Chapter Seventy Nine - Clearing the Debris

'Please don't break my heart again' she whispered, finally giving into hearts desires, her eyes fixed on Henry's as her bottom lip shook with nerves. Henry tilted her head up a fraction more, softly pulling himself closer, using her body as his anchor. His eyes locked on hers as he poured his heart through them. He gently leant down, watching as Elizabeth closed her eyes in anticipation, her hand sliding from his face to his shoulder, moving closer to her body as he did. His lips brushing delicately against hers, a gentle amount of pressure placed behind his kiss as he tested the waters of her boundaries. Elizabeth pressed her lips together, her eyes flickering open as she smiled softly, her body yearning to leap and reconnect with him, but her head focused on their new found path ahead, and all the debris it held.

'I never wanted to break your heart the first time' he whispered, his heart somehow shattered from the pain he'd caused but so full of hope and love all at the same time. She leant her forehead against his, her hand lingering on his shoulder, fiddling with the collar of his sweater, a small smile creeping on her face as she held him in her arms once again. They both nuzzled their foreheads into one another, taking a moment to reconnect with one another.

'Was that your stomach?' Henry chuckled, pulling back and laughing as he heard her stomach grumbling in the silence. Elizabeth dipped her head sheepishly and giggled.

'I think I might be hungry' she laughed

'Is food done?' He asked and

'Mhmm' she nodded, pressing her lips together as she looked up at him, savoring his taste on her lips, her eyes adjusting to the happiness in front of her.

'Stay here I'll-'

*Ring*Ring*

Elizabeth closed her eyes and let out a small frustrated groan as her phone continued to ring out. Henry chuckled and rose to his feet.

'You see who that is and I'll sort food' he offered

*Ring*Ring*

'Sorry Henry, I told them not to ring unless it's an emergency, I best..Oh, it's Jason' she paused her brow furrowed as she looked at her called ID.

'Take it, I'll hide in the kitchen, they don't know I am here'

'No it's ok, I'll go upstairs, I'll be two minutes, just warm the food in the microwave for five minutes' she smiled, swiping her phone to answer and placing it against her ear as she stood.

'Hey Jase' she spoke, her hand softly tracing across Henry's back as she passed him, seeking that contact with him as she walked towards the stairs.

'Are you drunk!?' She hissed, her steps getting a little heavier. Henry laughed to himself as he watched her leave.

'Oh boy, you've done it now, Jase' he mumbled to himself. Henry walked into the kitchen and sorted the food for them both. He paused for a moment as he stood by the microwave, his lips pressing together, his tongue tasting her, his soul finally feeling at ease.

Henry moved from the kitchen to the lounge, setting up the coffee table as a mini dining table for them to sit around, he placed large cushions on the floor and poured them both a full glass of wine, emptying the bottle. He then went in search of a candle to light for them and placed it in the middle of the table, then stood to dim the lights.

She took a little longer than anticipated so Henry found that he started to look around, the house decor hadn't changed at all, no ornaments moved or changed, all the gaps he left were still there, he couldn't help but imagine how lonely that must have felt, a visual representation that there were gaps within her life. He sighed heavily to himself and glanced up the stairs for a brief second, waiting patiently for her to return.

'Our son is drunk! No, Let's rephrase that, our fourteen year old son is drunk!' She shrieked as she walked back into the room, not noticing the romantic setting Henry had laid out for them instantly. He walked over to her and screwed up his face at her announcement.

'I heard you say, is he really?'

'Yep, he said he'd only had a few and just rang me to tell me that he loves me and thinks I am really a great politician but he can't tell me that because he-' she paused, her head tilting to the side to look past Henry. 'Oh Henry' she gushed, her head moving back into his line of sight, she let out a soft sigh of admiration, utterly lost for words. It had been a long time since she had a moment like this with Henry.

'It's nothing. You were talking about Jase?' He asked to realign her focus but she shook her head.

'He's fine, we can deal with him tomorrow. Henry this isn't nothing, this,-' she paused again walking past him and absorbing the sight before her, '- this is perfect, thank you' she whispered, overcome with emotion her heart fluttering at his actions.

'Well Blake cooked' he teased and she giggled softly, her head tilting back as she let her guard down. 'Sit, let's eat' he took a seat on one of the cushions first, allowing Elizabeth to remain in control, to choose just how close she wanted to sit by him. He watched as she left a small gap between them and sat next to him, flashing him a loving grin as she scooped up the bowl of pasta and her fork.

'Blake has been talking to me about this pasta for weeks, it better be good' she mocked, placing a forkful into her mouth. 'Oh My' her eyes fluttered and soft moans escaped her lips as she tasted the food. Henry clears his throat and looks away, the sight of her enjoying her food and softly moaning was sending his own thoughts wild. She filled her fork once again and turned to face Henry

'Here, taste' she lifted her fork towards his mouth, knowing he had his own dish to tuck into but nonetheless continuing to offer him her own. Henry accepted, slowly taking the food from the fork and releasing it back to her.

'Good?'

'Not bad' He teased

'Not bad! This is some of the best pasta I've ever tasted' she claimed

'Ouch'

'Sorry' she giggled at his pretend hurt face. 'I can't remember it, you'll have to cook for me again' She grinned, trying to soften the truth with a sprinkle of hope.

'It's a date' he winked, causing her to blush and glance away, picking up her glass and taking another sip.

'Shall I get another bottle?' He asked as he picked up the already fresh one he had placed on the table at the start of their meal.

'Trying to get me drunk?' She teased, giving him a playful side eye.

'No, just trying to help you relax' he played

'Is that not the same thing?' She called as he stood up and walked back to the pantry to grab another bottle of wine.

The evening continued to draw on, both of their plates now empty and pushed to the side. Both of them remained sitting on the floor stealing glances from one another as they continued to talk, breaking through the barriers that had held them apart for so long.

'Seeing you with Charlotte really hurt me, I have to be honest Henry' she sighed as she took the courage to show him her head. He nodded silently.

'I was stupid'

'Why did you do it? It's so unlike you. I was really concerned about you Henry, I need to know why' she pleaded with him.

'It was never meant to happen, She started at UVA and I was assigned to show her around as her office is by mine. She noticed I was spending breaks and lunch alone so started to accompany me' he explained

'I'm going to need you to get to the part where you ended up sleeping with her' her tone was a little harsh as her mind thrashed images of the two of them around.

'That was a mistake, a huge drunken mistake that I have regretted since it happened. She just kept being there, you were right, that day at the Museum opening, you told me I had found company, and I had. I was so hurt and conflicted over our relationship, how things were handled and left around Dimitri, moving my life back to a place I thought would be our retirement home, all of it was just a mess and I needed to be held, the nights were so long and empty' he sighed heavily, his heart aching as he told her.

'I was alone, I didn't jump into bed with a stranger to fight the loneliness' she argued back

'No, but you buried yourself in work, you stopped eating and started drinking' he reasoned. 'I'm not trying to score points, I am a tactile person, and I thought being close to someone, being touched and being intimate would help ease the cravings I had for that, make it easier to move on'

'And did it?' She raised an eyebrow, her words cold as she pictured them in bed, Henry with another woman.

'No, I couldn't do it, had to get stupidly drunk just to go through with it and even then it wasn-'

'I don't need those details' she dismissed him. A large sigh escaped her as she ran her fingers through her hair.

'She was around for three weeks but we only slept with one another once, I couldn't do it, it felt like I was cheating on you' he recalled. 'I don't want that intimacy with anyone again' he huffed

'Anyone?' She questioned and he fumbled on his words

'Only you, if we ever establish a relationship to that point I mean' he tried to explain, causing Elizabeth to giggle. The wine sinking into her senses.

'Whilst I hate what you did, for going with her, I guess I can't blame you entirely, I had pushed you away. I do blame myself for a lot of this' she confessed, her gaze falling into the glass as she swirled the liquid around, her thoughts running around in her head. Henry shifted slightly, reaching over and placed a hand on her knee, caressing her jeans softly.

'Tell me' he whispered

'I had everything here with you Henry, I kept it all together enough, never letting the kids, or you down but, I kept it all together a little too much, and in the end I let myself down, I let myself lose everything' she whispered, her sorrow dripping from every breath as she looked up and shook her head, Henry watching helplessly, he shifted a little closer to her, his knee resting upon hers as he looked through her soul.

'What do you want from me?' She asked cautiously, almost scared of the answer.

'I don't want anything from you Elizabeth, Just everything with you' he whispered. He leant closer to pull her in, desperate to feel her lips against his once again but this time she pulled back, placing a hand on his cheek and smiling softly at him.

'I need to talk to you first, about the Philippines'