Chapter 67

You and me together
Through the days and nights

Patrick clutched the bottle of champagne tightly in his hand as he fished for his keys in his pocket.

He was exhausted.

Noah had taken him back to the hospital where they had found Eric set up in a temporary office re-examining his films. He had tried to apologize for his behaviour but Eric waved him off, reminding him that such things were not needed between the two of them. They had an honest and frank discussion about the next steps and when he would need to start chemotherapy.

He had asked and received, from both of them, assurances that they would not share information on his condition with anyone, especially Robin, until after the gala. He wanted one more perfect night with her before it all started to fall apart.

Slipping his key in the door, he turned the lock and to his relief found the apartment empty. They had agreed to meet back at the apartment by 8 o'clock so they could get a head start on Valentine's Day. His watch read 6:49, giving him enough time to have a quick nap and a shower before Robin got home.

He needed to clear his mind and focus on Robin. Focus on them. Before the last few months he had never known that a relationship could provide such strength.

As he placed the champagne bottle in the fridge, his mind drifted back to the night in his hotel room when Robin had come to confront him about his illness. He had been so unwilling to tell her then but she had been gently forceful and when he thought he was going to fall apart, she caught him, stood him up and helped him put one foot in front of the other.

Walking to the bedroom, he peeled off his sweater and tossed it to the hamper. He stepped out of his pants and crawled beneath the warm covers. His muscles groaned as he tossed and turned in an attempt to get comfortable. Unable to hold back the mounting fatigue any longer, his eyes fluttered closed as he gave into slumber.

Struggling through the door, her arms laden down with bags, Robin called to Patrick. Getting no answer, she gave a small shrug and kicked the door shut behind her. Glancing at the clock as she set the bags down on the kitchen counter, she was pleased to see she still had a half hour before their scheduled date time. She unpacked the strawberries, chocolate sauce, maple syrup and bananas before turning her attention to the living room.

Shifting the coffee table to the side so as to undo the sofa bed, she set the waffle maker, wrapped in bright red paper with a gold bow on top, down. She had struggled with what to get Patrick for Valentine's Day. She didn't want to be too over the top but she did want to give him something of significance. As soon as he told her the story of his movie watching tradition with his family, she knew exactly what she wanted to do.

She wasn't trying to replace the ritual he had with his parents but merely carry it over. From her own experience she knew how comforting those touchstones of childhood could be and wanted it to be something they could share together.

Pulling all her white pillar candles from the drawer, she placed them around the room. She arranged the flowers she had bought in to two vases and set them up on the small table behind the couch. They had agreed on a low key celebration to kick off Valentine's Day knowing they would close it in high style at the gala. Though she liked the glamour of a black tie event, she much preferred the idea of cuddling up with her boyfriend on the couch and watching a movie. She didn't need the grand gestures of love to believe in it, she wanted the little ones that reminded her of how precious it could be.

Looking around the room, she was pleased with the setting. All she needed now was her boyfriend. She had called him after his appointment but only got voicemail. She tried not to let his silence make her mind run away to disturbing or unhappy places. Telling herself that he and his best friend were probably out having a drink, she had pushed away her fears and continued planning their night.

As she walked back to the kitchen she noticed his jacket hanging on the coat rack. Closing her eyes, she exhaled slowly. Turning down the hall she walked towards the bedroom and gently pushing open the door, found him sound asleep in their bed.

Leaning against the door frame, she stared at him for several long minutes. She should have known he would be exhausted after his appointment. Even though his energy was hitting new lows all the time, she had tried to convince herself that it wasn't happening, that it was a temporary aberration. Because if she admitted how weak he was really becoming then she would have to admit he was getting worse and not better and that was an admission she was not yet willing to make.

She had waited too long for a love like this; too long to finally open her heart again for her to even consider that she might lose it all. She had paid the price for her choices and in some cases was still paying. She had to believe – she needed to believe – that she had finally earned the right to be happy, to live fully without worrying when the other shoe was going to drop.

Lying on his side, the blankets pooled around his waist and his chest rose in a slow, steady rhythm. He looked peaceful as he slept and Robin was suddenly overcome with the desire to be with him. Peeling off her sweater and sliding her jeans down her legs, she left her clothes on the floor where she dropped them and crawled into bed with him.

Gently, she snaked her arms around his waist as she pressed a kiss to his chest. "I love you" she whispered before resting her head over his heart, listening to its strong beat.

Stirring as his eyes fluttered open, Patrick was surprised to find his girlfriend wrapped around him. Feeling somewhat re-energized after his nap, he glanced over at the clock on the nightstand, groaning inwardly. It was almost ten o'clock.

Dipping his head, he pressed a kiss to Robin's forehead and lightly trailed his fingers along her bare back.

"Mmmm" she moaned sleepily, "you're awake."

As she raised her head, he softly pushed her bangs from her face and kissed the tip of her nose. "I'm sorry," he apologized, "I didn't mean to sleep through our date."

"You didn't." Reaching her hand up, she swept it across his cheek. "We can start our date at any time."

Closing his eyes, he let out a long, slow breath as she nipped at the skin on his chest. "You should have woken me up."

"Your naked body was too inviting" she told him as she looked up from underneath her eyelashes, "and once I got tangled up in you then I drifted off too."

"Well I am pretty hot" he stated with a smirk.

Burying her face in his chest, Robin laughed at his brashness.

As her laughter reverberated through his body, he instinctively pushed his hips against hers. No other woman he had ever been with, and he had been with many, provoked reactions in him like she did. It could be a look, a touch or even her laughter and he would inevitably find himself wanting her.

He nuzzled her neck, sucking on the soft skin just below her ear as he fumbled with the clasp of her bra. As her hands stilled his, he looked at her in surprise.

"Not yet cowboy" she told him with a grin, "we can't be having dessert before dinner."

Unconsciously his bottom lip jutted out in a pout. "But we are having dessert, right? 'Cause otherwise this is just mean."

"I would never be that mean to you" she replied with a waggle of her eyebrows. "Come on, put some clothes on and we'll get dinner started." Kicking back the covers, she rolled out of bed.

"Do you have to?"

"What?" she asked as she reached for her tank top. "Have dinner?"

"No, put clothes on."

Rolling her eyes, she shook her head. "Not a lot of clothes" she amended, "because we will be getting out of them later."

Reaching for his red plaid, flannel pyjama pants, he nodded. "Now that's what I'm talking about."

He caught his breath as he entered the living room. Robin had darted ahead of him and quickly lit as many of the candles as she could. The sofa bed was pulled out, with the thick fluffy comforter she had made in Paris lay across it and a light floral scent wafted around the room.

"Why Doctor Scorpio, are you trying to seduce me?" he teased.

"You bet your really cute behind I am."

Crossing the room in three strides, he cupped her cheeks with both hands and languidly closed his mouth over hers. His tongue coaxed her lips apart and slipped inside the warm confines of her mouth.

Robin fisted the waist band of his pyjamas as her knees buckled slightly. Even after all these months his kiss could still leave her breathless.

"I have the champagne in the fridge" he told her as he stroked her cheek with her fingertip, "what's for dinner?"

"We have to do gifts first." She extricated herself from his arms and crawled on the sofa bed.

"If you insist." He walked around the couch and pulled out a long box from underneath the table. It was wrapped in silver paper with an elaborate red bow sitting on the corner. "I want to go first."

Robin's eyes widened with excitement as she took the box from him. "Did you make that bow yourself?" she joked.

"Oh you know it" he said with a roll of his eyes. "With all this time off I've spent hours watching Martha Stewart. Just wait until you see my needlepoint."

"Smartass" she muttered good naturedly.

Tugging on the bow, she let the material sail to the floor as she slid her finger along the taped seam. Having dispensed with the paper she pried the lid from the box and gave him a quizzical look as she flicked open the tissue paper.

"Don't look at me – you have to actually open the whole thing."

She stuck her tongue out at him and pulled the envelope from the box. She let out a small gasp as her eyes scanned the document.

"Patrick….no, it's too much."

"It isn't" he countered.

"But Paris? Patrick we have been to Scotland and New York in the last few months. What…" she swallowed thickly as it suddenly occurred to her that he may have made a to do list – a list of things for him to do before…..She shook her head. "What's with the sudden travel bug?" She hoped her voice didn't sound as strangled to him as it did to her.

Not quite meeting her gaze, he shrugged. "Not sudden but I guess…I mean I have more time on my hands these days. But I also…Paris is – was – a big part of your life professionally and personally. Scattered around this apartment are all kinds of mementos from your time there and I guess…" He ran his hands over his face. "Man, I suck at this."

"I don't know" she interjected quietly, "I think you're doing just fine."

He flashed her a grateful smile. "I'm in love with you Robin – and I want to know more about you. I guess…I guess… I want you to show me Paris – your Paris."

Robin blinked rapidly trying to disperse the tears that had pooled suddenly in her eyes. Launching herself from where she was seated, she threw her arms around him and kissed him until they were both breathless and panting.

"So I did okay?" he asked with a small smile.

She nodded. "You did okay."

"Good. Now on to the important things – where is my gift?" He anxiously rubbed his hands together.

Sheepishly, Robin reached for the wrapped box. "I feel kind of dumb now, after your gift."

"Dumb? Why?" He reached for the gift but Robin held it back.

"Maybe I should take it back and get you something better."

Stretching out, he grabbed the box from her. "Gimme! Gimme!" he demanded, sounding very much like a five year old.

Relenting, Robin released her grasp on it and watched, with a slight cringe, as he took the paper off. It did not escape her notice that he was doing more of the work with his right hand than his left and that gave her an uneasy feeling.

"A waffle maker?" he remarked in surprise.

"See I told you it was dumb."

He shook his head, unable to form a sentence. His life had never been void of people, but as an adult there had been precious few who understood him the way Robin did. She not only listened to the things he told her but she heard him and that meant everything.

Uneasy with the silence and fearing she had overstepped, Robin began to speak. "I can take it back" she told him, trying to reach for it. "We can change it for anything you'd like – maybe a Wii? Or a PSP or something. I just…. It was an impulse purchase and I-"

He quieted her with a kiss. "I love it" His tone was soft as he gazed at her with open admiration.

"We don't have to keep it."

"Robin, it's great. I love it – it's perfect."

"I don't know. You're giving me Paris and I'm giving you waffles. It seems odd."

"It's not" he reassured her. "So this is why we had to open gifts before dinner? Are we having waffles while we watch our movies?

"Does it sound as lame to you as it does to me?" she asked in trepidation.

Reaching for her, he tugged her towards him and brushed his lips across hers. "It doesn't sound lame at all." Standing up, he held out his hand to her. "Now let's get dinner going so we can watch the movie."

"Oh my god" Robin moaned as she set her plate down. "I think my belly is going to explode."

Patrick kissed the top of her head as he pulled her closer to him. "That's because you ate five waffles," he told her distractedly as he kept his eyes on the screen. "With chocolate sauce"

"Why didn't you stop me?" she whined, rubbing her stomach. "I think I could give birth to a Waffle House franchise now."

"Shh" he admonished her kindly, "we're getting to my favourite part."

"Patrick-"

He pinched her lips shut. "Wait for it…"

"Patrick" she mumbled.

"Wait…." As the actor began to speak, Patrick joined in. "Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You have killed my father. Prepare to die."

Robin simply shook her head in amazement as he cracked up laughing; she loved the sound of his laugh. Deep and freeing, it left no choice for anyone around, they simply had to join in.

"You realize he says that line about 20 more times, right?"

"And it's funny every time" he retorted, stealing a quick kiss.

Linking her fingers through his, she accidentally dragged one of her nails against his left index finger. She jumped as she realized she scratched him and was surprised that he did not even flinch. Looking from his hand to his face, she sucked in her bottom lip and tried to quell the rising panic.

"You never said how your appointment with Eric was," she pointed out casually.

"It was okay" he told her, not looking away from the television.

"Just okay?"

"Huh? Yeah. Well, he gave me Zithromax for the radiation burns in my mouth to ward off infection but other than that it was fairly routine."

He knew she would be furious when he finally told what had actually happened at the appointment but for one more night he wanted to believe that everything was fine.

"Okay" she acquiesced, not believing him one bit.

As they sat, curled into each other, watching the movie, Robin did the best she could to push the thoughts of his tumour from her mind. This was their Valentine's Day celebration and she wanted to be in the moment with him and not think about the monsters lurking under the bed and outside the door.

Her lips curved up into a smile as she felt his hands slide under her tank top. His fingertips sent shivers through her body as they danced lightly over her skin. A small moan escaped from the back of her throat as his hand closed over her breast kneading it.

His other hand slipped inside her pyjama pants and cupped her hot centre. Closing her eyes, she melted against him as his hands and fingers set slow fire to her body. He dipped his head and pressed his lips to her shoulder, letting his tongue move in small circles against her skin. She could feel her body begin to warm from the inside as his fingers teased and toyed with her. Biting down on her lip to keep from crying out, she pushed her hips forward, silently begging him for more.

Patrick moved his lips to her other shoulder and continued his ministrations as he strummed her body. Needing to touch him, desperate to touch him, Robin reached her arm behind her, threading her fingers through his hair.

"Patrick" she croaked.

Gripping the edge of her tank top, he pulled it from her skin in one shot and tossed it to the side. Moving from behind her, he slipped her pyjama pants from her hips and pulled them free of her legs. She lay before him naked, her brown hair fanning out around her. Never taking his eyes from her, he stepped out of his flannel pants and crawled back towards her on the bed.

Stretching out on top of her he let his lips hover above hers, his breath blowing softly against her skin as his fingers tangled in her hair. Every nerve ending hummed in anticipation of his next move. She could feel his arousal against her leg and she felt herself wet in response.

Her chest rose and fell in rapid succession as he gazed in to her eyes before finally fastening his mouth to hers. Closing her hands around his neck, she arched from the bed to deepen the kiss, wanting to taste as much of him as she could.

His hand trailed back down towards the apex of her legs and she was suddenly dizzy with desire as he slipped two fingers inside of her. Moving away from her mouth, he kissed the length of her body, flicking her pert, taut nipples into his mouth one at a time.

"Patrick" she hissed. Every touch, every kiss was sending her spiralling to the edge and she wanted it to go on forever. Her hands groped for him, trailing over his shoulders and down his back.

He kissed the inside of her right thigh, then her left as his fingers continue to bring her to the brink but not over. His tongue worked small patterns against her hip bone as her body rose from the bed in response.

Finally gathering her senses, she wriggled down to meet him, her lips on his as she whispered a kiss into his mouth. Patrick's eyes fluttered closed as her hand closed around his throbbing arousal. He pushed himself into her hand.

"Feel what you do to me Robin" he told her hoarsely.

As her hand stroked his length his lips stilled against her skin, he was unable to do anything other than respond to her. He cried out her name as she flattened her tongue against his nipple and he fisted his fingers through her hair as she covered his torso in kisses.

Unable to withstand much more, he reached for the small wicker container on the side table and retrieved a condom. He smiled as Robin reached for it. She tore open the packet and carefully pulled out their protection. He moaned as she sheathed him, jerking as she closed her mouth over him and dragging her tongue along the underside of his erection.

Looping his arms through hers, he pulled her back towards him and shifted her to her back. He stroked his hand along her leg as he pulled it over his hip. Leaning forward, kissing her passionately and wantonly, he thrust deep inside her. They both gasped at the sensation.

"I love you Robin. Forever" he whispered as their hips rocked in unison.

Her eyes flew open and locked on him. In this moment, as they moved together, she had never felt more complete. Her hand cupped the back of his head and brought his mouth back to hers.

As they fell over the edge, together, their tongues tangled, their lips fused as one, Patrick's eyes shimmered with tears. In a single breath, he felt whole and he felt loved and as he collapsed against her, he knew he could not ask for more.