"Thank you for your offer Rose," Alec replied, thinking he really should be getting back to his riverside shack, cottage not being the right word to describe it.
He knew Tess would scoff at it and if Miller was around – well?
"You should not be in the same town when the trial starts," he then warned her.
"Aw, me and John have dodged the press a few times," Rose had to laugh.
"I can imagine?" Alec had to agree she knew how to evade nosy reporters. "You do not know the local one though."
"Bit of a pain?" Rose wondered.
"Yes, you could say that. He revealed the name of the boy who died here before the official press interview," Alec told her, wondering if she already knew.
"Ouch! That was a bit low?" Rose agreed. "Hey, I'm keeping ya up and ya need some rest. I've got a spare room if ya want?" she offered.
Alec didn't fancy sleeping on one of those single beds that caravans tended to have when they used to take Daisy on holiday.
"There's two double rooms," Rose then told him. "Don't know why?"
The offer was tempting, Alec thought. Maybe he had bad dreams about water because he was right at the edge of the river? What the hell had come over him renting somewhere by the water? Rose could see he was debating.
"Hey, I'll make a drink while ya decide?" she then offered.
He sat down again as Rose went off to the kitchen area and began filling the kettle with water and washing the cups from earlier.
"I don't want to put you to any trouble Rose," Alec told her, looking at the time.
He knew he should try to get some sleep. Maybe he would feel better if someone was there?
"Hey, it's no trouble," Rose insisted. "My Mum still stays up for one last cuppa with the staff. Dad finds it amusing."
It still reminded her of when the other Jackie had been nasty to her just before the Cybermen had invaded. Now she had told Alec some of it, she'd have some explaining to do to Pete.
"Alec, wanna see the other room?" she suggested before making some drinks.
"I'm sure it will be fine. Are you certain it will be okay to stay?" he wanted to be sure.
"Yeah, I told ya Alec. They'll just think 'cos you're with me that you're John. Does that put ya off?" she then wondered.
Alec knew it should, if he had any sense. As long as he left early, no-one would be around and he could weave his way through the caravans to the main entrance. He was sure there would be another exit anyway, judging where the local store was.
"Well I may get away with it if he sometimes has a beard?" he then wondered.
What was he thinking, he asked himself as Rose made some tea. Rose joined him and offered him some cookies she had bought.
"I should warn you I may call out," he thought he'd best tell her now while there was still time to leave.
"Wanna know something?" she asked him. "I used to have nightmares about the Cybermen, when me and mum first went to live with Pete."
"That was understandable," he admitted.
"Yeah, what with seeing the other Jackie turned into one. She still knew who Pete was, it was creepy to say the least," Rose told him.
"No-one left who remembers it will ever know how it was allowed to happen," Alec replied. "It was all covered up and stories were put out. Half the police force had no idea what they were getting into by rounding them up."
"Alec, it was Lumic who started it all," Rose told him.
"We knew that Rose," Alec replied. "Unless you know more?" he then wondered.
"Yeah but Pete doesn't like me saying," Rose replied, wondering what she'd just started.
Alec thought he'd just love to hear more but couldn't expect her to tell him when they'd only just met. Maybe she would tell him more tomorrow night? On the other hand, she may cancel tomorrow night if he called out and woke her up during the night? Rose indicated which was the spare room, which thankfully was warm as she'd not checked the radiators in there and went into the bathroom. Alec was waiting in the narrow corridor when she came out. She tried to get past him but came close. What had made her invite him to stay over? Had she felt sorry for him?
"Thank you for letting me stay," Alec said when he was at a loss what to say to her.
"Yeah, it's fine. I think I'd be worried about ya," she admitted.
"There's no need Rose, no-one else worries about me," Alec replied, aware just how close they were and he had unbuttoned his shirt without thinking.
"That's not right Alec. Ya need someone," Rose told him.
How had this started, Alec wondered. Without thinking, he reached out and put his hands on her shoulders.
"Rose, thank you for your concern, no-one has bothered about me for a long time. I promise I will be fine, I will have the surgery and I will ask my ex wife to be there. Would that put you at ease?" he asked her.
"Well yeah? Ya can call me and tell me as well," she asked.
"So anyone can call Torchwood and ask for you?" he wondered.
"Ya asked me that before," Rose laughed. "Yeah, I'll make sure they put your call through. Night Alec."
"Yes, goodnight again Rose," he replied, wondering why she'd not told him to move his hands.
Maybe she thought he was steadying himself? Was he using excuses to stand opposite her? Rose reached up and kissed his cheek.
"Don't worry if ya wake up Alec, there's no-one in the next caravan," she told him.
"You will probably hear me," he warned her. "Don't trouble yourself."
"Tough, it will trouble me," she insisted. "Are ya always so stubborn?"
"You think I am stubborn?" he asked. "My DS used to call me that," he recalled Miller telling him a few times.
"Was she right?" Rose wanted to know, a smile on her face.
Why was she teasing him, he wondered. Rose went off and Alec watched her. Rose got into her pyjamas and listened out for him going back to his room, wondering if he would knock on her door. She heard his door closing and got into bed, wondering why she was so bothered.
She was engaged to John but was he starting to back off under all the pressure her mother was putting on them? How could she tell her mother to back off? Jackie had been delighted the two of the had got their acts together and become a couple. She knew John would be relieved if she got her mother to leave them to it. She had just turned the light out and realised John hadn't called her.
She sent him a short message asking him what he'd been doing and got the reply 'working' from him. Did they even talk that much these days, especially about getting married? Maybe they should have just ran off to a tropical island or a certain Scottish village to get married? Her mother would have only made them get married again in front of her so there wasn't much point.
Rose was startled to hear a noise a few hours after getting to sleep and sat up in bed. Then she heard Alec moving around and got up.
"Are ya okay Alec?" she asked as she saw him getting some water and swallowing some pills from a strip.
He'd put his shirt on his shoulders but not fastened it.
"I should have taken these earlier," he admitted. "Sorry I disturbed you."
"It's fine," Rose yawned. "I can't imagine how it feels. How did ya get so bad?"
"Now is not the time to tell you," he replied.
"Why, how long will it take?" Rose wanted to know.
He wanted to ask how long she had got but decided against it. He tried to get past her and Rose stepped back but she got more than a good view of his bare chest and she held her hand out.
"Would ya feel better having someone with ya?" she asked him.
Before either of them knew it, Rose was resting her head on him after he'd taken his shirt off, hardly noticing he'd just stood in the kitchen in his shorts. They had also barely noticed Rose just started out by kissing his shoulder as he put his arm around her and he'd kissed her forehead, then he had pulled her closer and she had reached up, which had led to them kissing.
They fell asleep and only woke when they could hear Alec's phone alarm going off in the other room.
"Wake up Rose," he began telling her.
"Is that your alarm?" Rose yawned.
"Yes, I need to turn it off but you have my arm," he reminded her.
"I'll go," Rose offered. "What's the time?" she asked, scrambling for her own phone.
"I have to go get changed," Alec reminded her.
Rose flopped back down again.
"Hey. Morning Alec," she smiled at him over the top of the duvet.
"Good morning Rose," he replied as his phone chirped away and he was trying to put his shirt on.
As he left her bedroom, he was sure she had a disappointed look on her face. What was his hurry? He didn't have to go back to work, except for going over more case reports from the Sandbrook files and what for? He was getting nowhere fast with them and Tess wouldn't entertain re-opening it without new evidence.
Maybe he could tempt Miller to get interested in it after the trial, he wondered as he heard Rose calling his name.
"Alec, ya not sneaking off are ya?" she was saying.
What the hell had he been thinking during the night when he'd woken up? She was engaged, to someone at Torchwood though very little had been revealed about the lucky man. His daughter had teased him that he looked a little like Rose's fiancé. Was that why he'd got in her bed last night though nothing much had happened apart from kissing but he was aware he only had his shorts on and she had somehow ditched her PJ bottoms at some point.
He went back in the bedroom with his phone and holding his trousers, having debated if he should just put them on and leave before anything else did happen, should they both get tempted.
"Why did ya leave your alarm on?" she asked as he gave in and got back under the duvet, since it was still a bit chilly.
Rose turned to face him, giggling to herself as she did and looping her arm in his.
"Rose, be serious," he tried to tell her. "You are engaged."
"Engaged, yes but not married," she pointed out.
"Rose, I can't go for a fling," he warned her, since she'd had a reputation of being wild before she'd got involved with Doctor John Smith.
"Alec, I don't know how I feel right now," she told him. "I know I have to sort myself out. John's always working, he wouldn't take a few days off to have a rest."
"So are you consoling yourself with me?" he wanted to know as she tried to get his arm around her again.
"What?" Rose asked him. "No. Why are ya even asking?"
"You cannot blame me," he replied. "Rose, you need to sort things out. This is as far as we can go. You leave in a few days to go back to your life."
"I don't need reminding of that," Rose told him. "I go back to my mother sending me links to look at dresses, cakes and flowers. I don't know how many times I've told her not to."
Alec thought no wonder the other man was being put off.
"Then stop her?" Alec suggested. "Rose, only you can do that."
"Pray you never meet my mother Alec," Rose told him.
"Come on, back to the real world eh?" he encouraged her as he tried to move his arm.
After some breakfast in the caravan park's bar, Alec went off home and Rose drove up to the next town and called at the supermarket on the way back. Then she sat thinking of what she was going to do. Should she call John and tell him they needed to talk when she got back? She thought maybe he'd know what it was about without telling him.
The other question was, what should she do about Alec Hardy? Was she already getting too close to him? They had only kissed a little so far but he had backed off this morning. How could he think she was using him though?
Maybe she was? She thought she had best not go over to where he lived too early and give him some breathing space. After all she had just sprung this on him.
Alec was sat on his doorstep, watching for Rose crossing the river when he'd got a taxi to the supermarket to get some ingredients for impressing Rose later on. He'd also got some non-alcoholic wine and some chocolates for her and put some flowers in a vase he found in the cupboard. He went inside when he heard his phone ringing but cursed it when he'd forgotten to exchange numbers with Rose and it was the pesky reporter from the local paper instead.
"DI Hardy," Olly greeted him. "Can we do an interview with you just before the trial?" he asked hopefully.
"Why would you want to do that?" Alec wanted to know.
"Our readers are interested in what you think about it," Olly replied, Alec wishing Olly didn't always have an answer for everything and wasn't so smug.
"If you must?" Alec relented slightly. "Though I think you already know what I make of it? Did your editor put you up to this or was it entirely your idea?"
Maggie was sat at the side of him in the almost empty newspaper office.
"So sometime next week?" Olly asked him. "Maybe before you set off for the court?"
Olly put his hand over the phone.
"Well?" Maggie was asking him.
That over with, Alec decided he'd go through a few more notes from Sandbrook, though why he was bothering, he didn't know. Maybe now was the time to contact Tess and admit there was something wrong with him? He didn't know if he'd get any sympathy from her or not but maybe she did have the right to know, since it affected Daisy as well.
Rose was getting ready to go visit Alec's cottage and wondered if she should invite him back with her or stay over at his place. She would have to see if her conscious got the better of her or not but John was still her fiancé unless she told him differently when she got home? Like she'd thought last night, would he be relieved?
He didn't deserve to be cheated on and she had slightly cheated but not actually done anything yet. She was still in control last night but was that about to change? She set off, crossing the river and seeing Alec's door was closed but it wasn't that warm even though the sun had been out earlier and now it was almost dark. She then crossed the other footbridge and pushed the wooden gate open.
Knocking on his door, she hoped Alec was expecting her this early. Alec heard her knocking and assumed it was Rose. It was hardly likely to be Tess or even Ellie Miller, he thought as he went to open the door.
"Hi, I'm not too early am I?" Rose smiled.
"No, not at all. Come on inside, it's cold out there," he noticed as he stood in the open doorway in just his shirt.
He thought he'd never noticed last night while he'd been talking to Rose on the end of the pier.
"Something smells nice," Rose told him as he took her coat.
"It's not anything special," he replied. "Ah, you look very nice."
"Yeah? It's nothing special," she teased him as she stood in a short black dress with a lacy top and chiffon sleeves.
Alec was glad he had the heating on, since she'd not been wearing warm clothing like last night but she'd been out for a walk, she would have been wrapped up warm, wouldn't she? He beckoned for her to take a seat at the table by the window and went to get the wine.
"I got you some chocolates," he told her as he picked them up off the counter.
"Ah, thanks Alec. So, this place is interesting," she replied.
It did remind her somewhat of the Tardis, being deceiving from the outside. They chatted over their meals and then Rose asked if he had any music as she wanted to dance.
"It's been a long time since I danced Rose," he admitted.
"Well, you won't have forgotten," she insisted.
He found he'd not forgotten as they swayed to a few slow tunes when he found a CD he happened to have.
"Rose, we need to talk about this," he insisted when they stopped.
He was getting uncomfortable that the next time she insisted on him sleeping with her, that despite his heart problem, he'd be unable to resist any further developments between them. He'd told himself she was going home in a few days time and she would forget all about him.
No, he couldn't involve Rose with the upcoming trial at any cost, despite he was having feelings for her. Was she having feelings for him or just filling the gap being without her fiancé?