They'd dropped off to sleep wrapped round each other but although she was still sleeping peacefully he'd woken for the third time as the wind made the rain hit the window like machinegun fire as well as made the blind rattle from the slightly open fanlight. He hated sleeping in stuffy unventilated places because it meant he woke with a muzzy head, but was wondering whether he should get up and close it in case it disturbed her. The sound of the weather outside was making the sensation of cosy warmth in the bed even more appealing, although having her cuddled up with her back pressed against his chest was making it very difficult to just ignore the erection that didn't seem to be subsiding which certainly wasn't helping him get back to sleep ….

On and off over the past year and a bit he'd dreamed of nights like this and the dreams hadn't always been visions of her warm and willing body wrapped around his, although that wasn't unheard of, but often it had been more about the comfort he got from her sleeping next to him, the feel of her small warm body and the soft sound of her breathing, the way that her being there banished the loneliness that he didn't admit to, not even to himself. The dreams always ended the same way of course, with him waking to an empty space on the pillow next to his and having to remind himself that this was the way he'd wanted it, that he'd found emotional involvement messy and hard to cope with, so had decided to be alone.

And then suddenly everything had changed. Purely by chance the girl who'd made him happier than anyone else ever had, even in the earliest days of his time with Rebecca, had come back into his life, this girl with her way of looking at him had got under his bloody skin again, something that had been inevitable as soon as he'd seen her, and right now he wanted nothing more than for her to stay. But he also knew that she was very young, or that he was far too old so that even Shelley, who'd been totally wasted, had noticed how young she was and had said something, he couldn't remember exactly what now, but then he and Molly had danced and she'd put her arms round his neck as he rested his hands on her arse, until she'd told him off, and he'd stopped caring about what anyone else thought in that almost forgotten surge of happiness of being with her, of her being with him.

One thing that wasn't going to happen was that she refused point blank to go to Bath with him for his birthday tea, she'd insisted that his parents had to know she was back in his life before she went anywhere near, so that he wished he'd kept his mouth shut about his father had said. The thought of seeing Sam later in the day bought a smile to his face as he stared at nothing in the dark and thought about how three months is a bloody long time and that he'd missed him, and that he was looking forward to seeing his mother and father as well, but it just would have been nice if she'd been going with him, but even when she'd been half laying on him in the glow of mutual satisfaction the previous night, or earlier that morning, she'd been adamant, had shaken her head and declared that it wasn't going to happen no matter how much he went on at her, that when she'd said she'd do anything for him, she'd meant it, she would … just not that.

He was still struggling to keep a lid on the jealousy and resentment he felt towards the unknown Adam. They'd talked for hours about their lives when they'd been apart, about his return from injury and how PTSD had made things difficult for a while and his slow recovery from it and she'd talked about Vegas, chewing at her bottom lip and staring at him with eyes huge with anxiety as he'd done his best to keep his feelings of frustrated anger hidden behind a vague smile. She'd told him how initially she'd been convinced that he, this Adam, was a fucktard but that he'd grown on her over the months and that by the end she liked him, was fond of him, but she didn't love him and he wasn't really her husband. She'd almost put her hand on her heart to convince him that they were not now nor ever had been lovers, and he believed her, mainly because he wanted to. But that didn't mean he didn't find it difficult and although he didn't intend to allow his jealous controlling streak to take over so that he risked losing her, it didn't stop him hating the thought that she'd married someone else and he couldn't help wishing she still thought of this Adam as a fucktard.

"Happy Birthday"

She stirred and stretched although judging by the huskiness of her sleep-filled voice she wasn't fully awake as she shuffled backwards and pressed the soft swelling of her bum against the rigid insistence of his erection that was getting more and more difficult for him to ignore, but he hadn't woken her deliberately, at least he didn't think he had.

"Sorry, did I wake you?"

He lifted her heavy hair and began to kiss her across the back of her neck, nuzzling tiny nibbling little kisses and inhaling the familiar smell of her skin and shampoo. He didn't know what it was scented with but doubted it was expensive because for as long as he'd known her she'd always said she didn't do expensive stuff, or as she'd put it, all that pricey shit was a waste of money, that clean did her, but it was a smell that was Molly as far as he was concerned.

"Yeah, well some'ing did" She sniggered and moved her bum against him making him groan "And you don't sound very sorry ….. Happy Birthday Bossman"

"Thank you ….. don't call me that, you know I hate it, it's just …. please, not Bossman, oh and not Sir either, it puts me off"

"Sorry ….. Nah, it does NOT, stop telling lies, I hadn't noticed anything put you off ….. Sir"

She was still laughing but her voice had dropped to more of a flirtatious whisper as he moved his hands round to cup her breasts and began to rub his thumbs slowly backwards and forwards over her nipples, loving the way they reacted to his touch and the way her breathing changed, getting shallower and faster as he nuzzled at the skin under her ear and she began to squirm against his erection, her back still firmly pressed against his chest. She smirked as he rolled her over to look into her face while keeping his own completely straight, chewing at his bottom lip until without saying another word he moved to hold her hands captive over her head. Still without saying anything he hovered with his lips just a fraction away from her mouth and then muttered 'shut up, you talk too much' before laughing and teasing her with a feather light brush of his lips across hers.

As soon as he touched her lips and let go of her hands she buried her fingers in his curls to stop him pulling away again so he stopped teasing and closed the gap between them, kissing her over and over and deeper and harder until both of them were struggling to breathe and she was writhing under him. But it was when she pushed him over onto his back and moved to straddle him that, he came to his senses slightly and tried to slow her down, to stop her and wrest back some control because he was no longer sure that he had any at all.

"Stop bleeding fighting me"

"Molly, I can't, I'm not going to be able to last …."

"I know"

The soft voice and the wrinkled little nose, together with the low chuckle as she got her own way meant he had to focus on every holding back technique he'd ever known, as she did her very best to make it impossible for him. She was grinding down slowly and steadily with her muscles clenched around him until he was muttering, pleading with her to wait, to stop for a minute … to wait out ….. but she didn't, she simply shook her head so that her hair fell over her face and kept on moving. It was an embarrassingly short passage of time for him before he simply couldn't stop the tidal wave of pleasure that had been building and that was now overwhelming him as he put his hands on her hips and held her tightly down, forgetting everything else in his need to arch his back and bury himself even deeper as he shouted her name, his voice reverberating off the walls.

Her face was wreathed in a triumphant smirk as she watched him. She loved the look on his face and the way he'd called out and when it was over, the smile on his lips and in his eyes as, still straddling him, she put both her hands up and tucked her hair behind her ears before leaning forward and kissing him gently on the lips, and murmured "Happy Birthday"

-OG-

"Charles, I've been thinking"

She lifted her chin off his chest and tried to move her head enough to see his face as he tucked the duvet over them. Charles was warm and happy and wonderfully drowsy but she was wide awake and had already informed him in a serious tone of voice that she'd forgotten just how bloody good he was at 'wake-up' sex and had started laughing which in turn had made him laugh, but it also made him blush, something which felt ridiculously embarrassing when you're supposed to be a tough army Captain. He was glad it was too dark for her to see him clearly, she would have teased the life out of him if she knew.

"Oh God, that sounds dangerous"

"And that sounds like you should get a new scriptwriter, mate"

"Sorry, what were you been thinking?"

"Wondering whether this" She pulled her arm out from where he'd tucked the duvet over her and waved her arm around "I know this sounds a bit shit, but I need to know ….….. I mean, us, you and me, like this, does this mean that we're back together, or is it just …. Truth ?"

"What do you mean, truth? … Of course we are, I thought so but that's only if it's what you want, you have to say if it's not"

"Nah, you're alright, it is what I want" Molly smirked her relief in the dark as she snuggled herself back under the duvet and put her arm back across him.

"Did you enjoy yourself last night?"

"That was early this morning, but yeah, why? didn't you?"

"I'm not talking about that, God, you've got a one-track mind haven't you?"

"Nah ….. okay, yeah, well maybe, which bit of last night was you talking 'bout then?"

"The party, I already knew you enjoyed the rest"

"Might of lied"

"Nope don't think so, so what did you think of Shelley?"

"She's alright, quite nice really ….. for a piss artist and a ….. smack head" She thought for a moment "Got a lot of friends hasn't she? Either that or she put it on Facebook"

"I wouldn't put it past her and she probably wouldn't remember doing it if she had, I've got no idea who all those bloody people were or where they came from, and I don't think she did either, but Shelley has always been a bit …. different, and you're right about her smoking something illegal, you didn't go in the bloody kitchen did you? God, it smelled like an opium den in there, but whatever you do, don't tell my bloody mother, she'll be on the phone to Shelley's before you can say it's none of her fucking business. I know Shelley's old enough to run her own life, I know that, you know that, Shelley knows that, but my mum and her sister do enjoy playing this lovely game of one-upmanship about their kids. Mum would like nothing better than to get on the phone to my aunt and pretend she's shocked and appalled, but in fact she'd love every fucking minute of it"

"I'm not going to see your mum, am I?"

"Shit, I wish you'd come with me, we'll have birthday cake, might even be chocolate"

"What no jelly and ice cream?"

"Yep, probably, and you might even get a balloon to take home"

"I can't, not even for cake and a balloon, I said, didn't I?"

"I was hoping to change your mind"

"What, with a bowl of jelly and ice cream? Anyway aren't you a bit old for all that shit? Oi get off …. stop it … you wanna be careful, you'll strain some'ing"

"Will you stop bloody complaining I'm too old"

"I never said you was too old, 32 isn't that old, I know that, and you're still a fully whatsit sold…. …..… I said stop it, you don't need to keep on proving it"

"Cheeky little mare, I don't have to prove anything, but then, if you can't cope … well ….just say the word, I'll understand"

She was dotting his chest with kisses where he'd tugged her over to lay completely on top of him both of them laughing, but despite the fact he'd been struggling to stifle jaw-cracking yawns which had been making his eyes water and in spite of them already having had sex twice in the last few hours and her constant reminders of his age, or maybe because of them, his pride was demanding that he showed her he still had an enviable recovery rate.

"Sod off, I am sorry, you know I don't mean it, I'm just teasing but really I can't go to Bath, I wanna go and see me mum, I sorta promised, cos of being on tour 'n that, and she'll be upset if I don't go … sorry"

"No, I'm sorry, of course you want to go home and see your mum, and I expect they'll be looking forward to seeing you as well"

He was struggling to keep his eyes open as she tucked her head into the crook of his neck and listened to his breathing change as he drifted off to sleep. She was actually happy about it, she would far rather he went to sleep for a bit because the last thing she wanted was to talk about her family and whether or not they'd have missed her when she was off on tour. It was highly bleeding unlikely, considering she hardly ever saw them even when she was just living a few miles up the road. It had been a very long time since Molly had considered the maisonette in east Ham as home.

-OG-

"Morning beautiful … God, what time is it?"

His voice was thick with sleep as he pulled himself upright and folded his arms behind him to rest his head against the headboard and smiled as she carefully put the cup of Rosabaya on the bedside table. She'd tried it once to please him, but had thought it was bitter and disgusting and had hated it, but the smell always made her stomach disappear like in a fast lift. It reminded her of first thing in the morning in the FOB and the times she'd woken up next to him during their short spell together in Bath when, as a general rule, he was awake long before she was.

"It's nearly eight o'clock, 'n some of us 'ave been up for hours"

"Have you?"

"Nah"

She leaned to one side and sipped at her tea and successfully evaded the arm that had shot across the bed to try and pull her back into it with him.

"Nice shirt you're wearing"

She looked down at the crumpled blue shirt which she'd picked up off the floor together with his suit which she'd hung up, all ready to show off about how she'd tidied up after him for a change.

"Yeah, I thought so, had a bit of a lend off some bloke whose mummy'll probably buy him a new one for his birthday, though maybe should of asked first, probably, but he was snoring and I thought, nah, he won't mind"

"I don't snore, and no I don't mind, you can steal any of my clothes you like, they look better on you anyway, but just don't stick them in a charity bag when you've finished with them, and don't say that about my mummy buying me a shirt either" He pretended to shudder "What are you doing up? Take the shirt off and come back to bed, or better still leave it on and come back to bed" He raised his eyebrows and pretended to leer hopefully "It's still my birthday"

"I know, but it needed a bit of a tidy up in 'ere, it was like a tsunami had been through, mess all over" She grinned then giggled as she quoted his own words back at him "I'm hungry, had a bit of a butchers but all I could find was bloody bird seed, and that hamster food shit, you obviously wasn't expecting me, no coco-pops and not even any Nutella to put on your toast neither"

"I'm sorry, I haven't really stocked up yet, but that hamster food is good for you" He laughed at the way she rolled her eyes "I'll get up in a minute and go and get some pain au choolat"

"Good, I'm not fussy, anything chocolate will do, don't matter what sort it is"

"God, chocolate for breakfast …. only you"

-OG-

"Will I see you later when I get back?"

"Dunno, I might stop over me mum's tonight, call me when you're back, and drive careful …. oh 'n have a nice birthday"

"I've already had a nice birthday"

"Good … I thought that too"

"Good, glad to hear it" He got out of the car and walked round to open her door for her "Look, I can easily take you to your mum's first, before I go"

"Nah, I can just as easy get the train, but I need to hurry up else I'm gonna miss it, go on, piss off"

"Lovely"

She had inevitably missed the train so that she now had to stand for ages on a freezing cold platform waiting for the next one and cursing the Sunday service as she stamped her feet up and down and tried to restore her circulation and tucked her icy cold fingers into the sleeves of her parka and the soft warmth of the sweater she'd borrowed to put over her dress. She couldn't help wishing her dress was a hell of a lot longer, the wind was freezing her arse off as she stood on the deserted platform and tried to switch her thoughts off.

Nan had always been spot on when she'd said Molly spent too much time thinking, she meant she mithered too much about stuff, and Molly knew she was right, but it was hard not to. She'd wanted him back so badly and had thought about little else for weeks, well, she'd never really stopped wanting him so she should by rights be on top of the bleeding world right now, should be hugging and kissing perfect strangers, if there were any about, instead of which she was a tiny bit miserable. She hated that they'd only been back together for a day and a bit and she'd already lied to him twice … and he hadn't said that he loved her. She loved him, she had no doubts about that …. but she couldn't possibly say it to him before he said it to her … he was the one wanted out last time, the one who told her to sod off, so it could be he was just pretending he wanted her back.

-OG-

A/N: Decided that it was still his birthday – thank you all for reviewing and being so kind – please keep telling me that you are still following, because , you know me, the more I think, the more paranoid I get. Chapter 14 sees the planning of Xmas chez Dawes and Molly starts to sort out some of her insecurities …..

"Bloody think not