Chapter 25

John smiled when his gaze fell on the framed photograph on his desk as he rose from his chair. Somehow looking at the photo made him happy, it gave him a warm feeling of love and home and he wasn't at all scared to admit that he was falling in love with his wife – a second time. Clara seemed to be everything he could ever wish for and he was so grateful that she gave him the time he needed to adjust to the situation. Sooner or later it would all work out, he was sure of it.

Suddenly the door to his office burst open, tearing him out of his thoughts, and a terrified looking Nardole stuck his head through the crack.

"Boss, there's an unannounced patient. I tried to send her away, but-"

"For the love of God, I am not a patient!" Missy's voice came from the other side of the door and a moment later it swung open before marching inside.

"Are you sure?" Nardole asked her carefully, eyeing her with suspicion, "You look pale."

"That's rich, coming from a Michelin man like you. Tell me, where are your eyebrows?"

Nardole open his mouth to reply, but Missy didn't give him a chance.

"Nevermind. John probably stole them. He does that, you know, even though I've told him a hundred times."

John frowned at the pair of them before he cleared his throat. "Uhm, Missy, we wanted to go for lunch? Unless you'd rather stay here and bicker."

"Absolutely not," she spat in Nardole's direction and turned around on her heels, leaving John no other choice but to follow her.

They found a café close to his practice where John had had lunch a few times already and settled at a table in a quiet corner. He was hungry and instantly reached for the menu.

"The beard is gone," Missy noted after a few moments, causing John to raise his head and look at her.

"Yeah, I shaved it during the weekend," he replied and lowered his gaze back to the menu. The bacon sandwich sounded really delicious.

"Which means you and Clara are at least snogging – finally."

He dropped the menu back on the table, realizing that they wouldn't eat before Missy had learned everything he had been up to lately and his stomach growled in response. The bacon sandwich would have to wait for a few more minutes.

"Don't deny it, John, I've known you since we were children. There's nothing I don't know about you."

He glowered at her. "Well, that only means I know just as much about you."

"Wrong," Missy sighed, "You're missing five years. So, tell me, how's it going with Clara?"

John leaned back in his seat and couldn't help but smile when he thought about Clara. Just the fact that he was going to come home to that wonderful woman tonight made him insanely happy.

"I think I'm starting to remember," he said and when Missy raised her eyebrows he quickly moved on, "Well, not memories, not things, but. . . feelings, I think."

Still his friend gave him a questioning look as if she was waiting for him to elaborate, yet he couldn't quite put into words what he had experienced.

"Okay, so, there's a photo of me and Clara on my desk-"

"I know, I took it."

"Anyway," John went on, ignoring Missy's interruption, "When I saw it I got this strange feeling that-"

"It's called a boner, John."

He inhaled sharply and tried his best to swallow the comeback. Missy was unbelievable sometimes, but he had learned that usually it was best to just ignore it.

"I felt like something was missing, I actually felt it and it bothers me even now. Clara and I wanted kids and I can feel that we did. It's like a hole in my life that can't be filled with anything else and I don't remember that being there before. Before Clara I hadn't wanted children at all," he explained.

Missy sighed audibly. "You do realize there's only one way you're gonna get kids, right?"

"I know," John breathed in reply, "And we're working on that. I'm-"

"You're what?" Missy enquired.

He looked up, staring right at her and for once she didn't seem to be in a joking mood.

"I'm falling for her, Missy," he explained, "I'm falling in love with Clara. She's amazing."

To his surprise Missy smiled at him in reply. "I knew you would. She's perfect for you."

"I should thank you, I suppose. You set us up in the first place."

"You're welcome," his friend granted him a smug smile.

"As for the rest, I'm glad Clara is fine with taking things slow. I'm getting to know her, I'm learning to love her and I'm enjoying it," John said happily, "But I don't think I could go further right now."

"Well, I doubt she's gonna leave you any time soon," Missy shrugged and then, to John's relief, the waiter finally appeared to take their order. He was almost starving by now.

"How much longer is this going to take?" Clara asked in annoyance while Amy dragged her into the nearest shop. They had been at the mall for hours and her feet felt tired and Clara wanted nothing more than to finally go home.

"Just this one," her friend said as she came to a halt in the middle of an expensive lingerie shop, "It's my wedding anniversary this weekend and I want to surprise Rory with something sexy."

"Fine," Clara sighed, "But can I wait outside? My feet are killing me."

"Absolutely not," Amy insisted, "You will stay here and we'll pick something for you, too."

She rolled her eyes. "Just in case you haven't noticed, my sex life is kind of dead at the moment."

"Precisely. So we'll find something sexy that will bring it back to life."

She let her gaze wander around the shop and considered her friend's suggestion for a moment. Maybe it wasn't such a bad idea. After all, she and John had been snogging a lot lately, including a bit of fumbling. She had seen how it had aroused him on multiple occasions and yet Clara could remember all too well how harshly he had reacted to seeing her naked the first time – but that had been before their kiss. Maybe his attitude had changed. Maybe it was time for the next step.

"Come on, don't tell me John isn't the lingerie type," Amy nudged her gently.

Clara smiled to herself. About a month before the accident Clara had surprised him with a new set of lingerie and he had been very appreciative of that. Technically she wouldn't even have to buy a new set because he had no memory of the last one. But surely she could splurge just a little?

"I think this one would suit you nicely," Amy pointed at a set made out of red lace that seemed to leave very little to one's imagination.

Clara chuckled. "I want to seduce my husband, not give him a heart attack," she said, "No, I think something more subtle would be better."

Finally she had taken a liking to the idea and stepped further into the shop to have a closer look at what they were offering. It really wasn't that bad an idea and she missed John, the intimacy, the way he had made her fall apart under his touch so many times. Damn, they really needed to have sex again as soon as possible.

As she approached the shelf, Clara noticed a nice, cream coloured bra. "I like this one," she said.

Amy wrinkled her nose next to her. "That's cute, but not sexy."

Clara smiled to herself. "Cute is exactly what I need, I think."