Epilogue

(By request)

"Are you feeling nervous?" Maggie asked brightly as she stood behind Sarah and looked at her through the mirror.

Sarah smiled at her placidly. "No ... not at all ... you?"

Maggie couldn't help but envy her friend's calm demeanour. "What have I got to be nervous about?" she shrugged her shoulders dismissively.

"Well ... Pete's back in town – or so I've heard..."

"Yes ... although I can't think where you might have heard it?" her tone came out accusing but she just knew that she wasn't fooling Sarah.

"And I've also heard that he's given you an ultimatum?"

Maggie felt the colour rush to her cheeks and her eyes glittered with anger. "Yessss..." she hissed. "And I'm still trying to figure out why he thinks he has the right to ultimatum me about – anything!"

Sarah regarded her thoughtfully for a moment.

"Well ... he explained what happened – and apologised ... his divorce has gone through and he's ... single again..." she paused so that Maggie could get over her snorting coughing and general angry mutterings. "And you've had him grovelling for months now..."

"And don't you think he deserves it! After lying to me like that?" Maggie demanded heatedly.

Sarah sighed. "Maybe ... a little..." she murmured soothingly. "But it's time for you to make a decision I think Maggie." She finished sternly.

"Hah! You sound just like him – with his damned ultimatum!"

"Perhaps ... but I think you're just scared Mag's ... I think you're hiding behind your anger so that you don't get hurt again. I think it's time for you to take another chance on Pete ... or cut him loose for good!"

The colour drained from Maggie's face at the thought of never seeing Pete again, and Sarah stood up to grasp her friend's arm.

"Are you okay?" she demanded urgently.

Maggie felt herself shoved into a chair and nodded her head dizzily.

"I just skipped breakfast this morning – I knew it would be a mistake!" Maggie muttered defensively.

"Hmm..." Sarah disappeared into their kitchen for a moment and came back with a glass of clear liquid. "Here ... drink this," she ordered firmly.

Maggie sat and sipped at the cool refreshing water, as Sarah turned to take off the snowy white dress.

"You're going to look absolutely stunning Sarah!" Maggie suddenly murmured – almost enviously. "Sam won't know what's hit him!"

Sarah gave a little giggle as she draped the gown over the hanger and hooked it over the wardrobe door, and then turned to slip into her pretty but now seemingly dull, blue summer dress.

"Well, as long as he turns up and doesn't chicken out – then I'm happy with that!" she said lightly, and Maggie glanced at her quickly – looking for signs of doubts and anxiety.

All she saw in her friend was amusement and happiness – and once again she felt a little twinge of jealousy – for her friend's security in her man.

"You know ... you never did tell me what happened between the two of you..." Maggie mused thoughtfully.

Sarah gave a happy little sigh as she sat on the edge of her bed.

"Well you know how we met up again on the train..."

The train journey seemed to fly and all too soon it was time for them to get off ... which of course meant that Sam had to let go of her ... something which was hard for the both of them.

"I've missed you so much these past few weeks..." Sarah whispered tearfully as he stood up and helped her to her feet as well.

He gave her hand a gentle squeeze, and his quick smile was more of a grimace.

"No more than I've missed you – I think!"

They walked hand in hand out of the train station, and Sam held up his hand to hail one of the taxis parked just down the road.

It didn't take long for them to reach Sarah's little house...

Sarah giggled suddenly and Maggie looked at her expectantly.

"Don't tell me ... let me guess..." she grinned, "your whole family were waiting for you?"

Sarah shook her head, but the twinkle in her eyes merely deepened.

"No ... no one was waiting, but someone must have seen us, because five minutes after we got to my house, there was this loud thumping on the door..."

"Now who on earth could that be?" Sam asked surprised, he looked across at the love of his life and held up a hand to stop her. "You wait in here Sarah; while I go and see who it is."

So Sarah stood in the kitchen straining her ears to hear, as Sam went and opened her front door.

"Hello!" she clearly heard Sam's surprised slightly anxious greeting.

She heard another masculine voice, which though quiet – she knew all too well...

She walked to the kitchen door as Sam admitted their guest.

"Dad?" she greeted worriedly. "Is everything alright?"

"Hello Sarah ... I just want to have a quiet word with your young man here..." her father told her determinedly.

"Well ... of course ... come into the living room..." she stepped forward to join them, but her dad held up his hand, much like Sam had done moments earlier.

"You wait here Sarah ... we shan't be long," her father ordered firmly.

"Yes daddy..."

"So what happened?" Maggie demanded anxiously.

Sarah shrugged her shoulders. "I'm not entirely sure ... they sat in my living room for a full ten minutes ... and when they came out, Sam walked my dad to the front door and shook his hand..."

"And just you remember what I told you," her dad said brusquely, he looked past Sam, to where Sarah was standing anxiously.

"I'm off now Sarah ... your mother expects you both to visit her tomorrow afternoon."

"Yes daddy," Sarah found herself saying again.

Her father suddenly grinned up at Sam. "You see," he murmured softly so that only Sam could hear. "A firm tone works wonders ... with women and children alike ... say what you mean, and always mean what you say, and they will all comply."

"I'll try to remember that ... sir," Sam replied a little stiffly.

He closed the door on Sarah's father and turned to Sarah.

"Apparently they all heard how I'd mistreated you," he told her regretfully.

"What? I ... I swear to you Sam ... I never said a word!" she stepped towards him anxiously.

Sam sighed softly as he took her in his arms. "No ... that was what worried them so much ... you just wouldn't confide in anyone ... and you were hiding away in London..."

"But I told them!" she cut in. "I told them about Maggie and how I didn't want to leave her on her own."

"Well obviously that was the problem, it was suddenly 'I' can't do this, and 'I' don't want to do that! It was the absence of 'we' that worried them, and since you were deliberately concentrating on Maggie ... and not saying a word about yourself – well you can see how they had a problem with that – can't you?"

"So what did dad say to you?" she mumbled into his chest.

Sam's arms tightened around her for a moment. "It was just a quiet man to man thing..."

She felt him shrug and peered up at him uncertainly.

"I'm sorry Sam ... it never occurred to me that they would put two and two together and come up with six!"

His arms tightened around her, and his eyes darkened with passion as his body responded to the contact of hers.

"I suppose it's nothing less than I deserve ... not after the way I sometimes treated you."

She smiled tearfully at the remembered loneliness, when she thought that she would never see him again.

"Hey don't be too hard on yourself ... after all you are the one who ... almost – taught me how to cook!"

They stood holding each other for comfort ... but soon the comfort became something more...

Sarah sighed as she remembered how tenderly he'd made love to her.

"What are you thinking?" Maggie asked abruptly as she saw the glow on her friends face.

Sarah blushed as she moved to avoid Maggie's all Seeing Eye.

"Oh nothing much..."

Maggie sat watching the play of emotions on her face.

"You really love him – don't you?" she whispered softly.

Sarah blinked at her as she slowly wiped away the memory of what followed with Sam ... well almost wiped it away!

"Yes ... of course I love him... ?" she murmured in surprise. "Isn't that how you feel about Pete?"

Maggie gave a bitter little laugh. "There's just too much history between me and Pete ... we grew up together ... if he hadn't become such a hunk, he would still be that guy who used to trail after me..."