14

It wasn't until they were half way to the station, that Maggie
noticed which car they were in. The C.I. car was the only car that
Ben had been able to start, and only then after borrowing' the keys
from P.J.'s jacket that morning.

"Er, Ben, why are we in P.J.'s car?" she asked, her heart skipping a
beat as she said his name. It was daft, how giddy she was feeling.
He'd kissed her; he'd WANTED to kiss her. And boy, what a kiss. And
when she'd held him –

"Maggie? You alive in there?" came Ben's voice, breaking into her
daydream. He looked askance at her, wondering where she'd been, what
had got her so distracted, although it didn't take a genius to work
it out. Something had happened with P.J. He'd done something, got to
her first, whatever it was, Maggie was away with the fairies. Ben
sighed, his hands tightening around the steering wheel. So. The
gloves were off.

It was time for him to make HIS move. P.J. Hasham wasn't the only
one who knew how to make a woman smile like that, and Ben was going
to make sure that Maggie knew that.

OOO

"Nick!" Zoe Schultz stood watching her husband, hands on hips. Nick
was once again checking through the baby bag that had taken up
permanent residence by the front door for the past week. "It's not
going to have changed. It's all there, and will be, however many
times you check it. I'm fine, the baby's fine and that wretched
bag's fine! Now, will you PLEASE go to work? The taxi will be here
any minute, and I'm having lunch with Callie – and you know Callie's
a nurse, who works AT THE HOSPITAL, and we're meeting AT THE
HOSPITAL, so if, IF anything happens, I'll be ?"

"At the hospital." Mumbled Nick, head bowed in mock embarrassment.
Lifting his head, he moved very close to her, kissing the tip of her
nose, "I only worry because I love you"

"Smooth, Nicholas, very smooth – and look, here's the taxi, " she
said, accepting another kiss, and waving goodbye, she waddled down
the path and hoisted herself into the car. Nick stared after her, a
daft grin on his face. Geez, he loved that woman.

OOO

P.J. Hasham had finished his little happy dance, and as such was
inordinately grateful that what neighbours he did have, had no way
of seeing him. Then again, who cares?

He'd kissed Maggie Doyle!

He'd KISSED her!

And – SHE'D KISSED HIM BACK!

WOO-HOOO!

Try as he might, and that wasn't very hard, he couldn't get that
silly grin off his face.

"I love you Maggie Doyle!" he announced to the room. "I LOVE MAGGIE
DOYLE!" he yelled.

The smile stayed in place as he showered, dressed and grabbed some
breakfast. Before he knew it, he'd grabbed his jacket and was
heading out the door. I must have it bad, he told himself, I'm going
in to work early, just to see her.

And then he stopped. Perhaps that wasn't a wise move. They shouldn't
do anything out of the ordinary, not unless they wanted to get found
out. And – he stopped short – what if, what if there wasn't a them'?

Where the hell did that come from?

What if that kiss was just an exploration, if she was just seeing
what it felt like, and if she decided he wasn't what she wanted?
What if –

No. No, she'd definitely kissed him back, she'd wanted to kiss him,
and that look, the look in her eyes when they broke apart, there was
definitely something there. He wasn't about to kid himself. There'd
been something there for a long time, something simmering below the
surface. There was definitely more than friendship at stake here,
perhaps, just maybe, well, perhaps she feels like I do? Crazily,
completely and utterly 100 in love?

He sighed, grinned, and did an about face and went back inside to
clock watch until he could arrive at work without giving either of
them away.

OOO

"But why us, Boss? I mean, we've both just got back from Melbourne?"
sighed Ben. He and Maggie were sat in Tom's office, having been
asked to go and collect Colin McKeogh from Melbourne where he'd fled
after being bailed on a robbery charge. "Why not Dash, or Adam, or
anyone else?"

"I told you why, Stewart. Dash and Adam are in the middle of the
Watson Burglary, Nick can't go because of Zoe, P.J.'s in court
tomorrow morning, and that leaves you two. It won't take that long,
just today, and I'll give you both tomorrow morning off to make up
for it. Whatever you say though, Stewart, you're going – and if I
was you, I'd get a wriggle on, because the traffic gets pretty heavy
in Melbourne later in the morning." Tom said, standing and moving
over to hold the door open, watching his two officers leave. Ben was
still muttering under his breath about having to drive back to
Melbourne, but Maggie, the usually alert, efficient Maggie, she'd
been in a whole other world this morning.

Tom had been watching her out of the corner of his eye as he spoke,
and had not missed the small smiles that kept gracing her pretty
face, smiles that were hidden just as quickly as they arrived, but
smiles that would have lit up the darkest of rooms. Something had
happened, and Tom had a feeling he knew who might be able to solve
the mystery of what exactly it was.

In the outer office, Ben was still grumbling until a thought
occurred to him.

Driving to Melbourne – with Maggie.

A whole day with her, and without Patrick Joseph Hasham.

Things were looking better already, he thought as he ushered Maggie
out of the door. "Come on then Doyle. If we have to do this, let's
get going!" he grinned, his attitude doing a complete 180-degree
turnaround.

Maggie looked up at him from her desk. "You go on out, I'll be there
in a mo, I just want to finish this," she said, smiling at him.
Ben's smile faltered slightly as he saw her eyes flicker to P.J.'s
office, but he forced a smile and nodded.

"Ok, but don't be too long, you heard what the Boss said."

Once she was sure no-one would see it, Maggie turned her attention
back to the note she was writing to P.J. Re-reading it, she smiled,
and signing her name, she added a small row of kisses, before
sealing it in an envelope and putting it on his desk.

15

P.J. Hasham now had a very tidy house. The dust had been dusted, the
beds aired – well, his was anyway, the kitchen spotless, and P.J.
finally decided that he could make an appearance at work without
being suspiciously early. A quick glance in the mirror, a quick
straightening of his shirt, and he shut the door behind him,
searching through his jacket for his car keys. Car keys for a car
that wasn't there.

But Ben's car was. It sat there, with a note tucked under the
windscreen wiper. Reading it, and then scrunching it up, P.J.
reached inside his jacket and pulled out his mobile.

"Nick? Nick, I need a lift into work, mate. Ben's nicked the C.I.
car and left me his heap, and I'm not driving that thing. Good,
yeah, no, it's a lovely day, I'll wait by the front gate. No,
nothing's up, it's just a lovely day, that's all. Nick! I said
nothing's up. I always sound like this. Ok, so maybe I don't – Nick just shut up and get yourself over here. Ten minutes, ok, see you
then!" he said, cutting Nick off in mid flow.

This wasn't going to be as easy as he had thought. He had to keep
things quiet, no-one could know about him and Maggie, if there was a
him and Maggie, which there was – good grief, get a grip Hasham!

OOO

Nick Schultz grinned to himself as he hung up. Something had rattled
P.J.'s cage, and not in a bad way. The man was positively bouncing
off the walls, and Nick was hoping that it was because of a certain
Margaret Doyle. They were meant to be together, rules or not, and
Nick had decided that he would be the one to make sure that this
magnificent event would take place.

It took considerably less than ten minutes for Nick to get to P.J.'s
and as he drove up, Nick was delighted to see the radiant grin that
shone across P.J.' face, even if it did disappear as P.J. saw Nick
come into view.

"Hello there Patrick. Looking happy today! Something to tall me?"

"Can't a man be happy, Nick?" P.J. tried.

"Nope. What's happened?"

"Nothing. Just a good day. I like these Middy's, don't have to be up
at some god awful hour and don't have to work until midnight. Now,
can we get going? I need to catch up with Mags, we need to go over
some of the paperwork from the other day." P.J. said carefully.

"MmHm. "Nick said, not missing the slight break in P.J.'s voice when
he said her name. "Ok. But don't get too comfy young Patrick. I'll
get it out of you sooner or later"

"Just drive, Nick" P.J. said, settling back into the seat and
closing his eyes.

OOO
"So, Maggie, sleep well?" Ben asked, the only opening comment he
could think of.

Maggie smiled, his words bringing back memories of lying in P.J.'s
bed, wrapped in his doona, in bedding that held his scent, bedding
that reminded her of him.

"I take it from that smile that you did."

"What? Oh, yes, yes I did. P.J.'s bed's surprisingly comfortable.
And I made him sleep on the couch. "

"And that couch may be ok to sit on, but I'm not sure about sleeping
on it. It's not long enough for him anyway, he'd probably flop over
either end." Laughed Ben, trying to take her mind off P.J.'s bed.

"Like you did before Peej walked you to bed last night? He was very
good to you Ben; he dropped you on the bed, took your shoes off,
peeled your smelly socks off, and then threw the cover over you. And
then he did the same for me. I was so tired last night; I could have
fallen asleep on my feet. In fact, if it weren't for P.J., I
probably would have. He put me to bed and tucked me in. I'll have to
thank him for that later" she said with a smile.

"Didn't you get the chance to do that this morning?" he asked, the
words out of his mouth before he had the chance to think about them.
He'd meant them innocently, but they actual words he said, they were
open to so much interpretation.

And Maggie so obviously read another meaning into his comment. Ben
didn't miss her blush as Maggie looked out of the window, trying to
form a response.

"Ah, no, no, I, he just came in as I was – as I finished getting
changed and then he crawled into bed. Sort of a hello goodbye thing,
and then you yelled and I came out and now we're here. So, no, I
haven't really seen him today. "

"Is that why you left him that note then?" He hadn't missed that,
annoyed that she had to make time for him, that she wanted to
connect with him before Ben had the chance to spend time with her.

OOO

Nick parked the car at the station. He hadn't got anything out of
P.J. apart from the fact that the man was insanely happy about
something, but what that something was, P.J. wasn't about to tell.

"Wonder how the lovely Margaret is this morning?" he asked with a
sideways glance at P.J.

P.J. smiled sweetly at him. "She was fine this morning when she left
my place, " he said, gleefully grinning at Nick's reaction. Well,
after all of the digging that Nick had done on the way there, P.J.
felt he deserved a crumb. And he did have a legitimate reason for
her being there, and she would back him up on that one, hell, even
Ben could back them up!

"She was with you last night?" Nick's mouth fell open.

I wish!' thought P.J. "No, well, sort of. She turned up last night
with the car, having just driven back from Melbourne, just as Ben
and I were about to watch a movie. She was exhausted, so she shared
my dinner and then watched the movie with us. Ben passed out after
about a million beers, and Mags was shattered, so she slept in my
bed and I slept on the couch" he said, grinning at Nick as they
walked into the station.

The rather quiet station.

"Er, hello? " Nick said as he looked around, P.J. making his way
through to his office, his eyes drawn to the note that sat on his
desk.

"Hello you two, " Tom said, coming in to the outer office and
looking rather pointedly at his watch.

"Sorry Boss, " P.J. said, tucking the note into his pocket, ready to
savour later. He knew it was from her, even if it only said P.J. on
the front. "Ben nicked my car this morning, actually, where is he? I
want a word with him"

Tom glanced at his watch. "Hopefully half way to Melbourne by now. I
sent him and Doyle down to pick up Colin McKeogh from the city.
Little idiot made a run for it and the St Kilda boys picked him up
and got in touch. " and Tom wasn't the only one to notice P.J.'s
eyes darken at the news that Maggie and Ben were out of town
together.

"Oh. Ok, not to worry. Ok, I've – er – I've got work to do. Give me
a yell if you want me" P.J. said, turning and leaving them staring
after him, just about managing not to slam his office door behind
him.

"Ah. " Tom said.

"Ah, indeed" said Nick.

16

P.J. sat in his office, his mind mulling over the fact that his
Maggie was on the way to Melbourne with Ben. Maggie and Ben. Ben and
Maggie. Most definitely not a good thing. It wasn't that he didn't
trust Maggie, he trusted her with his life, hell, he trusted her
with his heart. No, it was Stewart that P.J. was wary of.

Ben Stewart was interested in Maggie, that much P.J. was sure of.
He'd seen it in Ben's expression that morning, and he'd heard it in
the things Ben had said, or hadn't said. And now they were spending
all day, cooped up in a car on the way to Melbourne, where they'd
have to have lunch, and – and like I said before, P.J. told himself,
I trust Maggie.

She likes me, she must do, that was one hell of a kiss if she
didn't, he grinned. Nah, Mags likes me, and I love her, and that's
all there is to it. Pulling the slightly crumpled note out of his
pocket, he laid it on his desk, smoothing it out gently. Smiling at
it inanely, he was suddenly grateful that he had shut the office
door before. Picking it up with a shake of his head, he slit the
envelope open and began to read.

"Hey you!

By now you must know that I've been sent back to Melbourne with Ben,
to pick up some escaped crim who's is apparently needed back in dear
old Mt. Thomas. Not the way I wanted to spend the day, and most
definitely not the man I wanted to spend it with.

P.J., you are my best friend, and you are very special to me. This
morning, when you kissed me, P.J., I haven't been that happy in a
long, long time. That was special, precious – and I think I might
need a few more just to make sure. Hell, who am I kidding, I want
thousands, and thousands more kisses like that. I guess what I'm
trying to say is that, I like you. I like you a lot. And when I get
back, I want to see you. This isn't easy for me, putting my heart on
the line like this, but I've liked you for too long to back out now,
and I want to see where we can take this.

If you think I'm taking things too fast, or if I read the situation
all wrong this morning, please just rip this up, and I promise I
won't chase you or anything, I'll stay right out of your way. But I
don't think I did read it wrong, I think you like me just as much as
I like you, P.J., and I'm looking forward to finding out when I get
back tonight.

Lastly, remember this number, 0410422719 – it's my mobile number.
Ellie and Sophia were appalled when they found out that I didn't
have a mobile phone, and they forced me to buy one last week. So,
you can apparently text me, or ring me if you want. Anyway, see you
tonight,

Yours always,
M xxx"

By the end of the note, P.J.'s face ached from grinning so much. She
DID like him. And if she liked him as much as he liked her then he
was one extremely happy bunny! Reaching into his pocket, he pulled
out his mobile phone and put Maggie's number in the speed dial
section. Folding the note and putting it back in the envelope he
carefully put it in his jeans pocket, before taking it out again and
putting it in his breast pocket in his shirt, right near his heart.

Blushing slightly, he shook his head. Get a grip, Hasham, you love
sick idiot.'

But still, he let the letter stay right where it was.

OOO

It was a long drive to Melbourne, and by now, Ben had run out of
things to try and keep Maggie's mind off P.J. They'd talked about
the job, families, weather, recent cases, and still, somehow,
completely subconsciously, she managed to mention Hasham in relation
to every single thing he brought up, thought Ben.

She was now staring out of the window, no doubt thinking about him,
Ben thought bitterly. This was going to be a lot harder than he had
thought. And it was going to call for feet first action.

"So, Mags – " she turned and stared at him, "Sorry, Maggie', you
and P.J. looked awfully cosy last night. "

Maggie's heart skipped a beat. Already? They'd given themselves away
already? But they hadn't even done anything last night, nothing had
happened until this morning.

"What, ah, what do you mean Ben?" she asked, her inscrutable police
face falling into place.

"Nothing! " Ben said with an equally fake grin. "Just P.J. letting
you eat his food. Never seen that before, the guy's very territorial
when it comes to food."

"I've never found that, " Maggie said, "I've always stolen his lunch
if I was peckish, and he's done the same. I guess we're just like
that. Anyway, Ben, you seemed to be enjoying yourself just as well,
you fell asleep half way through the film," she said, trying to
change the subject.

"Yeah, I did, few too many beers. But about you and P.J., it's a
pity about the regs though. I reckon if you both weren't on the
force, you'd make a cute couple" he said, laying it all on the line.

"Cute!" Maggie said, grabbing onto the first thing she could, this
was all too close to home. "Me and P.J. cute? Ben, he's my best
friend, not my boyfriend, and anyway, cute?"

"Yes cute" Ben said dragging it out. He was watching her very
carefully, but she was doing well. Just the right amount of
indignation, of protestation. Anyone who didn't know her as well as
he did, would have let Maggie off the hook. Anyone else would have
believed her, that the two of them were just best friends. But Ben
knew better.

Something had happened that morning, and P.J. and Maggie were now a
lot closer than they wanted anyone to know.

"Oh well, " he said with a return of the fake smile. "It wouldn't
work anyway. I mean, one of you would have to be transferred out if
you were together, and you both have more sense than to get involved
with that hanging over your heads."

And for a split second there, Ben felt bad for the pressure he was
putting her under. For a split second there, after his dig about the
regulations, her face had looked so heartbroken, so sad that he
almost wished she and P.J. could be together if that was what she
really wanted.

But then, pulling himself together, he put himself back into the
game. "I mean, you'd no sooner get involved with P.J. than you would
with me, would you?" he said, keeping his eyes on the road.