35

It was about half past five in the morning when Maggie woke up. At
first she was disorientated, her brown eyes flickering around the
room as she tried to understand where she was. It was then that she
felt someone holding her hand, and looking down, a gentle smile
crept across her face.

He was here.

Whatever was going on, wherever she was, she would be safe because
he was here.

P.J. was sleeping the sleep of the emotionally and physically
exhausted. It felt like a whole lot more than two days ago that he
had kissed Maggie goodbye in his bedroom, it felt more like a
lifetime. A lifetime without her, without seeing her smile, and a
lifetime without hearing her voice. He'd finally fallen asleep at
around one that morning, shortly after Pat had left with Carol.
Sometime during the night, Lucy, Carol's replacement had come in and
draped a blanket around P.J.'s shoulders, placing a small pillow
under his head. He hadn't stirred at either touch, safe in the
knowledge that Maggie was now just asleep, despite the sedative
they'd given her. She wasn't so much unconscious anymore, just
asleep. And In P.J.'s tired mind, there was a difference – one was
involuntary, one through choice.

Maggie's smile stayed in place as she looked round again, this time
taking in what she was seeing. It was obviously a hospital room, and
this was obviously a hospital bed she was in. And it all slowly
started coming back to her.

Ben had been driving, poking fun at her driving skills. It had been
a good trip down, apart from the comments about her relationship
with P.J., a good trip until they'd stopped at that junction, and
been rammed into the oncoming traffic. She could distinctly remember
the squeal of the tyres as the car tried to stop, but the driver
hadn't been able to, and Maggie would never forget the look of
abject fear as the oncoming car smashed into them.

It had then gone into slow motion, as pain by pain, Maggie's body
was crushed in the wreckage. Her arm, she remembered as she lifted
it and saw the cast, her arm had been trapped between the door and
the seat, and her whole body felt as if it had been trampled. The
release of unconsciousness was almost a relief, she remembered, and
the next thing that she faced was waking up in the hospital bed with
P.J. here beside her.

She must have moved, or made a sound, or something, because P.J. was
instantly awake, his blue eyes filled with panic for a second,
before he realised she was staring right back at him. It was then
that he smiled. More than smiled, it was as if his soul relaxed. As
if a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders, and all was
right with the world.

"Mags" He breathed softly, reaching up a slightly shaking hand to
smooth away a strand of golden hair. "Hey you"

"P – " she croaked, and he stood, reaching over for the water.

"Just a sip, sweetheart" he told her. "You need to take it easy for
a while."

"P.J. You're here" she whispered, her fingers tightening around his.

"Always. I love you Maggie. Never forget that. I love you." He told
her, his blue eyes never leaving hers. Reaching down, he rested his
forehead against hers for a moment, before placing a gentle kiss on
her brow. "I should get Lucy, your nurse. "

"Not yet," she croaked, sipping at the glass of water he held up for
her, "Just let me say – I love you too P.J."

And the door creaked open, as Lucy did her early morning rounds,
smiling delightedly at the sight she found before her.

"Hello there! How long have you been awake Miss Doyle?" she asked,
moving over to the bed and checking Maggie's blood pressure and
tweaking this and that as P.J. watched.

"Only a few minutes" Maggie croaked. "Got a bit of a headache, but
I'm ok"

"And how are you Mr. Hasham?"

"I'm fine, but – "

"She's fine sir. Everything's looking good so far, and I'd say she's
going to be absolutely fine. You, however, look exhausted. Carol
told me you hadn't left her side since you got here. Listen, now you
know she's going to be fine, why don't you – "

"I'm not going anywhere until I can take Mags home. " P.J. told her,
swaying on his feet as exhaustion once again took hold. Watching
him, and seeing the untouched cotbed behind him, Maggie smiled as
she made her decision. Moving very slowly and carefully, she began
to inch over to the far side of the bed.

"P.J." she said, patting the covers with her good hand. "Come here"

And so he did. It was a bit of a squeeze, but despite her
objections, Lucy found a way to help. The guardrails of the bed now
helped to stop them falling out of the bed, as they slept. P.J had
wrapped himself around the woman he loved, holding her against his
chest so that she swore she could hear his heartbeat. And Maggie lay
curled across his chest, her cast resting on top of the blanket,
their legs intertwined in the spare blankets that Lucy had found for
them.

And that was how Carol found them when she came on duty the next
morning, checking first on her favourite patient and the man who
loved her so much.

36

Carol smiled at the sight before her, knowing that it was against
the rules, but, to be quite honest, she didn't care. Maggie needed
him, needed him to be there for her, and if that was how they chose
to do it, then that was how it would be. Of course, should the
delightful Doctor Keneally ever deign to make another appearance,
she would be in there like a shot, heaving P.J. off the bed and into
a more respectable' position. It had taken a lot of smooth talking
not to have P.J., Ben and Nick banned from the hospital after their
previous encounter, and Keneally had told Tim in no uncertain terms
that Maggie Doyle and those dreadful little people were his
responsibility and his alone. And hadn't Tim done well, she beamed
to herself. Under his care, Maggie was now doing very well, as was
the previously devastated P.J Hasham.

Checkup completed, Carol stood for a while, a smile washing across
her face. This was going to be a good ending. She could just feel
it. Maggie would be fine, as would P.J. and they would make the
perfect couple. She had no doubt in what she had told Pat, Maggie
was as much in love with P.J. as P.J. was with her. She jumped
slightly as Maggie wriggled in her sleep, smiling as P.J.
instinctively tightened his arms around her as she settled again,
gently kissing her even while asleep. It was possibly this gesture
that finally woke Maggie, whatever it was Carol found herself
smiling into a pair of tired brown eyes.

"Hey," Maggie said quietly.

"Hello yourself," Carol said equally quietly, unwilling to disturb
P.J. who still dozed. "How are you feeling? I'm Carol by the way"

"I'm ok. Feel like I've been run over by a very large steamroller,
but I'll be ok." She said, her eyes flickering to the man who slept
in the bed next to her.

"He's been so worried about you. You're a lucky lady to have someone
who loves you that much" Carol said, watching as Maggie smiled
softly.

"I know. And I love him too. All I have to do is tell him that when
we're both awake enough to hear it!"

"And now's not a good time?" mumbled P.J. having begun to wake up.
He opened his eyes, and leaned down and rubbed noses with her giving
her an Eskimo kiss. "I love you Doyley. Love you to the moon and
back, and then some." He grinned, his heart aching with delight as
he saw that same love reflected right back to him.

"Love you too, P.J. I love you so much. It's going to be – "

She jumped slightly as the door opened her face paling as she saw
Pat Doyle standing there.

"Dad! Ah, this isn't – " she stuttered, now fully awake and alert.
It was all very well she and P.J. knowing how they felt about one
another, but other people knowing? And her FATHER knowing? He was
the one person that Maggie just knew would be the most furious about
it all. He would be devastated – she'd been his Golden Girl, the
last hope, the Doyle destined to get to The Top.

"I know exactly what it looks like, and I probably know exactly what
it is as well." Pat said with a resigned look. "but like I told you
last night Hasham, I want to hear it from my daughter."

P.J. lay his head back against the pillows. He was comfortable
there, it was where he should be, but the sooner this was sorted
out, the sooner he could reclaim his place without anyone
interfering. With a sigh, he gently sat up, smiling down at Maggie
as she moved out of his way.

"I'll be back in a little while, Mags. I promise." he told her,
getting out of the bed and shoving his feet into his shoes. Feeling
a little chilly now her human blanket had gone, Maggie snuggled down
into the blankets. P.J reached over and made sure she was covered,
before leaning down next to her ear. "I love you. Whatever,
wherever, I love you Mags." He told her with a grin, dropping a
gentle kiss on her nose.

"P.J.! " she whispered fiercely, what on earth was he doing kissing
her like that, especially with Pat in the room? He'd give them away
for sure if he kept that up, it was going to be hard enough
explaining what they had been doing in the same bed, but for P.J. to
kiss her like that? In front of her Dad?

Carol held the door open for P.J. and Pat watched it shut, before
turning to face Maggie. He came over to the bed, unsure of what to
do first. Pure joy was running through his veins at the sight of his
daughter awake and alert, but as the same time, he was hoping
against hope that she would prove him wrong and say that she and P.J
were just friends.

It wasn't that he didn't want his daughter to be happy, more that he
wanted her to find someone who wouldn't hold her back, and P.J.
Hasham would do just that. Hasham was a good bloke, and a good
detective, but wasn't the right person for Maggie. At least not the
right person for her in Mount Thomas. Or rather in the job – oh
hell, now he was going round in circles. Put simply – it was either
Hasham or the job.

"Sweetheart – "

"Dad, I'm fine. I'm a bit sore, but I'm fine." Maggie said, getting
the easy bit out of the way. She'd seen the look on Pat's face as he
stood there, and being his daughter, she had a fair idea of exactly
what he was thinking. She took a deep breath. "You want to know
about me and P.J. don't you?" she said, taking the bull by the horns.

"Sweetheart, I – "

"Dad, he's my best friend. He cares about me, and he was worried
about me, which is why he was holding me like that." Maggie said.

"So you're just friends?" Pat said, suddenly hopeful.

"Of course we're just friends. Why? What were you thinking?" Maggie
said triumphantly. They'd got away with it, had fooled perhaps one
of the biggest obstacles that they would ever have if it were to get
out that she and P.J. were so completely and desperately 100 in
love. "What, that we're together? Dad, don't be daft. Peej was just
worried about me, that's all" she told Pat with a smile.

"Nothing more. Not in love with him or anything?"

"Me? In love with P.J. Hasham? You've got to be joking! He's a good
bloke, but Dad, come on, apart from anything, that's against the
regulations" she said, trying to hide the emotion in her voice as
she lied. "No, P.J. is just my best friend, that's all."

And Pat smiled. Perhaps things weren't quite so bad after all.

37

P.J. sat in the chair in the corridor, massaging the tired muscles
in his neck. His elbows rested on his knees, and his long fingers
were failing miserably in easing the stiffness. Hearing the lift
ping, he glanced over, and smiled as the door opened and the Stewart
family arrived.

"P.J.!" Josh yelled, causing startled looks from several passing
patients and a stern look from the Head Nurse. Rachel leaned down,
trying to quiet her son, but Josh was having none of it. Running
over, he leapt onto the seats, climbing up onto P.J.'s back.

"Hey there matey!" P.J. said, standing up and giving him a
piggyback, tired muscles and all. "How's things?"

"Daddy says that Maggie's sick" Josh said in his ear. "And Emma's
all sad cos she wants Maggie to get well so she can marry Daddy"

"Josh!" Ben spluttered, glaring over at his son.

"Well you told me to always tell the truth, so that's what I'm
doing." Josh said innocently.

"I know I did, but – "

"So what's wrong? P.J., I didn't do anything wrong, did I? I told
the truth like Daddy said." Josh said, holding on tight to P.J., his
grip tightening as Ben came to get him down. "No, Daddy, I want to
stay here!"

"It's ok mate, " P.J. told Ben. "And you did the right thing Josh.
You should always tell the truth. Listen, " P.J, twisted round so
that he could see Josh. "mate, would you mind getting down for a
second?" Josh resisted for a moment, before P.J.'s blue eyes smiled
at him, and Josh slid down and he scampered over to his Mum, Maddy
and Emma.

Ben was standing next to P.J., and as Josh left, they both sat down.

"Rach? Could you take Josh and Maddy to get some stuff from the
shop, or something? P.J. and I need to talk to Emma." Ben asked,
smiling over at his family as Rachel nodded and led them away.

"You come and sit here, " Ben told his daughter as she reluctantly
sat in between them. "Now, Em, we talked about this last night. You
know I care about Maggie, she's my friend, but I don't love her like
P.J. does. " Emma glanced at P.J., stony faced as he tried to smile
at her.

"But Daddy, "

"Em, no."

Glaring at Ben, Emma turned back to P.J. with a sigh. "Do you love
her?"

And even Emma's heart melted a little bit as she saw the look on
P.J.'s face. "Emma, I love her more than anything in the whole wide
world. I love her to the moon and back – and then some."

"And you think she's a princess?"

"Most definitely. She's the most beautiful princess, and she
deserves all of the things a princess should have, and I'll do my
very best to make sure she gets them."

"And you want to marry her and live in a big house and have lots of
children so I can come and babysit and see Maggie and we can all
play together?" Emma demanded, beginning to accept the possibility
that P.J. might be the prince.

"Emma!"

"It's all right mate," P.J. told him. "Emma, listen. I think I fell in love with Maggie the first time I saw her, I just didn't know it.
Over the years, we became best friends, and I loved her more and more each day. And now, now she knows how I feel, and I know how she feels, well now I feel like I've found the end of the rainbow. I
don't know what the future holds, all I know is that I want to be a part of her future, and I want her to be a part of mine. We haven't talked about getting married yet, but to be honest, sweetheart, I
can't ever see myself marrying anyone else." He smiled.

"Well, perhaps you ought to talk to my daughter before you go saying
things like that, Hasham, " Pat said from the door of Maggie's
room, " Because I'm not entirely sure she feels the same way."

"You leave him alone!" Emma demanded of the strange man that had
come out of Maggie's room and was spoiling the new dream that P.J.
had just created. "If Maggie isn't going to marry my daddy, then
she's going to marry P.J. cos he loves her, so there!" she yelled at
Pat, before storming into Maggie's room and slamming the door behind
her.