So here we are, kids. I'm back with an update! Its later than I wanted but that's because its not how I wanted it to be. I wanted to write something fun and light after all the drama, but with a twist and that's what I've done so...here it is. All I'll say is, its going to get bad before it gets good...well not so much bad as dark. Very, very dark...mwah-hahah. Please be kind as I don't like this chapter but your reviews as always will be so welcome, I love you guys. Big kisses, El xx

The ground shifted beneath her as she lay on her back, head tilted to the side, seeking all the warmth she could get without getting a crick in her neck. She felt as though she were moving, the ground carrying her somewhere unknown and she was more than willing to go.

Her fingers dug into it, delighting in the satisfying crunch that greeted her, ignoring the sting as the cool water met the grooves she had created and seeped around her skin.

"Thank fuck this beach is private,"

That voice; God, she lived for that voice. Smiling into the warmth of the sun, Allie Dunham opened her eyes the tiniest bit and stared out across the ocean as he came up behind her, nuzzling her shoulder and wrapping his arms around her protectively.

"If they've got cameras out here, we're definitely getting arrested,"

Laughing, she turned in his arms and met his eyes, her heart skipping a beat as it always did when he smiled back at her.

"Well at least we gave them a damn good show," she pressed a kiss against his collarbone and felt him laugh against her.

Weeks had passed since Sarah Hatcher's death and in those weeks she had been so lost, so frightened of everything; all a door had to do was bang shut in the wind and she would have a nervous breakdown. That was until Pete came home one night and informed her without room for argument that they were going away; all of them. They needed a break, fuck they deserved it.

And so here they were in Mauritius, surrounded by nothing but ocean and sand; every night they had taken to walking along the beach, however walking usually let to star gazing, which led to kissing, which led to waking up with sand in some very interesting places.

"You reckon that will stand up in court when we're being done for public indecency?" he smirked at her, feeling his heart start to pound as he opened his eyes fully and really looked at her.

Jesus, she was beautiful.

Her hair, made lighter by the sun was in messy waves around her face, her green eyes sparking in the morning sunlight, her alabaster skin a much healthier shade of gold; he liked it that way, it hid the scars he still couldn't bring himself to look at.

"It could be worse," Allie lay back against his chest and breathed in the salty ocean air. "I think Swill is going to go through with his threat of naked sunbathing before the holiday is out,"

"If there's anything resembling a fucking God, he won't let that happen," Pete shook his head. "I'm serious, I'd sooner go back into a coma than witness that."

Allie laughed despite herself and sat up, wrapping her sarong around her body and praying it concealed everything; feeling Pete's hand running up her naked back, she knew that she was dreaming with that one.

"We better get back," she told him, forcing her eyes away from his body. If the man could have the decency to look fat or something every now and then, she might get more done with her time. "I'm in dire need of a shower,"

"A shower?" Pete raised an eyebrow as he propped himself up on his elbows and winked at her. "We've got the ocean."

"Yeah, we've also got no clothes," she laughed, trying to push him back down and shaking her head when he grabbed her hand.

"I'm game if you are," he smirked.

Glancing down the beach, Allie saw no one and bit her lip feeling like a 16 year old again. Grinning, she felt herself get braver and stood up, untying her sarong and throwing it at her husband who was grinning stupidly at her.

Men.

"Well then," she walked backwards towards the ocean, crooking her finger at him. "That sounds like a dare to me,"

"Double dare," Pete stood up and glanced back, making sure no one was around them before lunging for her and picking her up, throwing her over his shoulder and jogging to the ocean, trying to keep his balance as the soft sand slipped beneath him.

"Don't you dare," Allie laughed, slapping him on the back. She could feel his muscles working and knew what he was up to. "Pete, I swear to God.."

"One..."

"I'll divorce you!"

"Two..."

"I swear, I'll sleep with Swill just to piss you off..."

"THREE!"

He laughed as she screamed and tightened her arms around him as he dived into the water still carrying her. They emerged a second later, spluttering and still laughing as she tried her best to dunk him, pushing up on his shoulders, determined to get revenge somehow. He was quicker and stronger though, hoisting her above the water and making her squeal as she tried to conceal herself.

"Oh my God, put me down, you git!" she shrieked.

"Well," Pete raised an eyebrow. "As you asked so nicely."

He threw her, laughing at the particularly colourful expletive that left her mouth just before she hit the water, all hair, arms and legs.

It was two wars and three fake truces later that they found themselves back in their hotel room, the cool marble floors a welcome distraction from the heat outside. Grabbing her from behind, Pete growled against Allie's neck and steered her towards their bathroom, narrowly avoiding one of Poppy's jelly shoes as they went.

"Oooooh no," Allie laughed, ducking out of his grasp and holding her hands up. "I shower first then you, otherwise we'll never get out of here,"

"Is that a dare?" Pete raised an eyebrow and reached for the loosely tied knot on her sarong.

"No!" she giggled, slapping his hands away. "Its an ultimatum," she leaned against the door frame and smirked. "You shower alone or you shower with Swill, your choice,"

"You are fucking wrong at times, do you know that?" he chuckled, backing away from her as she stuck her tongue out at him and turned away, whipping the sarong from around her body and letting it drop to the floor. Nearly dropping the bottle of beer that he had just lifted to his lips, Pete Dunham cursed under his breath, urging himself to show some self restraint.

"Play fair, you git!" he laughed at her.

"Too boring," she called back in a sing song voice, using her hip to shunt the door closed.

Leaning back against it, she smiled as his laughter floated through but shook her head, reminding herself of her own pearls of wisdom; if she caved now and invited him in, they'd never get to dinner and not only was she starving, but she missed her son and daughter to the point of physical pain.

Reaching for her hair brush, she attacked the unruly mass that was her hair gently, wincing ever so slightly as it caught every now on then on a particularly large knot. Humming to herself, she unwillingly let her eyes flutter down to the small scar on her stomach. It was only the side of a five pence piece these days but she remembered it how it was. Open, flowing, the very life of her spilling out onto the floor of the home she had grown up in. The home she was raising her own family in.

Turning on the shower, she tested the water, not particularly paying attention to its temperature, her mind now back in that hallway all those weeks ago.

She had never admitted to Pete that she had attended Sarah Hatcher's funeral. Truth be told, she didn't know why she'd gone. Her reasons varied from wanting to see the woman go into the ground to a profound sense of sympathy, even guilt that the woman who so many years ago had been just like her had ended up that way.

Shaking the thought out of her head, she went about her usual rituals of shampooing and conditioning her hair, scrubbing every grain of sand she could find from her body and smirking to herself when she caught the odd mark left like a calling card by her husband. The man who had saved her life that day, every day before and since.

Closing her eyes, Allie leaned back against the glass and sighed, happy to let the smells of peaches and wild flowers envelope her for a while, her reverie interrupted with a sharp yank backwards as the door slid open behind her and she practically fell on top of Pete.

"Hey!" she slapped his chest, not allowing her eyes to drift any further down his body. "I said-..."

"You said that I wasn't allowed to come in here with you," he stepped inside and closed the door behind him, winking at her. "You didn't however mention a time limit on that rule."

"Cheeky sod," she shook her head, throwing her shower mitt at him and catching him square in the mouth.

"I prefer the term opportunist," Pete laughed, lifting the mitt and staring at it blankly. What the fuck did she use this for?

"Well opportunity wasted, amigo," Allie dodged his touch and opened the door, hissing as the cool air from the open balcony doors hit her skin. "I am just about done here,"

"Just about?" Pete raised a hopeful eyebrow.

"Hmmm, well there is one more thing," she reached for him and he grinned, lowering his head to kiss her and frowning when he felt the water suddenly getting cooler, then full out shrieking when it turned arctic. "There," she giggled, stepping out of the shower and wrapping a towel around herself. "Now I'm done,"

"You really have to stop buying me drinks," Allie gulped as Dave placed yet another cocktail in front of her.

"You really 'ave to stop buying us fucking holidays," he snorted, gesturing to their surroundings. "Don't fucking think I've forgiven you for this,"

"Oh yeah, you guys look devastated," she laughed, rolling her eyes and pointing to Swill who was playing football with Pete, Harry, Benjamin and Bovver, Alex stumbling about haphazardly as Pete held him up, lifting his chubby little legs and tapping the ball past Swill who pretended to be devastated.

"We hooligans have a funny way of showing our emotions, alright?" he smirked at her, nudging her with his shoulder. "Oi," he looked at her seriously. "You ok?"

"Me?" she looked at him wide eyed and caught the 'don't-bullshit-me' look in his eyes. "I'm fine," she laughed when he rolled his eyes and muttered something under his breath. "No, I really am, I'm..."

She breathed and looked out across the beach, catching the first stars scattered through the azure and pink sky, nightfall threatening to come already.

"I miss Lara, I keep thinking about what we'd be doing if she was here..."

"Shots," Dave snorted. "The girl was like a bull to a red flag when it came to tequila,"

Laughing, Allie shook her head and settled back into the sun lounger, looking down at the tiny blonde curled up fast asleep against her leg and stroked her hair gently.

"I miss my mum," she continued. "I wish more than anything she could be here and meet you guys, meet Pete, meet Alex and Poppy." she took in a deep shuddering breath, recalling the same sharp stab of pain she always felt when she spoke of her mother. "But I'm with the people I love most in the world," she nodded. "I'm happy,"

"And when we get back...?" he trailed off, fiddling with the sticker on his bottle of Corona, but she knew what he was asking.

What happened when they got back to London and all of this was just a memory; she'd be back in her house where it happened, back knowing Eddie Hatcher's trial was starting, back knowing that the GSE still existed in some form or other, back knowing that things weren't as simple as they were here. Would she cope?

"I'll be fine," she nodded, although not quite knowing if she believed herself, "When we get home I'll be fine,"

""Bollocks,"

"You don't half talk shit when you're hammered mate," Bovver laughed as Swill stared at them all in genuine outrage.

"I'm telling you now, that scuba instructor was cracking on to me," he half shouted.

"How?" Pete snorted. "You do know she was talking about diving when she was going on about how far down she could go...?"

Allie threw her head back and laughed loudly, clapping her hand over her mouth as it seemed to echo around the beach. The seven of them including Matt who had been feeling sorry for himself in his room all day after Swill 'forgot' to wake him up yesterday and let him get sunburned to the point of looking like a lobster, were sat on the beach where that had been the last few hours. After they had dinner, Allie and Pete had put Poppy and Alex to bed with one of the nannies from the hotel watching over them.

The sky was an almost unnatural shade of midnight blue, stars littered through it so clearly that as Benjamin had pointed out, you could see the galaxies.

It was however many glasses later that they began filtering off to bed until as usual, it was just Pete and Allie left sat bare foot on the sand staring out at the ocean, their breathing matching its pace as it kissed the shore over and over.

"You know what I could go for right now?" Pete yawned, laughing at the look his wife gave him. She knew him far too well. "Not that," he ran his hand up her back, eyes flashing. "Not yet anyway,"

"Well what then?" she breathed, trying to keep her brain working. It was amazing that he could still bring her to that point just with a simple touch after so many years of being together.

"Don't spread your legs so much, you'll make it too easy for me to get it in,"

Allie glared at her husband as he giggled shamelessly, effortlessly tapping the football into the air and catching it in the crook of his foot before hoisting it again and letting it from from the back of his neck down his arm.

"And remember what I taught you," he pointed at her. "Don't kick-..."

"With your toes, use the inside of your foot," she finished for him, gesturing for him to pass her the ball. "I know, I know,"

"Alright," he laughed, kicking her the ball and watching as she used her full concentration to stop it, smiling to herself happily when she caught it just before it went through her legs. "Come on then, Harding," he used her maiden name as he always did when they were playing like this. "Lets 'ave it,"

"Famous last words, Dunham," she shot back, pulling her foot back and kicking the ball with all of her strength, though not in the least bit surprised when he stopped it effortlessly, laughing at the look she gave him.

"You reckon?" he smirked at her, tapping the ball lightly between his feet.

"That was offside!" she shouted, making him laugh even louder as she folded her arms and stood there defiantly. "Don't you look at me like that! You cheated and you know it!"

"As if I would dare," Pete grinned, walking over to her and looping an arm around her shoulders, pressing a kiss to the top of her head before pulling her down into the sand with him. "I know what you're like when you're in competitive mode,"

"A bitch?" she giggled.

"I was actually going to say sexy as fuck but now you mention it..." he laughed, trailing off when shile elbowed him playfully in the ribs, laying her hand on his stomach and tracing the top of his board shorts. Jesus Christ, he was supposed to be able to hold a conversation while she was doing that?

"Thank you," she practically whispered it but he caught it, her soft voice getting momentarily lost in the roar of the ocean.

"For what"? he smoothed her hair back from her face as she tilted her head back to look up at him.

"For this week, for keeping me sane, for putting up with me," she laughed, despite the sadness in her eyes. "The last few months..."

She breathed heavily, her eyes closing for a moment before she opened them and blinked the tears back angrily.

"Everything has been so fucked up, Pete," she spoke, her peach coloured lips forming words quicker than he was sure he could follow them. "First Lara, then Nathan, then Sarah Hatcher,"

Pete froze and tried not to let his anger show; truth be told as much as he had gotten over the Nathan stuff, he still didn't have the closure he wanted. When he felt the guys nose crack under his fist, then he'd have closure. And as for Sarah Hatcher...

Remembering the nights he had spent alone in bed, knowing Allie was laying in hospital...dying. Remembering the moment that the doctors had told him she wouldn't wake up, the moment he had had to call her brothers, her father and keep his voice in check as he told them that their reason for living was going to die because of him...

He threw his head back under the pretence of getting rid of a crick in his neck but the lone tear that trailed down the side of his face told a very different story.

"Allie," he met her eyes and saw the love there, mixed with fear and uncertainty. "Baby, we don't have to talk about this stuff..."

"After tonight, I don't want to," she shook her head. "And I mean ever again, I want us to go back to normal, I want..." she leant forward and pressed her lips against his chest, feeling his heart beating steadily beneath.

"I want to just..take one day at a time," she nodded.

"Fuck that," Pete scoffed and she snapped her head up to look at him, the hurt clear in her eyes. "I don't want to take one day at a time with you, ever. Because I want forever. I want more kids," he told her, catching the light in her eyes. "I want a Dunham army," he smiled when she laughed. "I want you yelling at me because I've ruined one of your precious fucking dresses in the wash, I want you running around the garden like a lunatic trying to keep up with me and Poppy when we play football," he held up his hand. "Say what you want Harding, the kid is better than you,"

Allie laughed and felt her body relax, her arms snaking around his neck as he rested his forehead against hers.

"I want Alex coming home from school covered in bruises from defending his big sister, I want more holidays, I want to wake up every Sunday morning and see my wife next to me, preferably naked because sweet fuck do you look good naked, Harding."

She blushed and shook her head, her blonde tresses bouncing around her face as she did so.

"I want all of it," Pete lifted her chin and met her eyes dead on. "I don't want one day at a time, I don't want to overthink things, I don't want to fight; I'm not letting anything get in the way of us anymore. You're it, Allie. You're my whole fucking reason for existing and I'm not going to take that day by day. I'm in this for the long haul and nothing is getting in the way of this anymore." he kissed her gently. "Nothing."

"Christ," she whispered. "That was almost charming,"

"Told ya," he winked at her. "And that wasn't even my A game, that was C at most,"

"Oh well lord help me if that's true," Allie laughed, brushing her thumb over his lips. "You mean it?"

"Every," He kissed her. "Fucking." And again. "Word,"

He pulled her into his arms and kissed her fully, letting his tongue battle with hers as she straddled him, her hips working against his as she fought for control, a control that he wanted her to lose because Christ knows his was out of the window.

"When we get home, it'll be different," he told her, trying to keep his brain functioning as she untied her halter neck dress and let it fall. "You'll see,"

He lunged at her then, smirking at her outrageous giggled as he pressed her back into the sand, covering her body with his and kissing her for all he was worth.

He had meant everything he'd said; things at home would be different, he was going to make sure that nothing happened to her, that she had the perfect life she deserved and that nothing hurt her ever again.

And that all started with one simple thing. Something that had plagued his mind for weeks, making his blood turn to ice in his veins, penetrating his skin like needles whenever he thought about it.

One simple thing. And then everything would be perfect.

He was going to kill Eddie Hatcher.

Aaaaand review! :) xxx