"You've told the team investigating the attack about this, right?" Jo asked, certain that Sam would have shared it, knowing it could prove vital to the investigation. Sam's failure to respond shook that certainty. "Why would you not tell anyone about this? Sam?"
"It's obvious who it's from, what's the point?" Sam muttered bitterly moving to snatch the page back, turning an icy glare on Jo as it was put out of her reach.
"You think Hugh sent this? All the more reason you should hand it over to the police and let them use it as evidence." Jo beckoned to Gary handing the sheet to him and instructing him to take it to Sun Hill, ignoring Sam's feeble protestations. Gary shot off, afraid to stick around in case Sam tried to wrestle the paper back from him.
"Who the hell else is likely to have sent that? Did you come back just to irritate me?" Sam fired at Jo, eyes blazing angrily, knowing she was being unreasonable but unable to check her frustration.
Jo smiled softly, recognising this as the fiery Sam she remembered from the incident with Seth. "I came back so I could be here for you, like you were there for me with Tessa." Jo waited to see if Sam would react. She was not disappointed.
"You remember that?" Jo nodded slightly, wishing she could reach out and pull Sam to her.
"Things are still patchy but I remember enough to know it's my turn to offer you someone to lean on, to vent your frustrations on without fear of recrimination. I figure it's the least I must owe you." Pausing, Jo took in Sam's appearance, noting the graze on her forehead and having to use all her self-restraint not to reach out and caress it. "What happened to your head?"
"It's nothing, just a graze. The explosion knocked me off my feet." Sam brushed aside Jo's concern turning her attention back to her grandson.
"When was the last time you slept? And ate or drank anything?" This time Jo did reach out a hand, resting it on Sam's forearm. The blonde looked down at the point of contact, blinking as though expecting it to be a figment of her imagination. "Please Sam, let me take you home for a while. No matter what happens, you need to take care of yourself too." Seeing Sam's bottom lip begin to tremble, her eyes still trained on Jo's hand, Jo moved closer sliding her arm around Sam's shoulders and pulling her into her body. It felt like coming home for both women, aware only of the press of their bodies together. Erotic visions, day dreams, assaulted the brunette's mind as waves of arousal crashed through her body. Jo relished in the sensations flooding her core before panicking, worried how she could possibly hope to keep the relationship platonic with such distracting images drenching her mind.
Abi looked up as the doctor who had been attending to Joey left the room, catching sight of her mother being cradled tenderly in Jo's arms, doing a double take at the brunette's presence. Rising from her chair, groaning at the stiff muscles' objections but pushing through the pain.
"Hi," she offered shyly as she popped her head around the door, unsure of the state of Jo's memory.
"Hi, how's he doing?" Jo asked, still holding onto Sam who seemed content to remain moulded to the taller woman's side.
"It's good news, they're hopeful they'll be able to extubate him tomorrow if he keeps improving as he is." Abi smiled tearfully. Sam looked up at Jo, giddy with the swirl of emotions coursing through her veins.
"You're just one big good luck charm Jo Masters." All three women laughed.
"Right that's it, no excuses now then. You're coming for a break with me. You've been here for over 72 hours, you need some sleep and some food, in that order." Jo instructed, manipulating Sam towards the exit, winking at Abi as she disappeared back into the room housing her son.
Jo sat in the car for a moment after pulling up outside Sam's house, taking in the exterior of the building a strange sense of familiarity settling over her despite having no conscious recollection of having been there before. She looked across to where Sam sat in the passenger seat dozing, smiling tenderly at the angelic figure she cut.
"Oh God yes Jo! Mmmm right there. Harder. Oh God Jo, take me." Sam writhed beneath her, skin flushed and damp with perspiration as her climax neared. "Uuuuuunnnghhh!" The ecstatic blonde arched off the bed as Jo suckled on her clitoris and drove her fingers deep into her. 'Well that was certainly a less angelic image', Jo thought as the vision cleared, blushing madly as she found Sam staring at her quizzically having been woken by the car stopping.
Sam considered asking Jo where she had mentally wandered off to, stopping as she watched the crimson blush work its way over her sheepish features, thinking it best to ignore it andsure she would be seeing that expression of thinly veiledlust in her dreams. "Shall we go inside?" She cleared her throat, hearing a familiar huskiness reverberating around the confines of her car, betraying her own desire for the brunette. Jo nodded, not trusting herself to speak, still feeling the heat from her blush radiating around her head, climbing out of the car grateful for the blast of cool air which met her.
"Shall I put the kettle on?" Sam busied herself flicking through the post idly, half expecting another gift from Hugh before wandering through to the kitchen.
"Feel free, I might have to nip out for some milk though. The bottle in was on its last legs at the weekend and with not being here since I haven't replaced it!" She commented, flashing an apologetic smile at Jo. The brunette stooped down and studied the meagre contents of the fridge, tutting before turning her attention to the cupboards and finding them equally bare.
"You go and run yourself a bath or take a shower or have a lie down or something, anything to relax for a bit. I'll run to the shops and get some food and bits in." Jo instructed shooing Sam towards the staircase.
"If you insist, take some money from my purse. It's in the middle section of my handbag, help yourself." Sam insisted wearily, climbing the stairs, not having the energy to argue after only a few hours sleep over the past three nights.
As Sam disappeared from view, Jo sought out the money, laughingly considering 'handbag' to be an understatement, Sam's bag resembling a suitcase. Locating the purse with surprising ease, Jo opened the back section, picking out a ten pound note before noticing the photograph tucked into a clear plastic pocket in front. She teased the small picture from its resting place, studying it intently, hope and confusion battling within her at the scene depicted. Hearing movement on the stairs, the brunette hurriedly tucked the photo and the money into her jeans pocket replacing the purse and heading into the hallway.
"Did you find it ok?" Sam asked from halfway down the steps.
"What's that?" Jo asked, still distracted by thoughts of the photo burning a hole in her pocket.
"My purse? Did you get some money for the shopping?"
"Oh yeah… yeah sure, I found it fine. Anything in particular you fancy?" Sam felt a tingling in her groin as she thought about the truth of that.
"Erm, something light will do me fine; just something for a sandwich," she managed to stutter, feeling her own skin heat up as her thoughts turned blue.
"OK, well put your feet up, relax. I'll be back shortly." Jo felt an insane urge to kiss Sam before she left, settling for a brief smile instead, wondering if this tension had always existed between them and what the photo meant.
Jo hummed quietly to herself as she strolled around the mini-supermarket gathering supplies for herself and Sam. She felt her phone vibrate against her hip, placing the basket on the ground and delving into her pocket to retrieve the mobile.
"Jo Masters," she answered brightly, flicking her hair back away from her face.
"Jo, it's Gary. I'm back at the hospital, where are you?" The brunette glanced around feeling sheepish for forgetting about her friend.
"Sorry Gary, I'm just grabbing some shopping. I brought Sam home. Did you take that note in to Sun Hill?" Jo spoke in hushed tones not wishing for anyone to overhear, her location not ideal for such a discussion but not to be helped.
"Yeah, they were very interested to say the least. Phil Hunter was fuming that Sam hadn't told him about it before. Touch of the green-eyed monster if you ask me, can't stand you being able to get info out of her so easily when he has to work at even getting a smile!" Gary blabbered jovially, having enjoyed walking back into the station with confidence he hadn't left with so many months ago. "It was good to catch up with the guys again, we're going out for drinks later if you don't mind me leaving you to it? Tony invited me along, wants me to meet the fresh-bloods. Even Honey was all over me if you can believe it!"
"Sounds great Gary, you go ahead and have a good time. You got somewhere you can stay or do you want me to get Sam to make up a bed on her sofa?" Jo asked wondering if Sam would mind her staying over let alone the prospect of Gary kipping on her sofa.
"Nah, I'm sound, Tony's said I can stay at his gaff. Thanks though."
"You sticking around for a few days before heading back to Manchester?" The brunette enquired as she picked up a jar of raspberry jam, inspecting it thoughtfully before depositing it in the basket.
"Yeah thought I'd stay for a day or two, we still have a date with a movie if you're up for it?" Gary pestered good-naturedly. After agreeing to meeting him in a couple of days, Jo hung up, replacing her mobile in her pocket.
Sam raced around the house suddenly remembering she'd have to make it Jo-proof, removing all evidence of their previous relationship and transferring clothing and belongings to the spare room. Her own room looked bare and unwelcoming without all the personal little touches that had kept Jo close despite her physical absence. Sam conceded that she would rather have Jo so close by than just her memories to keep her company, even if it meant having to remove all trace of her from her personal space. Just as she finished transferring the last of Jo's boots into the spare room's wardrobe, Sam heard the front door click shut. She casually sauntered to the top of the stairs, descending them to follow Jo into the kitchen, frowning when there was no sign of the voluptuous brunette. She turned on her heel, shrieking as a man stepped into the hallway barring her exit.