AN – I know it's been a while since I've updated this story and I fully deserve my forty lashings. In the beginning it was due to the fact that my very old pc became infected with a virulent virus and after several unsuccessful attempts to eradicate it, I finally threw in the towel and bought myself a new one. Next came my heavy workload, followed by extensive homework from my night courses, and then it was the little matter of the build up to the end of the show we've all come to know and love (sigh…) and it's never easy saying goodbye to an old friend. Thanks again for reading & for your patience!

Chapter 24 – When the Walls Came Down

It didn't take long for Grace to get used to Romano's penthouse suite and all the luxuries that went with it. She especially enjoyed the large Jacuzzi tub that made her feel like a queen whenever she bathed in it.

Days quickly turned into weeks and Grace was now over the worst of the morning sickness. She only had the occasional wave of nausea when she smelled something pungent and had started to noticeably gain weight. It seemed like overnight none of her clothes fit her and Romano chuckled as he came upon her trying to do up her jeans one morning.

"I'm glad this is so amusing to you. You did this to me, you know? I'm blaming you for the fact that I have no waistline anymore."

"Guilty as charged."

"I'm running out of clothes that fit." As she struggled in vain to button her jeans to no avail, she added, "Damn it!"

"Well, pregnancy usually has that affect."

Grace suddenly turned serious and stared out the bedroom window. "You know, now that I'm feeling so much better, the baby's fine and obviously growing by the day along with my belly…I guess it's time for me to move back home."

He was quiet, secretly hoping this day would not come, certainly not so soon. When he finally spoke, his voice was barely audible. "Is that what you want?"

Turning back towards him, she said, "You've put your life on hold for me these past weeks, Robert. I don't want you to resent the fact that my being here has made you change how you live your life. You're used to living alone, I'm sure you're desperate to have your own space again and I think I've put you out of your bed long enough."

"I haven't asked you to leave."

"No, but you wouldn't would you?"

"Okay, fine, I wouldn't. But that doesn't change the fact that I don't think you should go. I thought you liked staying here, with me." He said, walking towards her and standing so that she would be forced to look him in the eye.

"I do, I have. You've been amazing but…"

"Then why think about leaving? I've kind of enjoyed watching your waistline grow," he smiled, stroking her hair. "That…and knowing you'll be here when I come home. I don't want you to go, Grace." He said, pulling her towards him. He caressed her slightly protruding belly and kissed her gently. He had been restraining himself from any sexual advances since Grace had moved in with him, but he could hold back no more and decided it was time to take action.

Grace, feeling the effects of the second trimester's surge of hormones, embraced the kiss. She had forgotten how wonderful it felt to be enveloped by his mouth, his body pressing against hers and the way her own body responded instinctively to his touch. He widened the kiss and she encouraged him, as her tongue met his own with a deep sense of urgency. As they became more passionate in their embrace, Grace let out an audible moan, and it soon began to feel as though they'd never been apart.

As they both enjoyed each other with reckless abandon, it was clear that even though they'd been through the emotional wringer, all differences aside, they couldn't keep their hands off each other. As he frantically explored her body as though for the first time, Romano reacted to the pregnancy's affect on her breast size and grinned, as if very satisfied with himself. Grace let him guide her towards the bed and he carefully laid her down. As they fumbled with buttons and zippers, each could not deny the intense passion with which they both wanted and needed this. Grace felt like she was on fire, as though every touch and caress was intensified and Romano could think about little else in the moment aside from the fact that he was about to have what he'd longed for, for so long.

He was eager to taste every inch of her and once again, feel the sensuous rapture that to him, was pure heaven. As Grace pulled him down on top of her, she could feel his firm arousal, and quickly took matters into her own hands, literally, as he let out a lusty groan.

They stopped momentarily, breathless, and sat up so Romano could help her remove her tank top. He gazed longingly at her, while Grace took the opportunity to rid him of his shirt as well, and ran her fingers over his warm, smooth skin. Desperate to retrace her steps with her lips, she leaned in and seized one of his nipples in her mouth, teasing him with her tongue, while he ran his fingers through her hair.

She stopped briefly to look up at him for a moment before making her way back to his hot, inviting mouth to begin another round of long, deep, juicy encounters.

The more Grace responded, allowing herself to get completely lost in pure, physical pleasure, the harder Romano could feel himself becoming. She had nearly forgotten how he made her feel like she was the most desirable woman in the world and with each kiss, he was closer to completely consuming her with his ravenous lust.

Grace knew she could drive him wild with desire and she wanted so much to please him in every way. The wait had been too long for both of them and it was about to erupt in waves of sexual ecstasy.

Romano kissed her stomach, knowing it drove her insane and took his time to enjoy every inch of her soft skin near her navel. His hand slid up the inside of her thigh and Grace began to arch her back, urging him to continue. Taking her cue, he began covering the inside of her thighs with small, sensual kisses. She could feel his warm breath precariously near her core and she continued to breathe heavily in anticipation. He was enjoying teasing her and he knew that in doing so, she was going to have the most incredible orgasm of her life.

To be so close and not achieve satisfaction was too much for Grace and she cried out, begging Romano to take her. Succumbing to their previously unfulfilled and long awaited desire had brought them both to a level of unequalled euphoric indulgence.

Finding their way back to the gratifying pleasure of sexual familiarity, they became intoxicated from a mere taste of this once forbidden fruit, as their appetite for each other proved to be insatiable.

Grace was somewhat embarrassed when she finally rolled over, post-coital. She had never been so free and uninhibited in all her life and was suddenly very self conscious. Romano was still enjoying the moment, reeling from the pleasure they had finally given into and confident that they were now back on track.

"I can't believe how much I needed that." She grinned, still a bit breathless.

"I think I could get used to being ravaged by a hormone-crazed woman every day."

"Who says it would be every day?"

"I've heard about the second trimester, Grace. Once a day might not be enough for a hot thing like you."

"There are other ways to get a release, Robert."

"Anything that uses batteries wouldn't be as much fun as I am." He said, rolling over as he began to devour her once more. "I'll never get enough of you, Grace." He allowed the kiss to linger while he pulled her back on top of him.

"We'll just see about that." She challenged, as they began round two.

As they recovered from the latest erotic interlude, Grace rolled over and turned to Romano. "Robert, do you think the only reason this happened is because of the baby?"

"Sometimes the end justifies the means. Does it matter how we got here?"

"I just don't want you to feel obligated, trapped…"

"Have you ever known me to do something I didn't want to do?"

"I suppose, but…Look, Robert, there's something I need to tell you…I've been putting it off, but I can't in good conscience keep quiet any longer. Even though it might change the way you feel about me, I have to get this off my chest."

He looked at her intently, giving her his full attention as his mind raced in anticipation of what she was about to say.

Grace couldn't look him in the eye and rolled onto her back to gaze up at the ceiling instead. "When I was in my first year of college, I got pregnant, even though we had been careful. The relationship wasn't really that serious and we were both so young, me especially. He was finishing his forth year and had just been given a full scholarship to Oxford, due to leave the same week we got the news. We both felt we were way too young to take on a baby, so…" she paused, taking in a deep breath and turning back to face him, "We decided the best option for both of us was to end the pregnancy." Romano said nothing, as he processed what she was saying.

Grace continued on. "The procedure didn't go well and I was left with a lot of scar tissue which is the reason I was told I could never conceive again. I've always been a believer in Karma and for a long time I felt I was being punished for doing such a thing. The whole experience was much harder to deal with than I ever could have imagined, but I just don't know how I could have possibly raised a child by myself, when I still had so much growing up to do."

He eyed her for a moment and thought carefully before responding. "You never talked about this as an option for us. I've often wondered if you considered it. You could have done it and I never would have known, but you didn't."

"I couldn't, I wouldn't! The thought never even crossed my mind. My life's in a completely different place now." She said, looking deeply into his eyes. "After getting over the initial shock, I was too ecstatic at having a second chance, and even though we weren't together, the way I feel about you, Robert…" she said, as a tear rolled down from the corner of her eye.

"How do you feel, Grace?"

Her eyes sparkled as she smiled at him, "You really have to ask? Being with you just now…Robert, it was the world." She took a deep breath and continued on, finally saying what she'd been too afraid to tell him, for so long. "I can't imagine having this baby with anyone else. Try as I may, I can never seem to get you out of my mind for very long and truth be told, I love coming home to you every day. You challenge me on many levels, you make me laugh, and yes, sometimes you drive me absolutely crazy. But I've never felt about anyone the way I feel when I'm with you, and it scares me to think about how agonizing it was when we weren't together." Having the courage to be completely vulnerable, she completely poured her heart out to him for the first time. "Oh, God Robert, do you think I'm a despicable person for doing it? Does it change things, now that you know?"

He shook his head no and took her hands in his. He looked intensely into her eyes and stroked her hair. "You're a beautiful, incredible, sexy, strong, stubborn woman who's made me feel more alive than I could've ever imagined. It's no secret I have trouble communicating these types of feelings but until I met you, I wasn't sure I was cut out for couplehood. How can I ever think of you any other way, when I know you made the right choice for us?"

She closed her eyes and reveled in the security she felt, just lying there in his arms, until she drifted off to sleep. When she awoke a while later, she reached over to find the other side of the bed empty, and quickly remembered it was a work day. Romano's shift started much earlier than hers, and she still had a time to laze around underneath the sheets for a while longer. Feeling happier than she could ever remember, her mind drifted to thoughts of her future, living together as a family and how not long ago, she could have never dreamed of something so perfect. Not wanting this blissful feeling to end, she finally dragged herself get out of bed to get ready for her own shift at Mercy. After having missed quite a few days due to morning sickness, she was back working part time hours and glad of the fact that Romano's penthouse was within walking distance to her job.

When she returned home later that evening, Romano was banging around the kitchen, a telltale sign that he'd had a bad shift.

"Rough day?" Grace asked cautiously as she closed the door and walked towards him.

"Well at least it wasn't all bad." He said, embracing her with a kiss that nearly took her out at the knees.

"Mmm, I see someone's still feeling the lingering effects of this morning's extra curricular activities."

"It really was the only bright part of my day."

"What happened? Did Kerry have another Mussolini moment or did Dr. Dave do another med student in the suture room?"

"Several ER nurses quit with no notice."

"Hmm, I see…and you prefer the satisfaction you get from firing them. What did you do to make them quit?"

"Oh, so immediately you assume it's my fault?"

"It usually is, Robert…speaking from experience." She added impishly. He responded by swatting her ass affectionately.

"Well, I'm afraid I can't take the credit this time. Seems a new private clinic is opening up and they've been lured away by the scent of young doctors and big paychecks."

"That does sound enticing. So, what are you going to do? You could lose a few more before the dust settles."

"The prognosis definitely isn't good."

"I don't suppose…"

"What?"

She eyed him, hoping he would put two and two together. "Can't you guess?"

"I'm too tired to guess, Grace."

"Well, it's not as though I'm exactly loyal to Mercy."

"You're not serious? You'd come back to County?"

"It could work."

"Huh, I never thought you'd even consider it."

"I could be persuaded, perhaps…" She said coyly.

"Don't look at me like that with those eyes. You know I can't say no. Still, we need the bodies and it would be great working with you again." He said, pulling her close and kissing her neck.

"Would it?" She said, raising an eyebrow.

"Memories of the forth floor supply room," He said closing his eyes as he reminisced.

"I think I preferred the one on the sixth floor. It had more ambiance."

"You mean a firm gurney and a locking door."

She grinned, "Not to mention the trapeze."

"Which is probably what landed you in this condition."

"And without question the most fun I've ever had in a supply room."

Romano pushed her up against the counter and kissed her firmly, as he felt the urgent need to relive the earlier events of the day. Interrupted by the phone, Grace pulled away from him to see if the call was important.

"Would I have to promise to behave in the ER?"

Realizing it was her mother whom she was not in the mood to talk to, Grace decided to ignore the call.

"You'll need to be the same as you've always been, or it would arouse suspicion."

"Not ready to tell the world about us yet, Grace?"

"I think that's a wise approach, don't you?"

"I'm on board with whatever you want."

"That's it? Simple as that?"

"It is when you're the Chief of Staff. Besides, they still talk about how great it was to work with you. In fact, I heard a few of the ER misfits muttering your name this afternoon."

"Really? How sweet. But I'd hazard a guess that isn't all you heard them talking about?"

"Well they were also singing the praises of their fearless leader."

"It is comforting to know the Romano ego is still alive and well. Do they still blame you for the fact that I quit?"

"They blame me for everything that goes wrong in their miserable little lives. Having you back might just buff them up a bit."

"Well I do I miss working with everyone…well, almost."

"Careful."

"I meant Malucci…and Edson." She said, winking. "He's such a weasel."

"So, when can you start?"