Lord Rathbone entered the ballroom as he was announced. The chandeliers and candles burned brightly. He made his way through the crowd, women begging him to dance but he casually declined.

"And here I thought you were going to stand me up." A smooth female voice said behind him. He turned and saw a woman slightly shorter than him. She was clad in a black bustled skirt, corset type top and lace sleeves. Her red curls were swept up, although a few still fell loose.

"As if I would stand you up, Lady Angelline." he replied, kissing her hand.

"Shall we dance, my lord?" she said, as he swept her to the dance floor.

"As you wish, my lady." he continued, as they twirled around the floor.

"So when is this plan going to occur?" she whispered in his ear, then looked casually around the room.

"And what plan might this be?" he answered, also whispering. They danced, twirled and then began to walk out onto a balcony. He then looked at her, slightly annoyed. "Never mention that again. There are far too many people who could have overheard."

"I made sure I whispered. Besides, I want to help." She informed him.

"Now Elizabeth, this is no job for a lady like yourself." Rathbone told her.

"And who said I was a lady?" Elizabeth questioned, leaning into him. She took hi pistol, aimed it at a tree, then squeezed the trigger. A loud bang rang out; followed by a thump from the bird she hit dropping to the ground.

"You are an angel sent from heaven. Maybe this might explain my gratefulness." He said, getting from his pocket, then continued. "Will you, uh, marry me?" Elizabeth stood there for a moment, then grabbed the ring and slipped it on.

"Yes, yes I will marry you Nelson!" she squealed, hugging him tightly. "Oh, and just because you proposed, doesn't mean I don't want to help anymore. Now, after you get back from your trip to China, we'll discuss the next step." She finished, lightly tapping him on the nose. She then turned and ran back into the ballroom to show off her new ring.

Rathbone entered his dimly lit room and began to take off his clothes. The trip to China had been extremely successful. The seal was safely tucked away in his treasure room. He grinned to himself as he began to unbutton his shirt.

"Have a good trip?" came a voice from behind him. A corset clad Elizabeth emerged from the shadows. She ran her hands over his shoulders and continued to unbutton hi shirt. "Did you get it?"

"Of course. I also got this for you." He replied pulling out a silk scarf. She looked it over and plucked it from his hands.

"It's beautiful." She said, tying it in her hair. "Is that all you got for me?" she pouted.

"Of course not. There is plenty more, but that shall wait for tomorrow." He replied, turning to her with a preditorial grin. She smiled, but stopped him.

"Now what is your next step?" Elizabeth inquired, removing his shirt.

"Well, I need to convince the government that China poses a threat, which shouldn't be hard with that gift I picked up. I also need to meet with that man, oh I always forget his name. I've also been asked to host a dinner in the celebration of the jubilee."

"Hmm, leave the dinner up to me. You organize the meeting, and persuasion. That shouldn't be hard for you. Leave everything else up to me." She purred, stretching out on the bed. Rathbone climbed into the bed with her.

"Alright, my lady. Oh how I missed you..." he said, leaning in and ravishing her with kisses.

Elizabeth stood back and admired her work. She did a pretty good job at putting this dinner together. Within two and a half weeks, she was capable of creating, what she hoped to be, the best dinner yet. Rathbone came up behind her, placing his hands around her waist.

"You have truly outdone yourself this time." He said, looking over her shoulder.

"Thank you. But really, is all this security necessary?"

"Do you really want that crazy oriental woman in here, attempting to kill me, or even you?" he replied.

"No, but how are you going to, you know?"

"I have my ways, besides, with my wife here to talk and change the subject..." he said, kissing up her neck. "I see you're wearing the earrings I got you."

"Yes, they match my dress very nicely." she answered, then turned to face him. "Well, shall we make our appareance known?" she continued, straightening his jacket.

"Are you ready? You'll be making your first appearance as Mrs. Nelson Rathbone." She nodded, and took his arm.

"Ladies and gentlemen, Lord and Lady Rathbone." The man announced. The crowd looked up as Elizabeth and Nelson walked down the staires. She beamed proudly, holding the arm of the man she loved. After chatting as a couple, Rathbone kissed her on the cheek and went to his meeting. Elizabeth fluttered from one crowd to another, checking on food and other such things. Just then, Arthur came up behind her and tapped her on the shoulder. She nearly jumped out of her skin.

"I beg your pardon Mrs. Rathbone, but where is your husband?" he replied meekly.

"Do not do that!" she scolded. "And no, I do not know where he is. I am his wife, not his keeper."

"Oh, well, I just wanted to say that everything was going well security wise." He replied, looking like a little boy. "By the way, you did a splendid job on preparing this magnificent dinner. Absolutely wonderful."

"Thank you, now if you will excuse me, I have other thing to attend to." She stated, walking off to check on the music.

Later that night, Elizabeth paced the floor of the bedroom. It was well past the time Nelson should have been back. Where was he? Suddenly the door burst open and Rathbone stormed in.

"What happened, dearest?" she inquired rushing up to him.

"That bloody Chinese girl has help. They attacked me during my meeting, stole my automobile, and burned down my barn!" he fumed, getting undressed.

"Oh you poor thing." She said, getting some warm water to clean his wound. "Here let me look at those." He obediently sat down on a chair and relaxed as he cleaned and dressed his wounds. "There, clean and dressed. Better?"

"You truly are an angel. What would I do without you? Come here!" he said playfully, grabbing her arms and pulling her into his lap. She giggled, then stifled a yawn. "Let's retire to bed. We've both had a very long day." He said, kissing her on the forehead and carrying her to bed.

"Hmmm, it's like a dream come true. Once the queen and her heirs are out of the way, you will ascend the thrown. Then I shall be..." she trailed off, looking seductively into his eyes.

"My queen." He finished, placing her on the bed before she pulled him down on top of her.

-Le Fin.-