Hey babes! Back again with another one for ya! Another fic for Kate and Anthony Week, this one's prompt was: Don't Leave. So this is a little alt. fic, if episode eight had gone a little differently.

Wasn't sure if I was gonna be able to finish this one in time, but I am so glad that I did. Hope you all like it. :)

Enjoy!


In the back of his mind, he knows that he should stay, knows that he should keep up appearances for the members of the ton who are present. But he can't. Not after what he's been told by Lady Mary after enquiring as to Kate's whereabouts upon not seeing her among the dozens of other guests. But he has to go. There is too much at stake now, his one chance at true happiness, at a genuine love match, is slipping away and he knows he will regret it forever if he doesn't go after her. He has to.

So he does. He leaves when the ball has barely begun, offering a quick goodbye to his mother on his way out the door, already making a plan in his head of what exactly he'll say when he sees her. But nothing he can think of seems good enough.

He gets his horse saddled up faster than he ever has before, and then he's racing through the streets toward the docks. He does not care that it's getting late into the evening, he does not care what anyone thinks of the sight of him right now. All he can think about is her, and getting to her, hopefully before it really becomes too late.

Once he reaches the docks, he practically leaps down off of his horse and hands the reins to a nearby worker with a request that he keep an eye on the animal. And then he's moving quickly along the wooden platform searching for the woman who's been occupying his mind day and night since that first early morning encounter in the park. He hasn't been able to stop thinking of her since then, and he knows that if she leaves now his thoughts of her will never stop. They will merely continue to torture him endlessly until he is driven mad. He needs to find her. He cannot allow himself to make another foolish mistake and let her slip away from him.

His feet carry him all along the dock, his eyes running over every ship that's tied up and speaks to every person that's waiting to board in hopes of finding her. There aren't many ships that are getting ready to leave, as most of them prefer to leave at first light, though he knows there are some that will leave at night for whatever reason he does not try to understand.

Approaching the end of the dock, he lets out a heavy, frustrated breath, when he finds the last ship but no sign of Kate. There are significantly less people here in the middle of the night than there would be during the daylight, so he's unsure why he's having such difficulty finding one person amongst them.

Spinning on his heel to make his way back to the other end of the dock in the hopes that he missed her the first time around, he takes a few steps forward and then freezes in place.

There she is.

She's speaking with someone he suspects to be a dock worker, and he can only see her profile so chances are high that she has not spotted him yet. So he takes a moment to gather himself and his thoughts, takes a few deep breaths to calm his nerves, and then moves forward once she has finished her conversation.

"Kate!"

She turns sharply in his direction, her eyes going wide when she sees him. "Lord Bridgerton. What are you doing here?"

"You weren't at the ball," he says, stopping when he reaches her. "Lady Mary told me where you were." He glances at the ship and then back to her. "You're going back to India? Tonight?"

"It has always been my plan. I managed to find a merchant boat leaving tonight that is willing to take me. Once I leave these shores you never have to think of—"

"Don't leave."

She stares at him, her lips pursing as she raises a brow. "Is that an order?"

"A request," he says softly, taking a few steps toward her. "A plea. A prayer. Do not leave. Please. Come back to the ball with me."

"I cannot."

"Then I will go to India with you."

She shakes her head. "You do not mean that..."

"But I do," he insists, reaching out to grab her hands in his. "I want to be with you, Kate. Whether that is here with both of our families or just the two of us on a ship bound for India, I only want to be with you."

"There would be a scandal. A rather large one, I'd imagine."

He shakes his head, stepping closer and giving her hands a small squeeze. "I do not care about a scandal," he tells her, his voice firm. "All I care about is you. My family has survived scandals before and they will again. But I will not survive without you. I will not be able to live a fulfilled life unless I have you at my side. If you wish to spend your days traveling the world, then that is where I will be as well."

She lets out a heavy sigh. "My Lord…"

"I was fearful of losing you," he admits to her, hoping that the truth of the matter will help to sway her decision. "It is why I could not visit you after your accident. I could not bring myself to—" He cuts himself off and swallows thickly. "I love you. I've loved you from the moment we raced each other in that park. I have loved you at every dance, on every walk, every time we've been together and every time we've been apart. You do not have to accept it, you do not have to embrace it, or even allow it. Knowing you, you probably will not. But you must know it, in your heart." He releases one of her hands to place his own over his heart, whispering, "You must feel it because I do. I love you."

Kate stares at him for a moment longer, tears shining in her eyes. "I do not know what to say."

He shakes his head. "You do not have to say anything."

"I do not think there is anything else to say…other than I love you too."

Anthony lets out a breath, a smile tugging at his lips at hearing her words. He takes another step closer to her, grabbing her hand again and giving both of them a gentle squeeze. "I want a life that suits us both. If that means traveling with you to India and living out our lives there, I will do it. I know I am imperfect, Kate, but I will humble myself before you because I cannot imagine my life without you, and that is why I wish to marry you."

A smile pulls at her lips. "You do know there will never be a day where you do not vex me."

His smile shifts as he steps even closer to her, closer than propriety would allow if they were anywhere else, releasing both of her hands to settle his on her waist and tug her closer to him. "Is that a promise, Kathani Sharma?"

Her eyes light up at the utterance of her given name. "Yes. Yes, it is a promise."

"Well, then. It seems the two of us are finally seeing eye-to-eye on something."

"I suppose we are," she breathes out, barely managing to complete her sentence before her lips are on his and her arms are around his neck.

Anthony wastes no time returning the kiss, his arms sliding around her waist to bring her as close to his body as he can get her. He just wants to hold her, to feel her, to be all-encompassed by that familiar, mesmerizing scent of lilies. He just wants to be in her arms forever, for the rest of his days.

A groan escapes from the back of his throat when Kate's fingers drag through his hair along his scalp and he's immediately taken back to that night in the gazebo. She'd done the same thing then, a groan releasing from him and echoing against her skin as he'd kissed her. No one has ever made him feel the way Kate makes him feel. He can't let her get away.

Reluctantly pulling away from her lips, Anthony waits a moment for his breathing to even out, reaching up to tuck a loose piece of hair behind Kate's ear. "Does this mean you will accept my proposal?"

She gives him a cheeky smile. "Forgive me, My Lord, but I do not remember hearing any sort of proposal. Merely your dreams and desires."

He lets out a breathless laugh, shaking his head. This woman will surely be the death of him, in the absolute best way that is possible. "Well then allow me to ask you properly. Kathani Sharma, will you do me the utmost honor of becoming my wife?"

She smiles and nods. "Yes. But…I am sure our mama's will want us to have some sense of a traditional courtship before we are wed."

Anthony's smile falls. "Damn." He breathes deeply and straightens his shoulder. "Then I shall see to it that we have the shortest courtship that is acceptable. I do not wish to waste another moment. I have wasted too many of them already. I cannot apologize enough for everything that I put you through since we met."

She shakes her head. "You are not the only one at fault, Lord Bridgerton, I had a hand in the way things played out as well. I could have said something sooner. But I did not."

He gives a slight nod. "Fair enough. We are both at fault. But we should put all of that behind us and focus on moving forward. Together."

She smiles. "Yes, I believe that is the best idea."

"I do have one request, though."

She raises a brow. "Do I want to hear it?"

He chuckles quietly. "I promise it is not unreasonable. Though, knowing you, you might say that it is just to spite me."

She merely smiles. "I suppose there is only one way to know for sure. What is your request?"

He takes a deep breath. "From now on…call me Anthony."

She's quiet for a moment before leaning closer to him, her voice lowering to a whisper, "Anthony…I cannot wait to marry you."

A shiver runs down his spine at the ease with which his name rolls off her tongue. He is more than ready to spend his life listening to all the different ways she can say his name. "So then you will not leave?" he asks. "Or, at the very least, you will not leave without me at your side?"

She shakes her head. "I will not leave. Perhaps we could go traveling for our honeymoon. But I am more than happy to live out my days here with you and your family, and to build our life here together."

Anthony beams. "I am delighted to hear that. Shall we collect your things and go then?" His smile falters. "I have just now realized that my horse will not be adequate enough to carry the both of us as well as your belongings."

"It is alright. We can go just the two of us and send for my things as soon as we return. I'm sure Lord Bridgerton can arrange that with the harbormaster."

He stands a little taller. "Indeed I can."

She nods once. "Good. But for now…for now I just want you to hold me, Anthony." She looks at him with the softest eyes, a small hint of a smile on her lips. "I never want to be without your embrace again."

Anthony smiles gently, leaning forward to kiss her slowly, his mind and his heart finally at peace. "My sentiments exactly."


So? What did you think? Let me know in a review down below. I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Until next time,
Jellybean96 out!