A cheery atmosphere pervaded the pub that night, and there were very few empty seats as Connie entered. She glanced around for the familiar head of blonde hair, a smile playing on her lips as she located Rita. Incidentally, she was sat at the same table they had occupied all those months ago - the same night they had kissed...

She shook her head to dismiss the thought, a little disturbed by the fondness with which she recollected it. They had agreed, after all, that it was a mistake. It wasn't likely to happen again, and she didn't quite know how to feel about that.

Connie picked her way through the crowded room, fixing the collar of her shirt a little self-consciously. From what she could make out as she approached, Rita was wearing a dress. That in itself surprised her, although it was the pleasant sort of surprise that sent a warm feeling through her body. The dress was a dark blue colour, reminiscent of her Clinical Nurse Manager uniform, and it clung her slim figure in all the right places, hugging the feminine curves of her breasts and hips. Connie felt her cheeks grow warm; she was so accustomed to seeing Rita in shapeless clothing that she had never considered the shape of her body underneath.

"Connie," the woman in question had evidently become aware of her presence, and she stood to greet her. The dress shifted over her figure in a pleasing way as she moved.

The Clinical Lead could have slapped herself for some of the thoughts that were racing through her mind. "Good evening," she returned, all too aware of the fact that her cheeks were still burning. "It's warm in here."

"I'll get the drinks," Rita said brightly. "We have a lot of catching up to do."

Connie nodded, a subtle smile flickering across her face as the blonde made her way to the bar. She couldn't help her gaze from wandering after her, and pulled it back to the table with some degree of reluctance. It was becoming increasingly difficult to concentrate around Rita, and that had no doubt been exacerbated by the months they'd spent apart. Connie had thought a lot about her feelings for the other woman, and it hadn't been too hard to come to the realisation that she cared about Rita a little more than she should do as a colleague, or even as a friend. It was admitting this that was the problem.

And of course there was the question of Rita's sexuality. Connie had always been fairly relaxed about whom she entered a relationship with. But as far as she knew, Rita was straight. There were rumours about her and Dixie - idle gossip that the Clinical Lead had picked up from spending too much time around the nurses - but from what she had heard it was a drunken thing, just like the kiss she herself had shared with Rita. Nothing would come of it.

Connie sighed, tucking a few strands of hair behind her ear. She was getting ahead of herself.

"Here you are," a glass of wine was placed down in front of her and Rita took the seat opposite.

"Thank you," she replied, taking a small sip to occupy herself whilst she thought of something to say. "So how did things work out with your father?"

"Really well," the blonde said, her brown eyes lighting up. "We settled everything, you know, about Mark. He understands why I believed him and why I defended him."

"That's good." Connie toyed with the hem of her sleeve, choosing her next words carefully. She looked up through her lashes at Rita, whose eyes were reflecting the harsh lights of the bar.

"What're you thinking?" Rita murmured.

"I- uhm, I found your wedding ring. The last time we saw each other before you left for Manchester. It was in the top pocket of one of the suitcases." It was something that had been playing on her mind for a while, and the guilt of invading Rita's privacy like that had been gnawing away at her for months.

"Oh," Rita looked stricken. Her expression had softened in the way it often did when her husband was brought up. "Well... Mark contacted me, actually, about a month ago. He said he'd sign the divorce papers and... and let me move on."

"Does he know?" Connie asked curiously. "About the cancer?"

Rita shook her head. "I didn't speak to him about much really. I-" she allowed a somewhat bitter smile to slip into her features. "I told him I'd found someone else."

"Oh."

"I upset him, I think. But it was for the best."

"Was it?" Connie frowned, her elbows coming to lean on the table as she rested her head in her hands.

"I couldn't go on like that forever, Connie. And truthfully, I deserve better. What he did... It ruined my life, and it almost ruined my career as well." The Clinical Lead looked slightly ashamed at this, but she remained silent as Rita continued. "It was so difficult after he was locked up. I still loved him. I loved him for a long time, even though I hated him for what he'd done."

Connie pressed her lips together, placing her hand over Rita's. "You couldn't help that."

"No," she murmured, glancing down at their hands. "No, I couldn't."

"And you're right - you do deserve better," Connie murmured, fixing her gaze on her glass as she spoke. "You... You're a good person, Rita. And an incredible nurse. Holby's lucky to have you back."

The blonde smiled, a light blush staining her cheeks. She kept her eyes trained on the table for fear of Connie being able to see the emotion behind them if she looked up. The other woman was impossibly good at reading her.

"And," Connie continued, seizing the opportunity to lift the mood a little. "You make a really good cup of tea."

"Mrs Beauchamp," Rita glanced up at last, relieved to be able to lighten her tone, "are you flirting with me?"

The Clinical Lead smirked. "Don't flatter yourself, Sister Freeman."

Rita felt a pleasant shiver pass down her spine at Connie's words. She was very aware of the flushed skin of her cheeks, and drained the last of the water from her glass. "You were right before - it is warm in here.

Connie had also finished her wine and nodded. "It's too crowded as well. Let's get out."

The two women stood and made their way towards the exit, Rita leading. When she reached the door, she held it open for Connie, who raised an eyebrow.

"How very chivalrous," she commented. "Manchester must be a nice place to live if it's managed to drill some manners into you."

"Excuse me?" Rita's mouth dropped open in mock outrage. "I've always been very polite, I'll have you know!" Her voice lowered somewhat as they passed a group of porters. "And for the record, Manchester's got nothing on Holby."

"Oh really?" Connie halted a few steps to the right of the door, folding her arms across her chest. It was much colder outside than she'd anticipated.

"Yeah. It was missing one very important person," Rita spoke quickly before she could lose her nerve, and looked up through her lashes to gauge Connie's expression.

The older woman blinked. There was no doubt in her mind that she was the person Rita was referring to. "Me?" she enquired, a coy smile slipping into her features.

"Well I was going to say Max, actually, but I suppose you'll do," came the teasing response. Connie laughed, gaze dropping to the floor.

"I am really glad you're back, Rita," she said softly. "It's been a long eight months."

"Just a year ago you'd have been glad to see the back of me."

"A lot of things have changed," she said, and there was a slight tone of guilt detectable in her voice. "I'm sorry about making things difficult for you."

"I didn't make things easy for you either," Rita pointed out, taking a step closer to to Connie. "It doesn't matter now, anyway. Like you said, everything's changed."

There was a small silence, in which Rita's gaze searched the Clinical Lead's expression. Her lips parted slightly in thought, and Connie had to look away to momentarily distract herself. It was almost like Rita knew the effect she was having and continued to spite her.

"Connie," the blonde said suddenly, resulting in eye contact being made once again.

"Yes?"

"When I went in for the hysterectomy, I asked you why you were helping me. You said that somebody had to care." Rita's brow furrowed. "What did you mean by that?"

Connie exhaled, thinking carefully before she spoke. "I... I knew that you wouldn't ask anyone else to go with you. You're far too stubborn." She flashed an apologetic smile in Rita's direction. "Sorry. Anyway, I suppose I felt like I had the responsibility to stay with you, since nobody else offered. And... Well, I care about you, Rita. More than I think I should."

She finished speaking with an apprehensive glance at the blonde woman, unsure of how she would respond.

Rita was surprisingly relaxed. "You are flirting with me," she said, tone playfully accusatory. Her eyes had narrowed during the statement, and regarded Connie with an expression that could only be perceived as downright filthy.

The Clinical Lead studied the blonde for a matter of seconds before her gaze slid down to Rita's lips. She didn't know what to say, and they formed a pleasing, if not frustrating distraction from the conversation.

"What now, Mrs Beauchamp?" The words were spoken quietly, but the intent behind them was perfectly clear.

There was nothing else for it. Slowly, deliberately, Connie leaned in towards her. She hesitated briefly at the last second, thoughts too quick to process, before she pressed her lips to Rita's in a kiss. It was sweet and chaste, and so contrasting to the desire within her chest that she drew back almost immediately, a little confused with herself for abstaining. Then she realised that she was waiting for the other woman's permission to continue, and she drew a breath.

Rita's lips curved upwards into a triumphant smile. "Is that all you've got?"

That was all she needed.

Connie shook her head in a subtle, almost incredulous movement. "Shut up," she whispered in reply before her lips came crashing down upon Rita's. The younger woman responded enthusiastically, hands travelling up to tug at the collar of Connie's shirt as she parted her lips to deepen the kiss. This time it was far from gentle, and she felt something stir in her stomach that she hadn't felt for a long time. Skilled fingers threaded themselves through her cropped hair, tugging at the sensitive section at the back of her neck and drawing a soft sigh from the Clinical Nurse Manager. Connie's other hand sat at her lower back, pulling them together so that there was a complete lack of space between them.

Their lips only lost contact when the need for air became too great. For a few seconds their bodies remained pressed tightly together, and then Rita dropped her hands to meet Connie's. Their fingers twined.

"You could come back to mine," Connie said breathlessly at last, forehead leaning against Rita's still.

The blonde felt a tingle rush through her lower body, and nodded, wetting her lips slightly with her tongue. "Just for a drink, yeah?" There was a suggestive tone in her voice as she spoke that couldn't be accidental. Connie had no doubt of the things that would transpire at her house, and the prospect did unspeakable things to her body.

The Clinical Lead smirked, resisting the urge to kiss Rita again. She had a reputation as the Ice Queen to maintain, after all. "Just for a drink."


That's it! It seems sort of fitting to end it today (it's my birthday) and I'd like to say, once again, how fabulous you all are. The reviews I got for this story were all so kind, and really gave me the motivation to keep writing when I couldn't think of what else to say.

So thank you to the following people for being incredibly supportive during the writing of this fic:

Nevey Beauchamp, Mini Peacelet, LittleBooLost, ETWentHome, Tanith Panic, Le-eeejit, Danielle888, NiamhMcGrady-fanpage, xRizzlesLovex, m-is-for-MollyMansfieldMealing, lamegay and Lauren.

Special thanks to Aster Howl, who threatened to flood my askbox on Tumblr if I didn't update, and then started messaging me instead upon the realisation that I don't have an askbox open. You're a dork and I love you.

Also thanks to Lisitair, who should never have found this fic but still did. You're a persistent sod and I hate you ;)

I am currently playing around with the idea for a new fic, so look out for that soon. Thanks again!