-x- Chapter 12 -x-

"Babysitting definitely has it's advantages." Charlie said, as he winked down at her then smirked.

She looked up at him and giggled. She then nuzzled into his chest once again, stroking the collar of his shirt, as they sat on the couch covered in a blanket. He'd interrupted her, as she tried to watch the film they'd decided to put on, after Charlotte had gone to bed.

"How many nights a week did you say?" He asked, as he ran his fingers down her arm.

"Charlie!" She exclaimed, giggling at him.

"What?" He smirked back at her.

"A few." She replied, biting her lip at him.

"Only a few?" He replied.

"Ha, ha." She laughed.

"Or more, I can't remember." She added.

"Ah, more than a few, that sounds better to me." He smirked at her.

"Charlie." She smirked back.

"I thought you said we had to be more adventurous." He suggested.

"Oh, I did darling." She answered.

"Well, I'm only keeping my promise." He said, winking at her.

"Oh, Charlie." She said.

"You wouldn't say only a few, to Mr. Darcy I bet." He then thought, sulking again.

"Ha, ha, ha. No, no, I don't think I would." She then giggled.

"Ah, right then, I'm being overshadowed by him already. Charming."

"Ha, ha." She laughed.

"No, no, I know. I can't compete, not against Mr Darcy that's for sure." He brooded.

"Charlie." She said seductively into his ear.

"What?" He turned to her.

"Shhh." And she kissed him slowly, then pulled back and grinned at him.

"I'll have a word with Robyn." She said, as she grinned at him again, trying to seem more serious.

"More than a few?" He asked.

"More than a few darling." She replied.

"Good." He smirked back at her, as she nuzzled into his chest once again.

"What's the name of that book your Mr Darcy is in again?" He asked, as she hugged against him.

"Pride and Prejudice." She replied, frowning at him.

"Ah, Pride and Prejudice. Ok." He looked lost in thought.

"Why?"

"Just curious." He shrugged, as he smirked back at her.

She just giggled at him once again.

-x-

Robyn came down the stairs a little worse for wear, after stumbling into the house a little after midnight.

Charlie was sat in the living room holding Charlotte whilst Duffy was busy preparing the roast dinner.

"Morning Robyn. Have a good night?" Charlie asked, as he looked up from Charlotte who was cooing and gurgling at him.

"Yep, yep, paying for it now though. My head is banging." Robyn said, as she sat down on the sofa, clutching the pillow against her, yawning sleepily.

"Oh, coffee is on the side for you, and some soluble aspirin." He mentioned.

"Thanks Charlie." Robyn replied, as she grimaced because of her aching head.

"No trouble." He smiled back at her.

"You deserve a break too you know. Don't be so hard on yourself." He added, as he looked at her thoughtfully.

He knew she'd take it out on herself for leaving Charlotte, and for drinking too much alcohol.

"I shouldn't have drank that much, Charlotte needs me." Robyn replied, looking tired and deflated.

"Oh, she's fine, she's got us." He said, and he frowned slightly to himself, his instincts were right, she was upset for going out, and especially for getting too drunk so she was now no use in caring for Charlotte today.

"Thanks, but..." Robyn tried to voice her thoughts.

"No buts, Robyn. You've had a tough few weeks, you can't do it all on your own. We can help you as much, and as often as you need us to. Ok?" He said, as he gently rocked Charlotte in his arms.

"Ok. Thanks Charlie." Robyn said, as she clutched the pillow tighter to herself.

"Can I hold her?" Robyn asked.

"Of course you can. But, coffee and aspirin first, yeah? You need to look after yourself too."

"Ok, you're right Charlie."

He smiled back at her.

She rose from the sofa and left the living room, down the hallway and into the kitchen.

-x-

Robyn walked into the kitchen and saw Duffy was busy checking on the vegetables in the pan boiling away.

"Morning Robyn, good night was it?" She asked, as she turned around and looked at her.

Robyn stood yawning back at her as she walked over to the coffee machine, and switched it on.

"Yeah, it was." Robyn said, yawning again.

She tore open the little white packet that lay next to the coffee mug, and plopped the two alka seltzer's tablets into the glass. She walked over to the sink, then proceeded to fill the glass with water, stirring the mixture and watching it bubble.

"Bad head too I see." Duffy said, as she stood against the counter, sipping at her coffee.

"Very bad." Robyn said, as she stirred the mixture and drank it all hurriedly.

"Oh, god, that's awful!." Robyn said, as she finished the last drop.

"I know." Duffy replied.

"I'm never drinking that stuff again. Yak!" Robyn said, screwing up her face, sticking out her tongue.

"But it does help Robyn." Duffy reassuringly answers.

"Hmmm, I know." Robyn replies, and she sighs.

Robyn then proceeded to make herself a coffee from the machine, adding milk, sugar, and stirred it. Then walked with her cup and sat down at the breakfast bench.

"I shouldn't have gone out last night." Robyn said, as blew on the hot coffee.

"Why?" Duffy asked, as she turned around again and looked at her, her arms folded.

"I was stupid, drinking all that. When I should be here looking after Charlotte." Robyn frowned, and sat and stared at her coffee mug.

"Oh Robyn. One night out isn't going to harm her, or you for that matter." Duffy said, as she sighed and frowned at her.

"But?" Robyn asked.

Duffy sighed, and walked over to Robyn and sat down in front of her, placing her coffee mug on the breakfast counter top.

"No buts. You've had a very stressful couple of months, you need to have time to yourself too you know." Duffy said.

"Duffy, I can't just..." Robyn answered.

"Charlotte is fine. We can have her as much and as often as you like. We aren't going anywhere." Duffy reassuringly said, as she reached out her hand and gently squeezed Robyn's arm in support.

Robyn just sighed.

"As long as you are ok, she'll be ok. That's the way it works." Duffy added.

"How did you do it?" Robyn asked.

"Well, um." Duffy sat back, releasing her grip on Robyn's arm, slightly shocked.

"Sorry, I shouldn't have asked." Robyn looked up, realising what she'd meant.

"No, no. It's ok. It's just, I've had three boys, and to be quite honest, none of them were easy to look after when they were first born." Duffy replied, truthfully.

"What do you mean?" Robyn wondered.

"Um." Duffy tried to think of a reply.

"Sorry Duffy, I'm..." Robyn quickly replied.

"It's fine, honestly. It's just a bit complicated that's all." Duffy revealed.

"How so?" Robyn queried.

"Peter, well, I wasn't exactly married to Andrew, his father, my first husband at the time. To be quite honest he wasn't even around to see him until he was much older." Duffy explained.

"Oh, Duffy, I didn't mean to." Robyn looked at her shocked.

"It's fine honestly. My Mum helped a lot. Well, and the babysitters. Even Charlie and Megan helped." Duffy added.

"Really?" Robyn said.

"Yeah. Charlie was useful even back then. Ha, ha. Actually, he was great with Peter. He's been a great friend to me over the years. Always has been. "

"That's Charlie for you."

"Yeah, yeah, he hasn't changed at all really."

"And Jake is it?"

"Oh, Jake. Well, I was married to Andrew by then, ahem, and I'd already left work to look after him full-time. But, I always had my Mum and Andrew to help if I needed it."

"And Paul?"

"Paul, well, that is a story." Duffy said, as she looked down at her coffee mug.

"What do you mean?" Robyn asked.

"Paul decided to make an surprising entrance into the world, quite quickly in fact." Duffy said.

"Oh?" Robyn replied.

"I gave birth to him in my living room."

"Your living room?"

"Yes, and if it wasn't for Charlie, Paul wouldn't have survived at all."

"What do you mean?"

"Oh, um, Charlie delivered him."

"Charlie delivered him?" Robyn replied, shocked.

"Um, yeah. He'd only come round to check up on me. It was a few months after Andrew had died, and he certainly got a shock when I started going into labour." Duffy explained.

"I didn't want to go to Holby to deliver him, as that was where Andrew died. And, well, by that point he couldn't argue with me. He ended up delivering Paul, and he had to resuscitate him too. I would have lost Paul if Charlie hadn't been there." Duffy added.

"Oh Duffy. That must have been awful for you." Robyn looked shocked.

"It was." Duffy sighed.

"I'm sorry Duffy." Robyn reached out her hand and grasped Duffy's arm in comfort.

"It was a long time ago now. But, it still stays with me, you know." Duffy truthfully replied.

"I know how you feel." Robyn said.

"But, I did it, the boys helped a little. My Mum helped. Charlie was always there whenever I needed him to be. It is possible to do it you know. But, you have to trust others around you, to look out for you. Your friends, family. They'll always be there, as long as you need them to be." Duffy said, smiling reassuringly back at Robyn.

"Duffy?" Robyn asked.

"Mmm?" Duffy looked at Robyn.

"Were you and Charlie always close?" Robyn wondered.

"Um." Duffy couldn't think of a reply.

"Sorry it's just. When I asked you how you managed, you mentioned that Charlie was always there to help you, with all your boys." Robyn mentioned.

"He was." Duffy replied.

"And, you never knew." Robyn asked.

"Knew what?" Duffy questioned.

"How he felt about you?" Robyn said.

"Robyn?" Duffy replied, frowning at her.

"Sorry, it's just. You've known each other for so long. I just thought you'd have known." Robyn asked, genuinely wondering.

"Um." Duffy blushed.

"Sorry." Robyn replied.

"No, no, you're right." Duffy eventually said.

"What?"

"We were always close Robyn. I just didn't, well, we didn't. We never had the right moment to." Duffy said.

"So all those years, you actually felt the same way, you just didn't do anything about it."

"Um. It was complicated." Duffy blushed again.

"Oh, sorry."

"I've got years to regret it all Robyn." Duffy defensively said, frowning again.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that." Robyn said, blushing herself too.

"I know, I'm sorry too. It's just a bit of a sore subject. If I'd told him sooner, if he had told me, if we'd not been too worried about what everyone else would think. Then we'd be celebrating decades of marriage together, rather than a month." Duffy looked down at her coffee mug, sighing at herself.

"I'm sorry Duffy." Robyn reached out and squeezed her arm again.

"Oh, it's not your fault. It's mine. For not listening to my mother when I should have done all those years ago." Duffy sighed once again.

"What do you mean?" Robyn asked.

"One Christmas I invited Charlie to my Mum's for dinner, with Peter, who was very young at the time, and me. She told me when he left that he was my ideal man, that she could tell that he had a soft spot for me, and to stop being a silly girl fawning over him and to ask him out properly." Duffy sighed once again revealing her story.

"Mum's eh?" Robyn shrugged.

"Yeah, she'd be laughing in her grave as we speak, saying I told you so." Duffy added.

"Ha, ha." Robyn laughed.

"I wish I'd listened to her." Duffy sighed once again, tears forming in her eyes.

"Aw, Duffy." Robyn said, as she squeezed Duffy's arm again.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Charlie said as he walked into the room, noticing Duffy getting tearful.

Charlie walked straight over to Duffy, she looked at him, smiled sombrely and buried her face into his chest, he hugged her close to him.

"It's ok, shhh, it's ok." Charlie said, as he caressed her back, and kissed her on the head.

"I don't know how you do it?" Duffy said, as she pulled back, looking up at him, stroking the collar of his shirt.

"What?" Charlie asked, frowning down at her.

"Always know when I need a hug from you." Duffy said, as a small tear escaped from her eye.

"Oh, Duffy, come here." Charlie said, as he hugged her against his shoulder.

Charlie stood looking back at Robyn, all Robyn could do was smile sombrely at him.

"I'll leave you to it." Robyn said, as she rose up out of her chair.

She then slowly and carefully walked out of the kitchen, giving them some space and time alone.

-x-