Just to warn you…Boyd and Grace get a little close in this chapter, please look away now if that's not your cup of tea!

Chapter 3

Grace sat back against the soft cushions of her office couch, crossing one slender leg over the other towards Boyd, who was sitting beside her, his posture equally relaxed as he nursed a mug of strong black coffee.

"It's the one thing the French do well." He said, indicating his cup and taking a large sip of the steaming liquid.

She smiled. "Good move, hiring Stella, then?"

"Well, yeah, since she's the one who convinced me having a coffee maker in here was a good idea."

Grace looked at him, all too aware he was avoiding the serious undertone of her question. "Boyd."

He sighed at her scrutiny. She had always had the power to dissipate his procrastination. "Yeah. I still think overall it was a good move hiring her. Don't you?"

"Despite everything?"

"Yeah."

"So do I." Grace paused to sip her coffee and when she spoke again, her voice was soft. "Not that she could ever fill the void."

"No. No-one could."

They sat in silence for a few moments then, each alone with thoughts of their deceased friend, before Grace took a breath to speak again, internally debating the wisdom of her question even as the words formed in her throat. "Boyd, can I say something?"

He surveyed her quizzically, his eyebrows furrowed at her unusual reticence. "What?"

"You seem...much more at peace...about Mel these days."

"You mean I'm no longer repressed, depressed and in denial?"

She frowned, pain shooting through her body at his repetition of the exact words she had thrown at him during their most searing argument more than six months previously. "Boyd..."

"I think...seeing her grave for the first time...and everything that led up to that...made me accept her death properly...forced me to deal with it."

"Have you been back to her grave since?"

"Yeah. A few times."

"And how was that?"

He gave a slight smile. "What's that word psychologists are fond of, Grace? Begins with 'c'."

She raised an eyebrow. "There are lots of words beginning with 'c', Boyd."

"You know the one I mean."

She smiled, for once letting him off the hook. "Cathartic?"

He grinned. "Yeah. I just couldn't bring myself to say such a touchy-feely word out loud."

"You're hopeless."

He sobered again, the smile slowly fading from his face. "It helped, anyway. However you like to say it."

"Well, I'm glad. You kept it all inside for too long, Boyd, it's good that you finally found...a medium for releasing it."

He looked at her intensely. "Are you talking about Sarah?"

Grace shrugged. "If you like."

Boyd sighed and drained his mug of coffee before placing it on the floor at his feet. "She...I don't know how to describe it, Grace."

She shook her head. "You don't have to describe it." It's not like it's any of my business, after all...

"I want you to understand...that I needed her at the time..." He broke off and ran a hand through his hair. "God, I don't know. We needed each other..."

"You don't have to do this, Boyd..."

"...And it wasn't just about sex...the whole thing was..." He threw up his hands. "That damn 'c'-word again."

Grace gave a small laugh, becoming serious once more as she realised the phrasing of his words. "You're using the past tense."

"Yeah."

"But I...thought..."

"She was what I needed then, Grace. All that shit I was feeling about Mel and Joe...all of my...confused issues with you...She was the external influence I needed to deal with everything." He paused to look at her. "Does that make sense?"

"Well..." Grace broke off to shake her head in bewilderment. "I'm...not sure. You're saying you and Sarah..."

"Oh, come on, Grace. Do I have to spell it out?"

"You're not together any more?"

"We haven't been together for months."

"Oh." Grace was suddenly unable to form further coherent words, her heart thumping against her ribcage at his admission.

"Is that it, Grace? That the sum-total of your reaction?"

"Well...I just...Why are you telling me this, Boyd?"

He rolled his eyes. "Oh, for Christ's sake, Grace, for an incredibly clever woman, you're being incredibly dense here."

"Am I?"

Silently, he prised the mug from her fingers and placed it onto the floor before moving slowly towards her, his palm gently cupping her face, his fingertips caressing her skin, his thumb tracing circles across her cheek before outlining the full curves of her mouth. Grace could barely breathe as he touched her, her mind swimming, unable to process his actions.

"Boyd..." She managed hoarsely.

"What?" He was smiling as he continued to caress her, his face inching towards hers, amusement colouring his deep baritone at her obvious confusion.

"What are you doing?" Her voice was a whisper, her breath coming in short gasps, her blood pounding in her ears.

"Well..." He had moved closer to her now, his mouth barely centimetres from hers. "I was going to kiss you..."

"But...I mean...why now?"

He shrugged, tracing her lips once more with his thumb, feeling thrills prickling through him as she shivered. "Just feels like the right time. Don't you think?"

"I...Boyd..."

"Grace." His gaze was intense despite the softness of his voice. "Just shut up and let me kiss you, all right?"

She nodded wordlessly as he closed the gap between them, capturing her mouth with his in a searing kiss. In seconds, she was lost in the generous softness of his lips and the thick insistence of his tongue as it explored her eager mouth, hungrily devouring her. She groaned as he sucked her bottom lip into his mouth, grazing it with his teeth, teasing with his tongue.

"Oh, God..." She breathed as he planted a series of hot, open-mouthed kisses down her neck, nipping along her collarbone before finding his way back to her mouth once more, her lips parting enthusiastically to receive him. They moaned simultaneously with pleasure as his hand found her breast, squeezing firmly, trying to caress her through layers of clothing. Grace gasped, his fingers moving to undo the buttons of her cardigan, slipping his hand inside to gain closer access to her breasts, his breathing ragged, his pupils almost completely dilated with arousal. Momentarily, she forced herself to pull away, her face flushed a deep rose, her heart thundering in her chest.

"Boyd..." She was almost completely breathless with a mixture of need and incredulity, electricity crackling through her nerves, a deep ache pervading between her thighs.

"Too much?" He asked throatily, his breathing laboured, intensity in his voice and eyes as his hand slid from her breast to her waist.

Grace looked at him, gratified by his reaction to her whilst trying desperately to get her heart rate back under control. "You could say that." She broke off and sighed, her eyes falling from his and to her lap. "I don't want this to just be a drunken fumble in my office, Boyd."

He gave her a lop-sided grin. "I'm not drunk, Grace."

She raised an eyebrow. "Oh, so it'd be a sober fumble then?"

His smile increased, deepening the wrinkles around his dark eyes as he teased her with his voice. "I'd be up for that."

Grace was unable to stop her gaze darting to his crotch at his innuendo, his obvious arousal making the breath catch in her chest, colour flooding her cheeks. Boyd let out a gentle laugh at her reaction.

"Grace, are you blushing?" His voice hinted at incredulity, his eyes twinkling. "And there's me thinking you're a woman of the world..."

Grace sighed deeply and rubbed a hand across her face, as if trying to physically rid herself of her embarrassment. "I just...Not that I'm not flattered, Boyd but...Well, it's been a long time since I've had that kind of an effect on a man, that's all."

Boyd shook his head before leaning forward to kiss her gently on the mouth. "Oh, Grace," he said softly as he broke away, his dark chocolate eyes focussed intently on her sapphire ones, "you have that effect on me all the time. I'm just usually clever enough not to let you see it."

She laughed, relief evident on her face and sending warm shock waves through her body as she took in his words. "I had no idea." She said quietly, genuinely touched by his honesty.

"Well, now you do. So next time you see me crossing my legs when we're sitting together, you'll know why."

Her laughter increased, bubbling out of her, unable as she was to prevent the happiness spilling from her body and into the otherwise silent room. Boyd found her mirth infectious and soon he was laughing along with her, his body finally calming, his blood chemistry regaining its equilibrium, despite her proximity. Momentarily, she sobered once more, blinking and taking a deep breath before addressing him anew. I need to know you're not going to hurt me...

"I meant what I said there, you know..." Her voice was quiet, seriousness in its timbre.

"I know."

"...about not wanting this to be a..."

"A quick fumble. I know."

She sighed. "I'm not looking for a lifetime commitment here, Peter. But I...I do want it to be more than just about sex."

He smiled. "So do I."

"So, we're on the same page then?"

He looked at her intensely. "Yeah. I'd say so."

Relief flooded her body at the ease with which they had suddenly resolved their years of tension and she pulled him towards her, kissing him deeply, passionately, before turning her body and settling back into his arms, his lips nuzzling gently against her neck as her head rested against his shoulder.

"What do you want to do now we've got that straight, then?" She asked eventually, feeling him smile against her skin at her question, his mouth soft, his breath warm.

"I've got one or two ideas." He said between kisses, amusement evident in his voice. "But you probably wouldn't think they're appropriate for an office environment."

Grace smirked. "I'm sure."

"We could go back to my place..."

She gave a small sigh and turned her head to look at him. "I hate to be a bore, Boyd..."

"You mean you don't want to see what my bedroom looks like?"

"You know I do."

"But...?" He prompted.

"But...can't we just stay here for a bit and talk?"

He groaned theatrically, dropping his face into her shoulder. "Are you trying to drive me insane, Grace, or what?"

She laughed, shaking her head. "I thought we agreed this wasn't just going to be based on sex."

"Doesn't mean a complete sex embargo though, does it?"

She rolled her cobalt eyes. "No. But it doesn't rule out talking as a viable alternative either."

"Hmm, talking or sex, eh? What a choice…"

"I'm being serious here, you know. I don't think it'd be a good idea for us to just jump straight into bed with each other. Not yet."

He kissed her neck gently once more before replying, a soft caress of her sensitive skin with his mouth. "All right. Talking it is."

She squeezed the hand that lay across her stomach, grateful for his sensitivity. "Want me to make some more coffee?"

"That depends. Am I going to need it?"

"I'm gonna get you to pour your heart out, Boyd…"

He chuckled. "Then I'm definitely going to need it."

Grace grinned and disentangled herself from his arms before standing up and leaving her office, armed with their empty mugs. She couldn't stop herself from glancing back over her shoulder at his form seated on her couch, her stomach performing intricate somersaults at the mere sight of him, her chest fluttering. Oh my God, are we really going to do this? A real relationship after all this time? What if it all goes wrong? Could we still be friends, still work together? What if…? All her lingering doubts vanished suddenly from her mind as he looked up and smiled at her through the glass walls. She felt peace engulf her in an immense wave as she smiled back before walking away towards the coffee maker.