A/N:

This is a continuation of William and Eliza's story from I'm On My Way, after they return from their trip to Glasgow. It's definitely a more joyous time in their lives together. Hope you enjoy their journey, as they continue to grow closer.

Special thanks to all those who have taken the time to leave me their thoughts and input. Your kind reviews and encouragement are always greatly appreciated.

William Wellington lay alone in his bed, staring up at the ceiling of his room. His house was quiet, except for the loud ticking of the clock on his bedside table. It was 1:00 in the morning, and even though he had crawled into bed 2 hours earlier, sleep continued to evade him. He could not stop thinking about his beloved Eliza.

He knew that he needed to turn his mind off and get some sleep since he had to be back at Scotland Yard in less than 7 hours to resume his duties as detective inspector. He knew that his case load was going to be heavy this next week, as he worked to get caught up and get his bearings again.

Had he really only been gone for 5 days? It seemed like he and Eliza had been in Glasgow with Mary, Robert and the boys for much longer than that. So much had happened between Eliza and him that had nothing to do with his work at Scotland Yard. He was looking forward to returning to work, but he wondered how long it would take for him to get his edge back. He had told Eliza the morning after their night by the linden tree that it had seemed as if they were exisiting in their own little world, quite different from their lives in London, and now they had come out of their little bubble to the place where they both lived and worked. To say that it was jarring for him to be back in his own home, alone, without her was an understatement.

As he lay in bed, trying to push thoughts from his mind to quiet it, he found that his heart would not listen to him; instead it replayed every feeling he had had during their last few hours together before he had forced himself to leave Eliza's house earlier that evening.

They had arrived late in London, their train from Glasgow having been delayed. They had taken a cab from King's Cross Station to her house, and after helping Eliza carry her bags into the house, William had been invited to stay for a late supper. He had agreed and for the first time, he had shared a meal with Eliza and Ivy together in the kitchen, Eliza excitedly telling Ivy of their engagement, their trip to Ayr and the fun they had had during their stay with William's sister, Mary and her family. He had watched as Ivy admired Eliza's emerald engagement ring, and then knowingly smiled at Eliza, as if she had predicted this day would come for them at some point in their future. She confessed to them that she had almost told Eliza, prior to their leaving for Glasgow the previous Wednesday, she hoped Eliza would return from Scotland engaged to William, but she hadn't wanted to push them. He had always suspected that Ivy knew more about their feelings for each other than they were willing to admit to themselves or than she had been willing to say aloud. He had also felt that Ivy had always quietly been in his corner, ever since he was a teenage boy who had carried his heart in his hands, wanting nothing more than to give it to Eliza. He knew she was genuinely happy that they had admitted their love to each other at long last and were ready to share their lives together as husband and wife.

After supper, William and Eliza had retired to the drawing room, Ivy bringing them tea and whisky to sip by the fire crackling in the hearth. As she was leaving the room, she remarked, "Inspector, I do hope that I may now call you William, particularly since you will be spending more time here with Eliza and me."

He had replied, "Ivy, I would like nothing more than to have you call me William or Will, whichever you prefer. It seems like our being familiar with each other is well overdue. My apologies to you for not having asked you sooner to call me by my Christian name again. I might have been distracted by your delicious supper and by Eliza telling you all about our engagement. Thank you for supper, Ivy, especially on such short notice and with us arriving later than expected."

"You're quite welcome, William. Now I will bid you and Eliza good evening," Ivy said, taking her leave of them.

As the door to the drawing room closed quietly behind Ivy, he felt Eliza's hand come up to touch his cheek and gently stroke his beard with her fingertips. He looked into her clear blue eyes and saw her love and desire for him, and before he could stop himself, he was kissing her, his lips seeking hers, his arms pulling her close to him. The velvety softness of her lips and the taste of them, her scent and her warmth were slowly driving him mad with desire, and he felt the anticipation of a time when he would not have to hold himself so tightly in check keenly. He loved her more than he had ever thought possible, and his love for her seemed to grow stonger and deeper with each passing day. He wanted her, all of her, body and soul, and he knew that she wanted him too. He could feel her heart pounding in her chest, could hear that little moan she made when he kissed her and her ragged breathing when he stopped. He could feel her cling to him more tightly each time they came together and could see all of her emotions swirling in her eyes, when they slowly opened to gaze into his, including that hint of disappointment when she had to let him go.

Three weeks, they had decided on their journey back to London. They would marry in three weeks' time in London at a registry office, with Ivy and Rupert present as their witnesses, and Moses there too, if he must come. And then...he had had to squelch the images of them together on their wedding night, of what it would feel like to make love to her and be her husband in every way.

He had kissed her gently on her forehead before pressing his forehead to hers, his hand on her cheek, gently stroking it with his thumb. Taking a moment to get his voice back under control, he had said, "Eliza, my darling, you know that I love you so very much, and I have not hidden from you how much I desire you and want to be with you, as a man wants to be intimate with a woman. But we've agreed to wait until after we are married, and as much as I want to stay with you tonight, and every night thereafter, I will need to leave in order to keep that promise to you and to myself. Now."

She had lifted her head and peered into his stormy green eyes. "Of course, William. I know that what you say is true, and I know that three weeks will go by quickly for both of us, but when I think of you not being with me tonight, of me sleeping alone without your arms around me, I don't want to let you go. I..." and her voice held a note of despair in it. "Please hold me, for just a little while longer and then leave, if you must."

Kissing her forehead again, he then pulled her into a hug, her head resting against his chest just under his chin. "You know I must go, mo chridhe. I am many things but indifferent to you is not one of them. I love you, Eliza. Tomorrow will be busy for us both. We'll need a good night's rest - separately - in preparation for tomorrow. Three weeks, my love, three weeks, and then never apart again. We can get through three weeks when we have gotten through 10 years apart previously. Now, time for me to leave," he told her, as he gently let her go, rising from the settee and extending his hand to her, which she took as she rose from the settee as well. He kissed her left hand, just above her engagement ring. "Until tomorrow, my darling. Sweet dreams, Eliza. Stop by Scotland Yard after you are finished at the office tomorrow evening, and perhaps we can have supper together?"

"Of course, William." She led him by the hand out of the drawing room and into the front hall, where she handed him his overcoat and hat, then brushed a soft kiss against his lips. She pulled back, knowing that if she kissed him more deeply she would make their parting all the more difficult. "I love you, William. Sweet dreams. I shall miss you tonight," she whispered into the space between them, her face still close to his.

"Good night, Eliza. I will miss you too." He gently touched her cheek and then pressed a gentle kiss to it. Lifting his bags, he left her standing in her doorway, leaning against the doorframe, as he hailed a cab to take him to his house.

Now lying in his bed alone, he was overcome by a feeling of emptiness. He missed Eliza, missed the feel of her lying in his arms as he held her close through the night, and the ache that he felt in his chest from her absence was so intense, he could hardly breathe. He had known that their returning to their separate houses after they got back to London would be difficult, but he hadn't expected how cold he would feel without her there close to him. He wasn't sure he could sleep in his bed without her, which he found ironic because he had only slept in the same bed with her for two nights. Two nights, when almost every other night of his entire adult life, he had been alone. Even when he had been with other women, he had never allowed them to stay overnight with him nor had he stayed with them, always returning to his house by himself. He had preferred it that way. It had made his life simpler, and his bedroom had always remained his sanctuary.

Now...he couldn't stop the yearning that he felt for her, for her warmth and her closeness. He could recall the softness of her skin, the shape of her body and how it seemed to fit perfectly to his. He wanted her here in his bed with him now. Was she feeling his absence as acutely as he felt hers?

He let out a groan, then threw back the bedcovers and got out of bed. He descended the stairs and entered the kitchen, where he pulled a bottle of whisky from one of the cabinets and poured himself a dram. He drank it down in one gulp, the whisky burning his throat as it went down. Christ, he thought, had he really believed this whisky was any good? After having the Todd family's whisky, he wasn't quite sure he could drink subpar whisky ever again. Still he needed something to calm him and perhaps lull him to sleep.

Pouring himself another dram, he took the tumbler with him into his drawing room. The fire was dying in the hearth, only embers remaining, but he could still feel their warmth and their red glow soothed him, as he wrapped himself in a throw and settled himself in his armchair, stretching out his legs on the ottoman in front of it. He had told her once that he would take this armchair while she could have his bed, after he had asked her to stay at his house for her own protection during their investigation of the forgery ring. While that had been a different set of circumstances, he smiled when he realized that she had already taken his bed, had stolen it out from under him since he couldn't sleep in it without her. He wondered how many nights would he sleep in this armchair before he could go back to his empty bed again. The question weighed on him, as he slowly drank his second dram of whisky. Setting the tumbler on the end table, he pulled the throw closer around him and closed his eyes. Three weeks, he could get through three weeks if he could have Eliza in his life forever as his wife at the end of those three weeks.