Hey, this was going to be part if a bigger chapter, but it got very big, so I decided to split it in two- sorry if you think this one's a little slow, but that's why. The next bit will be up either tomorrow or Friday!

Chelsea: Of course I'm not offended or anything. You are entitled to your opinion and I know you are just trying to improve my work so thank you! I think you're right. Now I have more time to focus on it, do you think I should re-write it?

LadyLit: Thanks! Enjoy!

Love you all!

LV

XX

The hand which was resting gently on the small of my back pulled my hips towards his. It then moved to join his other one between my shoulder blades. I could feel his finger tips on the ties of my dress. I knew what he was trying to do, but it didn't repulse me like it should have or force me to pull away from him. It had the opposite effect. I pulled myself closer to him as his kiss deepened. My heart beat faster in my chest and sent jolts coursing through my veins. Something brushed against my forehead as he began to kiss my neck. I reached up to take off his hat, but a knock made me jump back before I could do so. We stared at each other. He was breathing just as heavily as me. We listened to the silence, neither of us daring to move or make a sound. My heart was still hammering but in a completely different way. The silence stretched on longer and longer and when the next booming knock came both of us jumped.

"Isabel?" Ellie, my maid, called to me. I exhaled with relief that it wasn't George and moved closer to Jack, reaching up to put my lips by his ear.

"Hide," I breathed. "It's only Ellie, but we can't take anymore chances."

He nodded and ran the back of his finger along my cheek. His mouth turned up at the corners to match the smile in his eyes. I reached up again fleetingly to press my lips lightly on his. I heard scrambling behind me as I crossed to the door. Ellie called for me again and she sounded increasingly worried. I glanced back, my room appeared to be empty, and so I opened the door. Ellie's anxious face flooded with relief.

"I couldn't find you anywhere, Miss. I was getting worried you'd been kidnapped!" she said as she bustled past me.

"Kidnapped?" I repeated uneasily. Thoughts and worries that Jack had been spotted in Port Royale raced through my mind. I tried to keep my tone light. "Why would you think that?"

She looked at me with raised eyebrows, "Well, it wouldn't exactly be the first time now would it?" I laughed along with her. Her smile was tinged with sympathy. "You do have the worst luck with them- you and Miss Swann."

"Yes, I suppose you could say that," I gave her a small smile. I could tell by the way she was looking at me that she was trying to decide exactly how to say something. I waited as she tilted her head to one side.

"What happened to Miss Swann?" she asked tentatively. I sighed heavily as if the subject was a difficult one to talk about, but it wasn't. Not anymore. Not now that a certain pirate was back. I had avoided talking about Elizabeth. I hated to admit it, but thinking about her freedom had caused a horrible knot of jealousy and resentment towards her. I couldn't help it and it wasn't something I wanted to feel, I knew that she would be having a hard time, but I couldn't help what I was feeling. But now the knot was loosened and beginning to come undone. Now that Jack was here. I tried to stop myself from smiling at that thought and focused on looking distressed. I lowered my gaze.

"I don't know…" I sighed again. "We were separated… I hope she's alright."

The last bit was true. I did hope she was alright and coping with Will's departure, but I knew where she was and we hadn't been separated at all. At least not physically. There had been a bit of a rift (and by that I mean a huge, yawning chasm) in our friendship over the course of the past few months, but it was over now. Ellie looked at my sympathetically.

"I'm sure she's fine," she said in a tone that clearly showed she didn't believe what she was saying. "And I'm sure those stories of her turning pirate aren't true. They weren't true about you and Miss Swann would never hurt a fly."

I cringed inwardly as there was a snort of disbelief from under my bed. Ellie froze. "Did you hear that?" she frowned at me. I did my best to look as confused as possible.

"Hear what?" I asked, cocking my head to one side in an imitation of hers. I pretended I was listening really hard. I loved Ellie and there were times, not unlike this one, when I wanted to tell her everything, but she was a frightful gossip. I knew every detail of every serving member in the household as intimately as if I had lived it alongside them. I knew that if there was a change in anything from the kitchen staff to the neighbours' garden. I knew there was no way on this earth that I could ever tell her, so I did what I did best. I looked straight into her eyes and lied. "I didn't hear anything."

"Oh," she shrugged and within a matter of seconds she had shaken it off and was back on track. I listened to her stories of the kitchen boy's mother's friend's sister's new baby, or maybe it was the kitchen boy's friend's mother's sister's new baby (I lost track after a while). She helped me change, if she noticed that a few of the ties were loose (courtesy of Jack) she didn't say anything, she was too busy babbling away. I rolled away the dressing screen and she put away my wedding dress. I watched her fold it away. She needn't be so careful; it was never getting out of its box again. She turned to leave, but I called her back, rummaging around in my drawer. When my hand scraped past all the clutter in there and closed over my purse I pulled it out. I tipped the contents into her palm and stepped back. She blinked at me.

"What's this?" she stared at the money in her hand. I pulled back the covers and climbed into bed.

"Just a thank you," I said. "For looking after me. Do what you like with it, but try and keep it to yourself. I'm not sure if George would approve." I knew this was a tall order for her, but if she could keep her mouth shut until I left then it would no longer matter. And by the way she was looking at me it seemed I had done the impossible and rendered her speechless. She nodded slowly and turned away again, putting it into her apron pocket.

"Goodnight, Miss,"she said over her shoulder as she left. The shock was melting and flickering into confusion. I was sure that with her sharp wit she would have guessed when morning came that I had not vanished, but left of my own accord. I wanted to make sure she would be alright when I wasn't in the household. Would there still be a place for her? There was a series of scrambling from under my bed. The mattress dipped as Jack lay down and slipped his arms around me.

"It's just me, love," he murmured as I moved over to lean my head on his chest. We listened to Ellie's footsteps fade.

"Thank goodness for that!" I whispered back. "I thought it was a giant rat with all that racket!"

He laughed and kissed the top of my head before resting his chin on it. His fingers entwined with my hair. I listened to the sound of his heart beat and pulled his body closer to mine, inhaling his wonderfully familiar scent. His arms were warm and familiar and I felt comfortable enough to fall asleep there. I closed my eyes, "I missed you, Jack."

"I missed you too, Belle," he said. A warmth spread through me and my veins tingled. He stopped stroking my hair for a moment, "We should probably leave."

"Yeah," I nodded. Neither of us moved. "How did you get in?"

"The door," he said as if it were obvious.

"And no-one saw you?" I asked.

"Nah, you were all busy with your dinner," he said. I nodded because it made sense. Then something else made me stop.

"How did you know this was my room?" There was a silence. I pulled away from him and looked up at him in the half-dark. "...Jack?"

"Well, I thought the dresses hanging in here were a little bit girly even for George and... it was the only room I went into that smelt like you." I was dislodged as he pulled away and sat up. He swung his legs over the edge and sat with his back to me. He'd been made uncomfortable with that little revelation, but it made me smile and my heart ache in a good way. I sat up and crawled over to him. I turned his face towards mine and kissed him gently.

"Lets go," I said.