This is a continuation of my story Where We Start. You can read this as a separate story, but some things in this story might be unclear because I'll be referring back to it a couple of times. Hopefully it'll be fluffy enough, because I do intend to make this story a lot happier than Where We Start. Happy reading!

Chapter 1

By the time they arrived back on the Grid it was nearly 5.30. Ruth and Harry didn't get a chance to speak to each other for the rest of the day. There were stacks of paperwork to be filled out and calls to be made. There were, however, the occasional glances from one to the other, paired with flashbacks of the events of the past couple of days and everything that had happened between them. It was unbelievable how much could happen in such a short time span.

As always they were the last ones to stay behind on the Grid, working well into the night.

"You know, you've just missed the last bus" Harry whispered into her ear.

This made Ruth jump slightly. She hadn't heard him coming up behind her at all.

"Well, I suppose you could give me a lift then" she replied without looking up.

"Yes, I suppose I could" he repeated.

For the second time that day he was driving her home. Only this time there was no awkward silence, no tense atmosphere.

For the second time that day he parked his car outside her flat and walked her to her front door. Only this time she didn't object to him doing so.

She turned to look at him, fidgeting nervously with her house keys as she did so. "Thanks for driving me home Harry."

"No need to thank me, it was my pleasure," he said. He bent forward and let his lips brush against hers for just a moment. "Goodnight Ruth."

He then turned around and walked back to his car, got inside, but didn't pull away until he had made sure Ruth had safely entered her house.

Ruth couldn't stop smiling as she closed and locked the front door behind her. Earlier that day she had felt so miserable, devoid of any feelings whatsoever. And now, mere hours later, she felt more alive than ever before. Maybe, just maybe, she thought, this could really be the start of something wonderful.

Over the next couple of days they didn't get to speak to each other at all. The whole Lucas/John fiasco had started to unravel, Ruth had been kidnapped and nearly killed, and Harry had narrowly escaped death as well later that same day.

Ruth had been convinced that Lucas would kill Harry. She hadn't meant to break down like that in front of Tariq, but she hadn't been able to keep her emotions in check any longer. She cried for losing Harry, for the countless missed opportunities, for the many things that were still left unsaid. She couldn't possibly put into words how relieved she felt when she heard Harry was ok. In a way she was still sad that Lucas had died, even if he had made an attempt to kill her. But she was relieved that it was him and not Harry.

Also, she hadn't meant to sound so harsh earlier on when she had told Harry it was unfair of him to love her. She hadn't meant it like that. It just didn't feel right that he willingly shared a weapon that could easily kill thousands, even millions of people, just to save her. Just one, insignificant human being. Right now she could only thank God or whichever higher power had saved Harry, to ensure that those weren't the last words she had ever spoken to him.

For the next two days they didn't get a chance to see each other yet again. Harry was occasionally popping in on the Grid, but never stayed for more than ten minutes at a time. He spent a lot of time at Whitehall amongst other places, but nobody knew exactly what he was doing. The rest of the team were working overtime on the Grid. The Lucas/John ordeal had left them with a pile of paperwork that could account for the loss of a couple of acres of rainforest at least.

Ruth was restless. She desperately wanted to be alone with Harry for a moment, be able to talk to him. She had so many questions, there were so many things that needed to be said.

When he left the Grid again for the umpteenth time without a word to anyone, she decided to follow him. She saw him go up to the roof carrying his phone, so she decided to keep her distance for a moment, to allow him some privacy to make this call that was obviously so important that he wanted to make it away from his office and colleagues.

The moment she heard him hang up the phone she opened the door and stepped out onto the rooftop.

Harry turned around abruptly, his features softening when he saw it was Ruth.

"Hi" she said, shyly.

He took one of her hands in his and squeezed it slightly. "I've missed you."

"I've missed you, too" she answered. "Who was it you were talking to? It sounded quite serious." She looked worried.

He took a deep breath. "It was the Home Secretary. It's not looking good Ruth. There is to be a full inquiry, not just about Lucas and Albany, but about my entire career."

Ruth looked shocked. "But why?" she asked. "You made a wrong decision, which I'm sure you'll acknowledge and take full responsibility for, but that's no reason to question everything else you've done. The risks you've taken over the years, the lives you have saved."

"Albany was a fake, Ruth."

Her eyes widened. "What?"

"It didn't work. We just made others think it did, to scare them off. It was to have some leverage over the Chinese, amongst others."

"But then, why do they feel the need to have a full inquiry if Albany didn't work anyway?" she asked.

"I still gave away a state secret Ruth, which makes it treason." He answered. "And they want to make me pay for that, even if it's the last thing they do. It's politics, that's all it is. Don't even try to understand it, I've never been able to either."

Ruth was speechless for a moment. All sorts of crazy thoughts were swirling around in her mind. The more she tried to make sense of it all, the more it confused her.

"Do you have any idea how severe the repercussions will be?" she finally asked.

"Early retirement, decommissioning, imprisonment. Who knows?"

She gasped as she heard the word imprisonment. "Surely they wouldn't send you to prison?"

"I don't know Ruth, I really don't know." He said. "I've one thing working in my favour though. I know where all the bodies are buried. I know every detail of every secret mission, every cover-up done by slimy politicians. That should give me at least some benefit."

Ruth smiled. She knew Harry wouldn't give in that easily. But the thought of a full inquiry still worried her immensely.

"I need you to tell me one thing though, and be honest with me." She said. "If Albany had been the real deal, would you have still given it to Lucas?"

Harry took a deep breath and took hold of her hand even more tightly. "No, as much as it pains me, I would not have given it to him. That weapon, in full working order, could have caused the death of millions of people. And although it would have destroyed me if Lucas had killed you, I still wouldn't have given him Albany. I would have found another way to save you though, I promise."

Ruth nodded her approval. "Thank you for being honest with me Harry, really. I'm glad you said that. I wouldn't have been able to live with myself, knowing that you'd choose my life, my one insignificant life, over that of millions of others."

He pulled her closer, enveloping her small frame into his big strong arms. She rested her head against his chest, listening to the soft thumping of his heart. He buried his face in her hair, breathing in her scent which gave him all the comfort he needed at that moment.

"You do know I'd do anything within my power to keep you safe, don't you?" he whispered. "Only, giving Lucas a file like Albany in working order would have been out of the question."

"I know," she said, nodding slightly, burying her face even closer to his chest. "You'd do anything to keep the people you care about safe. But you're also a man of principles, and you have a very high moral standard. That's what I love about you."

That last statement shocked them both. It shocked Harry because even though he knew she loved him, she had never actually said it. Until now it had always remained the 'something wonderful that was never said', at least on her part.

Ruth had managed to shock herself, too. For a while now she had intended to finally tell Harry that she loved him, but she had never meant to say it quite like this. She looked up at him and started blushing feverishly. She anxiously bit her bottom lip, waiting for him to say something. He thought it made her look absolutely adorable.

"Well, I'm glad that after all these years it no longer remains unsaid. Now it's just something wonderful." He said, smiling, before bending down to kiss her passionately.

"So Ms. Evershed, would you like to have dinner with me tomorrow night?" he asked after they'd ended the kiss. "I'll let you pick the restaurant."

"I'd love to," she said. "But on one condition."

"Name it," he said.

"You'll have to wear the blue shirt," she replied, giving him a seductive smile.

"Your wish is my command Ruth," he grinned, before kissing her again.

More soon. Please review! xxx