An hour or more later, Hannah was curled up in an armchair by the fire in Sir Byrd's breakfast room, with Daniel Byrd on the chair pulled up next to her. He had sent her away into the care of the surprised housekeeper, who had taken care of the supply of clean clothes and the removal of soiled ones with only the barest hint of a raised eyebrow. Clean and dry, she had been brought down for breakfast, and found him similarly attired, and shaved, and washed, and waiting for her. They had made fast, silent work of the coffee, toast, ham, eggs, and chocolate, and warm and fed had retired to the seats by the fire. Sir Byrd was yet absent, having been snowed in at Mr Templeton's house overnight, and they had the room and house to themselves.

Hannah eyed Daniel sleepily. She had been pleased to find his face just as charming shaved, but was thinking that whoever had arranged his hair had done too severe a job, and that it might be nice to disarrange it.

Daniel yawned, and settled back in his chair, resting his feet out in front of him towards the fire. "Where do we go from here, Miss Templeton? Bath? London? Timbuktu?"

"I don't know." A question had been burning in her mind for some time. "Why were you drunk in the shed last night, when you were supposed to be at my father's?"

He laughed, and went on laughing for some time before he was sober enough to explain. "I confess, the very same reason as you. I called on a friend yesterday, and got rather below water with him, weeping in his arms, belabouring my sorrows in being practically forced to marry Awful Miss Templeton." His eyes glimmered with amusement. "My father sent his groom to fetch me, and he wasn't very sympathetic, as it happens. He told me to get in the carriage and sober up and give you a chance. Well I got in one door of the carriage, and then out the other side when he wasn't looking, and ran away into the fields. When I saw the shed, I thought to myself that my father would never think to look for me there. It all seemed very logical at the time."

"Then..."

"My feelings for you," said Daniel, "Were quite the same as yours for me. My father always told me you were so smart, and so good, and so well-behaved – I thought you were a frightful bluestocking."

"Oh I'm not! You must know I'm not!"

"I do." He smiled at her. "But I was surprised to find it was you – I knew as soon as you mentioned my name who you were. And I didn't want to say it was me. I thought – well I thought if you were truly awful, I could get a warning of it without you knowing who I was."

"And am I truly awful?"

"No." He was very solemn. "You're much worse. You're twice – ten times as pretty as he said. You're impossibly stubborn. You're too soft-hearted for your own good. You're nowhere near as snobbish as you should be. You're a terrible liar. You're wilful..." He trailed off. "I can't believe my father thought he had to lie about you. You're wonderful."

She blushed, and turned her face to hide the heat in her cheeks in the heat from the fire. "You're quite different to what I thought too," she admitted. "Much more interesting."

They fell into silence, and for some time there was no sound in the room but that of the spitting fire. Hannah was thinking about what might have happened if they had both gone to dinner yesterday after all. She wasn't sure that she would have liked Daniel so much if she had met him under the cool strictures of a formal dinner, when he was on his best, most distant behaviour, trying, probably, to be the person his father had made him out to be.

Daniel broke the silence first.

"You didn't say. Where do you want me to take you?"

The idea of London or Bath seemed like a distant and not entirely pleasant dream now, in the warm, comfortable breakfast room. Hannah didn't want to leave the fire, or the chair, or the man beside her. She looked pleadingly at him.

"My father will be so angry."

"I'm not unaware of it." Daniel looked thoughtfully at her. "There might be a way to make it right. I've been thinking, you know, about giving it a try. Marrying you. I think it might make your father happy." He hesitated. "I think it will make me happy."

A warm thrill flooded Hannah. She could not speak, but the expression on her face must have been enough, because Daniel slid from his chair to kneel on the hearthrug at her feet, her knees brushing his hips.

"Where do you want me to take you?"

She was still unable to speak, still wishing for some more definite question. But his face within reach now, she did what she had been wishing to do, and reached out to run her hand back through his hair. The locks came free, tumbled over his brow again. He caught her hand and kissed her palm.

"Where do I take you?" He kissed her wrist. "Hannah, my angel, where do we go?"

"Home," she said at last, "With you."

He pulled her into his arms so he could kiss her properly, and again there was silence for some time. It was interrupted only by occasional soft-voiced murmurings or low ripples of laughter; then, savagely, ruptured by the sound of a door banging in the hall. Daniel drew back. His hair was thoroughly disordered again, as it should be.

"Daniel!" A voice roared in the hall outside.

"Oh bother. Wait here." He gave her another swift kiss, and rose to his feet.

"Daniel!" The voice roared again. It was Sir Byrd.

"I'm here, Father."

Daniel went out the door. Hannah sat up in front of the fireplace, and smoothed down her borrowed dressing gown. It was impossible to hear what Daniel was saying, and equally impossible not to hear Sir Byrd.

"The wretched girl has disappeared! Mr Templeton tried to play it off as she was ill with rheumatism, but what's a twenty year old to do with rheumatism!? I played it quiet and asked the servants: she's upped and left! She must have caught wind of your doings in the West Indies, and buggered off before you could marry her. Next we know, she'll be in a convent in France, taking the vows. If you'd just a little more discretion - a little more taste!... No, all the blame is yours! Don't try and wriggle out when you've been carousing all night - I know you!... Even if he gets her back he'll never persuade her to marry you now! I had a ruddy time trying to even explain why you weren't there! Poor fool thinks you're in bed with the lumbago - you were, if he asks... God knows it's an embarrassment to have a son with lumbago, but better than a disappeared daughter!... Well the marriage is off now, and I expect you to make up for it. Lord Shipley's got a daughter - thirty if she's a day, with a face like an axe, but it's an advantage if he won't mind offing her on you."

It was enough for Hannah. She got up and went through into the hall. Sir Byrd was still shouting at Daniel, who was vainly trying to speak. He only sputtered into silence when he saw Hannah. Boldly, she walked up to Daniel, and took his hand.

"Good morning," she said pleasantly.

Sir Byrd looked from one to the other, his mouth gaping.

"I hope my servants aren't putting it about that I've run away. It's not true. I was so worried when I heard of Daniel's lumbago that I came here to nurse him last night. He made a full recovery, but by that time, I was snowed in, and couldn't leave. I hope you'll send word of the good news to my father immediately. He must be worried."

Daniel's hand tightened in hers, and the strangled noise he made made her suspect he was trying not to laugh.

"You might also tell him that we're getting married," added Hannah, "Because I know he's had considerations about Mr Wolesly's son, who doesn't have lumbago."

Sir Byrd's mouth closed at last. "Miss Templeton." He bowed stiffly. "I didn't know you were here." He eyed her suspiciously. "Is it true?"

"Quite true, Father. We'll marry as soon as we can."

Sir Byrd wheeled around to stare out the front window over the white lawn. Daniel took the chance to kiss Hannah's cheek and whisper in her ear:

"You're really the most terrible liar."

"The sooner the better, I think," Sir Byrd said ponderously. "If you've got lumbago, and she's got rheumatism, best marry while you've still got the best of bad health before you." He turned back to them. "I'll send a groom to your father with the message. I'm sure he'll be very happy to know you're here."

Sir Byrd disappeared in search of the groom. Daniel put his arm around Hannah and led her back to fireplace in the breakfast room.

"Rheumatism," he teased, sinking down into a chair and pulling her down after him. "I suppose I'll have to carry you from place to place, to save your poor knees."

"With your lumbago?"

"Ah, but you nursed me and I made a full recovery." Daniel ran a hand gently up and down her waist, sending warm shivers down Hannah's spine. "And besides, I rather like the feel of you in my arms."

It was a pleasant feeling to be in them. Pleasant to have no reason to leave them, for the snow had started up again outside, and Hannah thought she might be trapped in Sir Byrd's house for the day at least.

"Alright," she said, nestling closer into him, the warmth of his body leaching into her own. "I'm rheumatic, and I can't walk, can't, I think, even sit up without help. So you mustn't let me go."

Outside, the snow continued to bank up. Inside, the young couple continued to be unaware of it, unaware of everything outside themselves, unaware even of Sir Byrd coming to the breakfast room door and, with a flush and a quickening of paternal understanding, quietly pulling it closed upon them.

~~

A/N: The end!!!