Merlin was saying something to him - probably nagging him about the paperwork he had to complete to properly finalise that deal with Helios - but Arthur was far too preoccupied with something much more important for that right now. And if he had a decent personal assistant, this wouldn't even be an issue. Right now though, he had to spot Mithian in this crowd. After all, the only reason he agreed to attend his father's fancy party was because he'd heard that she would be here. Not unsurprising. His father's parties were probably the best way to get to know the who's who of Camelot.

"Are you thinking of Mithian again?" Merlin jabbed him unnecessarily in the ribs, asking with far too much mirth in his voice.

"I'm always thinking of her," Arthur replied dryly. And he was, ever since they were introduced at Elyan and Percival's wedding a few months ago. She was everything he needed and he was determined to win her over. He fancied himself a pretty good catch - well-off, good-looking, didn't have any terribly bad habits (except for Merlin but Merlin had a way of endearing himself to people so Arthur figured that would just be a minor hiccup), had his own apartment. And Mithian was beautiful and talented. Imagine the children they would have. Their family would be perfect.

"Speak of the devil," said Merlin, waving his hand in the vague direction of the main door. Arthur looked up immediately and true enough, there stood Mithian in all her gorgeousness. Arthur rolled his eyes as Merlin elbowed him enthusiastically. Raising his hand, a small yet noticeable action, to catch her attention, he grinned when she moved towards him. He'd been waiting for this moment the whole evening.

"Arthur." Her voice was low and sexy, and his heart sped up, the same way it did when he first met her. Kissing her cheek lightly and inhaling the expensive scent of her perfume, Arthur took her hands, enjoying the feel of her delicateness.

"I thought you weren't coming."

Mithian gave a light laugh and touched his arm, sending a shiver down it. "How could I not turn up to the party of the year?" She turned to smile at Merlin. "Hello Merlin. I like your suit."

Merlin grinned. "I stole it from Arthur. You're looking good too. How has your first month in Camelot been? Any regrets moving here?"

"Not yet. Camelot is a lovely place and everyone has been so welcoming." As Mithian continued to talk about her first impressions of Camelot, Arthur took the opportunity to study her closely. Elyan had told him that Mithian, a long time friend of Percy, had been a fashion photographer but had wanted a change and decided to move to Camelot. His eyes drifted across her sharp features and he wondered how her skin would feel under his hand. Soft and smooth, he imagined. He bet that once let out of the fancy hairdo it was swept up in, her hair would be like silk, trailing against his -

"Right Arthur?"

Startled out of his fantasies, Arthur quickly glanced at a smirking Merlin. "I told Mithian that you'd be happy to show her around town. After all, you get invites to all the right places."

"Oh, no. That won't be necessary. Plus, I've been part of that scene for far too long. It would be nice to do something ordinary." She flashed a smile at Merlin, much to Arthur's annoyance. "Like that sports night at Avalon you mentioned before."

"I could -"

"Merlin Emrys!" Before Arthur could offer to bring her to Avalon, a tiny, brown haired woman came bounding up to Merlin. Arthur watched as Merlin turned towards the woman, his face breaking into a huge smile when he spotted her. She looked vaguely familiar but he couldn't place her. His eyes went back to Mithian who was looking bemusedly at Merlin and his apparently long lost friend. He raised an eyebrow and Mithian glanced at him and smiled.

That, Arthur decided, was intimacy. One step in the right direction.

It seemed like quite a while to Arthur but finally, Merlin and the woman untangled themselves from the hug.

"Gwen, you remember Arthur right? And this is Mithian, Percy's friend. She's just moved to Camelot."

Guinevere Thomas. Now he remembered. She was Elyan's older sister and he'd seen her around in school. She had been a quiet, studious student then and she and Merlin had one of those friendships that tended to exclude everyone else.

Guinevere nodded absently at him, her disinterest annoying him slightly, but warmly welcomed Mithian to Camelot. "I've been away for so long that I feel new here too. In fact, I think Merlin is about the only person here I know well anymore."

"Maybe we should get together sometime then. You can get reconnected with Camelot while I learn more about her. It would be fun."

Guinevere nodded. "Of course."

"Not know anyone well?" Arthur interrupted them, frowning. "What about your - ow!" Arthur looked down at his shin where Merlin had kicked, then scowled. He was going to have a bruise there, he knew. He scowled again.

"Shall we go get something to drink, Gwen?" Merlin linked arms with her, then addressed Mithian. "I'm sure Arthur will be good company. It's lovely to see you again Mithian."

And then it was just him and Mithian. Sometimes, he decided, Merlin wasn't such a fool.

"You should have told me you were coming back to Camelot. I am hurt that I had to hear about it from Alice at the hardware store."

Gwen smiled, glad that Merlin was still in Camelot and glad that their easy friendship still remained intact. "I'm sorry. You know Camelot isn't my favourite place, even if it does have my favourite person in it."

"Oh flattery will get you everything. Why are you back? And for good?" Nodding to the bartender, Merlin passed the pink cocktail to her. "I doubt you're back because you miss Camelot."

"No," she sighed. "It's more like not really having much choice." She looked around the party, at the people who she hadn't seen since she left for university and her heart sank. Aside from Merlin, she had been on the outskirts of the Camelot social life for most of her childhood, not helped by her family's poverty or her brother's frequent encounters with the law. Her eyes stopped at where Arthur Pendragon stood, deep in conversation with that new woman in town. And there was him. After all these years, one would have expected that that foolish crush she had on him would have faded. She didn't even like him - he was arrogant, a bully and all too willing to use his family's position in the town for his own benefit, yet she couldn't stop that strange physical reaction she had when he was near. And the fact that once, he had been nice to her, kind almost and she still remembered the concern in his eyes and the way he left his friends to walk her home.

The moment Merlin said Arthur's name again, her heart had sped up and she found herself unable to look him in the eye, just like when she was a secondary school kid all over again. "Things didn't quite work out in Essetir, so I guess I'm back home. For a while at least."

"Well, anything I can do, just let me know. Are you staying at your old place?"

"Yup. Now that Elyan is married and living in Percy's apartment, I've moved back."

Merlin looked pointedly at her at the mention of Elyan's name and she shrugged. She knew he wanted to know why she hadn't been there at the wedding. Despite all that had happened between them, had her world not been imploding at that moment, she would have been at the wedding. But the day before she was about to leave for Camelot, everything went to hell in a handbasket. "You know, if there are too many memories, you can move in with me."

Blinking back the sudden tears that pricked the back of her eyes, she smiled. "How did I ever survive the last few years without you?"

His hand covered hers and squeezed. "Not very well. But you're home, among friends and family. I, for one, am glad you're back."

"Thanks. And before I get all weepy, how has your life been? I hear you're working with Arthur."

A reluctant grin pulled at his features. "Not something you'd have thought would happen huh?"

"No. You hated him!" Laughter bubbled out of her as she remembered how Arthur and Merlin would often butt heads in school. That was why she kept her foolish little crush on Arthur a secret from Merlin.

"Yeah well, as it turned out, he isn't all that bad."

"Not that bad?" From what she'd heard in the few days she'd been back, Arthur and Merlin were as tight as thieves.

"Yeah. He's still massively spoiled and far too full of himself, but he has a good heart." He swatted her shoulder. "Stop laughing at me. What about you? What are you planning to do here?"

And that, thought Gwen morosely, even as she kept the smile on her face, was the million dollar question. She sipped at her drink as she contemplated just how much she wanted to reveal to Merlin. He was her best friend and perhaps it would be good to have someone to talk to about all these things. But if no one here in Camelot knew, it would be easier for her to pretend none of it had ever happened.

"I was -" She faltered when Arthur suddenly appeared behind Merlin and flung himself on the stool next to her. Immediately, all her senses went on alert, her heart pounded erratically and the usual annoyance rose in her. Annoyance that she still harboured a crush. Annoyance that it was a crush on Arthur Pendragon who would probably never give her another look. Reason number 167 she needed to get herself out of Camelot as soon as she could.

"I'm far too rusty." Arthur announced, uncaring that he'd interrupted their conversation. Selfish ass.

"Too rusty?" Merlin cast an amused glance at Arthur. "I assume that means you didn't get Mithian's number?"

Arthur closed his eyes and Gwen couldn't help but stare at his face. He was no longer lanky and the fine lines on his face, the slight dark stains under his eyes all made him look older. Older but just as gorgeous as she remembered. "Nope," he sighed. Then he opened his eyes and caught her staring at him. Heat flared in her face and she gulped down her drink.

"Having fun?" Arthur asked, nodding at her empty glass. "Don't remember you being much of a party person."

Gwen was amazed he remembered her at all. "I'm good." Thank goodness her voice came out normal. "Merlin and I were just reminiscing."

"Sounds like fun. So, are you moving back here for good?"

"For now. I just need a break from my life."

Arthur laughed. "Camelot is hardly a place I would go to run away from things. It's a prison. In fact this whole party is a prison."

"It's your father's party," said Merlin dryly.

"Exactly why it is a prison. Come on Merlin. Let's head out of here. I only came because of Mithian."
"And because you're afraid of your father."

"Maybe." He shrugged then looked directly at Gwen. "And now you know my deep, dark secret, you have swear yourself to secrecy."

Laughing, she nodded. "No one will hear about your fear for your father from me."

The smile he bestowed on her made her heart jump. His eyes crinkled at the sides. "Come with us Gwen, unless you are enjoying this party more than us."

Slipping off the stool, suspecting that she was about to make a foolish decision, she grabbed her clasp. "Lead the way."

And that was how she came to spend the rest of the night, with Arthur and Merlin at a small pizza parlor, eating greasy pizza and sipping milkshakes. In their formal evening wear, the three of them looked incredibly out of place but neither Arthur nor Merlin seemed to care and, while still far too aware of Arthur and his undeserved attractiveness, she managed to relax as well. They laughed over shared memories at school and when they ran out of happy memories, Arthur began to regale her with what he termed "The Many Tales of Merlin". Merlin gave as good as he got and Gwen thought that she could easily spend all her time with them, listening to them banter and laugh.

"So Merlin here decides that he needs to have a closer look at that flower. Mind you, we're on the way to a meeting with my father but -"

"It was lunch. Not some high-powered meeting and it was only ten minutes," pointed out Merlin. "And for someone who was sportsman of the year in secondary school, you're such a coward."

Arthur slammed his fork down, uncaring that the bit of cheesecake on it flew off, and gasped in indignation. His eyes, however, twinkled with amusement and Gwen couldn't help but smile. Seeing Arthur like this, charming, affectionate and warm was not helping her crush and she sipped on her milkshake, trying to temper the feelings churning in her gut. It was bad enough that she thought him attractive. She could not let herself like him.

Merlin slipped an arm around her, startling her out of her thoughts. "I'm sure Gwen here agrees with me."

"What?"

"Merlin thinks I am too cowardly to take risks. I'm always taking risks!" Arthur adjusted his tie, a look of arrogance settling on his face. "You don't get to where I am without taking risks."

"Jumping into a pool without testing the temperature doesn't count as taking a risk. You know, Gwen. We went swimming in that monster of a pool he has in his home -"

"My father's home and that's a really boring story -"

Grinning, Gwen propped her chin on her hands. "Now, I'm dying to hear it."

Merlin laughed as Arthur groaned, before insisting he needed to go to the toilet. It was the closest feeling to home she had had since arriving here.

Merlin tossed the files on the table and huffed, "You do realise that I am not your personal assistant. I am your legal assistant."

"When I get a replacement personal assistant, then you can stop doing all these but right now I need you to take notes on this case." Arthur felt slightly bad that Merlin had had to double as his PA but ever since George took leave to spend time with his pregnant (and unfortunately very ill) wife, Arthur had had little luck finding a replacement. Gemma had been completely unreliable and Toby, while sweet, wasn't quite as intelligent as his CV made him out to be.

"Have you put up an ad?"

"Of course I have. Merlin, I don't want you as my PA any more than you want to be. Anyway, I've got a stack of CVs from that agency so maybe -"

"No. I have plans this evening."

Arthur frowned. "You didn't tell me you had plans."

"Am I doubling as your son as well now?"

"Oh shut up. Fine. I'll look through the CVs. Don't blame me if you can't stand our new PA."

Merlin flopped onto the sofa and despite Arthur's dirty looks, put his feet onto the expensive leather. "Speak and I will record."

It was a fairly open and shut case and Arthur was glad for it. Much better than the other case he had in which his client was suing a large company. His father had balked at them taking the case - think of the repercussions Uther had said, over and over again - but Arthur had accepted it anyway. Partly, as Merlin pointed out, to annoy his father. And that was going well - the annoying his father bit. The bit that wasn't going so well was actually winning the case. He rubbed his face as the now familiar feelings of guilt rose in him. Maybe he should have passed on the case.

"You're sighing and that face means you're thinking about the Mordred case," Merlin pointed out, rather unhelpfully Arthur thought since he was well aware of what he was thinking of. "With you and the Pendragon firm's resources behind him, he has a much better chance at success than if he'd gone to a smaller firm."

"Unfortunately, Mercia Constructions has much meore extensive resources. And they don't have a father who keeps pressuring them to make a deal."

"I guess that's a no to a deal then."

Arthur stood up and stared out of his window. "We'll only accept a deal when we've exhausted all our options. Or if a deal is in the best interests of our client. Right now, it's not. And Mordred is right. Mercia Constructions can't be allowed to get away with such behaviour. They knew what they were doing was dangerous - "

"You have to prove that in court and so far it's little more than hearsay."

"I know. Which is what is so annoying."

He heard Merlin move. "Well then. I'm off. Don't forget to look through the CVs. Maybe with a decent secretary, we'd move faster with the case."

Arthur waved a hand absently and continued staring out of the window, looking at the main street outside. Aside from his university days, he'd spent most of his life in Camelot. He loved the town but sometimes, a sense of restlessness would grip him and he'd feel trapped - trapped in this small town full of people who saw him as little more than the spoiled, arrogant son of his father, trapped by his father's expectations that he take over the firm and trapped by the feeling that his life wasn't quite going anywhere.

This was why he knew Mithian was the one. She wasn't from Camelot, she was beautiful and from his limited interactions with her, she appeared to be smart - everything he wanted in a wife. Maybe if he had a family, this feeling of restlessness, of wanting something more would fade.

He pulled out his mobile and dialed her number which he'd gotten from Percy, the stress and guilt that had settled on his shoulders earlier lifting when he heard Mithian's voice. His mood greatly improved since she agreed to a movie, he grabbed his jacket and walked jauntily out of the office.

The movie was one of those art house flicks and that it was in Japanese really didn't help at all. Arthur glanced warily at Mithian who was chattering happily about the themes in the film and how it subverted them. When she turned to look at him, he smiled and nodded, hoping whatever she said didn't need a response. Discussions about Japanese culture and their portrayal of masculinity was not quite his forte.

"How about some supper?"

She glanced at her watch, then shook her head. "I can't. Have to wake up early tomorrow."

"Right. Let's get you home then." Arthur said despite the disappointment he felt.

At her door, she smiled prettily at him and even before he could say anything, Mithian slipped inside and closed the door in his face. Maybe he should go read up on Japanese cinema and society.

Gwen watched as Merlin shoveled the pie into his mouth. Some things never changed. Since young, Merlin always ate as if he was afraid the food would disappear on him.

"There's more pie in the oven."

Merlin mumbled something with his mouth full.

"Anyway, I have something to tell you." She clasped, then unclasped her hands as nerves flooded her. Merlin looked at her encouragingly, still munching on the pie. "I applied for a job with Pendragon Law."

That got Merlin to stop eating and stare at her. "Pendragon Law?"

Nodding, she continued. "I know that Uther and I have had our problems -"

"That's putting it mildly."

"But the PA job is temporary and it pays well -"

Merlin coughed. "PA job. You applied to be a personal assistant? Gwen, didn't you use to be an IT manager?"

"Yeah but there aren't many openings at the moment in that area here and I don't really plan to stay here for the long term. The agency said they only needed a PA for about seven to ten months. And the pay is pretty good. One thing I have to say about Uther is that he clearly pays his people well. Once I've saved enough, I can move on. Out of Camelot."

Putting his fork down, Merlin looked quietly at her for a while. "You ever think of staying here? Permanently?"

Gwen shrugged. While she hadn't had a particularly difficult time in Camelot, unlike her brother, she still remembered how she never quite belonged, how while people were nice, they kept looking at her and her family with judgement in their eyes. She wanted to leave her past behind not live in it.

"Things are different now," Merlin said gently. "Your brother -"

"He has Percy. And Uther is still running the town isn't he?"

"You're going to work in his firm," Merlin pointed out. "Although, it will be Arthur you'll be working for. He's the one looking for a temporary PA."

That surprised Gwen. She had been pretty sure that she wasn't going to end up as Uther's PA - she knew that Katherine, Uther's long time PA, was still working for him. In fact, she'd thought she would be working for one of the many lawyers there. Not Arthur himself. Doubt seized her. Maybe this was a foolish idea, not when despite time and distance, she still had too many uncomfortable feelings for him.

"Now that I think about it," said Merlin chirpily, "this is a brilliant idea. We'd get to spend more time together and I'd no longer have to be his PA." He shoved another forkful of pie into his mouth. "And you can bake more pies for us."

She looked at Merlin's enthusiasm, his grinning face and felt herself give in. After all, it wasn't like Arthur was sure to hire her. And even if he did, she wasn't a teenager anymore. She most certainly wasn't about to throw herself at him. Taking the fork from Merlin, she popped some pie into her mouth and grinned back at him.

"You know what we need to do? We need to do up this house."

"What? Why? It's perfectly serviceable."

"Serviceable being the operative word. You're going to be here at least for the next seven months. Surely you'd want a place that seems more like home. It'll be like one of those projects we did when we were in school."

"You mean like us building a time machine?" Gwen laughed as she remembered how seriously they had taken that task.

"Exactly, only now, we're older, wiser, richer and we'll actually succeed."

Narrowing her eyes, she waved the fork at Merlin. "You're trying to get me to stay here."

Merlin's smile dropped a little. Reaching out, he took her hands in hers. "I admit I've missed you tremendously and if making this place more like a home encourages you to stay, then I would be the first to cheer. But really, this was Elyan's place for years. You deserve to live in a place that seems more like home for you. Plus it will be fun and it'll be a good chance for us to catch up."

"You're the best friend Merlin."

"I know. Think I can have some more pie?"

Arthur stared at the CV in front of him. Guinevere Thomas. The surprise of seeing her application in the pile was still with him. According to her CV, she used to be an IT manager. Why would she want to work as PA now? Earlier, he'd asked Merlin what he thought of hiring her and Merlin had merely told him to make his own decisions. She certainly didn't have the experience he would have liked but her CV suggested she was efficient and capable. Also, he liked her. Those few hours they spent together after that party had been fun and he enjoyed her company.

"Merlin! Tell Guinevere to come in for an interview tomorrow." And after a thought, he added, "Call that James guy too."

"Right."

As Merlin walked out of his office, Arthur let himself relax a little. If everything went well, he'd have a new PA by the end of the week. His good mood was compounded by the fact that Mithian had agreed to go for dinner with him again that night. Sure, the movie and dinner with her the previous night hadn't gone as fantastically as he'd imagined in his head but this was just the beginning. Things could only get better.

The only thorn in his side at the moment was the fact that Gili was refusing to testify against Mercia Construction despite Arthur speaking to him several times. He would have to find another angle to this case or they were going to be humiliated in court. But that other angle led to Morgana, his estranged step-sister and he had already incurred his father's ire for taking on the case. Working with Morgana was going to ensure he'd find himself disinherited faster than he could say her name.

And with those thoughts, his good mood leaked out of him. Groaning, Arthur pulled up the files on the Mercia case. Maybe reading them again would give him ideas. He wasn't optimistic though, not when he'd spent most of his weekend doing exactly that. So when six o'clock ticked by, he quite eagerly abandoned his research and pulled on his jacket. A night with Mithian would do wonders.

The food was good, the service impeccable and the conversation was light. Mithian told him stories of her life in Nemeth where she had been a fashion photographer. They laughed over tidbits of celebrity gossip she shared and Arthur spoke about the more outrageous cases he had. All in all, it wasn't a bad date.

"What are you planning to do here? This isn't exactly the fashion capital of Albion." Arthur asked as he helped her with her coat after dinner, his fingers brushing against the soft skin of her bared shoulders.

She flushed as she turned to him, her hands fiddling with the buttons on her coat. "Don't laugh but I was hoping to photograph a different subject here."

"Here? There's nothing much here except what the guidebooks say are our bewitching landscapes and abundant wildlife." At her pointed look, he smiled. "Ah. You're planning to be a nature photographer."

"Yes. It's what I've always wanted to do to be honest, but I fell into fashion photography quite by chance, the money was good and as it turned out, I was quite talented at it all." She slipped her arm through his as they strolled along the river and Arthur smiled. "I was hoping to try it out here, not just because Camelot is any nature photographer's dream, but because no one knows me here."

"Less pressure huh?"

She nodded. "Do you think it's silly?"

Squeezing Mithian's hand, he shook his head. "I know all about pressure and expectations."

Her laugh tinkled in the night air. "I'm sure you do, Mr Pendragon."

They strolled along the river for a while before he took her home. At her door, he brushed a kiss against her lips. When she neither leaned towards him nor responded to his kiss, he pulled away. She smiled slightly but said nothing. Hesitating a little, Arthur quickly said his goodbye and left. He refused to acknowledge the disappointment that had lodged in his heart. All he needed was time.

In the cold light of the day, standing in front of the door with the words Arthur Pendragon on it, Gwen decided that her idea to apply for this job was a foolish one. She was just about to march over to Merlin's office and tell him that she couldn't do it when the door opened and she was standing right in front of Arthur.

"Guinevere!" He took a glance at his watch. "You're early. Good! Everyone loves a punctual person." Pulling open the door wider, he gestured for her to enter, frowning when she didn't. "You know what, it's almost lunch time and I've not had lunch. How about we do this over lunch?"

"That seems rather unprofessional."

The smile that he flashed her sent her heart racing. "I've never been very good at being professional. How about it? I'll pay and I promise you, I will assess you as professionally as I can."

She took a look at his twinkling eyes and teasing smile and nodded.

"Brilliant. Come, I know the perfect place - good food, quiet, nearby." He shrugged on his coat and Gwen followed him, her brain sending warning signals to her that such a cosy lunch cum interview was probably a bad idea. She ignored them.

"Right. So why do you want this job? It's not exactly what you've been doing in Caerleon." He twirled some pasta onto his fork as he asked her.

"Didn't Merlin tell you?"

"Ah, now that would be highly unprofessional wouldn't it?" That smile crossed his face again and Gwen cursed whatever it was that made her so susceptible to it. "And you know, I'm always professional."

"Well," she swallowed, trying to regain her composure as she explained why she wanted the job. "And of course, the generous pay would make it easier for me to start over somewhere else."

This time the smile had faded from his face. "I noticed that the reference you've provided is from your first job, not the last one. Is there a reason? You say you left the job. You resigned?"

Gwen wondered how good a liar she was. She was about to find out. "I didn't part ways with my previous company on good terms. Mainly, I disagreed with my boss on how certain things should be done and he didn't take criticism well."

"And he fired you?"

"It was more like a mutual agreement to part ways." That wasn't really a lie but Gwen could see that he had more questions. A frown creased his brow and he seemed deep in thought. Feeling that she had screwed up her chance at this job, she sighed. Perhaps the truth was needed but she hadn't even told Merlin the truth.

He looked up at her and nodded. "I suppose you have your reasons for being vague."

"Look, I know that it sounds very -"

"No, it's fine. Don't forget, I know you Guinevere. If anything, you have always been scrupulously principled. And obviously responsible and organised from what I see in your CV. Plus, you put up with Merlin, which to me, is something worthy of praise. In fact," he leaned back on his chair and the smile that disappeared some minutes ago made an appearance again, "I'm going to hire you on the spot."

Just a moment ago, Gwen had been convinced that she'd no hope and now Arthur was offering the job to her, with that very tempting smile on his face. "Uh -"

"Is that a yes? Because I am desperate. I think Merlin has just about had enough of being my stand-in PA."

"Yes." The word popped out of her mouth immediately. His smile got impossibly wider and he stretched out his hand. Gwen took it, suppressed the urge to shiver at his warm touch, and shook.

She was now Guinevere Thomas, personal assistant to Arthur Pendragon, the person she'd a crush on for half her life and the son of the man who despised her family. What on earth was she doing?

She told Merlin as much that night, excluding the bit about the crush, slightly annoyed by his general glee that she was his new colleague.

"Frankly," Merlin said around a mouthful of brownies, "I don't see the problem. Arthur is already in Uther's black book for taking on that case. And it's not like Uther actually keeps that close an eye on who Arthur hires. Plus, as you eloquently pointed out to me - it fits what you need. It's temporary and it pays well."

"That is true."

"And you get the added bonus of spending time with me."

A reluctant smile spread on her face. "Oh fine. That's was of course the only consideration."

"As it should be. Speaking of friends, Mithian called last night - I've no idea how she got my number - and basically, she was hoping to get in touch with you."

"Oh." Gwen had thought that Mithian's offer during the party was one made out of politeness, not sincerity. It seemed like she was wrong. "If you give me her number, I'll give her a call."

The night before her first day of work, Gwen found herself unable to sleep. So by the time she knocked on Arthur's door, she felt like death warmed over and was quite certain she looked the same. What a great impression to make on her first day.

"Great! You're here." Arthur barely glanced up at her as he shoved a pile of folders into her arms. "Here's what Merlin was trying to sort out. Unfortunately, since George left quite abruptly, the filing has gone somewhat haywired."

"Right, I'll get to work."

"Check with Merlin about today's appointments. You'll handle that from today onwards. Also, I need you to take some notes on a case later, about ten. I should be free then."

Gwen nodded as Arthur rattled on, hoping she could remember everything he said. This wasn't quite the same Arthur she'd met at the party or even during her interview. When he finally finished talking, she took the stack of files and walked back to her desk.

She had barely started when the smell of coffee wafted to her and she looked up. Standing in front of her was Merlin, a grin on his face and a mug of coffee in his hand.

"Welcome to Pendragon Law." He bowed with a flourish then set the mug on her desk.

Smiling, she took the coffee and sipped it. "Just the way I like it too."

"Not bad huh?" He hopped onto her desk and pushed the files she'd been working on around. "Oh, sorting out the paperwork. I hated that. Sorry it's in such a mess."

Before she could answer, Arthur yelled from his office. "Merlin!"

"The boss calls! We'll lunch together ok?" He hopped off the desk easily, flashed her a thumbs up then disappeared into Arthur's office.

With an amused shake of her head, Gwen went back to work on the files. Merlin was obviously hopeless at organisation and it looked that she'd quite a bit of work to catch up on. She was so engrossed in sorting out the files that she didn't notice the elderly woman who stood quietly in the reception area. It was only when she happened to look up that Gwen noticed her.

"I'm sorry. How can I help you?"

"I'm Mrs Lee. I'm here to see Mr Pendragon."

Quickly flipping through the appointment book, Gwen chided herself for not checking on it earlier so she wouldn't seem so unprepared. Scrawled across today's date in Merlin's scratchy handwriting were the words "Mrs Lee 9:30am".

"If you'll wait a while, I'll let him know you're here."

For most of the meeting, Gwen was aware only of Arthur's deep voice interspersed with Mrs Lee's. The discussion seemed passionate but she shrugged it off, deciding to try and work out how to best organise her desk instead.

Then the yelling started.

And it was only Arthur who was yelling.

At an elderly lady.

Worried, Gwen pushed open the door to the office and was horrified to see Arthur standing over a shocked Mrs Lee and reprimanding her - loudly.

" - think that Michael is going to care about your face? If you want -"

"I think you should stop, Mr Pendragon." The words left her mouth even before she could think twice. Probably not the best idea to tell off her boss on her first day in front of his client.

"Guinevere."

She was already in this deep. Swallowing, she continued. "I am sure raising your voice isn't going to achieve anything. Why don't I see to Mrs Lee while you pull yourself together."

The lines on his face were taut and his eyes reflected his annoyance at her interruption but he nodded curtly. Quickly, she went to Mrs Lee and helped her out of the office, gave her cup of warm water then assured her that Arthur was just having a bad day before sending her on her way.

"That was completely inappropriate." Turning, Gwen saw Arthur leaning against the door. "If you have a problem with my behaviour, tell me when we are alone."

"You were upsetting her."

"She was being unreasonable! How does she expect to win her suit if -"

"And you're being selfish and insufferable and completely arrogant. What you want isn't the most important thing in the world. Spare a thought for other people. You might want to win the case badly but Mrs Lee clearly has other more important issues. Isn't what is important for your client be important to you?" The words just came out of her, like a faucet that couldn't be turned off. And with every word, she had the growing realisation that this would probably be her first and last day at this job. And now, it would be even more difficult to get another job. Her mind swirled with thoughts about how she should have just minded her own business when she heard Arthur call her name.

"Anything else?" His voice was cool and her heart sank.

"No. I'm sorry. I should not have spoken to you in this manner."

He studied her quietly, his eyes scanning her face. Then he sighed. "You're right. I behaved appallingly towards Mrs Lee. Call her up later and make another appointment."

"Oh."

But he'd gone back into his office and for a while, Gwen simply stared at the closed door in surprise. It seemed that maybe her job was still safe.

Not only was Guinevere organised and efficient, she was smart. Hiring her was perhaps the only thing that was going right all week. Ok, he managed to clear a few other cases fairly successfully and his father had grudgingly praised him for the job done on the Grunhilda case, but the Mordred case still haunted him.

"Mr Pendragon?" He sighed. He had no idea why Guinevere insisted on calling him that in the office. Propriety, she'd said. Well, she didn't think much of propriety when she gave him a lecture yesterday about how he shouldn't have been so hard on poor Mrs Lee. Even if she was right, but he'd been frustrated at Mrs Lee's refusal to tell him the whole truth. But he probably shouldn't have snapped at her.

"Yeah?"

"Mordred is here to see you."

"Send him in. Actually, I might need you to take some notes. Why don't you come in as well?"

Mordred entered with Guinevere following closely behind. He was, as usual, dressed in all black, his face solemn.

"How is your father?" He gestured for Mordred to take a seat.

"Better but he still has no memory of the accident." Arthur sighed inwardly. He'd hoped that Mordred's father would be able to remember what happened. There'd been no eyewitness and all they had were testimonies of several employees who refused to speak in court that the company had known well before Cerden's accident that the scaffolding was unsafe. "Are we getting any closer to being able to bring them to court?"

"Not really. Merlin spoke to the suppliers of the scaffolding and they mentioned that they had a batch of faulty stock but that it had been discarded. We suspect that's the stock that ended at up at Mercia Construction, except we have no idea how."

Mordred scowled and Arthur could see the anger in his eyes. "What about your sister?"

Arthur could feel Guinevere's eyes on him. Even she, who hadn't been in Camelot for years, knew of the chasm between his father and Morgana. "It's an option I am considering," he admitted reluctantly. "Although I am not comfortable -"

"I'm not paying you to be comfortable. I'm paying you to avenge my father!"

"You're not paying me at all, Mordred."

"You said you would ensure justice was done. Well my father can't work anymore and the company won't lift a finger to help except to send us a useless fruit basket!"

Arthur took a breath to calm himself. Getting off his chair, he walked round to where Mordred stood and put his hands on his shoulders. "Mordred, I said would do all that I can and I will. Trust me." Mordred stared defiantly at him before wrenching away from Arthur's hold.

"Whatever." He grabbed his haversack and marched out of the room, leaving a bewildered Guinevere and an exhausted Arthur.

"He's just a kid," said Guinevere as she stood.

Arthur glanced at her and smiled slightly. "Nineteen last month. For all purposes, he's an adult." Arthur rubbed the back of his neck. What they needed was solid evidence, not all these talk and rumours. Merlin had done much of the legwork but come up with nothing much. His father had warned him - going after large companies was never easy, especially one as rich and connected as Mercia Constructions. They weren't opposed to playing dirty. It looked like Arthur was going to have to play dirty too.

"Are you alright?" Suddenly, Guinevere was standing almost next to him, concern written all over her face.

"Yeah. It's just that - never mind. It's almost six. You should get going home."

"You should too. You've been staying late the past few days."

He looked at her in surprise. He didn't think she had noticed. "This case is a pain. And it's not the only one I have."

"It's Friday night. Surely you have a date? Plans?"

That was the other thing that wasn't going right in his life he thought with a fissure of annoyance. "No. Mithian cancelled on me." He laughed lightly. "Not the best week. You go home. I'll grab some takeout and go through some papers first."

For a while, Guinevere just stood there studying him. Before he could ask her what she was doing, she spoke hesitantly. "I have food at home. I'm sure your papers can wait and if Merlin is right, you're going to come in to work tomorrow as well."

"Are you inviting me to dinner at your place?"

The most adorable frown crossed her face. "Just as friends," she said indignantly.

For the first time that day, he laughed. "That's probably the best offer I've had all day. Let's go." He thought she might have blushed, but he it was probably the poor lighting in his office.

They sat in silence for most of the drive back to her house, giving Gwen more than enough time to completely and utterly regret her impulsive invitation to Arthur. But it was far too late to take it back. She snuck a look at him, biting down a grin when she saw that he was mouthing the words to some cheesy 70s song on the radio. Work had been hectic and she'd learnt that the laid-back, world-owes-me-everything boy she knew from secondary school had somehow turned into a much more responsible, serious man. He worked hard, something she had first hand experience when she found herself having to stay late several times over the past week and he took his work seriously. Once she'd mentioned to Merlin that he seemed very driven and Merlin had merely shaken his head, sighed and muttered something about baggage.

"Why take up the Mordred case?" The moment she'd learnt about it, she'd been curious. Most of the cases Arthur worked on were corporate cases and while not necessarily simple, they weren't quite as messy as Mordred's case. He definitely didn't normally work with stroppy teenagers. "How is he even going to pay you?"

He cast a quick glance at her. "When we get a settlement from Mercia Construction, I'll take a cut."

"And your father is ok with it?"

"Of course not," Arthur laughed bitterly. "He thinks it's the most awful idea I've ever had and that's saying a lot seeing that he thinks a lot of my ideas are awful. But I've promised Mordred I'd work on it and I will." He paused before continuing in a lighter tone. "So, tell me what culinary delights I am about to sink my teeth into."

Realising Arthur didn't want to talk about the case or his father, Gwen obliged and told him about the chicken pie she'd put in the oven that morning. The conversation moved to whether or not Merlin was exaggerating when he sang praises about her cooking - Gwen said he was but Arthur was insistent that Merlin would never lie about food.

"Anyway, the proof of the pudding is in the tasting isn't it?" He flashed that smile at her again, making her heart race and her mind send all sorts of warning signals.

They pulled up at her home shortly but Arthur remained in the car even after she got out.

"I'll be back in a while. I need to grab something first," he yelled through the window, then drove off. Slightly deflated at his sudden departure, Gwen made her way into her house. She'd been back for almost a month now and aside from moving her things into the house, nothing had changed. It was a house, not a home. But Merlin was determined to change that and despite her reservations, she had to admit she was looking forward to doing up the house with him.

By the time she heard Arthur knock on her door, she'd changed out of her work wear and into a simple t-shirt and shorts. Barefoot, she padded to the door, aware of how her heart had started pounding again. A grinning Arthur stood at her door, tie loosened and holding up a pint of ice cream.

"You went to get ice cream!" Gwen laughed, feeling strangely pleased, as she took the ice cream from him. "I love ice cream."

He followed her into the kitchen, smugness in his voice as he replied, "Who doesn't like ice cream? People with no taste, that's who. I'm starving."

"Is it ok if we eat in the kitchen?" Gwen asked as she pulled out the pie from the over. It was a decision she'd made while waiting for him to turn up. Eating at her dining table would seem too formal, too date-like for her.

"No problem. Can I help?"

Convinced that dinner was going to be both horribly awkward and nerve wracking, especially since not only was Arthur her boss, he was also her longtime crush, Gwen was relieved when it turned out to be the complete opposite. They chatted easily, debating various topics and laughing over each other's life stories. He was amazingly easy to talk to and he appeared to take a great interest in everything she said., although Gwen told herself repeatedly that it was a skill he required for his job and didn't mean he was any more interested in her than any of the other clients he had.

"That," Arthur stretched and rubbed his stomach, "was fantastic. Thank you. I have just enough stomach space for ice cream."

"Sure."

"Let me get it. How about we sit outside? I saw you have a little porch swing."

That would reek of intimacy but despite her misgivings, she nodded and followed him out. The sun had set and the night sky twinkled down at them. The swing wasn't very large so Gwen found herself sitting so close to Arthur she imagined she could smell the cologne he used.

He took a spoonful of ice cream and sighed contentedly. "This was a great idea."

"Feeling less stressed?"

"For the moment. When I leave, I'm sure it'll all come rushing back to me." He rubbed his face and even in the moonlight, Gwen could see the tiredness on his face.

"Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why do you do it? Work so hard? I notice none of the other lawyers take on such challenging cases at the rate you do."

Arthur stiffened, then shifted away from her and looked up into the sky. Immediately, Gwen regretted her question. Just because they shared an enjoyable evening together didn't mean they were friends.

"What about you Gwen? What are you hiding from?"

Startled by the change in subject, she stared blankly at him. "Hiding?"

"You hate this place and you have no intention of settling down here. Yet after all these years, you're suddenly back and you won't tell me what happened in your previous job."

She smiled wryly. "Touche. It wasn't my place to probe."

"No," he agreed pleasantly, then reached to take the ice cream tub from her.