midwife » michael gray. [completed]

CHAPTER FOURTEEN.

  → CHAPTER FOURTEEN; THE WEDDING.

Waking up in Michael's arms was something that Hannah could get used to. The feeling of his warm skin relaxed against her stomach as he breathed in and out slowly was paradise and the craving to be around Michael only grew with every passing second. Slowly sitting up in bed, Hannah shifted so the sheets covered her body that was only clothed with one of Michael's work shirts, the material hanging from her frame as she observed his slumbering body, her heart bursting with joy.

She loved him.

Over the months of knowing Michael, Hannah always knew that there was something there, but she hadn't expected it to turn into love so quickly. The previous night at the bar, she had shut down the claims that she was in love with Michael and that he was in love with her, but the reality was, they did love each other dearly. It wasn't some school-girl crush, it was real.

"Are you staring at me?" Michael asked as he lazily opened one eye.

Hannah let out a breath of air before leaning down to kiss Michael on the cheek. "Yes, I was and I'm not sorry about it."

Michael chuckled before rolling over onto his back. "Don't worry about it. I watched you sleep for a while last night."

As he spoke, Hannah wondered if Michael was in love with her as well and if in the dead of night, when there was nothing but the sound of drunken men stumbling home or owls flying around the sky, he had realised his love for her. It was a fear of hers, had been since she was a youngster, that she would fall in love with a man at a rapid pace, just for them to not love her back. The feelings began to stir at the bottom of her stomach as she watched Michael light a cigarette for herself and one for him.

"I didn't realise that Tommy's wedding was coming up so quickly. I'll need to ask Sister Margaret if I can have the day off or swap shifts with one of the other nurses," Hannah said after deciding that she wasn't going to tell Michael that she loved him, at least not yet. It was something that could wait until Hannah was completely sure that Michael felt the same way.

"Two weeks, isn't it?" If Michael was being completely honest, he had kept away from the wedding planning and only listened when it involved him or Hannah. Grace was hastily trying to get the last things together, sort the dresses and catering out as well as arrange for her family to travel over to Birmingham from Ireland.

"Correct." Hannah sighed before dropping her free hand to Michael's. "It's going to be good, I can feel it."

Michael laughed loudly before shaking his head. "I can tell that you've never been to a Shelby event."

Hannah blushed before shrugging. "Well, here's the first to many more." Hannah raised the hand that was holding the cigarette and Michael copied her action.

"Oh, indeed."

+++

Two weeks later, after a lot of smooth-talking and pleading, Hannah was making her way over to the wedding ceremony in Michael's car. She had decided to try and not wear one of the uninteresting dresses that she brought down from London. So, with Alexandra by her side, Hannah had gone in Birmingham's main city centre and picked out the grandest dress that she could find with the budget that she had. Michael had kindly offered to put money towards the outfit, but Hannah declined.

Both Hannah and Michael had spent almost every day with each other since the night at The Garrison. On her days off, herself and Michael would travel into the countryside and have a picnic if the weather was somewhat reasonable - which usually it wasn't so they huddled in the car to keep warm with a few sandwiches that Polly had made - or Hannah would go over to the betting shop and help Michael with the statistics, him teaching her the ways of the Blinder's. Sister Margaret and Sister Maria had stopped questioning Hannah about Michael and allowed to her date him without restrictions, with the one firm rule that he didn't enter the convent.