Harriet's Arrangement

Mr Crawford mustn't know

"Hey, baby girl."

"Hey, you," Harriet said, smiling at the sound his voice on the other end of the phone, "Is this a good time?"

"Sure, my shift just finished," Tom said, "What's up?"

"Please don't freak out," she said, and in the brief silence she could almost hear him raising his eyebrows and felt her stomach do a little somersault as she dragged this topic up again, "But Jennifer called. She said she needed help... I said I'd go and see her."

"Harriet –"

"I said I wouldn't go alone," she added quickly, "Can you come?"

He sighed, and she was sure he was now rolling his eyes and trying not to smile. "Now?" he asked.

"She said Malcolm would be back at the hotel at six.... I said... that I – we – would be there within the hour," she finished a little nervously, "I'm sorry, Tom, I –"

"Baby girl," he cut in, his tone immediately calming her, "Stop, you did the right thing."

"Ok," she said quietly.

"Which hotel?"

"The Dorchester."

He laughed. "I'll find a jacket then! Meet you at Green Park in half an hour?"

"Thank you."

"I'm there all the way, Hattie. Thank you for calling me. See you soon."

He hung up, and Harriet closed her eyes and took a breath, turning back down the corridor to let Kieran know, wondering if she would ever find herself free of difficult topics that involved Malcolm.

Kieran nodded his understanding, and as she left, promising to be in early the following morning despite his waving her apologies aside, he hesitated just slightly. "Harriet... would you please just drop me a text to let me know you're home safe later? I'm just not confident that anything involving Malcolm is straight down the line."

She gave him a grateful smile, appreciating his concern. "I'll let you know how it goes," she said, "And I'll see you in the morning."

All the way to Green Park her mind was creating and discarding more and more ludicrous ideas of what Jennifer might have been calling about, and by the time she stepped out of the underground station into the sunshine, she was half considering having the emergency services ready on speed dial, so convinced she was that they would find Jennifer in a semi-conscious state.

Tom's hand on her elbow made her jump, and she looked up at him, startled. He was indeed wearing a jacket, with an open-collar shirt and smart jeans. He carried the satchel he always carried everywhere – the one that she knew contained his current notepad for jotting down anything that occurred to him when he wasn't near his laptop or the folders where he kept his writing.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you," he said, smiling at her. He leant down to peck her on the lips, his hand finding hers and giving it a tight squeeze as he recognised the panic in her eyes. "It's ok," he murmured, "We're doing this together. Ok? He won't get near you."

"I'm not worried for me," she protested, but he kissed her again, a little longer this time.

"I am," he said, a little possessively, "And that's why I'm here. But you're here because you're the most selfless person I know. And that's why we're good for each other. I balance out your crazy need to put everyone else first."

She pouted a little, but it was a friendly pout, knowing it was a compliment, even if it was a trait that occasionally irritated him. It still earned her a look, though, which did precisely the opposite of what she suspected Tom had intended and made her laugh. But it eased the nerves, and she felt her thoughts returning to a more rational place. He smiled and rolled his eyes, tugging on her hand as they made their way towards Hyde Park and the Dorchester.