PART SEVENTEEN
The Next Day…
Eliza woke with a smile on her face. William was still sleeping very deeply. She studied his face, he too had a faint smile on his lips. Eliza grinned, He looks so peaceful…
She let her thoughts wander back to the previous night and couldn't help but feel tingly inside. True, it had been awkward at moments, fun at others, but when it came down to it in the end, it had been a night full of love, and Eliza knew that she would treasure the memory forever.
William had been considerate and gentle, and once she had gotten over her fear of accidentally hurting him, they had happily discovered that they were very physically compatible, and to William's delight, Eliza was curious and insatiable.
She idly stroked his chest, enjoying the feel of the smattering of chest hairs across his body. William stretched and turned on his side to face her.
"Good morning Mrs. Wellington." He said with a grin, "How are you feeling?" He asked concerned. Eliza grinned in return and stretched languidly, pressing her body against his. He smiled and wrapped an arm around her waist.
"William, had I known you could make me feel this way… I would have married you years ago!" She exclaimed. He laughed and studied her, her eyes were shinning, and her skin was glowing. "Truly though, last night was wonderful. Thank you." Eliza moved her hand to caress his face. He nodded, "I'm just glad you don't feel the same way about lovemaking as you do about cooking!" He chortled. Eliza groaned at the comment.
William laughed at her reaction, "Lord Lizzie, I love you so much." He said. "I love you too." She replied, and kissed him passionately, trying to convey everything she had experienced in that kiss. She started to work her hand down his body but he stopped her. She pulled back confused.
"Hold on, I know this might sound crazy but, get dressed." He said as he glanced out the window. "What? Why?" She frowned in confusion. "Come along, before it's too late." He rolled out of the bed and hurriedly pulled on his pants and grabbed a shirt. Eliza, seeing that she had no other choice, pulled on her nightgown and a heavy robe.
William held out his hand and led her from the bedroom, quickly heading downstairs, and out to the back of the house. They walked barefoot in the grass up a small hill and stopped. "Stand right here." William told Eliza. She did as he asked and he stood behind her and wrapped his arm around her waist and bent over to whisper in her ear, "There, look." He said, pointing with one arm out into the distance.
The sun had begun to rise over the horizon, lighting up the sky in a brilliant and bright blue, tinged with stunning oranges and pinks. Eliza gasped at the beauty of it, she couldn't believe how many beautiful colors had mingled together to create the perfect moment.
"That is how I feel every time I look at you, you are the sun in my life." William said softly. Eliza felt tears streaming down her face, she turned her head up to look at him. "Thank you Eliza, for trusting me with your heart, as I trust you with mine." William was teary eyed too, trying to speak without his voice cracking. All she could do was smile brightly at him and nod.
William raised one of her hands to his lips, kissed it lightly and placed it over his heart, full of joy that they could now embark on a new dawn and a new adventure together, as husband and wife.
The End
[A/N: They'll be more… Just wait till William gets back to Scotland Yard… Originally I was going to intersperse the story with what was happening at Scotland Yard in the meantime, but I felt that it broke up the flow, and it was a little too comedic for the heaviness of it, so I'm placing it down here instead.
Also, I kept the wedding night very PG-13 because I know this website doesn't allow for mature content. I did write around 5 pages of an explicit scene, but I don't know if I want to create an account on AO3 just for one chapter… I'll think of something. Maybe I'll have bits of it as flashbacks or Eliza recounting some of it to Petunia!
And I didn't forget about Alistair reuniting with Catriona and Andy, or if Cat lets Callum meet Andy. I'll have that as flashbacks and news in letters that Eliza and William will receive in the next story. I like how this one ended, I didn't want to mess with it.
This story was overall a bit ambitious for me, in length and in keeping track of everything/the characters. Please forgive any inconsistencies, I just hope everyone enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!]
Meanwhile at Scotland Yard…
DAY ONE
There! All finished! Detective Jeremy Hatfield thought with relief. He had sorted through all of the case files and arranged them into organized piles. I do believe I deserve a drink after that! The detective wasn't a heavy drinker, but he did on occasion feel it was warranted. Now, I know Duke keeps a bottle handy… he thought, rummaging through the bottom drawer of William's desk. Aha! he thought jubilantly pulling out a nearly full bottle.
No sooner had he sat back up, the door banged open, Honeychurch stumbled in and dropped more files onto the desk, scattering all of Hatfield's previous organizational work to the floor. Hatfield's jaw dropped and his mind went blank.
"Sir! Here are the other files and reports from the detectives!" Honeychurch said cheerfully, pleased to be helping. "Get out." Hatfield said low, trying to keep his anger in check. "Sir?" Honeychurch said confused. "I said GET OUT!" Hatfield bellowed, startling Honeychurch. He hobbled out of the office as quickly as he could, I don't understand, is everyone who sits at that desk always angry? He shook his head as he headed down the hallway.
Hatfield opened the bottle and took a long swig, not even bothering with a glass.
DAY THREE
"Hello, please come in." Hatfield said, exhausted. It had only been three days since Duke had gone to Scotland and Hatfield was already at his wits end. He knew Aggie was probably tired of listening to him complain, not that she would ever admit it, she had the patience of a saint. Milo, Aggie's brother, had offered his own solution, lock Honeychurch in a closet. Jeremy hadn't taken him seriously but with each passing day, it was looking like a better and better idea.
A young man of 17 or so, entered the office and waited to be told to sit. Hatfield waved at the chair, "I'm dispensing with the pleasantries, let's just conduct the interview." "Yes Sir." The young man said. If he was confused by the lack of formality he hid it well.
"Can you read?" Hatfield asked him. "Yes Sir. And write." He replied, confused as to how one would apply for a secretarial position and not have those skills.
"Excellent! You're hired. You start now." Hatfield said happily. After interviewing eight other people, who had little-to-no skills, this young man seemed to be the best fit. The young man blinked, his only display of surprise.
"Very well Sir. Are you Mr. William Wellington?" He asked, that had been the name on the job notice. Hatfield shook his head and chuckled, "No, I'm Detective Jeremy Hatfield. Chief Inspector Wellington is away on personal leave. You'll be working for him when he returns." Hatfield said, praying it would be sooner than later.
"I see. Where would you like me to start?" The young man asked. Hatfield looked at William's desk. "Sort these files, if they've been solved they'll be a report inside, if they aren't, put them aside and sort them into type of crime. When you're done, come find me."
The young man nodded, "And where will you be?" "At the bar across the street." Hatfield replied. He had finished William's whisky a day ago and had forgotten to replace it. Hatfield left quickly before anyone could intercept him. He belatedly realized he had never asked the young man for his name. He shrugged, it didn't really matter, as long as the man could read.
The young man stared at the pile and began to sort the mess on the desk, wondering what the man he had been hired to work for was going to be like.
Meanwhile…
Honeychurch stared at the notebook laying open on his desk, to him it looked as though the numbers were moving around the page. He had enjoyed desk duty initially, it was a nice break from being on patrol and chasing criminals, now though, Hatfield had given him a financial register containing the budget. Honeychurch hated math and being back on patrol was starting to seem like the lesser of two evils.
He sighed and picked up a pen and began to scribble, Carry over the one, and this three goes here… he smiled, and feeling like he had finally gotten the hang of it, began to enjoy himself.
DAY FOUR…
"That's everything Sir!" Hatfield said, sitting back with a smile, the frown he had walked in with was now on Superintendent John Mathew's face. "Thank you Detective." John looked at Hatfield's report. It was thorough, and well written. "What does Duke usually do afterwards?" John asked Hatfield.
John's work required him to deal with matters on a higher level, the overall budget and crime stats for example. Seeing all of the work in minutiae was making his head spin slightly. Hatfield sighed, "Meetings sir, if the detectives had an issue on the case he meets with them to discuss it. If there were problems on patrol, he talks to the constable." Hatfield shrugged, "I rarely see him take a break." John sighed, "Very well. Did anyone have immediate issues to bring up?" John asked. Hatfield pulled out his notebook and passed it to John. John looked at the page, This doesn't look too bad… he thought as he saw five names listed. "Sir, it's also the next three pages…" Hatfield said upon seeing John's initial relief.
"Tomorrow, I will deal with this tomorrow." John said as he looked at the clock. "Very well Sir." Hatfield stood and headed to the door where he hesitated and turned back to address John. "Sir, permission to speak freely?" He asked. John waved a hand indicating he should continue. "I don't know the Chief's salary but I'm pretty sure he's not being compensated enough. You couldn't double my salary for this amount of work." John chuckled at Hatfield's comment.
"Duly noted. Go home Jeremy." John said to him with a smile. "Yes Sir, thank you!" Hatfield ran out, his mouth already watering at the thought of what Aggie might have prepared for dinner.
The End…
[A/N: I like writing Jeremy, Aggie, and Milo. I might try to squeeze them into future stories a bit more.]
Next (probably) on the Kally Network…
For Better or For Worse
"Each of you will receive, one staff, one belt, one cape and strap, one pair of leggings, two great coats, two dress coats, five pairs of trousers, two hats, two leather neck stocks, three button brushes, three button sticks, one rattle, one lantern, one pair of handcuffs - No. 124…" The training sergeant droned on.
Will looked over at his fellow trainees. On his left, the young man was listening, almost in rapture, to the sergeant, on his right the man had fallen asleep, his head propped up in his hands. William hid a grin, the man on his right started to sag forward, then suddenly he let out a mighty snore, startling everyone…
