A Second Chance

Chapter 12

Careful what you take for granted, yeah
'Cause with me, know you could do damage
You, you could do damage
You, you could do damage, yeah - Damage by H.E.R

Charles comes home to Diana, who has completely recovered from the accident. It's been six months, and she is about to finish her physical therapy. She will still be prescribed pain medication due to aches and pains, but only as needed for a short period.

He's proud of how far she came and never gave up, even when it got hard. William and Harry are also ecstatic about their mother's progress. They are glad their mummy is almost back to herself.

Charles enters the apartment and finds Diana reading on the sofa in front of the fireplace. The light from the fire gives her a glow like an angel. Her blonde hair is almost its original light brown, like he remembered when she was younger. Now, it's longer like when she was pregnant with Harry.

"Hey," he says, announcing his arrival.

Diana looks up and smiles, "Hey."

"How are you?"

"I'm doing fine, just in a little pain," Diana replies, closing her book.

Charles takes a seat next to her. "Did you take your pain medicine?"

"Yes, but I don't want to take all the time in pain. I don't need to develop an addiction or become immune to it."

"Right."

He watches as she moves a long loc of hair from her face.

"Have you heard from William and Harry since they have gone back to school?" He asks, trying to make a small conversation.

"Yes, I talked to them last night before you got here. They called to see how I was doing."

"Good."

They sit in compatible silence as neither one wants to talk about the elephant in the room. They taking their relationship to the next level, an intimate level, to be exact. Since the night Diana experienced the panic attack, Charles has stayed with her, except when his schedule didn't allow him to.

In rebuilding their relationship, they have achieved intimacy they never experienced before. But now, this intimacy has made them wonder if they should explore the physical. Yet, it has them shying away from something they both experienced with each other already. No stork stopped by Kensington Palace in June of nineteen eighty-two or September of nineteen eighty-four. After last night, it was evident that the flame of desire was getting harder and harder to put out.

Despite her confidence, she can't help but feel like she did when they first married. With Charles, she always worried her appearance would turn him off, and once he resumed his relationship with Camilla, her self-confidence waned.

She worked hard to become the confident woman she is now. Still, she has her insecurities. Especially now, after the accident, she has some scars on her body from surgery as well as her injuries. Yet letting the man who intimately rejected her touch her again made her afraid.

On the other hand, Charles has wondered what it would be like to bed his ex-wife. Last night, when he kissed her goodnight, he felt his self-control slipping. Between her scent and beauty, he finds it hard to resist her. Plus, their sharing a bed is making the temptation even harder.

A simple kiss of goodnight turned into a passionate kiss. His lips trailed down her neck and then to her cleavage. At that moment, he was ready for her. All she had to do was say yes. Instead, she told him she wasn't ready yet.

"Did you eat dinner yet?" He asks.

"No, not yet. Did you?"

"No, not yet."

"OK, I'll let Darrin know.

Later, they sit at the dining table, silently eating their dinner.

"Diana."

"Yes," she replies, looking at him.

"We need to talk."

"About?"

"Last night. We both want to take our relationship to the next level. But I feel like there is something left unsaid."

"What do you mean?"

"Is there something we need to talk about? Are you having second thoughts about us?"

Diana looks at him and doesn't say anything, unsure how to approach the subject. When they were married, sex was just something that Charles scheduled for them to do.—once every three weeks. Initially, it was passionate, and then it became something to check off his to-do list, eventually non-existent. She always thought it was supposed to be a beautiful, intimate act between a man and his wife.

"Diana?"

"No, I'm not having second thoughts about us. I don't think I'm ready for us to be intimate. Yet."

"Ok... Is there a specific reason you feel as if we shouldn't?"

She takes a deep breath before taking a sip of her water.

"I'm afraid. Although we have started over, we're slowly rebuilding our relationship and trust. I'm afraid you'll reject me as you did before."

He looks at her, and he knows what she means. He left her for another woman's bed. He knew their past would always be a dark cloud over them, and there would be times when they had to address it. 

"I understand."

"I'm still scared of loving you, Charles. The sad part is I never stopped loving you. Being intimate with you means I'll be letting you back in completely, and I don't want to get hurt again if you decide one day you can't do this anymore."

"What makes you think that I would leave you again? I told you it's over between Camilla and me. I know I played a major part in how our marriage ended, and I'm sorry for what I've done. I don't want to go back to that time again nor put you through all that I put you through. I love you, Diana."