After You

Prologue - The End of All Things

It was a balmy Sunday morning; an unseasonably hot September. Meredith had worked a wedding the night before, so she was in no mood to be woken early by her perpetually happy husband.

'I'm gonna go now, Merry,' Rhys said, his shadow looming over her as she lay sprawled on her back, her eyes resolutely scrunched closed. The irritating man had taken it upon himself to noisily scrape back the curtains; rings screeching and clunking over their pole, as sunlight flooded the room.

'Sod off then!' Meredith harrumphed, pulling the duvet up over her face to block out the dazzling sun. 'And close the bloody curtains. I'm trying to sleep here!' she complained, as she heard him make to leave the room. Rhys chuckled, his scent invading her nostrils as he stooped close, bathing her face in warm, minty-fresh breath.

'If I did close the curtains, no doubt I'd come back at lunchtime to find you still in bed.'

'You wouldn't,' she hissed, indignantly, her eyes still shut in a futile attempt at reclaiming sleep. 'You're helping Luke load up the van, remember?'

'Oh yeah,' he said, thoughtfully, because Rhys had forgotten that he'd promised to help his best friend and rowing partner move out of his shared house. Meredith felt her husband's heat draw near. Then the press of his lips against hers. Platonic. Chaste. He pulled back, his warmth retreating, and despite being annoyed that he'd needlessly woken her, Meredith mourned his withdrawal.

'In that case,' Rhys said, his tone smug, 'I'd come home at dinner time to find you still in bed.' Meredith couldn't help it; she rose to his boyish provocation and snapped her eyes open, as her left hand flew out to grab Rhys' long-since discarded pillow; her fingers biting into it as it oozed about her fist. She flung it at him with full force, smiling proudly when it smacked him in the face. It fell to the floor with a soft flump; Rhys' face unmoved, his smile still in place.

'You're such an arse!' Meredith told him, half laughing. 'I'd never lay in bed until dinner time. I'm always up by four P.M.' Her husband's youthful grin only widened with the satisfaction of teasing her; of well-and-truly ensuring that all trace of sleep was swept away.

'Spousal abuse is a serious matter, Merry,' Rhys said, his tone sombre; his lips quirking in suppressed amusement. He knelt to reclaim his pillow. She didn't need to watch him to know what he'd do next. The pillow hurtled towards her, catching her clean in the face, leaving her smothered in the scent of her husband. Meredith pulled the pillow from her face, only to find Rhys hovering inches above her. He stole the pillow from her hand and tossed it into the corner of the room. 'I love you,' he whispered, his lips drawing closer; nuzzling at her neck. She sighed contentedly.

'I wish you could just stay in bed with me.' He raised one sandy-blonde eyebrow.

'Me too,' he said, 'but I've got to go. I don't want to keep Luke waiting.' Meredith growled in frustration. Their schedules were ridiculous. He rowed with his best friend on Sunday mornings. She coxed her crew well before the crack of dawn on Saturdays, because she never quite had the energy to haul herself from their warm bed and into an icy boat if she'd worked a fourteen hour shift at the hotel the day before.

They were like ships passing in the night, with Meredith often working long weekends, whilst Rhys would always work during the week. When they weren't working, they were out with their respective crews. Meredith often joked that the only saving grace to their hectic work and social life, was that she knew her husband would never have time to conduct an illicit affair.

'I won't stay out long,' Rhys whispered in placating tones, as his lips mumbled across Meredith's jaw. 'We'll get the van loaded up as soon as we've finished on the water. I'll grab a quick lunch with Luke, and then I'll come straight back. We can veg out together.' Meredith's lips curled into a grateful smile as her husband pressed a kiss to her mouth. 'Play your cards right, Mrs Townsend, and today might be the day we make a baby.' Rhys' tongue pressed against Meredith's lips, seeking entry, and she obliged, basking in the warmth of his mouth as he wrapped one strong arm about her shoulders, lifting her from the mattress.