When they got back to the store, Donna got in the back of James's car while Rose and James were debating where Rose was going.
"Hurry up you two, I want to get home tonight, not tomorrow," Donna butted in.
She had broken the silence between the two of them.
"Sorry," James apologised, digging the toe of his Converse shoe into the broken tarmac. "Come back with me Rose, you left your things there."
"I'll get them another time James or just bring them to work," Rose replied, trying to move his hand from her arm.
"We can't leave things like this," he told her. "We need to talk but let's get Donna home first? Then I'll take you home, if you want?"
Rose knew she'd have to wait ages for a bus home anyway and she was tired.
"Well okay then?" she gave in.
"At last," Donna remarked as James opened the car door for Rose. "You two need to get your acts together. When you're ready, tell me what it's all been about 'cos I've seen the two of ya today more than I normally do and there's something going on."
"Sorry Donna," Rose apologised as she put her seatbelt on.
"Yeah, sorry Donna," James added as he got in next to Rose. "It's just a few things we need to talk about."
"You're telling me, spaceman," Donna huffed as they set off.
After dropping Donna home, they got to James's house as Rose hadn't actually said she wanted to go home.
"I never realised you lived so close to Donna," Rose told him as he waited to see what she wanted to do.
"Yeah, it only just comes under Chiswick," James told her. "What do you want to do Rose? I can take you home?" he offered.
"No, it's okay, I'm just upset, that's all. I never expected you to take it all so well and then I was thinking about it on the way back," Rose admitted.
"It's to be expected Rose but I'm not Alec. I'm not the one who just left you so please, don't shut me out Rose," James told her.
As they were getting ready for bed, Rose took her time and James was observing her as he propped himself up on the pillows. Rose was now shy over the fact she may be pregnant.
"If I'm pregnant, I'll start showing soon. How am I gonna hide it?" she asked him as she brushed her hair.
"Don't hide it then?" he suggested. "People will start to notice, especially Donna," he smiled at the thought his cousin probably already knew anyway.
"Geez, I dread to think she'll find out before my mum," Rose told him. "I have to at least tell my mum first."
"Still not going to tell Alec?" he wanted to make sure.
"Forget it James. I'm not gonna tell him and that's it. It was bad timing, on his part and if he'd come down when he was supposed to, it wouldn't have happened. He never even warned me he was coming down early."
"You could have told him you were out of bounds Rose," James replied as Rose got into bed.
"Thanks for that James," Rose pulled the covers over, despite James still being sat up.
James took the hint she wasn't in a very good mood and he'd probably just caused it.
"Sorry love," he moved to switch the bedside lamp off as Rose switched hers off, taking it she was in no mood for sex after her revelation earlier. "I told you not to shut me out and I meant it Rose."
"I know ya did. I just need to think James. It's not really Alec's fault, he got sent on leave a week early, because of that trial so he's not entirely to blame. It was just I wanted to make it seem it meant no difference between us and I was hoping he would admit about Tess and say it was all on her part and he'd see about moving to a different shift at least. Then I found out he'd already moved and she was still around."
"Rose, it seems it's all her you know?" James tried to get his arm around her shoulder.
"I was hoping it was James but I can't believe he's not already involved with her. It's too late for him and me now, she's got her claws too deep into him, I know. Alec and I knew each other well James."
To his surprise, Rose turned to him and he put both his arms around her as she let go of her disappointment and let it sink in she was pregnant with Alec's baby and it was James who wanted to take care of her.
"I'll take care of you Rose," he said softly as he kissed her hair. "If you let me? No-one ever needs to know, if you don't want to tell your mum or Donna?"
"Mum will guess James, she'll know by the date, it was a couple of weeks before we started going out," she reminded him.
"No-one else will. When the baby's due, we can say its early. We can work it out properly nearer the time. Trust me Rose?"
"You'd keep the truth from your family?" Rose wondered.
"For you love," he whispered as he dared put his hand under her thin nightdress.
She tried to move it away but he persisted and she gave in.
"Don't you get it Rose?" he seemed puzzled at her sudden rejection as she'd not resisted when they'd established their relationship. "I love you and I'll take care of you. We can start by you making an appointment at the clinic. You need to get registered at my heath centre anyway, you spend more time here now than you do at home," he reminded her.
"Geez, you're right," Rose realised. "I wondered why mum never said anything? I have to go home tomorrow night and see her James."
"Right, of course love," he replied as he nibbled at her neck, leaning over her and attempting to lie on her after pulling up her nightdress and thinking it was way too long. "We can go after work and you can get more clothes and things. Move in with me, Rosie," he suggested as Rose put her arms around him.
He hoped he'd get away with calling her that. He wanted to set himself apart from Alec, who had broken her heart after all the time they'd been together. Well in his mind, Alec didn't deserve her, the man must be out of his mind, preferring someone else over Rose. What had that woman called Tess done to him?
Alec was wondering the same. What had Tess done to him? In the space of a few weeks, Tess had moved in with him and established herself as he girlfriend, never even bothering to mention the fact he'd unwillingly left Rose. Tess never even spoke about Rose or the fact Alec had been with her for twelve years or thereabouts.
Alec had thought about it at first but Tess was filling his head with ideas the first few days she had properly moved in and now, it was every day life for him. Tess worked the same hours so they went to work and went home together but they worked in different departments, Alec thinking at least that was something. He got teased the first week or so but the novelty soon wore off when Tess made it clear she was displeased at every opportunity she got.
Alec's immediate boss had noticed though and offered him some advice as they sat in his car on the Monday evening as Rose and James were going to visit Rose's mother. It had been some weeks since his failed attempt to visit Rose and he'd resigned himself the time before had been the last time he would ever see her.
"Don't let her be the boss over everything Hardy," Carter had told him while they were on a stake-out.
Tess hadn't been pleased she had to make her own way home and Carter could see it was bothering Alec as he passed the binoculars.
"I'm not, I just let her think she is," Alec replied.
"That's just as bad," Carter tried not to laugh, hoping for some action at the address they were watching and waiting to be relieved. "Gawd, I hope something happens before we leave, how about you?"
"Where have the other team got to?" Alec looked at his watch.
"Tess will get mad at you for being late home?" Carter sniggered.
"Leave it," Alec replied as he thought he spotted something. "Can we concentrate on the job?" he added, forgetting the 'Sir' now he'd been there a while and he was almost a sergeant.
He was just waiting to take his exam, he thought he was more than ready with getting more experience and the fact he'd helped convict a gang of child abusers. He was just mad that Bob had got away, he'd wanted justice for Rose for all the man had put her and her mother through.
All that time he'd still blamed Jackie for it and it hadn't been her fault. All Jackie had wanted was a proper family for Rose to grow up in and she'd just chosen the wrong man.
"So, you and Tess getting engaged then?" Carter asked out of the blue.
"What? Where did you hear that?" Alec wanted to know, knowing nothing of the sort had been talked about with Tess.
"Come off it Hardy, it's all over the typing pool and the women officers' changing room. Jeannie's mentioned it recently and she's only still a WPC."
Jeannie was Carter's new wife, Tess had dragged him to the wedding when they weren't even going out properly.
"Well I know nothing about it," Alec denied it.
What was Tess planning now, he wondered as he saw a car approaching them but overtook them. The car stopped just behind them and he recognised the two faces. Carter got out of the car and went to join them.
"Lucky you, getting the nightshift," Carter joked as he leaned through the window and was greeted with cigarette smoke.
"See you didn't send Hardy," one of them laughed and nodded in Alec's direction.
"He's not one of the boys," Carter laughed as he lit a cigarette. "He banned smoking in the car and even put a 'No Smoking' sticker on the glove compartment. A bundle of laughs he is lately and now he's denying Tess has wedding plans."
"You mean he's the only one who doesn't know?" the other one joined in. "He'll soon find out, when Tess drags him to buy her a ring."
"Nah, he won't believe it even then," Carter told them. "Back to the job, we're keeping a look-out for those counterfeiters who've been passing those fake twenty pound notes around the area. The notes are found mostly at the supermarket checkouts when little old ladies get them from the post office. No idea why the post office haven't noticed."
"Not on pension day," one laughed. "You two here in the morning then?"
Carter agreed then went back to Alec.
"Drop me at the station, I'll wait for Jeannie to finish," he told Alec. "Blame me for being late home, if Tess says anything, Jeannie will confirm it."
"It's not like Tess does not trust me," Alec objected as they set off back to the police station, him having to hand the car back anyway.
He objected to using his own car for work purposes, especially stake-outs.
"Not much," Carter laughed. "Don't let it get like that Alec, trust me. Don't let her get to be boss, Jeannie already agreed it would work both ways in our place."
Alec wished he could say it did that in what had been just his place until a few weeks ago. His first mistake had been Tess stopping him going to see Rose. The night he'd been going to set off, he'd tried to get a few hours sleep after they'd eaten but instead of waking him up to remind him to leave, Tess had got into bed and engaged him in sexual activities and in his eagerness to get her to let him out of bed, it had happened, even though he thought it had on the sofa earlier.
Tess had let out her screams and he knew that was it this time, the one thing he'd tried to avoid all this time when they'd come close before but he'd stopped in time. Well he was fairly sure it hadn't happened before but with Tess, he never knew. She could have been trying to convince him nothing had happened, hoping he'd see it as a failure and that his ego would get the better of him.
Well unknown to her, he had no ego to boost, he'd had nothing to prove to Rose, they had been each others' only sexual partners since they'd been old enough. Tess had spoiled that and he regretted the day he'd let Tess start something between them. He knew though that nothing had really happened between them the last time he'd gone down to see Rose. Otherwise, Tess would have stopped him that time, she'd have wanted to be his only sexual partner in that case.
Then gradually when he'd got back from London, Tess had moved in and he'd let her. If he hadn't, she would have turned the whole station against him and he would have been forced to move and the only place he'd want to go was London, where his promotion would have been set back. Maybe that was what he should have done?
He drove home and parked in the driveway and made his way to his apartment, correcting himself it was Tess and his apartment now, she had been getting her mail there before it had become official and she'd wanted her name on the agreement, never offering to pay the extra that he had to make up from his housing allowance, which wasn't as much as being away from home.
Tess greeted him from the kitchen.
"You took George Carter back to the station?" she asked him as she poured out more wine and offered him a glass.
He shook his head at the wine and took his jacket off, assuming her friend had already called her so he didn't bother asking her. He'd done a lot of that recently, second guessing her instead of bothering to ask her. She never seemed to notice though. Well if she had, she'd never mentioned it and he thought she would have done. He thought it was best, letting her think she was right when she wasn't.
"He wanted to wait for his wife," he replied, waiting for her to start serving dinner.
When they weren't working, Alec did most of the cooking but they usually made it together the other nights.
"I made a start at dinner, I didn't know when you'd get finished. You may as well help with the rest," she just replied.
"Tess, I only got to know about the job earlier," he objected, sweeping his hair back that used to drive Rose crazy and she'd jump all over him.
Now, it only seemed to annoy Tess and hint he needed to get his hair cut.
"We should go into town on Saturday, I need my hair doing and you should go to the barbers. There's somewhere else we should think about visiting as well, maybe not this week but soon," she hinted, as expected.
He saw the pasta on the stove and expected she was waiting for him to stir the sauce and other ingredients into it so instead of sitting, he went to make a start.
"Are you wanting to book a holiday? If you are, you will have to pay towards it Tess," he replied, hoping that was it but she was paying nothing except for a few bills they had agreed on.
He thought if she believed she was going to spend her salary on fashion and pampering, she was mistaken.
"Alec, I already contribute towards things, I need money for my expenses," she reminded him.
"You mean filling your wardrobe with expensive dresses you only wear occasionally and all those shoes in the bottom?" he replied.
"Don't exaggerate Alec," Tess huffed, Alec thinking he wouldn't even be having this conversation if Rose was here.
Why was he settling for Tess when all he could think about all the time was Rose? He'd asked himself that repeatedly and he knew John was tired of being asked the question. His half-brother kept telling him the same thing, that he should pack up and go beg Rose to take him back. Well, it was too late now, he'd crossed the line with Tess and betrayed the trust Rose had in him to keep away from Tess while they were apart.
Tess probably already knew that, that he could never go back to Rose now. If he'd broken it off with Tess before it had gone too far, he could have gone back to ask Rose to get married and she would have supported his choice to delay his promotion. There was no fast track down there like there was up here, that was why Tess was there.
"Alec," Tess brought him back to the present. "Don't let that boil over," she prompted him as she turned the heat down. "If you're going on about money, don't go ordering food to replace what's been spoiled. Anyway, I wasn't talking about holidays, though maybe we can go off one weekend? Somewhere quiet?"
He wondered when she was going to bring up the word 'marriage' or was she going to keep hinting until he brought it up? Well, she was in for a long wait then, he couldn't afford an engagement ring, with Tess's expensive tastes and she'd turn her nose up at a cheap one. Rose still had hers, although she'd not worn it very often, due to work. Had that been the reason or had Rose had another one?
Tess was thinking if that wasn't a big enough hint at getting engaged, she didn't know what was. That had been the idea when she'd moved in and she'd finally got him to forget about Rose. The night he'd been going away and she thought when he got back, he was going to tell her to leave and Rose was finally coming to live here, she had got into bed with him instead of waking him to get up and she had aroused him into finally breaking down the last barrier between them. Had he thought they'd done so earlier that evening?
She knew it had happened, she had given a convincing scream at the time, never having reached that point with him before and she'd been with other men to know that Alec wasn't bad and that he could improve after he learned to stop being so tense. The man she'd broken up with in Sandbrook had been amazing and Alec was nowhere near him – yet though he'd been better than the few others.
She had tried to recreate the moment but so far hadn't managed though Alec sort of grunted as a response. Maybe she wasn't trying hard enough but it was up to him to get her to that point, wasn't it? At least the advice she'd been given pointed to it.
"Tess, maybe you had just best tell me?" Alec brought her out of it. "Why you want to go away?"
"We never go anywhere and the weather is nice now," she replied, getting the plates out of the cupboard. "We have no excuse and maybe we could use the opportunity, to discuss things?"
"Such as?" Alec dreaded to think.
"I think you already know Alec? Why I wanted to move in, for one thing," was all she would say.
"Your lease on your old place was ending? At least that was what you told me. It had better have been true, Tess."
"It was, ask the personnel department," Tess challenged him.
"Why, they are all your friends," he reminded her. "Out with it Tess? I've heard what's going around the station so don't hide it."
She knew who had leaked that – her so-call friend Jeannie, whom she had got information from on her arrival who were the bachelors around the station, since she had to stay away from married men now she'd had a close call. She had been pointed towards a few men but Alec was the most attractive out of them, she did have standards.
"We can talk about it later," Tess insisted. "There's no hurry."
No, she thought. She had him where she wanted him. He couldn't go back to Rose, not now they were having a proper sexual relationship, she knew he had a conscious and he wouldn't break up and resume what he'd had before. Besides, she'd often thought, why would he when he was obviously satisfied with what he had now?
Things had improved slightly but maybe it was time to up the stakes and insist they got engaged or at least they were planning on getting engaged. She wanted it getting back to her old station and that bitch who had been her friend finding out that she could keep her husband. He'd not been willing to get a divorce because his reputation would be ruined. Then his stupid wife had somehow found out.
She had to get Alec to agree, if he didn't, she was wasting her time and she may move on but the way she had him, she didn't think he would disagree. Who did he have to go back to now? Certainly not Rose.
Alec knew she wouldn't take too long to start talking about getting engaged, it had all been part of her plan. He didn't know that much about her though. He knew she'd come from a fairly ordinary town call Sandbrook, where nothing apparently ever happened and that she had a sister. Her mother was widowed a few years ago, which surprised him why Tess had left home but he supposed the prospect of getting promoted had made her decide it was worth it.
She wouldn't want to stay, once she got it and that was where getting engaged came in. Well, he didn't want to move, especially when that was part of the cause of him losing Rose. If promotion had been as easy down south, he wouldn't be here with Tess, would he?
"I think I should start seeing more of your family, don't you Alec?" Tess told him suddenly as they ate.
"What makes you think that?" he asked, knowing they were all disappointed he'd let Rose go.
"To show them we're together?" Tess suggested. "You could make the effort Alec. How often did Rose see them when she was here?"
"Leave her out of it Tess, I'm warning you," he replied angrily. "If you must know, it was every weekend and during the holidays, almost every day. They all loved her like she was part of the family. Satisfied?" he asked, losing his appetite and he'd not really wanted to have pasta anyway.
That was Tess's idea, that and chicken with rice. At least Jackie and Rose managed to cook more than that when he'd been staying, Jackie was forever trying to fatten him up. Rose used to always tease him about it and they always laughed about it.
He got up to get some water, as opposed to pouring out wine. That was another of the airs and graces Tess had and he wasn't keen on it. Tess drank from her glass as he returned, not now wanting to finish eating.
"You should relax more now Alec, you're off duty," Tess reminded him.
"We are always on duty Tess, should there ever be an emergency," he replied, debating whether to sit down again or not.
He looked at his uneaten food and was being watched.
"At least finish eating Alec," Tess encouraged him. "You really need to gain some more weight you know?"
"I'm fine as I am Tess. Admit you want to look at engagement rings at the weekend."
"Wow, I didn't think you would guess Alec," Tess replied.
"Well I can't afford one, even if I agreed. It's too soon Tess, it's only been a few weeks since…." he trailed off, wanting to say since he lost Rose.
"Don't look at it like that Alec, I know what you're thinking," Tess told him. "You have to forget her and by the way, I put all the photos you had of her in a box, in the cupboard. Really Alec, you could have moved them yourself."
The truth was, he didn't want to put them away. He had nothing to replace them with anyway, he and Tess hadn't really been anywhere, apart from that wedding she'd dragged him to. Then they'd left early because they didn't know anyone and she'd complained he'd not invited her back with him.
"We should really go out more Alec," she added as Alec cleared his plate. "We could go out to dinner once a week, Saturday night?" she suggested. "Surely you can afford that?"
Alec just shook his head that she never gave up. Why was he still with her at all? Was it because she had him wrapped around her finger in a different way to what Rose had? When they got to bed, Tess made him try and forget about earlier.
"Come Alec, don't go to sleep in a bad mood," she told him as she tried to touch him.
Why did he always let her get her own way, as opposed to him getting his, he wondered as he let her on top of him. Was it just to keep her quiet and keep the peace? He'd never had to do either when he was with Rose, there was never any need. Sometimes, he'd compromise with Rose but he very rarely ever needed to.
"About going out?" Tess managed to ask between lowering their underwear, Alec noticing she hardly went for his first, despite being on top of him.
"We'll see Tess. Not every week though, if you want me to save up, should we ever discuss getting engaged again. I can't do it at present, I can't think about it yet."
"You're not saying never then?" Tess asked as she tried to pull him on her.
"I'm not saying anything Tess," he replied as they swapped places. "Don't let it get around the station either, though it's too late from what I heard. Tell them it was wishful thinking, on your part."
"I can't do that Alec," Tess held him off for a second.
"Then think of something but it had better stop or it's over, got it?" he told her.
He'd never had to threaten Rose with that, not once, he thought as he lay on Tess and she wrapped her legs around him. Why was he still comparing the two of them when Rose won every time? As the minutes passed and Tess let out a few noises, he forgot for just a short while but it never felt the same and it never would he supposed.
Rose and James were having something to eat, Rose having warned Jackie they'd be visiting after work and Jackie was chatting away. It amused James because of having spent all that time living with his aunt and Donna and at mealtimes, his aunt always complaining about either one of Donna's boyfriends or how they never appreciated what was done for them, James always wondering how he was included.
"So what are ya tryin' to say?" Jackie was asking Rose, Rose giving him a nudge to back her up.
"Well Mum, James wanted me to stay on Monday nights as well, since he's swapped his day off to the same as mine," Rose was telling her mother. "Haven't ya James?"
"What?" James asked, wondering if he was included in the conversation. "Oh, yes. I got one of them to swap. Well rather I gave them a choice who it was going to be," he grinned, pleased with himself.
Donna had told him that morning she needed to know by lunchtime who the lucky salesman was. She had also told him to tell them it was one of them, seeing as they were both single as far as she was aware and that he should be firm with them. He'd told the one who had lost the toss of the coin to go tell Donna and the other had asked him what the change was for.
He'd not said anything, everyone would get to know sooner or later.
"So, we can spend our days off together," Rose was answering Jackie's question as to why.
"Well what about the rest of the time?" Jackie then wanted to know. "Are ya gonna come back the other nights?"
"I don't know Mum, we have something to talk about, don't we James?" Rose asked, grabbing his arm.
"Have ya now?" Jackie was asking, looking at James and trying not to see Alec.
Once Jackie had got used to Rose going out with Donna's cousin, she'd had a really hard time not calling him Alec and not hearing a Scottish accent. She missed both Alec and John but Alec had disappeared and not even rung since just before he'd supposed to have come down again. She'd told Rose she would ring Alec but Rose had asked her not to.
Now, Jackie was trying to deal with James and not be reminded of how things used to be, which wasn't easy, staring at Alec's double all the time. It had been bad enough that Alec and John looked alike and when it had been revealed they were actually half brothers, it had made sense. That didn't explain how James looked like both of them though.
"Ah, yes Mrs Tyler," James tried to keep up.
"I told ya to call me Jackie," Jackie tried to tell him again.
"Yes, right, Jackie. I actually asked Rose to stay the extra night, it just made sense. I mean since I have my own place. Then we wouldn't disturb you, would we Rose?" he turned to Rose, hoping that was why she'd agreed.
Rose had tried really hard not to think about when Alec used to visit.
"Yeah Mum," Rose picked up on James's idea. "Anyway, we have somewhere to go tomorrow that might decide if I'm gonna stay over more nights. I'm staying over the weekend anyway, until Tuesday."
"You'll only be here three nights Rose," her mother reminded her.
James was starting to feel guilty but Rose had to know he supported her, should she be pregnant. It was up to her to tell her mother though, he couldn't say anything.
"Yeah, I know Mum but well, I might not even be here that. I'll know tomorrow and I'll tell ya on Wednesday."
"Everyone leaves home in the end Jackie," James dared remind her.
"I don't need ya to remind me," Jackie got cross with him.
"He's right though Mum, I'm not moving far, only to Chiswick, not another planet," Rose smiled, trying to lighten her mother's mood. "We'll come over a couple of nights, won't we James?"
"Why do ya have to leave at all?" Jackie wanted to know. "Ya hardly gettin' over Alec leaving ya," she reminded Rose. "Sorry James but it's okay you tryin' to take her mind off it."
"He is helping Mum," Rose replied, praying her mother wouldn't spoil things and ask why had she chosen Alec's double?
Why had she taken to James so easily though, she had often wondered. Maybe it was because he was there for her?
"Well, ya'd better come over on Wednesday and tell me," Jackie told them both. "What's going on tomorrow?"
Rose didn't know whether to say before or after she'd been to the clinic. She'd called at lunchtime and been given an appointment at the baby clinic but she had to register first. She'd explained she was living in the district and wanted to make that her regular health centre.
"I think Rose wants to wait and tell you, don't you Rose?" James tried to rescue her.
Rose took his hand.
"Yeah, I'd rather wait Mum," Rose turned to smile at him.
"What's goin' on?" Jackie wanted to know. "Rose?"
"Ah, let us clear up for you Jackie?" James suddenly got up, pulling Rose with him.
"Oi you, stay where ya are," Jackie ordered him. "Not until ya tell me. I know when something's going on. Rose?" she repeated.
"Rose wants to register at the health centre near me," James answered for her. "She'll be spending more time there."
"Yeah Mum," Rose hoped that would satisfy her mother.
"Why would ya suddenly want to start spending more time together?" Jackie wanted to know. "What are ya both up to?"
Rose knew she wouldn't get away with it.
"We may as well tell her now," Rose looked at James, who had sat back down again. "Mum, I've been feelin' a bit off, I wanna get checked out. I think I might be pregnant."
"What? You two have only just started going out. What are ya thinkin' of?" Jackie asked them.
"Mum, it's not James. If I am, it's Alec's," Rose replied, letting it sink in. "He came down a week early and I had no reason then to think he was gonna leave me."
