to believe it from his direction, she knew that she was most definitely in love with him. How could she not be?

Eddie said goodnight to Bridget as they met outside the antechamber before he made his way into the antechamber and to Rachel's office. He stopped at the door as he caught her staring at the flowers with a big smile on her face. She was ready to go, and looked like she had been for a while, but he couldn't bring himself to call out to her. It was then that he decided that her smile was the most beautiful part of her and he knew that if he could keep her smiling, then he knew that he was doing a decent job.

He knew he had to break her thoughts at some point, but she didn't look like anything over the last month or so had happened. And he wished that everything hadn't happened. That their relationship had advanced without all this nastiness.

"Ready for your taxi home?" He said.

The only thing that changed was what she was smiling at as she turned to him. He knew that even if she didn't believe that he loved her, he hoped that she knew that he could at least make her happy.

He expected her to gather up her things and the flowers and tell him that she was. Instead, she got out of her chair and walked straight over to him, placing her hands on his shoulders as she rose up to place a kiss on his lips.

"Thank you for the flowers. They are beautiful."

"I… am trying to understand Rachel. And I know that this is all hard for you. But, if you allow me to, I am going to spend every single day that we are together, to try and show you how much I love you and admire you. Hence the carnations. I felt like love and admiration was the best place to start."

"Well… while you do that, I am going to try and stop Danny from getting into my head. Might just stop me from doing something stupid and." She paused. "Maybe. Just maybe. I will start to see that what… I feel for you is reflected by you."

The only thing he could think about doing was smiling at her.

"Come on then Mason, let's get you home."

Rachel was glad that she had a bit of time to herself after Eddie dropped her off and she couldn't stop herself from smiling as she started to arrange the flowers in the vase that she had got out from underneath the sink.

She had been distracted by them for the whole of the afternoon and she knew that she had to say what she did to Eddie. He had given her the flowers and it was only right that she could give him something back. It was obviously what he had been planning over the weekend. Although she felt like his comment of doing something every single day was a bit far. Not that she didn't like getting flowers. Just flowers every single day felt a little over the top and they only had one spare vase.

But this weird sense of excitement grew in her as she couldn't wait for what would be waiting for her. It was the most romantic thing that someone had ever done for her.

She was just wondering whether she should put them in the living room or her bedroom when the front door closed and knew that it was both Jane and Sally, by the time and both their voices.

"You are home, for once," Jane said as they both walked into the kitchen.

"We can be apart."

"Who are the flowers from?" Sally asked as she examined them.

Rachel knew that they already knew but she handed over the card, which Jane scrunched up her face at and Sally ahhed at it.

"Over the weekend, I confessed to Eddie that I can't believe anyone loving me." Rachel said. "Like the way he does. So he has come up with a plan and he is going to spend every single day that we are together, trying to show me how much he loves me."

It received another ahh from Sally and an eye roll from Jane. It was clear which one of them was the more affectionate one, but Rachel knew that Jane had her moments as well, surprising Sally as and when she felt like it.

"Well, he better ask for my permission before he gets down on one knee," Jane said.

"Jane, there is no shadow of a doubt. He would definitely ask you before he proposed to me because you still terrify him."

"Good."

"Although… now that things are a little serious. Can you start showing the actual Jane, rather than the scary, defensive… Jane?"

"I've approved him, isn't that enough?"

"Maybe I want him to see my cousin for who she actually is."

"And this all comes from the woman that said that she wasn't going to be making out with Eddie Lawson."

As she was just in reach, Rachel gently pushed her before picking up the vase.

"And for that, they are going to go into my room and I am going to be the only one to appreciate them."

Rachel knew what she had said about Eddie in her first couple of weeks but her thoughts turned to something that Jane had said about her never shutting up about Eddie. Her head turned to where he would be sleeping if he was staying over and found herself frowning at the fact that he wasn't there. She had never been like this over a guy ever and it made her more wary about not making a stupid decision.

If by magic, her phone started to ring and she could only smile as Eddie's name popped up.

"Evening." He said as she placed the phone to her ear.

"Are you the same or can you just read my thoughts?"

"What? It being weird for you not to be next to me."

"That exactly."

"Mason, I never knew you got so attached."

"You better count yourself lucky Lawson."

"Missing me then?"

"Not your snoring."

"I'm not that loud."

"Only when you are flat on your back."

"Then you are going to have to stop using my shoulder as a pillow."

"It is rather comfortable there."

"We will have to come up with a compromise."

"We will."

"Rach. Do you think that Jane will let you out to play this weekend?"

She laughed. "Eddie, I am 37. I don't need to ask Jane's permission to go out."

"Just didn't want her thinking that I was taking her cousin away from her."

"They were actually surprised to see me home." She paused. "You do know that Jane is all talk. It is the only thing that Danny got right."

"Maybe I don't want to put that to the test."

"Honestly, she just took on the defensive persona because of what happened when she was 22. Always been told that she would never amount to anything because she was gay."

"How did they meet?"

"That is a story they love to tell. You'll have to ask them when you are next round."

"Give me the short version."

"Sally… she hadn't… she knew that she wasn't straight but she had never really thought herself as gay because, even though it was legal, it wasn't still really accepted back then. James thought that it would be a good idea if she… had the chance to meet other girls, so took her to Soho and spent the night telling every guy that he was straight and was helping out a friend.

"Sally obviously caught Jane's eye and Sally told her that she wasn't totally sure about it. Jane, being as smooth as she could be, kissed her. Apparently, they both couldn't get off each other's mind, obviously confirming to Sally that she was gay. They meet up again another night and… I suppose the rest is history."

"That is the short version."

"Trust me. Most of the long version is Jane gushing over Sally." She paused. "Anyway Lawson, you didn't call me to talk about my cousin and her partner's love life."

"No. It is my weekend with Michael. And you know how much he loves you. Just thought that the three of us could spend the weekend together. Plus I need someone to help me with his ramblings. He can talk for England."

"Ramblings of a four-year-old."

"I am sure he will tell us all about his birthday party the other week."

"Yeah."

"Yeah?"

"Yes, I'll spend the weekend with you and Michael."

"Good. He'll be happy. Plus… I hope he will put a smile on your face as well."

"Eddie."

"Rachel… I meant what I said earlier. I just want you to forget everything for a weekend."

"With a four-year-old?"

"Honestly, he takes up a lot more of your time than you would imagine."

"I am sure between us, we can keep him entertained."

"That's the plan."

Her eyes settled on the flowers on her dressing table. "Thank you, Eddie."

"What for?"

"For being you."

He laughed and she realised how cheesy it sounded, but it was true. This all was just his heart of gold.

"I think you need sleep, Mason."

"Well, you are keeping me up, Lawson."

"Night Rachel."

"Night-night."

Rachel was fairly certain that she fell asleep that night with a smile gracing her lips. There was no better man that she could have fallen in love with than Eddie Lawson.