From Heaven's Mind

Chapter Fourteen

Erik took her to a small Italian restaurant on the edges of town. Neither of them spoke in the car and once they were sat down, they looked over their menus in silence. After a few minutes, Erik lowered his menu. Christine was chewing her lip and her eyes were fixed on the table cloth and not her menu.

"Christine, I-"

"Are you ready to order?" The waiter said joining them. Erik could quite happily have hit him over the head with a chair but restrained himself.

"The carbonara and a glass of house red." He said.

"Lasagne and mineral water, please." Christine said softly.

The waiter jotted it down and disappeared, taking their menus with him. Erik felt rather nervous with his paper barrier but forced himself to look across at her. After a moment she seemed to resolve herself and lifted her face to meet his gaze.

There. Right there, that was why he loved her, he realised. That inner strength, that pride and love that she had for life. The way she could meet his gaze without glaring or passing instantaneous judgement for his sins.

"I'm sorry for just turning up at the opera house." He said suddenly. Christine blinked.

"I'm… I'm glad you did."

"I was going to go sooner but Nadir kept trying to hold me off. I managed to get past him eventually."

"When did you get back?"

"Last night. It was very late and I didn't want to make you angry by knocking your door down in the middle of the night."

"You'd rather make me angry by showing up in the middle of rehearsal?" She said, but there was an amused glint in her eye. Erik couldn't help smiling.

"I have no sense of timing, Christine; you should know that by now."

She smiled and looked down at the table. Erik leant forward, leaning on the table.

"How are rehearsals going?"

"Don't."

"I'm sorry?" He said, frowning at the peculiar statement. She looked up at him again, her expression soft and hard at the same time.

"Don't do the whole making-small-talk bit. You're terrible at it and it's unnecessary. We're not strangers, Erik." She leant on the table too and smiled slightly. "I don't want this to be awkward and uncomfortable, OK? It's not like we're on a first date. So don't make it one."

Erik nodded.

"Very well."

"Good. So…" She settled back in her chair and smiled slightly. "Do you want to start or shall I?"

And it all came out. Not all at once, of course. They were both a little too wary for that. But brick by brick their walls of self protection were crumbling. Erik explained thoroughly what had happened that night, what he had done since then, what had been said. In turn, Christine admitted that she hadn't been fair in not giving him a chance to explain.

"I… I just thought that… I was scared. I thought I'd lost you, that you'd fallen in love with her. And that scared me." She said, avoiding his eyes.

Erik couldn't help it. He reached across and took her hands in his.

"You had no reason to be scared. Even if I didn't have you, Kelly Delaney is certainly not the sort of woman I am attracted to."

"Which I don't get. Because she was gorgeous and intelligent and older and-"

"She wasn't you."

Christine knew that she shouldn't let a line as cheesy as that get to her. But it did. Because she knew that he meant it, whereas with any other guy she would have burst out laughing. Not with him. Not with Erik. Because she wanted to forgive him. She didn't want to cling to this, to let it become something that may be brought up in arguments, something that could be used to hurt either one of them.

It was gone eleven when they finally left the restaurant. They were the last people there but Christine had no desire to go home. Not just yet, anyway. Erik clearly felt the same because instead of driving her back to Jameson Street they ended up by the river. They found a bench and sat, grateful for the moonlight as there were no streetlights. Christine looked up at Erik.

"When do you have to be back in America?"

"I told Tony I'd be back on by Thursday." He replied.

Christine looked at the water. It was moving silently in the night, the moon reflected in its ripples. Would they come here with their baby? She wondered. As a family, would they come and sit on the shores. It would be in the summer, of course, when it was warm and the grass was lush and green. They could sit by the river, talking, playing together. They could be so happy. If they got through this. But she already knew they would. It was obvious. They were supposed to be together and she wasn't going to let something like this stop it. They would be a family, she thought fiercely.

"Do you feel ill?" Erik asked, clearly concerned. She looked at him blankly.

"What?"

"You were rubbing your stomach. Are you alright?"

"Oh, yes. I… I think it ate too much." She smiled.

Christine couldn't tell him then. She still didn't know how he might react and if it was less than pleased, she didn't want to ruin this night. They had somehow gone from being awkward half-strangers to a tentatively loving return to their former selves. She wouldn't have ruined this for the world.

She looked down at her hands, idly playing with the sticking plasters on her fist. Erik took her hand and examined it.

"What happened?" He asked. She was glad for the darkness, as it hid her flushed cheeks.

"I, uh… I hit the wall."

"Why?"

"I was angry."

He smirked.

"And you decided to take it out on a defenceless wall?"

"Oh, the wall had it coming."

"I'm sure it did." He said, but he didn't release her hand. Christine looked at him.

"What you said today… you said you'd answer anything that I asked you."

"Yes."

"Will you tell me about James Pewter?" Erik looked up and met her eyes. She wasn't smiling but was watching him closely. He breathed heavily and nodded.

"I'll tell you. If you want me to."

"No."

Erik blinked.

"What?"

"I do want to know. But not tonight. I just wanted to know if you would tell me if I asked." She smiled with a shrug. Erik smiled and lifted his eyes to the heavens.

"I might almost think you were taking advantage of the situation, Christine."

"Would you? Never mind, you'll get over it." She smiled comfortably, looking back out at the river.

Eventually he stood.

"I should get you home. I fear for my life if I don't. Your three guardians seemed rather protective." She smiled.

"Yes, they'll eat you alive."

"Can I see you tomorrow night?" He asked, looking down at her. She nodded.

"Of course."

"If… if you want me to stay longer then Thursday…"

"No. You need to get back. And besides…" She smiled as they began to walk to the car. "I'll be coming out on Friday."

He paused.

"You will?"

"Yes." She said earnestly. "I will."

Christine let herself into the house. It was dark. She supposed that the others had gotten fed up with waiting and gone to bed. But no, there was a light coming from the kitchen. She went through and found Max sat at the kitchen table with a sandwich and a crossword puzzle.

"What time do you call this, young lady?" He said, tapping his watch. Christine looked at her watch and whistled.

"I call it two in the morning and we have work later. Goodnight."

"Everything go OK?"

"Yeah." She said with a faint smile.

She didn't need to share details about the dinner. She didn't need to tell him about sitting by the river, or the conversations they'd had. And she certainly didn't need to let him know about the kiss on the doorstep.

"How'd it go?" Rebecca asked eagerly the next day. Christine smiled and shrugged.

"It was… good. I'm seeing him again tonight and then I'm flying out at the weekend. But he still doesn't know about the baby yet. I'll tell him at the weekend."

"Awesome. I'm glad for you, Christine." Rebecca smiled.

Christine smiled too and then stretched.

"We'd better get started before James murders us."

"Good idea."

"Hello ladies." Max said, handing them filled water bottles. "Here. James is on the warpath today. I don't think he was happy about Erik interrupting yesterday."

"I know. I think they've met before, they're both really tense around each other." Christine said vaguely. "Are you seeing Cara tonight?"

Max shuffled awkwardly.

"Well… no. We sort of broke up."

"Why?"

"It wasn't as if we didn't see it coming. The thing is I know it's mostly my fault and I feel pretty bad. But I think she'll be better off without me anyway." He said. "It really wasn't fair on her."

"I'm glad you made a decision though." Christine said, patting his shoulder. He nodded.

"Yeah. It's good this way. Come on; get practising while I get the lighting fixed."

It was a particularly gruelling rehearsal. James seemed to think that the best way to get them concentrating was to make them work harder than ever.

"We're doing well, people. Tickets have already gone on sale and they're selling like hotcakes for the opening night." He said with a smile, sweat streaking his brow. "At this rate every night is going to be sold out."

"Just the way we like it." Max grinned. James laughed.

"Very true. Good work today."

They dispersed and Christine caught Max's arm.

"Am I forgiven? He seems cheerful."

"It helped that you gave a good performance today." He winked. Christine smiled and he said quietly, "How are you doing?"

"I'm good."

"Sure? I was worrying about you last night."

"It was easier than I thought it was going to be. I didn't go to try and make him feel guilty, Max. I want to be with him and if he says that nothing happened, I believe him." Christine said calmly. "But if I happen to see Kelly Delaney at any point, that won't stop me knocking the living daylights out of her trashy blonde head."

Max whistled.

"You've got claws."

"And I full intend to use them."

"Fighting for your man. Nice." He winked. "Any chance I can get a ride home?"

"When are you going to buy your own car, Max?"

"When I can be bothered. So are you going to be moving back to Rochdale?"

"Eventually. Not before the weekend. Maybe next week." Christine said, picking up her bag and walking out into the car park with him.

"OK. Not to say that we don't love having you with us." Max assured her. She smiled.

"I know. Come on, I need to walk Trister before Erik comes to get me."

They didn't go out to dinner that night. Instead they walked out of the town and into the surrounding countryside. A lot of it was farmland but there were the occasional fields that served as public footpaths and they followed these through into woods and over hills, never stopping always talking. They could have gone back in time, talking about how they'd first met at the university theatre, the time spent in New York, the time leading up to the wedding, the honeymoon in Rome.

"I loved that day in Rome when we went around all the religious places. I mean, I know you're not one for religion, but it was so beautiful." Christine said.

"The art more than made up for my dislike of religion." Erik agreed. "One cannot possibly let a disregard for God come in the way of appreciating an original Da Vinci piece."

Christine smiled and tugged her coat tighter around herself. November was not the friendliest time to go for a brisk walk but she wouldn't have gone back for the world. Erik must have planned the route for they were soon heading back towards the car.

"What time is your flight?" She asked.

"Before dawn. I'll be back in time to get some work done tonight and be ready for Friday." He replied, unlocking the car. Christine wiped her shoes clean on the grass before climbing in and Erik switched on the heater.

"Are you hungry?" He asked.

"Starving." She admitted. He smiled.

"Chinese?"

"Sounds fantastic."

They sat in the kitchen at Jameson Street, eating take away Chinese food. Tom and Meg were at the cinema and Max was in his room, playing videogames. Christine picked up some chicken in black bean sauce with her chopsticks and chewed it.

"Oh, that's so good. Nothing like a long walk that freezes your arse off to work up an appetite." She grinned. Erik smiled.

"We'll have to do it more often."

"Definitely. Every other weekend."

"I'll make a note of it." He promised.

The door opened and Meg and Tom came in.

"Hey guys. How was the film?" Christine asked. Tom pulled a face.

"A waste of time. But never mind. We're having Chinese?"

"I got you extras, it's in the oven." Christine said. Tom smiled.

"You know me so well."

"Christine, you shouldn't be eating food like that! It's not healthy!" Meg scolded her.

Erik blinked. Christine's heart skipped a beat and Meg went pale.

"I mean… June is going to murder you if you don't fit into your costumes."

"Don't worry about it, I get plenty of exercise." Christine said calmly. Meg, still a little panicked at her blunder, grinned.

"Dunno, Chris. You're looking a little chubby."

"I am not!" Christine objected, throwing a chopstick at her. Meg dodged it and smiled sweetly.

"Lucky you're already married, who'd want you in the state you're getting into?"

"Meg Grayson, I am going to murder you." Christine growled. Meg stepped back.

"Erik, restrain your woman!"

Erik smirked.

"I would, Meg, but I find it so much more entertaining to let her get you." He said. Christine smiled and sat down, reaching for another piece of chicken. And then she put down her chopsticks.

"You've ruined it now, Meg. It's guilty food."

"I'd better eat it then. I'd hate to see it go to waste." Meg said, picking up Christine's chopsticks. Christine scowled and Erik looked at his watch.

"I should get some sleep before my flight."

He and Christine went into the hall to say goodbye. After a kiss, a hug, and another kiss, Christine closed the door and returned to the kitchen. Meg looked at her guiltily.

"Christine, I swear I didn't mean to say that, I'm so sorry!"

"Don't worry. We covered up well." Christine said, sitting down.

"Hey, he's just lucky we didn't stand here and glare at him." Tom said. "The only reason we didn't is because you're all ready to forgive him."

"I love him. I don't want to drag this out. I don't blame him, anyway. I mean, I did at first. But not anymore." Christine said, chewing a mouthful of rice.

Meg hugged her.

"You're amazing. If it had been me… I don't know what I would have done."

"I did what I needed to be done. It's Erik who's been the brave one here. And he's grovelling enough to make up for something that actually didn't happen in the first place." She said. "I'm going to bed. Goodnight."

They both said goodnight and she went upstairs. After changing into her pyjamas she snuggled into bed, with Trister lying under the duvet with her, his warm weight on her legs. She rubbed his furry head.

"You're a good boy. You put up with so much from me, don't you?" She said sleepily. Trister just nuzzled her hand with his nose before settling down to sleep.

"I can tell you're pregnant. You've got that healthy glow." Rebecca commented the next morning. Christine smiled brightly.

"I feel good. I'm telling Erik about the baby tomorrow night when I get to New York and hope that everything goes OK."

"I'm sure it will. And if not, let us know so we can find an understudy for when he kills you." Rebecca said dismissively. Christine lifted an eyebrow.

"How concerned you seem for my safety."

"I love you really. Let's get started."

They began their warm ups and Rebecca smiled.

"I think you're losing your touch, Christine. I'm getting much higher notes than you." She said. Christine narrowed her eyes.

"Oh, do you think so? I beg to differ, Griffins."

"Get over yourself, Destler. No shame in losing to the best." Rebecca winked. Christine grinned.

"Come on then. Let's see who can get higher. Max, play scales!"

Max, laughingly, sat at the piano and began to play. Note after note, Christine and Rebecca went higher and higher up the scales. Everyone watched in amusement at the competition. When the sound finally became so high Max was positive that dogs around the town were starting to bark, he stopped playing.

"OK, let's just say you're both as good as each other. Because my ears did nothing to deserve that and I don't see why we should all suffer because you two have a competitive streak."

"He's insulting our singing, Christine." Rebecca said in a falsely appalled tone.

"We'd better do something about him." Christine replied in a would-be indignant tone. Max smiled brightly.

"You wouldn't do that to me. I'm too adorable."

Rebecca and Christine exchanged a glance and Max stood up hastily.

"Hey, we're supposed to be working! Get going!" He said quickly, before disappearing. Everyone laughed and Christine drank from her water bottle.

"He's lucky he's adorable, because he's a coward as well." She commented.

"Delivery for Christine Destler." They turned and saw a young man dressed in a delivery uniform. In his arms was an enormous bouquet of blood red roses. Christine stepped forward and he smiled.

"Here you go. Here's a card in with them." He nodded before leaving. Rebecca and several of the dancers rushed around as Christine opened the card. As if she didn't already know who they were from.

For Christine

Until Tomorrow Comes

My love

Erik

"Oh my god, I have got to get me a billionaire boyfriend!" Dana, one of the dancers, sighed romantically. Christine smiled and smelled one of the roses.

Until tomorrow.

A/N: Urgh, this was a horrible chapter to get through. I didn't want them to get together right away but I didn't know how to drag it out. I swear, they're in charge of this story. I wanted to keep them apart for longer but they just kept coming back together. Does anyone else get that? No matter how hard you try, the characters always do what you don't want them to. But Christine still doesn't know anything about James, Erik doesn't know about the baby and Kelly hasn't been in at all. I have lots to do, hee hee.

This chapter is for everyone on PFN because they're awesome and none of them care that I can't get my characters to obey my commands.

Lotsa luv 'n' huggles

Katie