His William was unhappy. James simply couldn't allow that to continue. The man's unhappiness bled into his own psyche, leeching away his strength and leaving him wallowing in reflected misery. He couldn't let the object of his passions continue this downward spiral. The poor man would destroy himself if allowed to go on unattended, and James couldn't bear to see him wasted. All he wanted was a simple thing: a certain woman's hand in marriage. Yet when faced with one little hiccup he waited for a miracle to happen. In the meantime he contented himself to lay alone every night, haunted by what had almost been. It was unlike him to give up so easily. If this were a case to solve, he'd pursue his goal tirelessly.
James sat up abruptly, unable to keep still as his mind came alight. A case was the perfect solution. His dear man was more than a stricken heart, timid in the ways of love; he was a brilliant mind always in need of a new problem to solve. James could give him the perfect puzzle. All he had to do was set the players on the stage. Naturally, the starring role fell to one Julia Ogden, unfortunate wife to Darcy Garland.
That silly Julia, to make so careless a decision as marrying the wrong man. She regretted it now, that much was obvious for anyone to see. The steps she took to break free of her marriage were heart wrenching in their innocence. There was a ready solution to her problem, and yet she refused to make that choice. It must be hard to live so bound by law and moral standing. He would make things easy for her. Plainly this Darcy stood in the way of her dreams, and James already had an idea how to clear the path. Julia and William would both thank him in the end.
The life of one doctor was a trivial price. Too trivial, in fact. It would take a stronger push to get the two love-birds settled in the same nest. Julia and William had years to reach out to one another, and yet they did nothing, each frozen in their little worlds of propriety and common nerves. Besides, it wouldn't be any fun if they had their happiness simply handed to them. They would likely mess it up, just like they did the first time. Clearly they both needed a bit of guidance when it came to affairs of the heart.
He would make it into a game. A test of their faith in one another to prove if their convictions were really as deep as they believed would be fascinating. If he set the right stakes they couldn't refuse to play. All he had to do was place Julia's life on the line. Then William would find the spirit to pick himself up out of the cesspit of misery he'd flung himself. He would force William to confess his feelings, no, to prove his feelings in a way that couldn't be ignored. A trap would do, one where William would be compelled to make a choice between his own life and Julia's. What could be more romantic than to give your very life for your lover? The rewards for winning his game would be nothing short of true love. Surely that could draw any man, even one as stubborn as his detective.
James smiled to himself. He was going to make his William the happiest man alive, or perhaps dead.