'I am so glad to be home.. well, your home. If my kidney wasn't going to kill me, boredom certainly was' Carla spoke, slumping down onto Roy's sofa. The transplant had all gone well so far and now she'd just been given instructions to relax, take it easy and hope that her body didn't reject the kidney Aidan had so kindly gifted her with

'This is equally as much your home as it is mine' Roy replied, placing Carla's bags down on the dining chair. 'A florist delivered these to you, I've put them in some water' Roy pointed to the bouquet of flowers placed in the middle of the dining table

'Who are they from?' Carla questioned, glancing over at the bouquet; though she already knew the answer. White lilies with an array of pink flowers, the exact same bunch Peter had purchased for her when they were having their affair 6 years ago

'It appears they're from a mystery buyer..this is all they came with' Roy shuffled over to where she was sat and handed her the card that had nothing but a simple 'X' written on it. Carla smiled though, touched by Peter's thoughtful gesture. There was always the small chance that they wasn't from him, however it seemed far too coincidental for them to be from anyone else. Besides, he'd mentioned that he was going to bring her some the other day when he visited her

'Ah, they're probably from our 'chelle. She's a sucker for lilies' Carla lied. She didn't like lying to Roy but didn't want to expose Peter's anonymity when clearly he'd wanted it to remain a private gesture

'Ahh, well they are marvellous flowers..Hayley liked lilies too' Roy looked over at Carla who gave him a sympathetic smile 'I shall make you a drink of water to take to bed with you' he quickly changed the subject, reaching into one of the cupboards for a glass as Carla watched him, smiling to herself at his sweet nature

Peter rolled himself over, looking at what time was lit up on the alarm clock; 1:42am. He hadn't been able to sleep since coming to bed. Everyone in the pub was discussing Carla all night. Speaking about how her operation went and informing one another that she had been discharged this evening. Ever since, he'd not been able to get her off his mind. He needed to make sure she was okay. He turned his head slightly, making sure Toyah was still asleep before gently getting up, grabbing his phone from the bedside table and exiting the bedroom as quietly as possible so he didn't disturb her. He snuck half way down the stairs before taking a seat on one of them. He scrolled down through his contacts before he reached Carla's name. He wasn't sure if she even still had the same number but it was worth a shot anyway. After putting it off for a bit, he began typing a message.. 'Hey you.. hope you're doing okay. I'm thinking of you. P' He paused for a moment, wondering wether putting a kiss on the end was appropriate or not. Eventually, he decided to just go for it. They were once married after all. His finger hovered for a while before he took the plunge and hit 'send'. He looked back behind him, ensuring that no one had awoken and silently followed him down. Then he wasn't sure why, but he did it. He deleted the message from his phone. Actually, he did know why he did it. The last thing he wanted was for Toyah to stumble across it and get jealous. It was the last thing Carla needed at the moment. It was just a simple message from one friend to the other; from one very concerned friend.

Carla woke to the sound of pans clashing about downstairs in the cafe. She grabbed her phone, looking to see that it was 10:30am. She must've needed the sleep. God knows why though, sleep was the only thing she seemed to do whilst she was in hospital. That, and flirt with all the hot doctors. Before placing her phone back down, she noticed the notification telling her she had a text. An uncontrollable smile fell on her face as she read it. She didn't know whether it warranted a reply or not but she worried Peter may think she was blanking him if she didn't message back, so she began typing 'I'll get there. Thank you though.. and thank you for the flowers. They're still just as beautiful as they were the first them round! X' Carla also deliberated about signing it off with a kiss, however he'd put one so she gathered he'd be okay with it. She put her phone back down before glancing over and smiling as her gaze fell upon her dressing table where she'd placed the bear Peter had brought back to her when she was in hospital. It felt weird having Peter consume her thoughts again. She'd managed to put him to the back of her mind when in Devon. It was nice though, no longer feeling so much hatred and angst towards him. After all, Life's too short.

Peter smiled with relief as he opened the message Carla had sent him. Relief because she'd not been angry he'd messaged her and relief because she'd actually replied too. He was also glad of the fact that she'd recognised the flowers were from him. He'd remembered how much she'd loved them before and wanted to send her a subtle gift that wouldn't get people talking and making stupid assumptions

Peter was engrossed in conversation with Toyah and a few of the regulars when he caught her in the corner of his eye, walking in through the door followed by the rest of the Connor's. Looking untouched by the illness that was consuming her. 'I'll get them in' Johnny announced to the group as they reached the bar

'No, please, allow me. The least I can do for Aidan is buy him an orange juice' Carla smiled as Johnny shrugged in acceptance, following the rest of the group as they huddled into a booth

Toyah quickly made a bee line for Carla, wanting to ensure she served her as apposed to Peter. 'Hey Carla.. how're you doing?' She asked cautiously. A strong sense of tension still remaining between them

'Yeah.. I'm good thanks. Should I have worn me rain mac or am I going to avoid a soaking today?' She teased, making light of an awkward situation

'Yeah, again, I'm really sorry for that. Tell you what, the first rounds on us' she offered, as Carla looked taken aback slightly

'Well. Thank you very much.. I'll never turn down a free drink' Carla grinned before listing off the drinks she had to order, ensuring both hers and Aidan's were just soft drinks. As Toyah walked off to prepare them, Carla caught eye contact with Peter who was leant against the door frame leading into the back room. He offered her a gentle smile before mouthing 'hey' to her, wanting to ensure that she realised he wasn't being rude by not talking to her. He just didn't want to go upsetting Toyah. Carla smiled in reply before raising her hand and giving the tiniest of waves, ensuring it went unnoticed by everyone other than Peter

Toyah handed Carla her drinks before going to join the rest of her family in the booth, Roy also being sat amongst them

'How does she go through kidney failure and still maintain such glamour?' Toyah sighed, resting her head against Peter's shoulder as they both looked on, watching the Connor's drinks celebration going on in front of them

'Right, I'd like to propose a small toast' Johnny spoke up, grabbing the attention of the pub as Carla, Aidan and Kate all shook their heads, being all too aware of how much Johnny loved a speech. 'It's been a tough couple of weeks for this family but, we've all come out stronger than ever. Our tough little fighter Carla, who now has a new kidney and my very brave son Aidan who gave Carla the greatest gift of all by trying to save her life, have both made me an incredibly proud father. Fingers crossed this kidney doesn't let us down now and both of you recover fully. Can't have you both on orange juice forever can we?' He joked before raising his glass in the air 'to Carla, Aidan, and the connor kidney' everyone followed suit, repeating what he said before clanging their glasses together

Carla walked out into the cold air, inhaling a deep breath before she noticed Peter stood, puffing on his cigarette leant up against the smoking hut 'Hey you' he spoke, addressing her in the same way he had in his text message 'not taken up smoking have ya?'

'Oh no. I've got a new kidney to be looking after now. Got to protect it at all costs' she stated, taking a seat inside the hut 'Just came out for some fresh air really.

And to escape the pity party going on in there' she spoke truthfully, folding her arms across her chest and leaning back against the wall

Peter walked over and took a seat beside her, still smoking his cigarette 'not sure a smoking hut's the best place for fresh air' he joked before turning the conversation serious again 'people aren't pitying you though Carla, they're just concerned.. you're going through something pretty tough'

'I know. I don't want to sound like I'm being ungrateful either, it's just awkward y'know. Most of the people in there have either hated my guts at one point or have probably wished me dead. I just don't like the thought of people feeling sorry for me' Carla sighed, looking up at the grey sky above them as she spoke

'well, people change Carla and people move on. I think you'll find that I still remain as public enemy number one to most of the people in that pub' he reasoned as he stumped his cigarette out into the ashtray before placing It down on the table and leaning back against the wall like Carla was 'I know you don't like people knowing your business and feeling sorry for you though. But as you well know, they'll all forget about it tomorrow and they'll be back to seeing you as the ice queen. I say milk it whilst you can, not everyday you have people chucking free drinks at ya. Unless you get into another brawl with Toyah, that is' he joked as Carla laughed at his comment, turning her head to the side to look at him

'Best not tell her about my flowers then' she joked as Peter widened his eyes in agreement and smiled, reciprocating her eye contact 'honestly though, thank you for them. I'm surprised you remembered the bunch'

'How could I not? Don't think I've ever seen anyone more grateful for a bunch of flowers' Peter chuckled, remembering back to the 'special thanks' she'd given him a few days after he'd brought them for her

Carla rolled her eyes in amusement 'Well. I'm not feeling quite that grateful this time round' she joked, playfully nudging Peter's arm with her own for being cheeky and bringing up their previous encounters

Peter laughed in response, before noticing Carla shivering slightly in the cold wind 'Hey you best get back in to your pity party missus.. you've got goosebumps' he pointed out, concern lacing his voice as he raised his hand and gently ran his forefinger up and down her exposed arm for a brief second. Carla could swear that more goosebumps appeared as she felt Peter's touch against her skin and as their eyes met again, she quickly stood, worried he may notice 'mmm well I hope they've got the party games out. We could play pin the kidney on Carla' she joked as Peter chuckled at her sarcasm

He watched as she walked off. Before she walked out of sight, he called out 'Carla' she stopped in her tracks, turning to look back at him stood there awkwardly with his hands in his trouser pockets 'you're looking good, by the way' he smiled as she tilted her head to the side, returning the smile to him as a thank you for his compliment before spinning on the heel or her boot and walking back into the rovers. Leaving Peter stood smiling outside, wanting to make sure he waited a reasonable amount of time before walking back in behind Carla