Chapter 108 Talking about Rose

Tess was eagerly waiting for him when he got back. He saw her glaring at him as he passed to get back to his office and was daring her to follow him. As predicted, she did a few minutes later.

"What do you want Tess?" he asked her without looking up from searching in his desk drawer for the number of the hotel to warn the owners Rose would be going there.

"Where did you go off to?" she asked, Alec wishing she wasn't so nosy.

"That's no concern of yours Tess," he reminded her. "You gave up that right, remember? When you went off with Dave."

Tess thought he was looking a little too pleased with himself for some reason. Should she confront him about she thought Rose would try and contact him, since he'd been in the news?

"There's no reason to be so smug with yourself Alec," she replied, standing instead of sitting down uninvited like she had tended to do lately. "She's back, isn't she?" she suddenly decided to confront him.

"What are you talking about?" he asked her.

"Don't pretend you don't know Alec," Tess got annoyed at him being so evasive lately.

It seemed to her like he was finally standing up to her after all this time. That could only mean one thing. He never got over his ex fiancée and constantly thought about Rose and had never really loved her. Had she ever loved him really? It had been all about being able to go back home after her disastrous affair and having to leave in a hurry.

Alec had seemed the perfect candidate since he was moping over the fact his then girlfriend wouldn't move to Scotland and his vendetta against a man who had caused a lot of pain when they'd been younger. She'd never really heard the full version of the story and Alec was even less likely now to tell her.

"I'm not discussing anything with you Tess so forget it," he warned her. "I'm going over to the court later, be warned."

He'd had an interesting thought that since they'd married in Scotland, the law there might be slightly different so he was going to get some advice. He might have to leave it until the next day though, he should maybe go off and visit his doctor. He wanted to find out if there was anything wrong with him for stupidly jumping in the river instead of leaving it to someone else.

"Why are you going there?" Tess wanted to know. "She is back then? That's why you want to speed things up. Well I have news for you Alec, the law is the law on these things. Saying your ex is back isn't going to get you any preferential treatment."

"You think not?" Alec raised his eyebrows to her. "We got married in Scotland."

"I don't need reminding of that, thank you," Tess huffed again. Then she realised. "You are joking?"

"Think what you want Tess, it's no concern of mine. The sooner we get this over with, the better," he replied, thinking he was finally one up on her.

Ever since he'd first been on the news, he thought maybe just by chance Rose may pick up on it and contact him. He'd told himself she was probably married and why would she leave James, if she had indeed married Donna's cousin just for him?

He'd been the one who had backed away, not Rose. He got Tess to leave and looked up the number for the Belmont hotel on the way out of town. That had been arranged for him since the lease had expired on his apartment and the personnel department had failed to negotiate a new one. No, he had to go face them and tell them the hotel was not satisfactory without giving them any clues he hoped Rose was back for good.

"Someone's joining you?" the hotel owner thought she'd heard him wrong. "Well I suppose since the police insisted you had a double room but I thought that was because it made no difference to them?"

"It made no difference until now," Alec told the confused woman. "Unless there are any objections? It will only be until Saturday, I am going to speed things up getting another place of my own."

"You should have given me some notice someone would be joining you," the woman objected. "Instead of someone just turning up. I hope it's no-one you just met, DI Hardy?"

Alec wondered if the woman was being judgemental and insinuating that he was in the habit of picking up women and sending them to the hotel.

"I can assure you that is not the case. Her name is Rose and basically, we knew each other a long time ago and lost touch. She saw me on the news over the case I am working on," he admitted, thinking he shouldn't need to explain himself.

"I see then? I'll make an exception since you're in a double room. How long will she be staying?" the woman asked him.

"Just a few nights and I will be away over the weekend," Alec replied, making sure no-one was looking in his direction. "I will be taking her back home. She may be joining me again but I am going to get onto the personnel department to find me another apartment to rent."

"So you'll be leaving soon?" the woman wanted to know.

"I expect to be leaving, yes," Alec confirmed. "We will be wanting meals for the time being."

Alec really didn't feel like discussing why Rose had come to find him without any prior warning. The woman was more concerned about losing a paying customer, he thought. The owner agreed that they would get the evening meal and breakfast and that he would be away on maybe Friday night, if he could get away early or he'd be away early Saturday morning.

Alec didn't think it mattered explaining his ex fiancée had sought him out after all this time but his heart had been working twice as fast as normal since he'd found Pippa in the river and now he'd been right about it being Rose trying to contact him. Maybe he should make that call to his friend?

"Alec, how are ya doing man?" Alistair greeted him when Alec was put through, having told the snooty receptionist that he'd take his call. "I expect that was you going in the river after that poor girl? Who does that sort of thing, leaving a wee bairn in the water?"

"I was hoping someone could tell me?" Alec replied. "I can't get it out of my mind Alistair. I'm not calling about that though, can you fit me in today or tomorrow?"

"I take it that it's urgent then? I mean how often do you visit my surgery?" his friend laughed. "Did ya go swallowing too much river water or something?"

"Maybe?" Alec almost admitted. "Alistair, do you remember me talking about Rose?"

"What? Are you being serious man?" his friend wanted to be sure. "That's a name I've not heard in a long time. Has she contacted you?"

"Better than that, she's in town," Alec revealed. "She did try calling but Tess got the message and out of spite neglected to tell me. Then I got a call to say she was downstairs. Alistair, I want to make sure nothing happened to me yesterday, in the water, I was dragged under, they had to haul me out."

"Geez Alec, are you serious?" Alistair wanted to be certain. "Just come round any time, I'll tell Angie to let me know as soon as you arrive. So, where is she staying, if she is staying?"

"I asked her to go to my hotel so we could talk," Alec admitted. "I don't know after that to be honest. Maybe she will go back home tomorrow? She was married but her husband died in a car accident."

"Poor lass," Alistair sympathised. "Ya can fill me in when ya get here Alec. Make it as soon as you can, to be certain the water did no damage. Was there no ambulance in attendance?"

Alec thought it was typical of his friend being over-concerned.

"Ach, you bloody doctors," Alec laughed. "Always making out things are more serious than they actually are."

"I think that's the other way round, my old friend," Alistair laughed. "See you later and when ya speak to Rose again, don't let her get away or you'll answer to me."

Alec knew his friend would never forgive him if he let Rose get away again after all this time. Maybe something good had actually come about because of the grim finding in the river yesterday? He would have preferred not finding the young girl in the river instead of finding her and her cousin alive.

He caught up with a few things and wondered if Rose had gone to the hotel or had lost her nerve and gone back to London on the next train she could get on. Just after four, he couldn't get his mind off catching up with Rose and thought he was no good for anything at present. He went off to see the chief, then he was going to see his friend and hopefully be back at the hotel before Rose went to dinner without him then she'd assume he'd backed out and she would be gone.

He couldn't allow that to happen, not when she'd finally found out where he was.

"What is it Alec?" the chief looked up when Alec knocked on his door. "Please don't let it be about Tess or Dave?"

"As soon as I find out who left Pippa in the river, I want out of here," Alec replied, taking a seat to stop himself pacing up and down the small office.

"Not much then?" his chief replied. "What's brought it on this time?"

The chief had lost count how many times Alec had declared he couldn't work with Tess. Alec had been given no choice in the matter when Tess had gone to work there.

"Tess being here for one," Alec replied. "Someone I used to know, well who I was engaged to has contacted me. Don't tell Tess though. Tess was the reason we split up. I was a real idiot for letting her. Enough about that though. How much time am I looking at? I need to get away from here."

"Don't we all?" the chief replied. "No-one asked a killer to leave a young girl in the river. I wouldn't like to be that person if her parents get hold of him. Anyway, you'll have to leave it with me Alec, I can't guarantee your request being rushed through, given the circumstances."

"Well I am serious," Alec pointed out. "I need to get away from here. You know the reason Tess wanted to come back?"

"Of course I know and I know why you didn't want to work together Alec. The decision was out of my hands," the chief reminded him. "Why are you going on about it again? I can't order Tess to stay away from Harris."

"I was not asking you to," Alec replied. "I just want my request to be seriously considered. I don't want to transfer back to Scotland, just maybe London or somewhere."

"You don't want much then?" the chief replied sarcastically. "I take it that if this other woman is around, you don't want Tess to meet her?"

"Tess won't put her off, well I hope not. She could just feel intimidated by Tess, it was what drove us apart. We tried not to let it bother us but I was stupid to not go and see her when I promised. I never heard from her again," Alec admitted.

"Well if she's come looking for you, she must have forgiven you?" the chief wondered.

"It would seem so?" Alec dared hope. "I have somewhere to go so I'm leaving early."

"I hope it's nothing personal Alec?" the chief asked him.

"Not particularly. It's to do with going in the river yesterday," Alec admitted.

"That makes sense I suppose? You're getting yourself checked over?" the chief wanted to know.

Alec got up to leave.

"You have objections to that?" he asked the chief.

"No, go ahead. I'll put you on the transfer list but you may not find any openings wherever you want to go," the chief warned him.

"As long as it is away from here, I don't really care," Alec replied.

He drove off to his friend's surgery, hoping there was nothing seriously wrong with him. If there was, it was either the river's fault or Tess's. Either way, he wasn't going to let it get in the way of a chance to make it up to Rose for leaving her. Then he remembered he'd not called John.

While Alec had been talking to the chief, Rose had bought a few items she was going to need but had no idea how things were going to work out. He may not want her to stay when he'd had the chance to think about it. She'd gone to the taxi rank and given the driver the address on the card.

The front door to the small hotel was open so she just rang the inner bell and waited, the card Alec had given her in her hand and she got the keys out. The owner was just going to check if Alec had left the keys when she went to answer the door.

"Oh. Hi," Rose greeted the woman who was looking at her like she was inspecting her before letting her in. "Alec Hardy was calling to say I'd be arriving?"

"Yes but he's not left his key anyway," the woman replied, Rose thinking she didn't look too happy with the idea someone was going to be staying with him.

She remembered the times they'd been on holiday together and the times they'd gone on their own.

"Oh, he gave me the keys," Rose told the woman as she was going behind the small desk.

"Well, you'd best sign the guest book then? How long are you staying?" the woman wanted to be sure.

"A couple of nights, I'm not sure yet," Rose replied, still signing her married name.

She had never been able to bring herself to go back to being Rose Tyler. She still felt responsible for the death of James and now, Alec was the only person she'd ever told of what really happened that night. At least Alec had wanted to see photos and said he didn't mind family ones or those with just Jamie and James together.

The two of them liked nothing more than posing together for photos, Rose had often smiled to herself about it. She used to tease them and say they were like a couple of actors at some premiere or other. She was shown where Alec's room was and once inside, she called her mother.

"Rose!" Jackie greeted her. "Did ya see him?"

"Yeah, I've seen him Mum. I'm gonna stay tonight then see how it goes. I told him about Jamie and shown him a few recent photos but he wants to see them all, those with all of us and with James."

"Well that's a good sign then?" Jackie thought. "I'll tell Jamie when he gets home. I was out earlier and I could have sworn I saw John passing in a car. Must've been my imagination though?"

"No Mum, ya weren't seeing things," Rose had to laugh. "He lives not far away, Alec told me. Anyway, I'll just have to see how things go. I think Alec wants to see Jamie though."

"Well I won't say anything until you're sure," Jackie told her. "If I tell him and then Alec changes his mind, Jamie's gonna be upset. Mind you, he's taken it fairly well so far."

"Yeah, he has Mum," Rose agreed. "Anyway, I'm in Alec's hotel room at present, he was in the middle of moving. I was right though Mum, he got married to Tess."

Jackie knew how much Rose had been upset at the time and that Alec hadn't even bothered to talk to her about it. That was why Rose had taken to James so quickly although maybe it had started out as that but it had grown into more.

"I know how much it hurt Rose," Jackie sympathised. "I remember all the times ya were upset over it but ya never did anything. Ya just let that woman steal him from ya, right in front of your nose."

"I know, I don't need reminding of that Mum," Rose replied, sitting on the bed. "Anyway, he wants me to stay a few days but when I've finished talking to him, he'll probably want me to leave in the morning."

"Ya have to give him a chance Rose," Jackie insisted. "It must have been just as bad for him, especially if he'd got it into his head ya were already friendly with James at the time? It worked both ways."

"I suppose so?" Rose had to agree. "What was I supposed to do Mum? If I'd gone up there, who knows what might have happened? She could have made things unbearable and I may have left anyway. Then if he'd stayed behind it could have ended the same way."

"Well what about now?" Jackie wanted to know. "Is he divorced?"

"Getting one from what he said," Rose replied. "I'll let him explain."

"Well that's all ya can do," Jackie agreed. "Will ya call Jamie later?"

"Yeah, when I've talked to Alec. I know that Jamie's anxious," Rose agreed.

Before Jamie had set off for school, he was asking Jackie all kinds of questions after Rose had left early.

"So you knew my real dad a long time then?" he'd wanted to know.

"Yeah, they were at school together when we lived in Scotland," Jackie told him. "When we left, your mum used to go on holiday with him, your granddad and your uncle John."

"So I have another granddad?" he'd asked, never being sure what he was supposed to call James's granddad.

"Yeah, I knew your uncle John just as well as your dad," Jackie recalled all the times he'd brought Alec down. "They started to look really alike when your dad grew up."

"So what happened then? Did my real dad just leave?" Jamie then wanted to know.

"Oh sweetheart, don't think that," Jackie tried to assure him. "It was never a case of that. It just happened when the visits got further apart when your dad was training in the police. I'm sure it wasn't on purpose."

"Is that why mum never told him?" he'd then asked.

"I'm sure she had her reasons," Jackie had replied. "Who ya grew up with as ya dad promised to take care of you and your mum. We just kept it quiet."

"So now, will she change my name?" Jamie wondered.

That made Jackie smile.

"We'll have to just wait and see. Off ya go, don't forget your lunch," she'd told him.

Rose had turned the TV on and tried to wait patiently for Alec getting back. She'd made sure the hotel owner knew they wanted the evening meal and breakfast but the woman hadn't mentioned if Alec had called or not.

Alec was about to go sneaking off to see his doctor friend and hope he was worrying about nothing that his heartbeat seemed a little odd but was that due to nerves caused by the prospect Rose had unexpectedly shown up the day after he'd appeared on the news?

When he arrived at the surgery, the receptionist told him to take a seat and she called his friend.

"Send him straight in when this patient leaves," Alistair told her.

"Of course Doctor," she replied, quite used to Alec not waiting when he visited.

A few minutes later, she called Alec's name, getting looks from a few others waiting to be seen.

"Hey, I've been waiting twenty minutes," a man got up to complain. "How come he's going in first?"

The receptionist was ready to answer him.

"Sir, please sit down. He's a police officer he has to be fitted in whenever he can get away," she replied.

"I saw him on TV, what's he doing here then?" a woman asked her.

"I can't divulge that information," the receptionist told her. "I'm sure he won't be long."

Well at least she hoped he wouldn't be long but Doctor Murray seemed to like to take his time with some of the patients and the man who had just gone in always seemed to be one of them.

"Alec!" his friend stood up to greet him. "How's that daughter of yours doing man?"

"She was fine the last time I saw her. Tess doesn't say much so I have to keep asking her," Alec admitted.

"So, what can I help you with then?" he was then asked.

Alec didn't know where to start so he thought he'd best tell his friend the worst to start off with.

"Alistair, I think something happened when I was in that river," he admitted.

"In what way?" his friend wanted to know as he indicated for Alec to get on the bed.

"That's just it, I don't know? I swallowed a lot of water but I was told that hadn't affected me. I think it may be my heart, it seems to be jumping all over the place," Alec told him.

"Thought ya said your old girlfriend contacted you?" his friend laughed. "It's probably you're excited about making up with her?"

"I don't think it's that simple," Alec disagreed. "Yes, I'm meeting her later, she's waiting at my hotel, unless she's backed out and gone home."

"Something tells me she won't Alec," his friend replied as he got Alec to unbutton his shirt and listened to his now erratic heartbeat.

Alec waited a few moments while his friend listened and hoped it wasn't serious but the look creeping on Alistair's face told him otherwise. Rose had found him again after all this time and now, there might be something seriously wrong with him. She'd lost her husband several years ago, she would be devastated if something were to happen to him.

"Well?" Alec dared ask as his friend moved away.