We're both gentlemen, we know how to be discreet. Hillier's words echoed around his mind. Tommy understood very well that Hillier was ensuring his silence by using his relationship with Barbara as a threat. It may well have been the way the game was played but Tommy considered that he was a man of his word. There had been no need to threaten him.

"What did he say?" Barbara asked when she came into his office. She had slipped out when Hillier was talking to Lynley and bought some sandwiches to eat while they wrote up their reports.

Tommy could see the concern on her face. His first instinct was to fob it off as nothing to shield her but that was not the type of protection Barbara needed. They had to continue to be honest with each other. As soon as he had become romantically involved with Helen he had gradually stopped talking to her about his feelings and his fears. He could not afford to make that mistake with Barbara. "He guessed about us. He used the old boy discretion argument, you know the one - 'I'll keep your secret if you keep mine and if you don't, neither will I.' I wanted to hit him."

"Why? Because he knows or because you think he didn't trust you enough without threatening you?"

"I was offended that he thought he needed to do that."

"Maybe you're being too critical Sir. Maybe it's the other way around and he knows you don't trust him so he thinks he can prove himself by keeping our secret. Anyway that's good news. It means that as long as we don't get caught kissing in your office we can keep working together and not have to worry about being sprung."

Tommy looked up and smiled at the way she had emphasised his earlier indiscretion. Barbara was unwrapping her sandwich and about to take a large bite. "You know since that very first case you've kept me grounded. Promise me that you'll always do that."

"Mmm, now eat your sandwich so we can finish the reports and get out of here."

Despite their weariness and keenness to leave half an hour later they were still sitting in his office; their professionalism ensuring that they tidied all the loose ends. Tommy was typing with one finger on his left hand, saved from embarrassment only by his spell checker. When he received the call to say Peter was awake Barbara had insisted that he go alone to the hospital while she finished tidying up the case with Organised Crime. Tommy was reluctant. He knew it made sense but he could not face it alone. "No, if we both do it we will finish quicker. I prefer that we go together."

"They're your family Sir."

"You mean they're my problem not yours," he said bitterly.

"No, I mean that they are your family and you should go to them because they need you. They don't need me so I can finish here and follow."

"I need you Barbara." He was tired and in pain and he was unsure what Peter would say. "I can cope with you there but I can't face them alone, not today."

She smiled at him softly. "Okay. You dictate and I'll type."

An hour later his mother greeted them excitedly when he opened the door to Peter's hospital room. "Tommy! Barbara! Peter's been awake but he's sleeping again now. He's having a little bit of trouble with his memory but otherwise he seems fine."

"That's excellent news Mother." He sat with her chatting quietly for the next half hour while Barbara made some phone calls to Sir Paul and her insurance firm. Neither of the Lynleys broached any personal subjects, mainly discussing the upcoming horse sales. Tommy preferred that to any dramatic discussions about the family.

Barbara returned looking worried but before he could speak to her Peter stirred. He coughed then opened one eye cautiously followed by the other. "Ah big brother, attempts to eradicate me were unsuccessful it seems, although someone gave it a damned good try."

Tommy shook his brother's hand, relieved that he appeared to be fine. "Oh Peter, I'm so sorry you became entangled in this mess."

His brother's expression became quite serious. "Thank you. Barbara told me that if you hadn't stepped in front of me I probably would have been killed by that dart."

Tommy was confused and looked at Barbara who shrugged. "Barbara and I have only been here a little while Peter. It must have been Mother."

"No, I heard her yesterday and you're not a coward. You were right, I could have made more effort to understand when I was older and talk to you about things. I was stubborn and childish too Tommy. I think it is a family trait. Let's hope any sons you have carry more of Barbara's character."

Tommy looked at Barbara whose face had gone scarlet then looked guiltily at his mother. "We were…we are…"

"Oh for goodness sake you two! Stop trying to avoid telling us that you are together," his mother said. "You never could hide anything, even when you were a boy. I could see it on your faces as soon as I walked out the door at the airport."

Barbara stared at her. "Really?"

"Did you think I would disapprove?" she asked her eldest son.

"No, we just didn't want to shock you."

Dorothy and Peter both started to laugh. "You two have been orbiting around each other for years, it's hardly going to shock anyone." his mother said then added seriously, "I'm happy for you both but Tommy is not always the easiest of men Barbara; I only hope you can put up with him."

Tommy saw Barbara bristle and worried that she might be overwhelmed by the family pressure. He understood now why she had been so adamant that they wait to tell them. He took her hand and held it firmly so that she knew unequivocally that he was on her side. He was debating how to respond when Barbara spoke.

"I love your son just as he is Dorothy. Over the years I've seen him at his worst and at his best. We are all human and neither of us are always the easiest people to be around. Some days we will argue, some days we will make mistakes but every day I will be there to support him and defend him. I believe he feels the same way so together I think we can tackle just about anything. In the end nothing else matters does it?" Her voice was even but Tommy could feel her hand trembling. He squeezed it reassuringly.

Whether Barbara realised it or not the way she had spoken changed the balance of power in the family. It freed Tommy of all the expectations and strictures. Unlike Helen who loved the status but hated the obligations Tommy knew Barbara would be his true partner just as she was at work. "I do feel the same and I agree; nothing else matters except what we mean to each other."

Tommy looked at his mother and thought she might cry but instead she came over and embraced Barbara . Barbara smiled which moved Tommy to embrace his mother. "You don't know how long I've waited Tommy for you to find someone you love enough to fight for and who is strong enough to love you."

"Oi! I thought I was supposed to be the centre of attention here,' Peter joked.

"Oh Peter, you're so yesterday's news!" his mother said. "I need to ring Judith and tell her about everything."

Tommy and Barbara stayed talking to Peter until his mother reappeared grinning like the proverbial cat. "Judith is delighted to hear everyone is well. She expects you to ring her Tommy and tell her all the details."

"Maybe tomorrow. I'm exhausted and we haven't really eaten today. I suggest we let Peter rest. We can drop you at the hotel," he said looking at his mother.

An hour later he and Barbara were sitting on his couch devouring a curry from his local Indian restaurant. With only his left hand to use Barbara had cut his meat into small pieces and he was using a spoon to scoop up the rice and chicken. "I'm going to take more looking after than I thought," he said as he dropped another piece.

Barbara took his spoon and fed him some curry. "I don't mind. It gives us time to get used to each other."

Tommy grinned. "After nearly a decade you don't think we might already be used to each other?"

Barbara blushed and bit her lip. "Physically, sort of get used to touching each other before...well you know."

"Oh Barbara, 'you know' can't come soon enough for me." He leant across the curry box and kissed her gently. "I want to make love to you more than anything else. It's so frustrating finally being alone in our house, no case, and Peter recovering when I can't do justice to what I feel, but we have our whole future to look forward to Barbara. I can't remember ever feeling more content."

Barbara looked down. "If I think about it too much it scares me," she admitted.

Tommy moved the curry box and slid over next to her. He put his good arm around her shoulder and hugged her. "Why?" he asked with concern, "which bit? Making love to me or the future?"

"Both a little."

He kissed her tenderly, relieved that she readily responded. "Do you know what scares me?' he whispered, "that you will decide Mother was right and that I am unbearable to live with and that you don't love me enough. Other than that I believe what you told Mother, together we can tackle anything as long as you tell me what's wrong."

"Housing," she said suddenly standing up and walking to the other side of the room.

"Oh sorry, I completely forgot. What did Sir Paul say?"

"My insurance company will only pay out the full amount if I agree to buy one of Warillan's apartments. Warillan is now offering us a larger discount but I'm still short and I don't know if I want to live in a hi-rise block anyway. And what do I do in the interim? I can't save up if I'm paying rent. I've been trying to think about it all afternoon and just keep going around in circles."

Tommy was confused and alarmed by her statement but tried hard not to feel wounded. He was very careful not to say that money did not matter or that he would cover any costs. "Barbara, I understand you want to get the best financial deal but I thought you would live here with me, permanently. We were talking about a future together. I want to wake up beside you every day for the rest of my life. That's kind of hard if you're living somewhere else. I thought you wanted that too."

"Look around, this is not my life, it's yours. I would feel as if I'd been swallowed up. I'm not even sure I could sleep with you here."

"You slept with me here last night!"

"You know what I mean. There are too many ghosts. I thought you could stay at my place for 'you know'."

Tommy looked around and understood. He had bought this house with Helen in a suburb that suited Helen's view of their status. It certainly was not something Barbara would be comfortable living in nor was it something he needed. He struggled to stand. His leg had stiffened up and Barbara rushed back to help him. He pulled her into an awkward one-armed embrace then stepped back so that he could look at her. "That's easily solved but you have to be honest with me. Do you need your own space or can you live with me?"

"I want to live with you but…"

"No buts. I couldn't live here after Helen died but I had to move back in to face it once I had re-joined the world. It holds no sentiment for me Barbara. I can sell this or rent it out and we can find somewhere else to live where we are both comfortable. Actually I prefer to start afresh. Half of this furniture I hate so we can create our own home together. Would that work?"

"Are you sure?"

Tommy could see from the way her eyes shone that she wanted it. He pulled her close and ran his hand up and down her back. "Yes." He hoped his kiss expressed how much he loved her but as the passion of the kiss escalated Tommy had to pull away. "Sorry this position is killing my shoulder. It's only early but we're both tired. Let's go to bed."

"Such a smooth talker."

Hours later they were still awake lying on their sides grinning at each other. "I am not sure your doctor would approve," Barbara told him.

"As long as you approve," he said as he caressed her shoulder. "Where there's a will there's a way but just wait until I recover. I will never tire of making love to you."

"I've always thought it should be with you, not to you."

"I'll never tire of making love with you Barbara," he confirmed. "So when you were saying yes earlier, was it to my question?"

Barbara lowered her eyes and looked up at him coyly. "Which question?"

"You know very well which question."

"I thought you were only asking because of the urgency of the moment."

"That was the third time I'd asked if you remember."

"We've decided on an apartment by the river, what style we want, what size, the fact that you're going to buy it rather than rent, that we'll buy Warillan's apartment even if you help pay, although how I agreed to that I don't know. We also agreed not to go to Cornwell while you recover. Don't you think that's enough for one night?"

"No. We agreed on something else too," he coaxed as he snuggled closer and started to kiss the soft skin just underneath her ear.

"Yes, that there'll be no more of that tonight seeing you only had two condoms in your drawer."

"Just goes to prove I don't make a habit of this sort of thing."

"Or you do, that's why you only had a third of a box."

"You believe what you need to Sergeant." Tommy was not going to tell her they were left over from when Helen had returned. He was secretly delighted that she had forgotten her previous concerns about ghosts. "Besides if you say yes that won't matter."

"It will to me, I'm not waddling up the aisle like some Acton teenager!"

"Right so you want a church wedding. Do I take that as a yes?"

"Persistent aren't you Tommy? Yes! Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes! Are you happy?"

"Actually I've never been happier!" he said then started to nuzzle under her ear.