Next chapter, gladly without any apologies from my side ;)

thanks to my faithful reviewers and all of you who added me to your favs or alerts.

Twelfth chapter

The following fortnight was filled with the usual occupations a gentry draws out to engage eligible young men, especially when said gentry has unmarried daughters. There were tea and dinner invitations, garden parties and outings in the countryside. Of course the gossip was highly loaded with expectations. At the end of the fortnight it was not gossip anymore, but common knowledge among the local families that Captain Cullen was surely to propose to Miss Hale, if they were not secretly engaged already.

About Major Whitlock there were a lot of stories in circulation to explain his lack of enthusiasm in society and courtship, which was still expected to center around Miss Brandon. It was said that he had a rather proud aunt, who, charged with his upbringing and graced with his obligation, had a marriage arranged - to a rich heiress no less - that was not to his liking. Another story accounted for his melancholy countenance with the death of the lady he was deeply in love with in his youth, which of course would have left him devastated. Those were the most favourite stories of the gossip. Other theories claimed him to be the illegitimate son of some earl or baron, who would not own him of course; or said for him to be the son of a family deeply involved in trade and thus no gentlemen at all. Those stories were to shocking to be not generally liked and were secretly and in confidence talked about a lot.

Miss Brandon knew every one of those stories and was deeply distressed. Somehow she felt drawn towards this tall, melancholy stranger and knew with innermost clarity that they belonged together, but his civil behaviour towards herself and the content of those rumours spoke of the impossibility of the match. To ward of her distress and conceal her own melancholy she threw herself in the support for her beloved friend and tried with all her cunning to forward the match of Miss Hale and Captain Cullen.

Mr Edward Cullen, wary of his admiration for bright eyes and cunning wit, set himself to the task of observing one lady in particular with the aim of finding fault with her. Tried as he might, this aim could not be achieved. On closer observation he found her brown eyes to be warm and of a depth not commonly found in eyes of the colour, he found her brown hair to sparkle with a shade of red in the rays of the sun and he found her face to be of uncommon beauty, which was accented by the complimentary asymmetry of its features. Her figure, too, could not be faulted and neither could her stile or taste. Her wit displayed an intelligence and sarcasm he could only admire. So, when his examination of Miss Swan was completed, he could not find one fault with her and insead found himself irrevocably in love with the lady.

Miss Swan was equally occupied with observation. She watched over the behaviour of her two best friends and their prospective suitors with interest. Rosalie she found to be glowing with love only to be outshone by Captain Cullen. Both displayed the symptoms of deep love by general incivility and ignorance of others once in the vicinity of their significant other. There she could not find fault in the behaviour of the lovers and was sure to be told of a soon to be marriage any day now. The situation of her other dear friend she found to be rather confusing. On close observation there was a preference in both of them for each others company, but on the outside there was only the most civil and polite behaviour to be found. Miss Swan was puzzled by this and thus confronted her friend.

"Major Whitlock is of a rather melancholy sort," she commented to Alice, "not what you would expect in a suitor. But, if you tell me to love him like a brother, I will comply readily."

"I have nothing like this to tell." Alice protested instantly.

"And why is this a miracle, I ask. You need to encourage him more, if you want to secure his affection." Bella lightly scolded her friend.

"I will do no such thing. I can not deny that I …like him and esteem him. But his behaviour is friendly at best and gives me no sign of his being partial to me." Alice blushed deeply at her confession.

"Like him, esteem him? Alice, how can you say those things, when I know you are deeply in love?" Bella was shocked.

"It is to no consequence what I feel in this matter. He has behaved very honourably towards me and encouraged me not. I believe there must be obligations on his side to prevent any other behaviour towards me. And this is the last I want to hear of this matter." Alice emphasized.

Miss Swan was astonished to say the least. She could not comprehend her friend and set herself to explore the mystery. It is needless to say, that she could not, occupied in this way, notice any difference in the behaviour of a certain gentleman of her acquaintance. If anything she found his continuing observation of herself annoying and searching for a cause, determined that he must have found something faulty in her that drew his eyes, whenever they were in each others company. She continued to challenge him with her sarcasm and wit whenever she had the opportunity but refused to let his strange behaviour influence her in any other way.

Please review!