Authors Note: At last! The Colonel and Marianne talk..in private! ;) What could that mean? I'm a bit unsure of this chapter simply because it's such a big moment and I wanted to do it justice, I hope you all enjoy it. Apologies for the mistakes in my last chapter, like accidentally referring to Mrs. Dashwood as Mrs. Brandon as a reviewer pointed out. I normally write these very late at night and then I'm too tired to proofread well, apparently! So you all will have to excuse any mistakes! Don't forget to review!

"Marianne, the Colonel wants to speak to you in private." In private? Her mouth opened in shock as Elinor's words rang in her ears. She felt as if her shoes were glued to the floor. Her heart began to race and she put a hand to her lips, attempting to calm her nerves. Perhaps, she thought, trying to make sense of things, he simply wants to talk with me as we usually do. Maybe, the lengthy conversation he'd had with her mother was unrelated. She kept her hopes low, not sure if her heart could take another let down. She had been experiencing the strangest of thoughts about Colonel Brandon - like what it would be like for him to hold her hand, for him to embrace her...for him to kiss her. These thoughts, although entirely unexpected, were not unwanted. His kindness had helped her family in such incredible ways, she wasn't sure if they could've made it through so many things without him. He had given Edward and Elinor a home! A parish! And he was a friend to her, even when she had all but ignored him, her eyes only for Willougbhy. (She remembered this time with disgust, so ashamed that she had let a man like him fool her.)

"Marianne?" Elinor snapped her out of her reverie, and she met her sister's eyes for the first time. She was in shock. How had it been just the night before that she'd talked with her about this? Could he truly feel something so strong for her that he would be here to talk to her about...about an agreement?

"Where is he?" She inquired, hands finally falling to her sides as she took another deep breath and a step towards the doorway.

"Downstairs, in the parlor." Her sister met her halfway to the door, reaching a steady arm towards her to squeeze her hand. "Remember how you felt last night. If you truly feel the way you told me, you should be happy." She mistook the younger woman's silence for nerves, and, although she did feel nervous, it was not for the reason Elinor had expected.

"My only concern is that he doesn't..that he's not here fo-for that. What if we're both getting our hopes up? Elinor..he's a highly respected military man, he's nearly twice my age. And after everything that has happened with Willougbhy a-and my illness..why would he want to be my husband?" Marianne, for the most part, had recovered from her fever well. But even still, she didn't quite have the color she used to, and she had never gained all of her weight back. She still had days when she felt too tired to get out of her bed. The Colonel was an eligible bachelor, and had been for years. Despite this fact, and his age, most of the women that she had met watched him carefully, and would accept a proposal from him with pure excitement. He was respected..and she was not.

"Marianne, my dear. You are blind." Elinor said, bluntly. "The man has been in love with you ever since he first saw you. Why do you think he ran off in the storm to find you? Or why he's been showering you with gifts? He's trying to find any way to show you affection, to show you how he feels. I can hardly believe he's been able to wait so long. Of course he's here to pursue your hand!"

Elinor's words calmed her, and she nodded quickly, suddenly so overcome with emotions that she could do nothing else. Was she right?

At last, she had spent all the time she could with Elinor, and she finally crossed over the threshold and prepared to meet with Colonel Brandon. She took each step carefully, eyes on her shoes. She couldn't trust her own body now, she was so jittery. Finally, Colonel Brandon was in her line of sight. He stood beside the pianoforte, his back to her. She slowed her steps and quietly stood near the wall for a moment, allowing herself to gaze at him in secret. Although he was older than herself, she, for what seemed like the millionth time, was taken aback at how handsome he was, and was amazed that she had somehow overlooked him for so long. His back was strong and wide, his legs long. He was much taller than her, and, even though she had never been close enough to truly see the difference, she imagined the top of her head would not even reach his chin. The thought of being so close to him made her stomach flutter, something she had gotten quite used to while in his presence.

After what felt like an eternity but was only a minute or two, he turned, and she shot back behind the wall before he caught a glimpse of her. Her cheeks flamed with embarrassment, hoping she wasn't caught admiring him. She did turn the corner, realizing she had kept him waiting far too long. When he saw her, he beamed visibly, and her heart swelled. Elinor may be right after all.

"Miss Marianne." He greeted her simply, his voice washing over her like a warm breeze. The first thing that she had noticed about him months ago was his voice and how it seemed to send a shiver down her spine every time he talked as of recent. Every word he said sounded like poetry, and the way he said her name made her want him to say it again, and again, and again.

"Colonel Brandon!" She attempted to greet him as she usually did, with her usual level of enthusiasm, to mask her nervousness. She was thankful that they were alone, for if her sisters or mother were here, they would surely sense her uneasiness and she would become the laughing stock of her family. "How nice to see you."

He shuffled his feet and cleared his throat, wishing to speak but suddenly incapable. He's as nervous as I am, she mused.

"Miss Marianne, I am entirely unsure of how to begin such a topic, and I apologize for being so unprepared...I-I did not plan this out as I perhaps should have, but I've realized that I simply could not wait another day to..to-"

"To what, Colonel?" She interrupted him. She was never one to be proper during times like this.

"To tell you how I feel about you." He finally looked at her, finally met her eyes, and her eyes glistened with tears begging to be shed. "I love you, Marianne." The use of her name was improper, but she had never heard anything sound so sweet. And if her tears were close to coming before, they were now a waterfall streaming down her face. She wiped them away quickly, closing her eyes and drawing a breath in, a terrible attempt at gathering herself before he thought she was offended or, God forbid, disgusted.

"Miss Marianne-" He started to talk hurriedly, and she raised a hand. "Colonel Brandon, I-I believe I love you, too." Her blue eyes met his brown ones, and she saw his own tears threatening to leak out of them. She saw the surprise, the shock, the doubt, and she shook her head, realizing her mistake. "I love you. I most definitely love you."

"Really?" Was all he could muster. He saw this woman before him, young, smart, full of talent and passion and dreams, and he couldn't believe his ears. How could such a woman love a man like him? He admired her - the strength that she had, and the thought of her loving him, wanting and needing him, felt like a dream that he never wanted to wake up from. After years of being alone, he felt that he had a chance of having someone at his fingertips.

"Really." And she couldn't take the distance any longer. She took the final steps left between them and looked up towards him. Propriety demanded that they keep their distance before marriage, and really...they didn't even have an agreement between them yet, but she wanted nothing more than to feel his arms around her, and propriety could, and would, be pushed aside for this moment.

"But if you don't do something - take my hand, hold me, something, in the next few moments, I may reconsider." She laughed out, sounding more like a choke as she fought back a happy, overwhelmed sob. And hold her he did, not wasting a single moment. As she felt his arms around her, her own not even long enough to wrap around his waist, her face pressed against the warmth of his chest, so close she could feel his heart beating rapidly against her cheek, she realized something. She realized that her heart was entirely his, and his alone. And for the first time, she was thankful for Willoughby and his abandonment, for it made her even more thankful for this man who held her.

But the moment could not last forever, and eventually he did pull away, but not entirely. She was still so close, closer than they had ever been before this day. She could feel his breath, see specks in his eyes and the stubble on his chin, and she loved it all. "I don't want to assume anything, Miss Marianne-" (She cringed inwardly at the "Miss", wishing that he didn't have to refer to her as that, as it sounded so distant and cold to her now that she'd heard him speak her name without it.) "But I would love nothing more than for you to accept a ring from me."

"You..you mean an engagement?"

"I do indeed. A long one, if you wish. I have every intention and desire to court you properly." Not a long one, she prayed.

"I would absolutely love that, Colonel." She tilted her chin up and grinned. "But I demand a short engagement." And with that, he embraced her once more, and she felt him lean ever so slightly to rest his chin on her hair, and she giggled against him. She was right, her chin was far below his.