Sunday, July 4th Independence Day U.S.A.
Hangover? None
Bed? Gloriously full
Work? You've got to be kidding
Run? Far more important things to do
Mood? Deliriously happy but slightly nervous
By all rights I'm sure the story should end here, but I fear an outcry, read on if you dare, but I take no responsibility if you can't manage the cheese. : )
"What are you thinking about?" Nikki asked "You look very serious."
"Just a weekend P.M. But never mind." he mumbled
"P.M?" she said curiously and then,
"Yes." It didn't seem to be a question or referring to anything in particular.
"Yes?" he questioned.
"Yes." she stated emphatically and suddenly Harry grasped what she was saying yes to.
"I was that good!" he said dramatically, raising his upper body on his elbow and looking down on her.
"Harry!" she laughed and quickly swung her pillow into his face. He fell back rubbing his face but Nikki knew that the watering in his eyes had more to do with her answer than her flicking a pillow in his face.
He quickly upgraded his mood rating to ecstatic and leaned over to kiss her again.
"Hmm," he mumbled "I will never ever get tired of kissing you... but I need coffee." He grabbed his boxers and made for the kitchen.
There were a couple of mugs on the counter and coffee all over the floor. He smiled as he remembered the previous evening. He had been driving home, there had been an easy silence between them, he thought at one point she had even dozed off, and then from nowhere he heard.
"Let's go to your place Harry, I fancy some coffee."
He had complied with her wish, well the first part. Events rather overtook them, which is why he had half a packet of coffee all over his kitchen floor. He heard her come into the kitchen as he was on his hands and knees with the dust pan and brush.
"Down on one knee already?" she joked. He looked up and noticed she was wearing one of his shirts and gave an inner mental sigh. 'Nothing, nothing would be his own property ever again, so much for independence day, but then independence was way over rated' he thought. ' Especially when she looked that hot wearing it.'
"I think there's another packet of coffee on the top shelf of the cupboard behind you." he said.
Harry made sure to stay down on the floor pretending to sweep, but really only to enjoy the view as she turned round and reached up to the top shelf. Things were going to be fine, he assured himself, safe in the knowledge that she may not have told him she loved him but she had not replaced her underwear. She gave the coffee packet a tug but dislodged something else as she moved it, which dropped onto the counter in front of her.
Harry's eyes were out on stalks and his heart was racing as he realised what else he had shoved in that cupboard when he didn't know what to do with it. It was his grandmother's ring. What was she going to think? They hadn't even been on speaking terms the day before yesterday. An engagement ring is not something you buy without reason, because it might come in handy one day. You only had one, if you had cause to need one and it was patently obvious it could not have been bought for her.
Meanwhile Nikki had of course lifted the lid of the box and gasped in surprise and then gone through all the same thought processes he had just imagined.
"Harry?" she stuttered.
'Answer the question, no rambling and tell the truth,' he mentally counselled himself, thinking back to his plans of yesterday. It hadn't worked too badly then.
"Oh, I'd forgotten I'd put that in there," he said trying to sound blase. "I'm not sure why my mother gave it to me, it belonged to my grandmother and she had wanted one of her granddaughters to have it but.." 'you're rambling Harry, stop it' he tailed off.
Nikki had peeked in the box by this time.
"It's beautiful, Harry." she said.
Harry took it out of the box and spun it round.
"Look," he said, "it's all worn down at the back, it's old, I'm sure it's not even that valuable."
Nikki was still staring at the ring.
"Nikki," Harry ventured. "If you would like a ring, I promise I will buy you the most beautiful ring you can find, whatever you want, you deserve..." he stopped. A quick look at Nikki confirmed his suspicions. She had that face on. The one he couldn't describe. The face that was not unlike the look on an animals face when it's in pain, and it just can't understand why, or perhaps a small child being taken for a vaccination.
He took her hand in his and spoke very softly,
"Your grandmother's necklace. You never got it back did you, after it was stolen in Africa?"
"No," she said quietly.
"This old ring would mean much more to you, than some gaudy monstrosity on sale now, wouldn't it?" Harry asked.
"Yes," she said simply.
"You realise, you're volunteering of your own free will, to join yourself to a complicated, flawed, interfering family with more skeletons in the closet than the Lyell Centre.
"I do," she said and Harry's stomach lurched at her choice of words.
"Nikki Alexander," he said descending to his knees for the second time that morning. "Would you make me the happiest man on the planet, and say that you will marry me. And wear this beautiful old ring as a sign of our love and as a symbol of being part of a family with me?"
"Yes, yes and yes." she replied.
"Three yes's?" he asked.
"Yes, I will marry you, yes I will wear your ring, and yes I will be part of your family."
"You do realise that most of them are certifiably crazy." he giggled.
"Are you including yourself in that list?" Nikki questioned.
"Yes, I am." he pronounced.
"Yes, yes and yes." she replied again. "I heard that three was your lucky number."
"It is when you're around," he said pulling her into a passionate kiss, "shall we go and find out for sure?" he added, eyebrow raised and head cocked towards the bedroom.
"Where's my coffee?" she demanded.
"Oh, yes coffee," He hurriedly grabbed a mug, stuck it under the cold tap and offered her the mug of cold water.
"Come on then drink, if you're so thirsty." he was trying to hurry her up, pointing his head very obviously in the direction of the bedroom, and raising his eyebrows.
Nikki giggled, choked and spat and sprayed water all over Harry. With that, the giggle became a laugh and the laugh became a belly laugh and suddenly all the terrible things that had happened in the previous months began to melt away to the sound of their laughter. Soon they were both laughing as they had done that night when they had run around and around the office.
Harry set off first, round the kitchen table.
"Happiness is being able to tell you the truth." he said.
"Happiness is being part of a real family again." Nikki tried.
"Happiness is knowing you haven't got any underwear on." Harry chuckled.
"Happiness is finding your best friend is actually your lover." Nikki said sincerely.
"Happiness is being able to kiss you whenever I want." Harry said licking his lips hungrily.
"Happiness is being able to say 'I love you.'"
Nikki stopped running and stared at Harry. She clapped a hand over her mouth in total shock. She thought briefly of all of her other men, and how none of them had ever heard those words from her. If she were being honest with herself, she had surprised herself being able to say them to Harry.
"It's true, I do love you Harry." she repeated.
Harry too was frozen in place, he might not be a romantic but he was smart enough to know that this was a very big deal. He let out a breath he wasn't aware he was holding and then swooped around the table and caught her in his arms. This time there was no hesitation in the kiss, all his lingering doubts were gone. She was his.
"Don't ever leave me." she pleaded.
"Never, never and never." said Harry planting a kiss on each cheek and her forehead to emphasise each word.
"You must promise me that you will remember that." he said, lifting her hand that was now wearing the ring and kissing it three times.
"Never, never, never." he repeated.
"I promise," she dutifully replied.
"See," he said matter of factly.
"I can't break the promise, it's the rule of three, and three as you know, is definitely my lucky number."
"Does that mean it's my lucky number too." she asked in a come on voice that Harry had never heard before, but one he definitely wanted to hear more of.
"Let's go and find out, shall we?" Harry said, abandoning the kitchen and leaving the unopened packet of coffee on the side.
The characters Harry, Nikki, Leo, Charley etc. all belong to the BBC I'm just borrowing them. A couple of cameos are mine. Thanks again to x-MJ-x for giving me the idea of a suitable boyfriend. And Lydia Bower's Red Letter Days, an X files fanfic I read over a decade ago. Didn't remember the story but did recall the BNTN style record keeping. The fic is 'out there' but is in an explicit category so don't say I didn't warn you. I'm sure I 'nicked' a couple of lines from Jane Austen, but think it unlikely she'll sue me. Thanks to you all for reading, and reviewing and I'm very happy that I have made many of you have a chuckle and lastly congratulations to Emilia Fox, hoping all goes well for her with the pregnancy. Hopefully the writers' will think of something creative and not have her stuck behind a desk/gurney/steering wheel for a year.