You stared between your two best friends and Anna Strong. "You must be joking," you stated. Anna looked ashamed while Caleb glared at Ben. Ben just kept his gaze on you. "Benjamin Tallmadge, you had better be joking!" you yelled, prompting Caleb to reach over and place a hand over your mouth. "I'm sorry, Y/N. Really I am. But Simcoe is getting too close. It won't be long before he figures out who Culper really is. He knows Anna doesn't have any real feelings for him. That leaves you to distract him. Throw him off course until we can make a plan."

The three of them looked at you with such hope that you groaned and agreed. You hated it though. You didn't even know who Culper was. "I hate you all," you muttered as they pulled you into a group hug. "If anything goes wrong at all, I will personally hunt you all down." They let you go, and scurried off. Now you had one job. Distract John Graves Simcoe, Lieutenant Colonel of the Queen's Rangers.

Finding the man was simple enough. Getting him to notice you was a little bit more difficult. You tried the more mundane ways such as "accidentally" losing your handkerchief, or nearly running into the man. Things like that. But nothing seemed to work. In the end, you knew there was one thing that was absolutely guaranteed to make him notice you. Have him be your valiant knight in shining armor.

"You sure about this, Y/N/N?" Caleb asked after you explained the plan to him. It had been weeks with no luck so you'd had Anna hang her petticoats to get Caleb's attention for you. "It's the only shot I have left, Caleb." He nodded with a sigh before kissing your forehead. "Alright then, off you go. I'll follow." Without any warning, you let out a shrill scream and took off running back to the town, Caleb hot on your heels.

You ran and screamed until you came upon Simcoe. "Help! Please!" You darted behind Simcoe just as Caleb appeared, rifle raised as if to shoot you. He pretended to freeze when he saw Simcoe before turning and running back toward his boat.

"After him," Simcoe ordered. He nearly ran as well, but you made sure you had a gently hold on his coat. Feeling this, Simcoe turned around, his blue eyes locking with your (e/c) ones. "Are you alright, Miss?" You felt yourself beginning to shake being so close to the man your friends had warned you was extremely dangerous. "I-I think so. He just appeared out of nowhere. Gave me such a fright."

"What were you doing alone in the woods?" You pretended to glance down at your feet in embarrassment. "I was gathering berries for my family. Before the winter cold comes. He came upon me so quickly." Simcoe smiled gently down at you as you finally let go of his coat. "Shall I escort you back to your home? I would not want anything unfortunate to befall you." You did your best to smile at him. You couldn't let him see how uncomfortable the situation made you. "I think that might be best. I clearly have a way of finding trouble, even when I'm not looking for it." He chuckled softly and offered you his arm.

Simcoe walked you home, promising to call again the next evening to check on you. Your father thanked him, cutting you off from doing so, but your eyes remained on Simcoe and his were on you. As he bid you goodnight, you knew you had accomplished your mission. You had his attention. Now all you had to do was keep it long enough for your friends to do what they needed.

*time skip*

After spending yet another afternoon with Simcoe(much to your father's delight), you bid him good evening and closed the door behind him. Then, you watched from the window as he walked back toward White Hall. He glanced back and you waved with a smile. The two of you had grown so close over the last few weeks. You couldn't believe you'd been so hesitant to meet him at first. John Simcoe was so much more than Anna had told you.

Yes, he was intense in everything he did. He fought for king and country with a zeal that was almost frightening. But he was so much more than that. Beneath the veneer of a soldier and monster, beat the heart of a lover. Even spending only chaperoned time with him you could tell that. He loved like he fought. With everything he had in him. After that first night when you grabbed his attention, he had begun showing you that he was still a man with desires and passions despite the war. He showed you that he was capable of a love you'd only every read about. And, to your shock, you found yourself wishing you could show him that type of love in return.

Oh, you loved John Graves Simcoe. That much was certain now, though you had no idea when it had happened. And you knew he felt something for you as well. But it was also a fact that once the man learned how it all started, he would despise you. You never thought he would find out so soon.

After a few weeks of spending time together, you found yourself sitting as Simcoe paced in front of you, his eyes wild with fury and fire that you had never seen before. In his hand, he held the message from Caleb that had been waiting for you. It felt as though the walls were closing in on you. The air in the room was thick and suffocating while the silence was deafening. You waited from him to say something.

"Joh-" you began, but he held up a hand to stop you. "Don't speak. I will not hear another of your lies." Your mouth snapped closed. He stopped pacing and turned his sharp gaze to you. "How long?" You furrowed your brows and he yelled, "HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN A SPY?!" You jumped in your seat as tears began to form in your eyes. "I-I'm not a spy, Joh-Colonel. I swear. I was only meant to meet you, get to know you..."

"Distract me?" Knowing you were caught, you nodded. "I swear, I never spied. I know nothing about your movements nor Washington's. I was only meant to keep you busy for a couple weeks. Instead I found myself enjoying your company more than anyone else. That wasn't part of any plan. Developing feelings for you was never part of the plan. I was never meant to fall in love with you, John."

At that, Simcoe froze, his eyes still wide, but this time in surprise. For a moment, neither of you spoke. You once again felt like you couldn't breathe as you waited for him to reply. Anything besides the dead-silent stare he was giving you now.

"You're lying. You're still trying to distract me. To keep me off my guard." You shook your head. This time, the tears fell without permission. "I'm not lying, John. There is a lot I will lie about to protect the people I care about, but not this. I've admitted that our meeting wasn't by chance. I've admitted that I was used as a way to distract you from your hunt for Culper and before you ask, no, I don't know who he is. I have admitted to aiding the enemy, a hang-able offense. Why would I lie about this? I have nothing to gain by lying about my feelings for you. Whether you believe me or not is your choice, but I do love you."

You turned your face away from him as your tears began turning to sobs. It was all over. You had been caught and the man you loved didn't believe you loved him. The man you loved would be the one to tighten the noose around your neck.

John's POV

The fury began fleeing from him when he realized you were sobbing. Whether it was because you were scared for your life or because you truly loved him, he didn't know. But he hated hearing the shaky breaths coming from you knowing he was the cause of your distress. As angry as he was(and rightfully so), he was also a man in love who's heart had been shattered at the thought of you simply using him.

Could he send you to the noose for your crimes? They were crimes. Even though you supposedly hadn't spied on him yourself, your actions had allowed others to do so. But could he really send you to your death knowing that his heart belonged to you and you would take it with you when you were gone? Why did the thought hurt so much?

When Anna Strong had rejected him in favor of Hewlett, John was hurt of course. But nothing like this. This felt like he was shattering into a million tiny pieces. Was this what love truly was? Giving one person the power to feed or kill your joy with only a single word or action?

A particularly loud sob brought John out of his thoughts. You had produced a handkerchief and were trying to dry your eyes. With an almost unheard sigh, John pulled out his own handkerchief. He used his free hand to cup your chin and lift your face up to him. You blinked in surprise, but said nothing at first as John dried your tears, his eyes never leaving yours.

"What will you do, John?" you finally managed to whisper out after a few silent moments. "I-For once I am at a loss," he confessed, "You betrayed our king, yet you were not the ringleader. You know nothing of anyone's comings and goings, but you lied to me. You lied to an officer of the Crown and the man you claim to love. Yet, I don't know what to do."

It was your turn to sigh as one of your hands came up to gently grab his wrist. "I am sorry to have put you in such a position. I-I will do what I must. Either way, I do not suppose we will see each other again." You rose to leave, but John reached out to grip your hand. "What do you mean?"

"I must either run or turn myself in. That is the only way I will not be torturing you with this." John stood abruptly. Hearing that he may never see you again made his heart racing and all the walls guarding it to crumble. "No. I cannot accept that. No one but the two of us know, is that correct?" You nodded. John thought about your contact, but knew they couldn't say anything without implicating themselves as well.

"You cannot go. I couldn't bear it. The very thought would bring me to my knees if you were not here to ground me. Please," he declared, his voice dropping to a whisper," Please, do not leave. Stay. Stay by my side. I don't care about the lies. As long as your confession of love was not one of them."

You stared him, flustered, for a brief moment. Then, you took a small step closer and met his gaze. There was a fierceness there that made it clear you were telling the truth when you whispered into the quiet room, "It wasn't a lie. I love you, John Simcoe." In an instant, John's arms wrapped around you and he held you close. "Kiss me?" you asked. John smiled as he obliged his lady's request.