Working for Mr. Gold was, quite frankly, a pain in the ass. Belle French had been his assistant for nearly two years, and in those two years' time she had endured being at his beck and call at any and every odd hour of the day and night, given up at least three vacation opportunities with friends because he 'required her presence at that time,' and last year she even had to work on her birthday, which he didn't even bother to acknowledge, although to be fair she wasn't completely sure that he knew the significance of the date. And then there were his ridiculous temper tantrums. She was never the one that he was angry at, but somehow she managed to be on the receiving end of his screaming fits when something didn't go right in his day.
Despite all of his personality quirks, working for Mr. Gold wasn't all bad. He paid her quite well; far better than she felt that she deserved, to be honest. He did procure a lovely apartment for her next door to the town library, her favorite place to be. The rent was more than reasonable and probably a bit lower than one would expect for the size and location of said apartment. Then again, Mr. Gold, in addition to being her boss, was also her landlord, as he owned more properties in town than she could keep track of without a chart in front of her. She supposed it was his prerogative to charge whatever he liked, even if he was losing money on the upkeep of the place. Belle liked to think that it was his subtle way of thanking her for all of the nonsense she had to put up with from him.
In the nearly two years of working for him, there was still so much she didn't know about her boss. She had no idea where he lived, but he was never late for work so she supposed that didn't matter. She knew nothing of his personal background. She presumed he had one, but what it was she had no idea. She didn't even know his first name.
All of these things she could live with, if it weren't for the fact that she was madly in love with the man.
Nothing about Mr. Gold stated that he was in any way Belle's type, if there was such a thing, to the eye of the casual observer. Belle was, to put it mildly, a beauty in every sense of the word. Mr. Gold was anything but. He wasn't an ugly man, but he didn't bear the conventional handsome looks that most women would find appealing. He was short, thin, he had shoulder length sandy brown hair that was starting to gray on the sides, he walked with a cane and a pronounced limp in his right leg for reasons that Belle still didn't know, and he was at the very least fifteen years older than Belle, if not more. If anyone were to venture a guess as to the man that Belle French most desired, Mr. Gold wouldn't even make the top five hundred. Truth be told, he wouldn't even be ON the list anywhere. But for Belle . . . he was all she could think about. She knew that there was so much more to the man than anyone understood . . . . he was layered, a mystery to be uncovered.
Given all of this, it was no mystery that Belle was beyond excited when Mr. Gold asked her to accompany him on a business trip to Nova Scotia. She just didn't expect his mode of travel to be what it was, nor did she expect what happened during their travels.
Belle reflected on the events of the past three days . . . days during which questions were answered, and things were said and done that couldn't be taken back. They were three days that she knew would change everything; she just wasn't sure how things would change, and if it would be for better or worse.
"A boat?" Belle asked as Gold pulled his Cadillac up into a parking lot adjacent to a docking area on the Gulf of Maine.
"Is there a problem Miss French? I presumed that mode of transportation wouldn't be an issue given that this trip is fully paid for and you will have ample personal time to sight see," Gold remarked.
"No, no problem at all. So – are we chartering a specific ferry line?"
"We're chartering MY line. It'll just be you and I."
"I'm sorry – you're commandeering the ship?" Belle asked.
"I have my license and a small yacht and I don't get much opportunity to use it and I thought, given that this shouldn't be a very long sail, it would be – fun." Belle chuckled a bit to herself. "Something funny?"
"Just – I just don't associate you with the word 'fun,' that's all," Belle replied.
"I supposed that's fair," Gold agreed. "Come on then – I want to be off, I have meetings all day tomorrow."
Belle had no idea that Mr. Gold owned a boat. However, given how little she did know about the man, it didn't come as that much of a surprised to her. She took her luggage onto the vessel and set it in the cabin below deck. Mr. Gold told her that she could remain below deck if she wished, but Belle opted to stay on deck with him as he sailed. The two of them were quiet for some time, until Belle, bored with the silence, finally spoke up.
"When did you learn how to sail?" she asked.
"Many years ago," Gold replied.
"What made you interested in it?"
"Why are you always asking questions, Miss French?"
"I guess I'm just a naturally curious person. Mr. Gold, I've worked for you for almost two years and I know next to nothing about you as a person. The only thing I know is what you do for a living and how you take your tea."
"That is adequate information for you. If you need to know anything else, I'll tell you," Gold responded curtly.
"Did you learn to sail in Scotland?" Belle asked.
"No," Gold replied.
"Well then where?"
"You're not going to let this go, are you?"
"No, actually, I'm not. I believe we have about two more hours into this trip, so – I can just keep asking and annoying you, or you can tell me." Gold sighed.
"I learned to sail to make my son happy," he finally answered.
"You have a son?" Belle asked. "Where does he live? Why have I never seen him? You don't have any pictures of him in your office or anything."
"He lives in Boston, you haven't seen him because I don't see him that often, and I don't believe in cluttering my office with sentimental nonsense. Are we done now?"
"How old is he?" Belle asked.
"About your age. That is the last question I'm answering, so if you wouldn't mind please go down to the cabin and I will retrieve you when we've docked." Belle glared at him.
"I was just trying to be polite," she said, and she stomped off to the cabin, grumbling to herself about what an impossible and frustrating man he was. Why wouldn't he let her in? She knew that if he would just open up to her, if he would just take the chance – there was something there. There had to be. Belle didn't consider herself a stupid woman, and she certainly wouldn't continue to feel this way for nearly two years if she didn't believe that, on some level, he felt the same.
Belle remained in the cabin area for over an hour, quietly reading her book, when suddenly the boat jarred roughly, nearly knocking her off the sofa. Belle set her book down and looked around nervously. After a moment, the movement stopped, and Belle got up and made her way back up to the cabin.
"Mr. Gold? What's going on?" Belle called out as she stepped outside, and was subsequently greeted with a blast of wind in her face that nearly knocked her over.
"Go back in the cabin!" Gold shouted at her while hanging onto the steering wheel tightly.
"Are we almost there?" Belle asked.
"Wind shifted. Took us a bit off course, I'm trying to fix that," Gold shouted, but Belle could barely hear him over the sound of the wind.
"Maybe we should try to pull over somewhere," Belle suggested in a shout as she hung onto door to the cabin.
"Where? This isn't the highway, Miss French!"
"Didn't you check the weather report before you left?" Belle asked.
"Do I look stupid to you, of course I did!" Gold shouted, and another gust of wind hit, nearly tipping the boat over and knocking Belle onto the floor. "Are you alright?" Gold asked.
"I'm fine," Belle replied.
"Then go back to the cabin, I've got this," Gold insisted. "According to the radar there's a small patch of land not far from here, I'm going to steer in its direction."
"I want to help," Belle insisted, and she stood up and carefully made her way to the seat next to him and sat down.
"You can help by GOING INTO THE CABIN," Gold demanded.
"No," Belle replied stubbornly. "I'm staying right here. I can keep an eye out for you."
"Miss French, I am not in any mood to argue with you, so if you would please -" Gold began to say, but was interrupted with a strong wind gust came upon them. Gold turned the steering wheel furiously and Belle let out a loud scream.
The last thing Belle heard before being plunged into darkness was Gold calling out her first name, for the first time ever.
Belle wasn't sure how long she had been lying there on the shore when she awoke. It could have been hours – days even. The moment she moved to sit up she groaned in pain. She was soaking wet, sore everywhere, and as she sat up she noticed a small patch of blood on the ground next to her. Belle then looked at her left arm, and noticed a sizable cut on it, which is where she presumed the blood was coming from. The weather was calmer now, with only mild wind gusts, and it was still light out but she could tell that dusk was setting in. Belle looked around after she sat up and saw the boat on the shore not too far from where she was, then gasped when she saw the crumpled figure lying near the boat on the ground.
"Mr. Gold!" Belle screamed, and she tried to stand up but dizziness set in, so she began to crawl until she reached his side. He was as drenched as she was, and he wasn't moving. Belle immediately checked for a pulse and breathed a sigh of relief when she found one. He was alive and he was breathing, and Belle fought back every urge to break down in tears. His clothes were a bit torn, and there was a large gash on his left temple. "Mr. Gold – Mr. Gold, please wake up!" Belle begged as she lightly tapped his cheeks. It took several minutes before Gold began to stir, and he moaned and blinked several times before he was able to focus on Belle hovering over him with a look of worry on her face.
"What the bloody hell happened?" Gold asked as he moved to sit up, barely being able to do so. Belle caught him just before he was about to plop his head back down onto the ground.
"Wind storm? Don't you remember?" Belle asked.
"I think so," Gold whispered.
"You've got a cut on your head, you must have hit it pretty hard," Belle said. "The boat doesn't look too bad, do you think you can make it to the cabin?"
"I need my cane," Gold said, and he looked around as he started to focus a bit more.
"I don't know what happened to it. Come on, I'll help you," Belle said, and she put her arm around him and helped him stand. After a bit of struggle they were able to make it back onto the boat's deck, and the moment they did Gold pulled away from her and moved toward the captain's chair. He picked up the radio and pushed a few buttons on the dashboard, but there was no response or noise.
"It doesn't work. It doesn't bloody work!" Gold screamed, and Belle moved to his side.
"The wind probably damaged it, come on. Let's go to the cabin, you should have a first aid kit down there, right? And some food and water."
"If the power on the boat is out, so is the refrigerator," Gold said.
"Well, it'll last for a bit, and I know you have a few things in the cupboards, come on. We need to get out of these wet clothes, too." Belle led him down into the cabin, both of them practically crawling down the steps. Gold practically fell onto the sofa as soon as they reached it, and Belle got up, stumbled over to their luggage, which was strewn all over the room, and began to rifle through it. She found a pair of Gold's pajamas and grabbed them, then went back to Gold's side.
"Come on – let's get you out of those wet clothes," Belle said, and she helped him sit up. "These will do fine."
"I have other suits," Gold said.
"Yes, and this will be more comfortable. Now take off your clothes and I'm going to get a towel from the bathroom and the first aid kit. Where do you keep that?"
"I don't know," Gold grumbled, and he began to fumble with his tie.
"Well, I'll find it," Belle said, and she went into the bathroom and found a towel in the cabinet, and took it to Gold. She then went to her own luggage and found a change of clothes for herself. She went into the bathroom and changed, then began to hunt for the first aid kit, finding it in a cabinet above the kitchen area sink. Belle took the kit over to Gold, who was sitting on the sofa, his elbows on his knees and his face buried in his hands. "Here, let's get that cut bandaged up," Belle said. Gold looked up at her, and then leaned back and sighed.
"I'm sorry," he whispered, "about all of this."
"It's not your fault," Belle said. Gold winced when Belle began to clean the gash on his forehead, and once she felt it was sufficiently cleaned up she put a bandage on it. "There. How are you feeling?"
"Tired," Gold whispered. "Are you alright?"
"I'm okay. Few bruises, there's a cut on my left arm," Belle said.
"Let me see," Gold said, and he sat up and took her left arm and looked it over.
"It's okay, it's not that bad. Here, I'll clean it up," Belle said, and she applied some ointment to her cut and fumbled with a bandage to put on it. Gold helped her set the bandage in place. "I think we should get a bit to eat, maybe some water," Belle suggested.
"Alright," Gold agreed. Belle wasn't sure what was causing his sudden compliance at her every suggestion. She presumed that he probably had a concussion and that was affecting his behavior. Either that, or he was simply afraid and didn't know how else to react. If he was afraid, he wasn't alone. Belle was terrified, but determined to remain brave. For right now, they were in a safe place, and they had food and shelter. Belle hoped that a night of rest for both of them would give them enough clarity in the morning to begin to search for a way out of their situation.
Belle prepared a small meal for them, trying her best to ration the food until they could better assess the situation in the morning. After they had eaten, Belle took their plates into the kitchen area and then went back to the sofa.
"So, um – there's not another bed or cot or anything is there?" Belle asked as she sat down next to him.
"No," Gold said. "Here, you – you take the sofa, I'll sleep on the floor."
"Don't be ridiculous. There's room for both of us on here, plus it's a bit chilly, you'll freeze on the floor."
"Belle, please don't argue with me, I'm exhausted," Gold complained.
"You called me Belle. Again."
"What?" Gold asked.
"I heard you call my name when the ship started going out of control. You never call me Belle."
"Slip of the tongue. Sorry," Gold said.
"Why don't I know your first name?" Belle asked. "I've worked for you nearly two years and I still don't know your first name. Even your business cards just say Mr. Gold."
"M.R. Gold," he replied. "It's supposed to be my initials; it was a typo."
"Really? And you let that go?" Belle asked.
"Didn't bother me much," Gold said.
"So – what are the M and the R for?"
"Questions again. Miss French, I have a headache and I'd really just like to get some sleep so that I can wake with a clear enough mind to try and figure out how to get us out of this situation."
"Tell me your name and I'll let you sleep," Belle teased.
"Malcolm Robert Gold, and if you ever call me that consider yourself fired," Gold said.
"Why?" Belle asked.
"Because it's my father's name and I loathe the man, he was a bastard. Having his surname is bad enough; being his junior is unacceptable."
"Why not just go by Robert then? Nothing wrong with that name."
"Why don't you just stop asking questions for once in your life," Gold suggested, and he started to move toward the floor, but Belle stopped him.
"What do you think you're doing?"
"I told you to take the sofa," Gold said.
"And I told you that there's room for both of us. Plus, we – there's only one blanket, we'll stay warmer if we're up here together. Body heat and all. I mean, this is an emergency situation. You're not afraid of sharing the sofa with me, are you?" Gold sighed and laid back on the sofa.
"Please don't tell me you talk in your sleep, Miss French."
"I'll do my best not to," Belle said, and she laid down next to him, her back to him. Gold lifted up the blanket and covered her and himself with it. "Goodnight, Robert," Belle said quietly.
"I never said you could call me that," Gold griped.
"You never said I couldn't either," Belle retorted. Too tired to argue, Gold simply closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.
Belle awoke the next morning to find the sun streaming in through the window, and Gold nowhere to be found. She sat up and looked around, unsure of the time but presuming from the bright sunlight that it was well into the morning, if not afternoon. She stretched a bit, and began to feel the soreness and stiffness from being jostled about by the wind storm the day before. Belle managed to get up and made her way to the main deck, where she found Gold tinkering with the electrical equipment dressed in a shirt and a pair of pants that she knew matched one of his many suits.
"Good morning," Belle said, and Gold turned around.
"Hey," he replied.
"How's your head?" Belle asked, moving to his side.
"Bit better. I got the generator going, we should have enough electrical power for a few days. Hopefully someone will find us by then."
"Were you able to get a signal out?" Belle asked.
"No – the communication system is shot, the wind ripped the cables apart. But at least we have a modicum of electricity. We should just try to keep its use to a minimum. I'm keeping an eye out for some passing ships, I have a few flares. Besides – someone will notice my absence at the meetings I had scheduled, and the fact that neither of us have checked into the hotel. They know we were traveling by boat, I'm sure there's a search party out as we speak. I guess the only thing we can do now is wait."
"How did you even get up here without your cane?" Belle asked.
"Wasn't easy, but – I managed. And proceeded to find my cane pinned in a corner on the deck."
"Do you need any help?" Belle asked.
"Why don't you go get yourself something to eat? In fact, I think I'll join you, I'm a bit hungry myself."
"Okay," Belle agreed. She headed back into the cabin, and Gold followed shortly thereafter. Belle made herself a breakfast of dry cereal and untoasted bread.
"You can use the toaster," Gold said as he got himself some food and sat down at the table with her.
"I don't want to waste the electricity, it's fine like this. Didn't this table used to be further over there?"
"I'm amazed it's still upright, to be honest," Gold said. "Actually, I'm quite amazed that anything is still even remotely in its place down here."
"Well, the luggage was strewn about a bit," Belle said. "Do you have any reception on your phone?"
"If I did, don't you think I would have called someone? And yes, I already checked yours." They were both quiet for a moment. "You're not frightened, are you?"
"Aren't you?" Belle asked.
"Maybe a bit," Gold admitted. "Someone has to be looking for us by now."
"You really think people will look for you?"
"My son will look for me. I couldn't give a damn about people."
"I still can't believe I didn't know that you have a son. Tell me about him," Belle said.
"And here we go with the prying questions again," Gold complained.
"Do you really hate talking to me that much? We are stuck here, together, for who knows how long – and after two years of working for you it would be nice to actually KNOW you. You may not need conversation and human interaction that isn't business related but I do, and there don't seem to be many other options right now. So excuse me if I pry. Honestly, I don't even know how you kept an assistant before I showed up."
"I didn't," Gold admitted. "In all truthfulness, I didn't expect you to last a week. No one ever did before."
"It's not like you make it easy."
"That's what Bae says. My son. I talk to him every night, he's going to know something is wrong."
"Doesn't he ever visit you?"
"Occasionally. He has his own family – a wife, a son."
"You have a grandson?" Belle asked.
"Yes. His name is Henry. He's ten years old – he's a good lad. My son and I, we – we had many difficulties when he was growing up. I was in the British army when he was born and didn't get to see him very much. His mother left me for another man during that time, when he was just a wee boy. I was serving during the Gulf War and I was injured when Bae was a little over five years old. My now ex-wife was never a very compassionate woman, she was of no help to me at all. In hindsight, we never should have married to begin with, we only did it because I was leaving and I thought I was in love. Apparently I was not, and neither was she. But – I did get my son. Wouldn't trade him for anything. We've had a rough time of it here and there, especially after his mother took him and moved to the states. If I wanted to see him more often I had to pack up my entire life in Scotland and move to America, and that's what I did. Bae is the only reason I learned how to sail this bloody boat – his new stepfather was a sailor, vile bastard, still don't like him, and I didn't want him learning anything from his lot. If anyone was going to teach him about sailing it was going to be me." Gold paused for a moment when Belle didn't respond. "So – is that enough information to keep your mind occupied for the day?" Belle still didn't respond. "I will take your silence as a yes, and if you will excuse me, I have work to do." Belle reached her hand out and put it on top of Gold's hand.
"Thank you – for telling me these things. I mean that," Belle said.
"It's no matter," Gold replied.
"Can I help you do anything?" Belle asked.
"You can clean this cabin up, it's filthy," Gold said. "Don't worry, I'll pay you for your time, I don't expect you to be my assistant AND my maid." Gold got up and headed back up to the deck. Belle sighed and looked around the room, foolishly thinking, despite his gruff demeanor, that perhaps if he was willing to open up to her about his family, there was a chance that he cared about her after all.
"Any sign of help yet?" Belle asked as she made her way up to the deck, after spending most of the day straightening up the cabin. She didn't understand why he wanted this – the entire boat would have to be cleaned and probably had significant damage, but it did give her something to do with her day.
"Not yet," Gold said.
"I made some dinner. I think we have enough food for about two more days, but after that I don't know what we'll do."
"There won't be any need to worry, someone will find us," Gold said. "I got the water up and running, you can take a quick shower if you like. Just don't use too much of it, try not to use much of the hot water, and don't drink it."
"Okay," Belle agreed. They ate their dinner in silence, and then Belle went to take a quick shower, and when she finished Gold did the same. "You want to try and get some sleep? You look tired," Belle commented when Gold came back out into the main cabin area.
"I was going to watch for some night traffic."
"Why would anyone be out at night out here in the middle of nowhere? It's more likely that we'll spot someone during the daytime."
"The wind was still a bit strong today, that's probably why no one was out. Maybe tomorrow will be better." Gold sat down on the sofa and Belle turned to look at him.
"Are we still sharing the sofa?" she asked.
"If it doesn't bother you, it doesn't bother me," Gold replied.
"No bother at all," Belle said, and she laid down next to him as she did the night before, with her back to him.
"Good night, Miss French."
"Please call me Belle. And I'd really like to call you something other than Mr. Gold, if that would be alright."
"I suppose Robert will be fine at the moment," Gold said with a tone of trepidation in his voice.
"Well goodnight then, Robert."
"Goodnight – Belle."
Belle was startled awake by a loud noise outside – a noise that sounded like a plane or something passing overhead. "Robert! Robert, wake up!" Belle shouted as she shook him awake.
"What's wrong?" Gold asked as he rubbed his eyes.
"I heard something outside, it sounded like a plane passing by," Belle told him, and Gold darted up, grabbed his cane, and made his way up to the deck as fast as he could. It was still dark outside, and he looked around outside as Belle joined him.
"I don't see anything," Gold said. "You probably imagined it."
"I did not imagine it! Why don't you use one of the flares, maybe they'll see it!"
"I'm not wasting one of our few flares on an imaginary vehicle!" Gold insisted.
"I'm sorry," Belle said. "I really thought I heard something." Belle darted back down into the cabin, sat down on the sofa and started to cry. Gold followed and sat down next to her.
"Hey – it's not your fault, you probably did hear something, we just didn't get up there in time."
"Oh, stop patronizing me, you don't have to pretend you like me and you don't have to pretend that you want to be nice to me," Belle said, shoving him away.
"I do like you. Why do you think I hired you? I liked you from the minute I met you."
"Then why didn't you think I would last more than a week with you?" Belle asked.
"No one does. Belle, ever since my injury and my divorce my specialty has been pushing people away. It's the one thing I'm good at. Apparently you just never got that memo."
"I never thought you were that bad – well most of the time. After what you told me earlier, I'm – well, I'm quite certain of it. Why did you hire me anyway? I doubt I was the most qualified candidate."
"You were pretty. I hired you because I thought you were pretty," Gold admitted. "Figured if I had to work with you every day might as well be someone nice to look at. Fortunately for me you turned out to be quite smart as well. The one thing that puzzles me about you is why you stay. I've given you no reason to, and yet here you are."
"Maybe I'm a masochist," Belle joked. "Or maybe I just – wanted to know the man behind the monster." Both of them leaned into one another, and their lips touched in a soft, gentle kiss. After a moment, Gold pulled away.
"I'm sorry," he whispered. "I think the concussion may be making me a bit disoriented."
"I don't think that's it at all," Belle said in disagreement.
"You don't?"
"No. I don't," Belle said, and she moved in to kiss him again, this time harder, their mouths opening and exploring one another with their tongues. "I stayed – because despite everything – despite the fact that you are, quite possibly, the most difficult person in the world to work for – I mean you're rude, you're condescending, you yell at the most ridiculous, petty little things – despite all of that – I knew there was more to you. I don't like to leave in the middle of a mystery, I like to stay until I have it figured out. I think I just figured it out – you push people away because you're afraid of getting hurt again."
"Well, then – I suppose that now you've figured me out, you'll be going."
"Going where? Last I checked we were stuck on a damaged boat in the middle of nowhere," Belle said.
"I mean once we get back," Gold said.
"Where do you want me to go?" Belle asked. "If I'm being honest, I'm quite happy where I am."
"Why?" Gold asked. "I've done nothing to make you want to stay."
"You've done nothing to make me want to leave, either." Belle reached for his hand and grabbed it tightly. "I want to stay with you, Robert. If you want me to." Gold didn't even hesitate when he moved in to kiss her. He pressed his mouth against hers and she reciprocated, and before either of them knew what was happening they were lying back on the sofa, with Gold on top of her. Belle began to unbutton his shirt, and once it was removed, he lifted Belle's shirt over her head, removed it, and threw it onto the floor.
"Are you certain about this?" Gold asked, as Belle kissed him on his neck.
"Positive," Belle moaned. Gold moved to take off his pants, tossing them onto the ground, and Belle did the same. They were both stripped naked, and they wrapped their arms and legs around one another.
"I have wanted you for so long, Belle French," Gold whispered.
"Why didn't you tell me?" Belle asked.
"I didn't think you'd feel the same. How could you? How could anyone love a monster like me?"
"You love me?" Belle asked. Gold just nodded his head.
"I don't expect you say it, I've given you no reason to at all, but -"
"I've loved you for quite some time now, Robert." As dark as the cabin was, Belle was certain that she saw tears forming in his eyes. Belle reached her hand up and touched his cheek, and it was a bit wet from his tears as she suspected. "You can trust me. I'm not going anywhere." Gold moved his mouth toward her lips and kissed her again, and they shifted their bodies until Belle was on top of him. She moved her hands down toward his crotch and began to fondle him until he was hard, which didn't take long at all. Belle was wet and ready for him, and both of them were trembling with excitement that they had finally opened up and admitted to one another what they had been hiding for so long.
Belle was about to maneuver his cock inside of her when Gold reached his hand down and stopped her. "Let me," he whispered. "Please." Gold sat up a bit and Belle straddled her legs around him, as Gold's long fingers fondled her until she was so wet she was practically dripping with ecstasy for him. Belle let out a loud moan when he finally maneuvered himself inside of her. Gold thrust his body back and forth and Belle moved with him. They held onto one another tightly, and the buried their faces in one another's necks as they both climaxed. When the finished, Gold leaned back slowly, taking Belle down with him as he kept her tightly gripped in his arms. Belle settled into his embrace, exhausted but very happy.
"Maybe no one will find us for a few more days," Belle joked, and Gold chuckled a bit.
"As much as I would like that, we don't have much of a food supply beyond tomorrow, and I don't think we can live on sex."
"We could try," Belle teased. "So this is all it would have taken to get your full attention? A private getaway with no distractions?"
"Well, I would have much preferred a five-star hotel room or a remote cabin somewhere with all of the amenities, and I could have done without the bump on the head, but – I could always avoid my feelings by running away, going off to work on something. Why do you think I spent all of my time up on the deck today all alone? I was hoping we'd be found today, but then night came and – I had nowhere to run to. Except to you."
"I can't believe that you didn't notice that I wanted to be with you. I wasn't exactly subtle about it."
"No, you weren't," Gold agreed. "I just chose to ignore it. I don't always make the right choices, do I?"
"Maybe that will change now."
"There's a very good chance of that," Gold agreed, and he kissed her on the forehead. "Remember when you dropped that teacup in my office?"
"My first week. I thought you were going to fire me right then and there," Belle admitted.
"I think that's the moment I – fell for you," Gold admitted. "What about you? I'm having a bit of trouble understanding what the appeal is here."
"Other than the fact that you're a very handsome man, even if you don't think so? I always knew there was a good man in there somewhere. Remember when that one man, Robin something, came to your office? He was having trouble making his rent because his wife was pregnant and had some unexpected medical expenses, and you gave him a three-month reprieve."
"Only because you prodded me to," Gold reminded her.
"You still didn't have to do that. I knew there was always good in you."
"I'm gonna see if I can get that radio fixed tomorrow. I want to get you home."
"I am home," Belle whispered, and she sighed and closed her eyes, drifting off to sleep in his arms.
Gold and Belle awoke to a loud commotion the next morning, the noise sounding like a helicopter landing. "What time is it?" Gold mumbled as he blinked eyes sleepily.
"I don't know. I think we've been sleeping for a while," Belle said quietly.
"Do you hear that noise out there or is that just my head pounding again?" Gold asked.
"I hear it too. Sounds like a helicopter, I think someone may have found us," Belle said, and they snuggled up together for barely a second, then they both gasped, suddenly wide awake. Before they could even move to get out of bed, a voice called out to them.
"Papa! Are you okay?" the man's voice shouted as it came closer. "Papa, are you -" Bae began, then stopped when he came upon Gold and Belle huddled on the sofa together, desperately trying to cover themselves up with the one blanket they had.
"Bae. This is Belle," Gold said awkwardly.
"Okay," Bae said, and he blushed in embarrassment.
"Hi," Belle said quietly, also quite embarrassed.
"Do you mind if we, um -" Gold began.
"Yeah, I um – I'll be up there," Bae said, and he hastened up the stairs as fast as he could.
"I was hoping for a less embarrassing first meeting with your son than this," Belle admitted.
"He'll get over it. Let's get out of here," Gold said, and he kissed her on the cheek.
Belle waited quietly in the hospital bed. The helicopter had taken them back to Maine, and once Bae found out that his father had suffered a concussion, Bae insisted that he be fully examined by a doctor. Gold demanded the same of Belle, wanting to be sure that she had suffered no unexpected injuries. The door to her room opened, and the doctor entered.
"Well, you're free to go, Miss French. Everything looks good," the doctor told her.
"What about Mr. Gold?" Belle asked.
"Well it appears that, despite public outcry, I'm going to live," Gold said as he entered the room. He was dressed in a suit and carrying a small bag in his left hand.
"I'll get your discharge papers and you can be on your way," the doctor said, and he left the room.
"Bae had his wife go to my house and get me something to wear, and I asked her to stop and purchase something for you, I hope you don't mind. Our luggage is still on the ship, we probably won't get it back until tomorrow."
"That's fine. Thank you," Belle said as Gold handed her the bag. "So you're okay?"
"Mild concussion. Doctor wants me to rest for a few days, but I'll be fine," Gold told her as he sat down on the edge of her bed. "Bae and I had a long talk, and we're going to try and do better with our relationship. He and his wife Emma want me to come and visit with them in Boston for a couple of weeks, they want me to go back with them this afternoon."
"Okay," Belle said, sounding a bit disappointed.
"They don't have a very big place and – it'll be easier for me to stay in a nearby hotel. I was hoping you'd – come with me."
"I could do that. I'm sure that you'll probably be wanting to do a bit of work while you're there," Belle said.
"That's another thing. Given the recent circumstances – I'm not really sure it's appropriate for you to be my assistant any longer."
"You're – you're firing me?" Belle asked, stunned.
"No, of course not. I just think that – assistant isn't a proper title for you. How does partner sound?"
"Partner? As in business partner?"
"As in whatever type of partner you like," Gold replied. "So – do we have a deal?"
"Yes. Yes we do," Belle responded, and she moved in to kiss him on the lips.
"I will do my best to be a better man for you, Belle. I promise. Next time we want to have a private getaway though, I'll rent a cabin." Belle laughed a bit.
"I think that would be lovely," Belle agreed.
"By the way – you weren't hearing things, the helicopter had been searching for us all night, they just couldn't see us till morning. I probably should have used one of the flares, but – then they would have found us and – none of this would have happened. They would have saved us sooner, but – because they didn't – I think you saved me. My beautiful Belle."
"I'm glad I could save you. M.R. Gold," Belle teased, and she kissed him once again. "So – do you like being called Robert? I mean, what do your friends call you?"
"I don't really have any friends, but – when I did they called me – you promise you won't laugh at this?"
"I promise," Belle said.
"They called me – Rumple," Gold said. Belle's eyes widened, and she immediately broke her promise and started to laugh.
"Rumple? What kind of a name is that?" Belle asked.
"See, I knew you'd laugh. I had an odd hobby as a young man – I liked spinning. My aunts taught me. My friends started making jokes and references to Rumpelstiltskin once they found out and – that's what they called me. It was very annoying, but then shortened it to Rumple and I figured it beat the hell out of Malcolm, so why not."
"Rumple. Okay – Rumple. That will take some getting used to, but – I guess I can manage if that's what you prefer. Do you still spin?"
"Yes, I do. I have a whole studio at my house. Can't wait for you to see it."
"I look forward to it. Rumple."
"Come on, get dressed. Let's go home," Gold said.
"I already told you. As long as you're with me – I am home," Belle reminded him, and he wrapped his arms around her as they melted into a deep, long kiss.
THE END.