A/N: My sincere apologies for the delay in updating this. I've had to try something a bit new with this chapter in order to move the story ahead, otherwise we'd be stuck in March 2011 for who knows how long!
Thank you to those who continue to read this and my other stories. It is so very much appreciated.
May 7 2011
"That's ours there, Si," Peter pointed out the large, black duffle bag that tumbled down onto the conveyor belt, "quick, give it a grab!" He reached down and helped his son pull the bag off the moving belt and down onto the ground beside them. "Right, you got everything, then?" he asked as he adjusted the backpack onto his son's shoulders, before hauling the duffle bag up onto his own.
"Has she called yet?" Simon asked, his hands holding onto each of his backpack's shoulder straps as he tilted his head back to glance up at his dad.
"Not yet, son," Peter responded softly.
"But she promised she'd come!" the young boy whined sadly, "she promised..."
"I know she did, Si and hey, she might still." He smiled down at his son before wrapping his arm around him, "come on," he said, nudging him towards the sliding doors where two airport personnel stood eyeing passengers as they walked through.
Peter felt a sense of nervousness overtake him as the doors slid open in front of him. He was greeted by a sea of faces on either side of the hallway they stepped into, but none were recognizable to him, and he felt his heart sink.
He had been so sure she would be there...
"Can we get a hot chocolate?" Simon asked innocently as they stepped away from the rows of people.
Peter turned and looked down at his son's hopeful face, "you want a hot chocolate? Now?" At his son's nod, he pressed further, "and is this just because you're thirsty for one? Or is there some other reason?"
Simon looked down, kicking the toe of his Converse sneaker into the tiled floor, "I just thought that maybe she's just running a bit late, is all..." he mumbled.
Peter couldn't help but smile, "you know, you might be right!" he said, even though he was starting to believe that the woman in question would actually show up now, his son's unwavering faith gave him a glimmer of hope himself, "come on, I could do with a coffee meself..."
As they sat at one of the tables some fifteen minutes later, finishing off their hot drinks in companionable silence and glancing about around them, Peter could see his son starting to lose his earlier confidence.
"We'll give her another five minutes Si, and then we should make a move." He said gently, as he took the two empty cups and tossed them in the nearby recycling bin, unable to stop fidgeting himself as his eyes scanned the crowd around him.
"She's not coming, is she?" Simon sulked, looking around the arrivals lounge at Manchester airport
"It doesn't look like it," Peter smiled sadly down at his son, "But I'm sure there's a good explanation," He shrugged his bag further up on his shoulder, and ruffled his son's hair, "Come on, let's go get a cab."
March 25th 2011 - 6 weeks earlier...
"Carla?"
"Mmm?"
"Rise and shine, love..."
A low noise came from the woman curled into his side, causing Peter to smirk slightly as he gazed down at her.
"did you - did you just growl at me?"
"hmmph"
Peter pressed a kiss to the top of her head, "Is it wrong that I am turned on by that?"
Carla giggled and snuggled further into Peter's embrace
"Mmmm what time is it?" she yawned, stretching her legs along the length of Peter's.
"Just after seven, love. Thought maybe I could treat you to a full English at Roy's this morning before you head off to work. You know, apologize properly."
"Oh, it'll take more than some eggs and bacon before you can start slinking your way out the doghouse, mister."
"Okay, but am I at least able to peek me head out of the door yet?" he asked rubbing his hand soothingly up and down her back
"mmm, I suppose so..."
Peter chuckled as he pulled Carla closer to him and kissed the top of her head again, "Honestly though, what can I do to make it up to you?"
"'What? 'till the next time, you mean?" she mumbled
He tilted his head, taken slightly aback by her words, "Eh?"
"Oh come on Pe'er, you've practically bit me head off over something or other for months now!"
"Well-" Peter was about to defend himself but found himself reflecting on the some of the things he had said to her, and couldn't help but agree, "yeah, okay. I guess I just haven't been dealing with whole Leanne coming back thing as well as I pretended I had been."
"Oh, stop the press, you think so?" she sighed deeply, tracing her finger along one of his tattoos, "I mean, look, Peter: I really like the fact that you speak your mind and that you challenge me and call me out, but I dunno after yesterday it's all starting to feel a bit pointed now. And maybe - maybe you just need to get away for a couple of days or sommit, you know, while everything dies down a bit. Might be what you need to start dealing with it all."
"You know, it's funny you should mention that actually..." he sighed
"What? Getting out of town for a bit?"
Peter exhaled deeply, "sort of. Me dad dropped into the bookies earlier yesterday, you know, before all the stuff that happened in the cafe," He paused a moment and pressed a kiss to Carla's forehead as his continued to run his hand smoothly down her hair, "and he suggested that Si and I, you know, get away from Weatherfield for a while."
Carla lifted her cheek from Peter's chest, and placed her chin upon her hand as her eyes gazed over his face, "where did he suggest?"
Peter took a deep breath before responding, "Spain."
"Spain?" Carla repeated, "that's a random destination, innit? There a reason he suggested it?"
"Well apparently Steve told me dad and Tracy that he was planning on taking Amy there for about a month to visit his brother. I guess him and me dad got to talking and Steve said there was plenty of room if Si and I wanted to tag along."
Carla nodded, "Well I mean you couldn't ask for a nicer place to get away from school for a month," she smiled lopsidedly at him, "Si will love it."
Peter craned his neck to look at her more directly, his brows furrowed in scrutiny, "What? You think we should go?"
Carla exhaled, her stomach flipping as she formed her words carefully, "I do baby, yeah," her fingers traced along his collarbone, "I mean, Peter you have to admit, you haven't exactly been in a great place since Leanne and Nick came back," she chuckled half heartedly, "to be honest, you haven't been in a good place since the tram crash..."
"Yeah but, I mean I'm working on dealing with everything with Lea," he shifted so his body was propped up against the headboard of Carla's bed, "We're going to meet today to discuss having Si see her..."
"And I think that's great, Peter, I do, but," she sighed, "come on, you haven't had a chance to breath since everything happened in December, and neither has Simon," she lowered her eyes from his gaze, tapping her fingers nervously on his chest, "I think you both need a few weeks to clear your heads away from the place where everything happened."
"But," he felt his heart sink into the pit of his stomach, "what about us?"
"What about us?" she pushed herself up so she was sat facing him, "we're friends with benefits, Peter; a casual relationship-"
"We're more than that," he interrupted, reaching his hand out to cup her cheek, "you know we are more than that..."
She closed her eyes briefly as he stroked her cheek with his thumb, "Peter," her voice cracked as she swallowed the lump forming in her throat forcefully before her emotions got the better of her and she ended up begging him not to go; her tongue flicked across her lips nervously before she spoke again, "to me you will always be more..." she opened her eyes to rest on his once more, "but until you get your head straight, I don't think I could ever believe you'll ever see me as anything more than a rebound..."
"Carla -"
"Peter," she interrupted him before he could protest, "As much as this hurts to say, I think we need this break. Because right now, after everything that's happened, and after everything that's been said yesterday, I just feel like, if you don't go-" her voice cracked as she swallowed deeply
"What?" he encouraged her softly
"If you don't go, you'll just end up resenting me," she whispered, "and I'll end up resenting you..."
May 7th 2011
Peter and Simon continued on their trek towards the car park when they heard their names being called by an all too familiar voice from somewhere deep in the maddening crowd ahead of them.
Peter felt his heart rate pick up as his eyes scanned the numerous faces in front of him, looking for the owner of that sensual voice that sent a shiver down his spine in all the right ways.
"Carla!" Simon shouted excitedly as he abruptly broke into a run, leaving Peter watching with a mixture of amusement and awe as the bustling crowd swiftly parted for his young son and slowly revealed the smiling factory boss as she continued to shoulder her way through the mass of people before Simon threw himself into her, his arms wrapping tightly around her waist.
"I know, I know, I'm sorry!" Carla hugged the young boy back, "my meeting in town ran late and I tried to get out as fast as I could when I saw that your flight had landed. Then I couldn't get a cab because some crotchety old woman stole the one I were waiting 10 minutes for, and me phone died just after I called Streetcars for one. And then I had to fight my way through all these floods of people who are obviously miserable as sin at being back from their holibobs!" She glanced up just as Peter stopped in front of her, a grin plastered across his face as he scanned her appreciatively from head to toe and she felt her breath hitch in her throat at the mere sight of him; slimmer than when he had left six weeks prior, tanned, and his normally smooth face now lined with a handsomely trimmed beard. Her tongue darted out briefly before she sunk her top teeth into her bottom lip, offering him a lopsided grin that he found sexy as anything.
"Hiya stranger," she greeted him as Simon shuffled to stand next to her
"Hi," his eyes remained fixed on hers as he closed the gap between them, raising his hand to cup her face and stroking his thumb across her cheek. But just as he readied himself to lean in and kiss the lips he had been craving and missing for weeks, Carla let out an anguished cry. Her body lurched unsteadily into his as a man, who had been jogging through the crowd, crashed painfully into her back before tumbling to the ground on top of the factory boss as Peter tried unsuccessfully to catch her.
"Oh my God!" the man cried, pushing himself up and grasping Carla's shoulders as he tried to help her up, "Oh my God, I am so sorry, Miss, are you okay?"
"Oi!" Peter shouted, hauling the man away from Carla, "take your hands off of her!" He quickly reached down and gently pulled Carla to her feet, "why don't you watch where you're going next time, hey?"
"I'm so sorry!" the man apologized, "please, are you all right?" he asked Carla directly as she leaned unsteadily onto Peter and rubbed her ankle
"Yeah, yeah I'm fine," she responded, "add it to the flamin' list this week..." she muttered agitatedly as she gingerly lowered her leg to the ground without putting weight on it.
"Are you sure?" he persisted as Peter's eyes bore into him
"Yes, I'm sure, honestly," she gestured behind her with her head as she massaged her wrists, "go on..."
"I really am sorry," the man apologized once more before dodging away from them and heading off towards the arrivals lounge
"Here, let's sit you down for a minute," Peter shuffled Carla and his son away from the crowd towards a nearby bench, Placing his bag next to him on the floor, he crouched down in front of Carla and edged his fingers around her leg gingerly, his eyes narrowing in concern as she grunted in discomfort,
"Oh, that smarts!" she hissed, drawing her leg up swiftly towards her chest and applying pressure around her ankle with her hands
"I think we better get you checked out, love,"
"No, no," she shook her head stubbornly
"Carla-"
"Pe'er, I'm fine, it's just a twist is all. Come on, Lloyd's waiting outside," she insisted as she rose to her feet before letting out a pained squeal when she tried to bear her weight on her foot
"Right. That's it! We're going to A and E," Peter rose to his feet and placed his bag over his shoulder
"But-"
"No 'buts', Carla," he ordered her as he wrapped her arm around his neck. He was about to start heading towards the exit, when he noted her sigh rather dejectedly "hey?" he gently squeezed her waist with his fingers and waited until her eyes met his, "what's wrong?"
She exhaled sadly, "back in Manchester and spending it queueing in A and E for hours. I'll bet you wished you'd just stayed in Spain, now?" she mumbled.
But Peter smiled and turning her towards him, captured her lips with his own, cupping her cheek with his free hand as his tongue slipped erotically into her mouth. Her body instinctively pressed into his, and she laid her hand gently upon his chest as she responded to his kiss.
She smiled against his lips and pulled back softly, leaning her forehead against his, "So you did miss me, then?" she whispered
"You have no idea..."
"Uhhh dad?" Simon called out to them, "hospital? Vamonos!"
Carla chuckled, "Ohh, I see I'll have to brush up on me Spanish, now."
"I wouldn't worry, he's only taken to a few phrases: 'let's go', 'I'm hungry', 'I'm bored', 'are we there, yet?' and 'dad, can I have some money?'" Peter laughed, "right! Here, lean into me hop-a-long," he ordered her gently as he repositioned her against him, "now, where's Lloyd parked?"
She gestured towards the far doors and Peter nodded towards his son, "Si, do a bit of crowd control for us, would you?"
"On it!" Spreading his arms out on either side of him, the young boy began gesturing to the adults around him to push back, "make some room please!" Simon began chanting out as he walked ahead of them, towards the exit, "injured woman coming through!"
"Oh charming," Carla scoffed as she hobbled her way out of the airport, but inwardly content to be held in Peter's arms once more.
March 25th 2011
"You're doing it again, Barlow,"
"Doing what?"
"Staring at me."
"Is that so bad?"
Carla smirked at him over the rim of her mug, "it is when we're sitting in the middle of a cafe, and both needing to get to work in a bit..."
"We could play hooky? I could grovel for your forgiveness in my bedroom..."
"As tempting as that is - and it is very tempting - I have to go in and start drumming up new business since Frank is pulling his order."
"What? He's cancelled?" at Carla's nod, he pressed further, "was that what you were arguing about with him yesterday at Streetcars?"
"Hmm mmm, he came to find me after having some barney with Maria. Threatened to cancel and was being evasive, so I told him if he couldn't solve a falling out with my PA like an adult then he was welcome to pull his flamin' order."
"Maybe it's for the best, love. I mean, you don't need to be working with someone who talks to you like that."
"Really? You're going to comment on how someone speaks to me after yesterday?"
"Okay, maybe I'm being a bit hypocritical,"
"Ha, understatement of the year..." Carla sighed and lowered her coffee mug to the table, "look Peter, I know Frank rubs you the wrong way after everything with the mixer; and I admit he's gotten under my skin a few times as well, but that's just business. You know, he might be a bit irritating with his micro-managing but he did introduce me to some new contacts and suppliers; and I mean we were diversifying with the whole menswear division with the 100 000 worth of business he brought in. We've never branched out into something like that before and it could have really got Underworld on the map with that. Not to mention keeping everyone employed there comfortable in their jobs in an industry which, as you know, is becoming harder to sustain when we're competing with cheap labour markets like China and India."
"I get it," Peter reluctantly agreed, "so did he pull it for sure, then?"
"I dunno," Carla shook her head, "I guess I'll find out when I get in. Only blessing in all this would be that if he did pull his order then I won't have to go to that dinner date he's having with Tracy tonight."
"Tracy?" Peter sat upright, "He has a date with our Tracy?"
Carla took a sip of her coffee, "Not the first one by the sounds of things. Apparently the two of them have hit it right off."
"And why would you need to be there?"
Carla shrugged, "She told him she wanted to run something by us about the business. Actually, before everything blew up yesterday, he had asked if you would come along as well,"
"Me?"
"Yep,"
"Why me?"
"Because you're her half-brother? Make her feel a bit more at ease?"
"He doesn't know our Trace very well does he?"
"Well I didn't want to be the one to let him know that she's more than capable of 'defending' herself..." she winked cheekily at him, "he did also say it was a way for me not to feel like a third wheel."
"Well, that's a good point. Can't imagine anything worse than you having to sit through a dinner with my charming half-sister and that ponce of a client of yours." Peter leaned forward, "look, if he's decided not to pull his order, and the dinner is still on, I'll come with you."
"Really?"
"Least I could do."
Carla smiled, "okay. I'll let you know," she pushed herself up from the table, "I'm just going to head to the toilets. Be back in a tick."
Peter watched her sashay away before being startled by his ringing phone.
"Hey dad..." he answered, "Yeah, we're fine, but I've still got some grovelling to do," he nodded absentmindedly, "Yeah, I have given some more thought to Spain. In fact, I'll pop 'round after I walk Carla to the factory in a bit. Okay? Okay. See you soon, then. Bye."
He kept true to his word, and after saying goodbye to Carla on the Underworld steps with a brief kiss, he headed to Number 1 to finalize some plans with Ken.
It wasn't until lunchtime when he managed to pop back into the factory, chuckling to himself as all the machinists suddenly went quiet.
"Afternoon all," he smiled charmingly at them, "Boss lady in?" he asked
"Oh, umm, is she expecting you, Mr. Barlow?" Hayley asked as she held her clipboard tightly in her hands, her eyes darting towards the office and back to Peter.
"It's okay, 'ayley, I'll take it from here," Carla said as she opened the door to the office, "come in Peter," she gestured him inside, waiting for him to pass through before turning to look at her workers, "uhhh do I pay you all to sit there gawping? Get on with your work please!" She spun on her heel and closed the door to her office.
"No Maria, today?" Peter asked her
"Oh, she's just taken an early lunch. Needed to take Liam to the dentist," she said as she sat down at her desk as Peter sat in the chair opposite her.
"So how did everything work out, you know, with Frank?"
"Yeah, good actually," she answered, tucking her hair behind her ear, "apparently he and Maria solved whatever happened between them last night and everything is full steam ahead today."
"Did she say what their fight was about?" Peter prodded carefully
But Carla simply shook her head, "no, neither of them would budge on it. Just said it were crossed wires or sommit," she shrugged, "anyhow, as long as it means I can keep that lot-" she jabbed her pen pointedly through the glass towards he machinists, "safe in their jobs, and it isn't something that needs to involve lawyers or the coppers, I really don't care to know the details." She shuffled a few papers into a folder, "How about you? How did things go with Leanne?"
Peter nodded stiffly, "Well as you can imagine she wasn't very happy to hear that I'm taking Simon away for a month. But he's my son and I think she knows she hasn't got much of a say in how I choose to raise him. Plus, when I explained that it would most likely lead to a better relationship between him and her when we got back, I think she thawed a bit."
"That's good to hear." Carla smiled. Last thing she wanted was to be in the midst of some strenuous and odd custody battle-type situation between the two.
"So we still on for dinner then?" He asked.
"Yeah, 7:30 at some Italian place in town," Carla stood up and walked around the desk and sat on the edge in front of him, "but Peter, you don't have to come out, honestly."
"I want to," he whispered with a smile, reaching out and running his fingers playfully up and down her thigh, "I want to spend as much time with you as possible before I go..."
Carla felt her heart sink slightly and she rubbed her lips together apprehensively, "so when do you leave for Spain, then?"
"Tomorrow. Afternoon."
"Tomorrow?" She stated loudly, as the news hit her rather surprisingly, "That were quick..."
"Yeah, me dad managed to find us a really cheap deal on flights. And I figured you were right; I need to go and get my head straight or I'm just going to end up causing more damage to the people around me. Besides, sooner I go, sooner I get back, right?"
Carla nodded sadly, reaching her fingers out to grasp his, "So this really is our last day together then,"
"Well," Peter stood up and wrapped his arms around her waist, stepping between her legs and pulling her flush against him, "me dad's gonna have Si stay at his tonight, so that we can have all evening and tomorrow morning to ourselves. If I'm out of the doghouse by then, I mean."
"Well, how can I say no to that, eh?" She leaned in and kissed his lips softly.
"So how's about I pick you up at, let's say, 7ish from your place; but you pack a bag and come stay at mine tonight?" he swayed her gently as he pecked small kisses along her jawline, "that way I can spend as much time with you as possible before I have to get in the cab to the airport tomorrow..."
She leaned her head against his; she knew this was the right decision for both of them, but it still cut her deeply that he would be gone for a month or more just as things were starting to pick up between them. Despite this, she smiled through her obvious sadness, "That sounds perfect."
"And are you, you know...okay now?" He gestured towards her abdomen with his eyes and she couldn't help but chuckle
"All clear, Barlow."
May 7th 2011
"Oh no, what's happened?" Ken asked worriedly as Carla crossed the threshold of Number 1 on crutches behind Simon and before Peter
"Carla had a bit of an incident when she came to collect us." Peter stated as he placed their bags down on the steps.
"A guy came running out of nowhere and crashed into her at the airport, grandad," Simon explained enthusiastically, "and they both fell over and when we took her to the hospital, the doctors took off her boot and her ankle was MASSIVE! It were well cool!"
"Goodness, are you alright, Carla?"
"It's sprained, but they don't know just how severe it is yet. Which means I've got to keep it immobilized for the next 48 hrs before I go back to get an ultrasound on it and possibly get one of them moon boot thingies."
"Oh, that's terrible! Well, let's hope it's a mild sprain, but I'm sorry to see you in so much discomfort! You, on the other hand son, look great! The break seems to have done wonders for you."
"Yeah, it has done for sure," Peter responded, his smile drifting towards Carla who fidgeted awkwardly next to him, "gave me the time to really get my priorities straight."
"Well, I'm glad to hear that. Please, come in and sit down, Tracy and Frank are here as well and Dierdre's just brewing up." He gestured over his shoulder with his thumb before turning and following Simon into the kitchen. But before Peter could head in as well, Carla hobbled in his path and blocked him with her crutches.
"Hang on, I need a word with you first," she said, quickly looking over her shoulder to ensure no one was hovering nearby, "what I told you at the hospital -"
"What?" Peter began, "about Frank buying into Underworld and being your new business partner?"
"Yeah, that." Carla nodded
"Well, what do you want me to say, love?" he shrugged agitatedly, knowing exactly what he wanted to say, but choosing to bite his tongue instead
"Well, you didn't seem best pleased," She stated in a low voice, "But I need to make sure you're not going to interfere Peter; not again after what happened at the dinner before you left..."
Peter smirked at her, "well you'll have to be more specific because, as I recall, a few things happened at that dinner..."
"Pe'er!" Carla playfully slapped his chest but couldn't stop the blush that rose to her cheeks, "You know what I'm talking about!"
He stepped closer to her, and wrapped his arms around her waist, "Honestly? No, I'm not pleased. In fact I downright hate it. But it's your business, and you're a brilliant businesswoman. And I trust you."
"You just don't trust him-"
"No. I don't, not when it comes to you," he answered honestly, "especially with Maria having left to go back to the salon, and leaving just the two of you in that office. But I won't do anything that could harm your business partnership, or your business as a whole. As long as you promise me that you'll keep your guard up where he's concerned..."
Carla sighed. She knew that was the most leniency she would get out of Peter Barlow. She knew why he had reservations about Frank, but the business needed his investment. She still had the majority shares in the company, 60/40, and that's how it would remain. 'Besides,' she thought, 'If I could handle Tony Gordon, I can certainly handle Frank Foster...'
"I promise," she responded before kissing his cheek gently, "shall we head in?"
Peter nodded, and helped her to turn around with her crutches, "So, they still together then?"
"Yep, and before you ask: yes, they still engage in PDA and yes, it's still gross..."
Peter shuddered comically before placing a hand on her back and guiding her into the sitting room.
March 25th 2011
"Where's your overnight bag, Carla?" Peter asked as he glanced around her flat.
"It's here," Carla raised the small bag up as she walked out of her bedroom, wearing a grey sweater dress with black stockings paired with her long, suede high heeled boots. Peter let out a wolf whistle as he eyed her, taking the bag from her hand and smiling as she pressed an appreciative kiss to his lips,
"Nice earrings," he remarked as he pushed her hair back over her shoulder with his hand
"Thank you, they were a present," she responded cheekily
"Oh? Well whoever bought them has great taste..."
"I'll be sure to let him know,"
"Secret admirer?"
Carla shook her head, "casual fling." she winked at him as he chuckled, "you're looking very smart tonight, yourself," she whispered before pushing away from him and heading towards her coat rack.
"Oh, hang on love, I have something I want you to wear tonight."
"Other than the earrings?" She turned curiously to face him
Peter smirked, before digging into the small bag he had hidden in his coat, "Yes, but it's something a bit more...discreet," he hinted as he pulled out the package and handed it to her, watching as she turned it over in her hands, her eyebrows raising surprisingly before meeting his gaze.
"Really?"
"Yep."
"Seriously?"
"Yep."
"Okay, so just to be clear:" she began as she opened the package, "you want me to wear this," she held up the small, purple teardrop shaped clitoral vibrator, "that you'll be able to control using this," she held up the small pen-like remote, "to dinner with your sister and her date, who just so happens to be a client of mine?"
"Yes," Peter stepped towards her, brushing her hair away with his hand once more as he cupped her cheek, "You may be in control in the boardroom, per say, but I want total control in the bedroom tonight. And I figured if we have to sit through an excruciating dinner with your client, than we may as well make the most of it, and have some fun along the way. You know, start with some foreplay at dinner. Why?" he smirked at her, his thumb brushing along her lips, "Do you have a problem with that?"