Alec was slightly puzzled as to Rose's reluctance to tell him what was wrong with her over the phone. All the time he'd known her she had never tried to lie to him before and he could only think that Tess had finally had a go at her before she'd left. Now he had to call Daisy to say he wouldn't be able to see her tomorrow, which would just about finish off any relationship as father and daughter that they'd actually had.

Tess would surely try to explain to her that he'd finally left them on their own and thanks to this murder, he wouldn't be able to tell her himself. Ellie Miller had seen him on his mobile and waited until he put it back in his pocket, figuring it was his personal phone. She braced herself and knocked on the door, waiting for him to shout at her. She thought he'd been a proper git all morning since she'd met him on the beach and he'd already chewed her out in front of everyone for allowing her nephew to release the victim's name.

She thought he looked upset over something though and gave him the benefit of the doubt.

"Sir, is anything wrong?"

"Besides a young boy being dead?"

"Sorry. I'm going to pop home and I'll meet you at the school, can you get a ride there or shall I arrange it for you?"

She had already complained to her husband about her new boss after being told he'd got the job she had more or less been promised but now, she wasn't so sure she would have wanted it.

"No, I will go myself, I have somewhere to go afterwards. Has the chief spoken to you?"

"About what?"

"We are getting extra help."

"In what way?"

"My DC from Sandbrook will be here tomorrow, I am going to collect her tonight."

"What's she meant to do, steal my job as well?"

"She will not be stealing your job Miller. She worked on the other case with me, she knows how I operate."

"And I don't? Is she your girlfriend or something?" Ellie asked, jokingly.

"She was my partner and now she is my fiancée, not that it will interfere with how we work. The chief knows all about it. If you have any objections, forget it."

"Wow, no wonder you were in a mood earlier."

"I was supposed to go up there for the weekend Miller, what do you expect?"

"So how did you get the chief to agree to her transfer?"

"It's not exactly a transfer, it is only for the duration of the investigation, then we have to consider what happens next. Go do whatever you have to do, I will see you at the school."

Alec sat back on his chair and took a moment to recover from what he'd discovered this morning after being taken to the beach. It was all too much like finding Pippa in the river almost a year ago. He thought just for one minute that Lee Ashworth was somehow involved, he would see what Rose thought about it tomorrow because when he got back tonight, all that mattered was reassuring her she was coming back with him and she wasn't going to be returning.

This was something he should be able to solve, the circumstances were totally different, it was a boy, not a girl and as far as he knew, no-one was missing. He got up to go get changed and take a quick shower and pack an overnight bag so he could leave right after the media briefing. He was just walking across the road to cut through the caravan site to save walking all the way around when Olly Stevens was waiting to be served in the fish and chip shop.

Losing his place in the queue, he ran across the road and caught up with Alec.

"DI Hardy, do you have a minute?"

Alec saw the badge around his neck.

"So, you're the one I have to thank for revealing the boy's name?"

"Look, I'm sorry about that, I was only doing my job."

"Yes and did you stop to think of the impact it would have on the family? It is the job of the police, not the press to identify victims formally. Stay out of my way from now on."

"What are you doing here in Broadchurch anyway?"

Alec had reached the row his caravan was on but had no intentions of letting the reporter know which one he was occupying, since he would be bringing Rose back with him in the morning.

"Solving a boy's murder. Instead of speculating, come to the media briefing and do your reporting in a more respectable manner. I expect you to go apologise to the family personally and tell your editor if there is any more reporting to be done, she is responsible for you."

"What about that case in Sandbrook?"

Alec was fast losing his temper but he was in the middle of a caravan park.

"Leave it alone Stevens, this is your only warning and you print anything, anything at all, you will not know what hit you, understand?"

Now he'd been delayed, he would have to rush to find the local High School in time and was tempted to call Miller to collect him but he didn't want her to know where he lived either and it would mean another delay setting off for Rose, which he was more bothered about now than anything.

Making the briefing just on time, he hoped Rose would be watching to save him having to explain things to her when he saw her. After reporters had finished taking his photo and asking questions, Alec read out his prepared statement that if anyone had any information to contact their local police.

Back in Sandbrook, Rose was on the internet trying to find the TV station where the broadcast would be most likely to come from since she didn't think it would have been picked up by the main channels just yet and found a link to watch live. No doubt if it went on for a while, it would go national. It was all Alec needed after their last case and the media speculating who was responsible for a suspect walking free, a topic that was churned up every now and then when an editor was out of fresh stories.

As the attention was turned onto Alec, Rose touched his face on the screen. That same look of determination was there as when they had first started out to find the then two missing girls and she knew it still pained him even though they never talked about it. Now, when he arrived, she had to face him and risk losing him or maybe her job as well because if she went back to the chief on Monday and said she didn't want to leave, Alec would have returned to Broadchurch on his own and she'd never see him again.

She looked at the ring on her finger. She'd actually taken it off the chain before she'd left the station after she came back from lunch, the results of the test in her hand and Annie promising she wouldn't even tell Peggy until Rose had told Alec. Annie had seen her clearing her desk, Peggy had been out.

"So, you're leaving then?"

"Yeah, I'll have to wait for Alec calling me to say when he's coming to collect me. How am I going to tell him Annie?"

"Just be honest with him Rose, he asked you to marry him. What happened to Henchard?"

"I think she went home, she must have got the divorce papers through. At least I don't have to say goodbye to her."

"How come you're getting out of here, did you get asked to go fill in for someone after all?"

"No, I can't say much Annie but you'll find out sooner or later. A young boy was found on Broadchurch beach early this morning."

"No! What are the chances he'd get transferred and that would happen?"

So now, Rose was laid on the sofa, drinking soda water to settle her stomach. At least she'd not been sick since she got home and had concluded it had been extended morning sickness and she intended calling at a pharmacy when they got to Broadchurch to try to get something for it, if she actually went.

Alec had set off and decided he could wait for something to eat, it was only just after seven and he would call for take-out once he got to Sandbrook. He just wanted to see Rose again. He pulled into the car park of the apartment building just before nine thirty and getting his overnight bag from the back of the car, let himself in and walked up the steps. Rose heard the key turn in the door and sat up, not too quickly.

"Rose, sweetheart?"

Rose got up as he turned to close the door and he turned back to go to kiss her.

"Alec. How was the drive?"

"The roads were quiet. Got a kiss for me honey?"

He sensed her reluctance as she kissed him lightly on the lips.

"Come on, tell me what is going on Rose."

He picked up his holdall and put it on the chair then led her to the sofa.

"So, I am waiting for an explanation as to why you would not talk on the phone. Why not? Why ask me why I want to marry you? You know why Rose and not just because you may have saved my life that day but you know it was a big factor. You stayed with me when I told you to go home, you gave me a place to stay when I could not face Tess and I felt at home with you to the point I wanted to take over your kitchen, to make breakfast for you."

He took her hand and played with the ring on her finger.

"When you took me home the next night and Tess was going out, all I thought about was going to see you, I took a big gamble and when you let me in and you mistook that attempt to kiss your cheek, then I realised I was not imagining things were starting to happen. Rose, you made my life bearable again, you got me through so much and I can never begin to thank you for that. I love you, you know I do so why can't you tell me what is wrong and why ask me why I want to marry you?"

"Alec, I'm pregnant."

"What?" he asked, getting up, Rose thinking he was going to leave. "Since when?"

"Since that night before you first went away, when you asked me if it was too near my monthly. Well it was but at the time I didn't think either of us cared."

"You never stopped me, you always stop me a few days before and when you let me carry on, I think we both knew where it was leading?"

"You're not mad?"

He sat down again and pulled her closer. "Rose, after the day I have had today, on that beach with my irritating new DS, that is the best thing I have heard. Why did you think I would be mad?"

"Because you know I should have stopped you that night but I didn't want to. You were going away and I had no idea how long it would take to get a transfer but after that first weekend you came back, I was hoping I would have got pregnant that night, so it would bring you back. Alec, I don't care where we live, here or Broadchurch, I want to have this baby with you."

"We have a lot to talk about, giving notice on this place to start with but we can deal with that next weekend. Just bring what you need for a week and we will come back and I will try to smooth things over with Daisy, she would not answer my call earlier but that will be because Tess will have told her about the divorce."

"Alec, I'm sorry Daisy won't talk to you but she'll come round, it just may take a while. So beside the sun, the sea and the sky, what's Broadchurch really like?"

"Well tomorrow you will find out for yourself, if you still want to work the case with me?"

"I may run off to be sick now and then."

"I can live with that love. I suppose a Chinese takeaway is out of the question?"

Rose got up and ran to the bathroom, Alec hearing her throwing up.

"I will take that as a no then?"

59 days later

They knew they were close, Rose had worked it out before Alec had done that something was not right when she had gone with him to retrieve Tom Miller's smashed up laptop from the local vicar. She had said he was covering something up after speaking with Paul Coates and all they were waiting for was the dead boy's phone to be switched on and for Rose to be sent the exact whereabouts.

They were both on the beach, Ellie Miller was interviewing Nigel Carter, the man who worked with the dead boy's father but Alec had seen Rose wasn't doing so well and wanted her to get some fresh air. Even though she was now just over two months, she still felt sickly some days. So he had sat her on a large rock and they had just kissed.

"We shouldn't be sneaking out like this Alec, we promised the chief we would behave."

"It is just the once love. How are you feeling?"

"Better, I think it's just that building. You should get back and help Ellie interview Nigel Carter. He's a bit of a creep but I don't think he had anything to do with it."

"It was just to give her something to do, you know that love. We could not very well say our prime suspect is her husband, could we? Come on then, we will go back."

Rose's work phone rang. She handed it to Alec when the caller said the missing phone was active. Joe Miller offered no resistance as he was taken away by uniformed officers after confessing to Rose and Alec and Alec went to interrupt Ellie.

"Sit down Miller, it's not him. Rose, sit with her please."

It was after ten and they were about to go to bed when a knock came on their caravan door. Ellie had to walk Rose back one day when she wasn't feeling well and the chief had questioned Rose's ability to finish the case.

Alec went to make Ellie a drink and Rose sat with her.

"I should have seen it," Ellie was saying.

"Ellie, how could you? Our last case, in Sandbrook, the wife of the suspect was covering for him, we know she was but she wouldn't give him up and he's still out there. We had no reason to think you knew what had happened, did we Alec?"

"Rose is right Miller, we wanted to be wrong about it."

"How are the boys?" Rose asked.

"Olly and my sister are with them, Tom's upset and Fred doesn't know what's going on, thankfully. Are you two staying now? There's a job for you Rose."

Rose smiled. "I can take it for a few months until I have to take maternity leave. You might be allowed back by then?"

"I can't come back Rose, not now. How can I face anyone?"

Ellie finally left and they were getting ready for bed.

"We should set a date Rose, we don't want to be getting married when you're having the baby. We should find out what we are having."

"Yeah, I hope you're coming to the scan with me, I can arrange it now."

"Yes, I am coming with you and now we can go back and tell Daisy, now she actually answered my call."

"See, I told you she'd come around."

"Yes you did love and you got it right this time, about the suspect."

Rose put her arms around him without reaching up as he always made sure she didn't stretch too much.

"Mmm, I always get it right Alec, I was right about you."

"You fancied me when you arrived in Sandbrook?"

"Well not at first when I was working with DS Moore, who I know now was no relation to the chief. You changed your appearance to please me, did you not think I would still have fallen in love with you had you stayed as you were?"

"Maybe I wanted to change for you love," he told her, putting his arms around her. "So how about next month? It will be a year since we got together."

"Perfect but we have to start looking for a place to live."

"Well an apartment is out of the question, a three bedroom house maybe?"

"So we can have a spare bedroom?" Rose smiled.

"Ah but not for me if we have an argument, it will just save us having to move when we have more kids."

"You are getting ahead of yourself again Alec."

The End!